Microsoft Executives See Cloud Technologies Empowering Women

Cindy Bates (pictured left) is the Microsoft Vice President of its small and medium-sized (SMB) group. Microsoft aims to help small business with its  Microsoft Office 365, the Microsoft Office collaboration and productivity tools delivered through the "cloud". These tools can also benefit women who want to work remotely. Microsoft Office 365 and 85 Broads surveyed professional women to find out their views on working remotely and their use of technology. Some interesting results from the survey were that women not only work remotely to have better work/life harmony, which is what we would all expect, but also to gain access to opportunities located in cities and countries other than their own. Some women also believe that when they work remotely, their productivity improves and they feel greater job satisfaction. Of course none of this would be possible without the continued improvement in technology. It seems the main downside found regarding working remotely was the fear of missing promotions or new opportunities that might come up if you were always in the office. Maggie Chan Jones (pictured right), Director of Cloud Services at Microsoft, talks how she collaborates with other women on her team who work remotely: “Remote working capabilities have enabled me to maintain effective collaboration with my team, regardless of their location. For example, while the majority of my team is located at Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington with me, one of my key team members lives and works in the L.A. area. With Microsoft Lync, she is able to stay connected through online meetings, instant messaging and email, all of which are accessible via her PC or Windows Phone. Her location doesn’t hinder her productivity; it allows her to integrate her priorities to stay near her family. Another person on my team has to leave the office early each day to pick-up her son from daycare. Remote working technologies make it easy for her to have a flexible schedule and enable her to get back online from home to wrap-up any remaining tasks from the day if needed.”