You are almost ready to move your business applications, data, and infrastructure to the Cloud but you still need to be a little bit more confident.
These 4 pillars represent the main value proposition for what differentiates Azure from the competition.
Those are the reasons why customers choose Microsoft, because of the unique value that we provide in a productive, hybrid, intelligent, and trusted cloud.
Microsoft has lately announced a new capability in Azure Site Recovery to further improve the Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery posture of Azure VMs – in-line enablement of ASR at the time of VM creation.
This capability helps all Azure infrastructure customers avoid the hassle of separately configuring DR across regions (or zones) after the creation of VMs.
Microsoft recognizes that as the customers move and more business-critical applications to Azure, their resilience is of prime importance.
ASR is a key pillar of Microsoft’s resiliency offering, which allows customers to protect their Azure VMs against regional outages.
Previously, there was no seamless way to enable ASR during the creation of a VM. End customers had to follow through and execute a different workflow to protect the VM from regional (or zonal) outages after the VM was up and running.
With Microsoft latest release, now all end customers will be able to enable ASR while creating a VM. ASR will be one of the VM Management options alongside the ones currently available for configuration – Monitoring, Identity, and Backup, among others.
To get started, a customer can simply head over to the Azure portal. Go to ‘Virtual machines’ and click on ‘+ Add’. Go to the Management tab and select ‘Enable Disaster Recovery’ under ‘Site Recovery’. Make the relevant selections and proceed to create Azure VM. Once the VM is created, replication will be automatically enabled within a few minutes.
It shall be noted that so far, this offering is currently limited to Windows VMs and CentOS, Oracle Linux, and Red Hat Linux VMs. Microsoft also do not support zone to zone (in region) disaster recovery through the Create VM workflow currently.
Microsoft has announced price increases to the following SKUs starting on March 1st, 2022.
Enterprise SKUs:
SMB SKUs:
NOTE: Prices for Microsoft 365 E5, Microsoft 365 Business Standard, and Frontline SKUs will not change in the meantime. These price changes will impact all public sector customers worldwide while purchasing channels for nonprofit solutions are not changing at this time.
The marketplace has changed forever, and the tech market—especially the cloud-based solution and service—is constantly evolving, forcing businesses to take new routes to adapt to these changes. As businesses, our resellers and managed service providers (MSPs) want to remain competitive while capitalizing on what the cloud offers them and accelerating their growth. To smoothly transit into the digital field, they must implement efficient software and migrate their operations, systems, and client databases to a cloud that provides flexibility and a variety of adaptable choices without wasting resources. For that, Microsoft has been shifting and improving its products and programs, and one of them is its cloud service.
In 2019, Microsoft launched the New Commerce Experience (NCE) for Azure as a seat-based offer in the Cloud Solution Provider (CSP), a long-term investment, and a new way resellers and MSPs can transact with Microsoft. This program intends to:
Microsoft has expanded NCE to include Power Platform, Windows 365, Microsoft 365, and Dynamics 365. These products will be available for purchase in the new commerce experience starting in January 2022.
MSPs and resellers will be able to manage their clients’ subscriptions consistently and safely in one cloud. Through efficient integration, NCE promises adaptability of existing and new products, availability of add-ons as external services, and updated APIs for easy-flowing communication between applications and networks. The new commerce platform helps resellers and MSP increase their sales in a more simplified way and build their client database through value-added services to grow and connect effectively. Besides, it minimizes the risk of having customers that don’t commit to a long-term subscription or can’t benefit from a monthly agreement. With this program, revenue forecasts will be more accurate, alleviating the impact of long-term subscription revocations. As a Microsoft indirect provider & distributor, we at BPS want to ensure the best cloud solutions for our MSPs and resellers, offering them smoother purchase and licensing processes that save them time and money in the long term and position them for future growth.
To help our resellers migrate their Microsoft licenses from the CSP and other programs to NCE, we are ready to guide them and offer new advantages and promotions that this migration and integration will bring with it. Our NCE launch will be on January 11th, 2022. Be an early bird to benefit from all the amenities this new program will offer because starting March 2022, its products and service prices will go up. Additionally, the yearly plan will have a competitive pricing. It’s your turn now. Migrate to the new commerce platform and expand your systems across the market as a leading company or provider to your customers. With NCE, purchasing, managing, and connecting Microsoft platforms has never been easier.
This is your opportunity to migrate your subscriptions to the cloud with less time and resource wastage. Contact us by filling out this form, and we’ll be more than happy to help you with your process.
Microsoft is announcing changes to the commercial pricing for Microsoft 365—the first substantive pricing update since they’ve launched Office 365 a decade ago.
This updated pricing reflects the increased value Microsoft has delivered to its customers over the past 10 years.
Take a look at some of the innovations they’ve delivered over the past decade in three key areas—communications and collaboration, security and compliance, and AI and automation—as well as the addition of audio conferencing capabilities that they’re announcing today.
Since introducing Microsoft 365 they have added 24 apps1 to the suites—Microsoft Teams, Power Apps, Power BI, Power Automate, Stream, Planner, Visio, OneDrive, Yammer, and Whiteboard—and have released over 1,400 new features and capabilities in three key areas.
 → Communication and collaboration.Â
In 2020 Microsoft released over 300 new capabilities including Together mode, background effects, large gallery view, raise a hand, live reactions, breakout rooms, live captions with speaker attribution, and Fluid components, just to name a few.
 → Security and compliance.
 →  AI and automation.
Click to learn more
Contact us to learn more [email protected]
Microsoft Teams is quickly gaining users amid the ongoing shift to Microsoft 365. As the adoption continues to grow, Teams has become an important workload to factor into your migration plan.
In this white paper, you’ll learn:
• Top considerations when preparing to migrate Teams to a new Microsoft 365 tenant.
• What is migrated and what is not.
• Important tips for configuring Teams migration projects.
Download the white paper to power your next Teams migration.
Brought to you by BitTitan®. Helping you make your migrations easy, fast, and secure.
Nisrine Jamai is a Technical Sustainability Program Manager at Microsoft. She overlooks providing product expertise on the Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability (MCFS) in the CEMA region (Central & Southeast Europe, Middle East and Africa) and by extension its implementation consulting to customers and partners who are motivated by the Microsoft vision for sustainability. Nisrine has an extensive engineering background in renewable energy technologies and has actively put in place work in the context of sustainable technologies, bio-energies associated with the production of the second-generation bioenergy and biogas from waste.
As the Head of Microsoft Azure Presales at BPS, Youssef is a dynamic leader in the world of technology and business. With a deep commitment to leveraging technology for sustainability, Youssef plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of cloud computing.Beyond their professional achievements, Youssef is an avid reader and learner with a passion for technology. They also have a keen interest in AI and Data Science, always staying up-to-date with the latest advancements in these fields.With a wealth of knowledge and a dedication to excellence, Youssef is poised to share invaluable insights at GITEX, making a significant impact on the audience.
Stanislav Lencz is devoted to making organizations, technology, communication, and processes serve people.
He has excellent communication and networking abilities and extensive experience in Project / Team Management, Business Solution and Solutions Design architectures.
After many years of professional career covering mainly domains of Biometrics and Identity related solutions, since 2016 he dedicates himself intensively to company, community and leadership consulting, networking, and thought leadership. Passionate in helping individuals and teams re-discover their purpose and build unity in diversity. He currently serves as Country Director for Slovakia and Regional Director for Europe and Middle East, at Consulus.
Hrvoje Lovrić is a Senior Business Consultant devoted to making organizations, technology, communication, and processes serve people.
He has excellent communication and networking abilities and extensive experience in Telecom, Energy and Education sectors, and experience in EU Funding applications.
After many years of a professional career covering mainly domains of creating and implementing marketing and sales strategies, working as a lecturer at the graduate study of Entrepreneurial Management, since 2020, he dedicates himself intensively to company, community, and leadership consulting, networking, and thought leadership.
After studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing and later Master of Science in Economics, MBA, University of Zagreb, Croatia led him into organizations such as Croatian Telekom, Optima Telekom, and Helb Engineering.
He currently serves as Country Lead for Croatia at Consulus.
Clara Kwan is the Global Head of Sustainability and Impact Investment of Consulus and the Chief Sustainability Officer of DesignFutures Venture. She graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Law (Honors) and has an Executive MBA from the Kellogg School of Management.
Clara spearheads and executes strategic decisions and provide strategic consultations on sustainability issues, investments and best practices for companies, including establishing ESG principles and roadmap into regional and local processes in companies’ management, operations, legal and compliance, business continuity planning, marketing and human resources. She assesses and manages investment and financing portfolios from a legal, sustainability and social impact angle.
She sits on boards and previously held the positions of Chief Operating Officer, Head of Sustainability and Managing Director (Singapore) for a regional green independent power producer.
Clara is also a certified mediator and an attorney who is qualified in several jurisdictions. She has served clients globally including Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Dubai, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, United Kingdom and United States.
Ahmed Ameen Ashour is a forward-thinking, and results-driven leader who has dedicated his career to driving innovation and positive change in the areas of Ed-Tech and Sustainability. As of 2023, Ahmed has assumed the pivotal role of Chief Sustainability Commercial Officer at Microsoft, bringing his extensive leadership expertise to the forefront of the company’s sustainability initiatives.
In this new role, Ahmed’s primary responsibility is to help enable organizations both in public and private sector on their ESG journey through leveraging Microsoft’s Sustainability Cloud Solutions. His focus is on developing and implementing scalable business and go-to-market strategies for Microsoft’s Cloud for Sustainability platform, empowering organizations to make a significant impact through sustainable innovation, digital transformation, and growth.
Prior to this transition, Ahmed served as the Education Industry Director for Microsoft UAE & GCC, where he was instrumental in leading the company’s engagement within the education sector. He established key alliances and catalyzed an education transformation through the use of technology. His impact can be seen in numerous UAE education initiatives, including the Mohammed Bin Rashid Smart Learning Program (MBRSLP), One Million Arab Coders, Madrasa.org, Mohammed Bin Rashid Virtual Schools (MBRVS), and the UAE’s transition to remote learning during the COVID pandemic.
A thought leader in sustainability, Ahmed is committed to engaging with partners and startups to develop innovative sustainability solutions that can quickly go-to-market. His passion for making a positive impact on the future of our planet is evident in his commitment to building a better future for generations to come.
Ahmed began his journey at Microsoft in 2008 as an Industry Solutions Lead for Education, following a decade-long career in education consultancy across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa region. He holds a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Louisville (US) and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Ain Shams University (EG). Ahmed’s blend of deep technical expertise, leadership, and dedication to sustainability make him a driving force in Microsoft’s mission to empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more through sustainable practices.
Lawrence Chong is the CEO and Co-founder of Consulus. A recognized thought leader in Innovation and Strategy.
He is a regular speaker at global events and has spoken at Innovation by Design, World Marketing Summit, World Brand Congress, Business of Design Week. He is a featured Columnist on innovation, branding, and design for Asian businesses. He is a featured thought leader on the largest professional network, LinkedIn and is followed by 400,000+ professionals.
His insights appear regularly in regional media such as the TheEdge, Radio 93.8, Business Insider, Marketing, Business Times Singapore, VTC (Vietnam), Doanh Nhan Sai Gon (Vietnam), CafeBiz (Vietnam), Ceylon Today, Brunei Times.