Tuesday, 01 November 2011

Looking for a

Microsoft Roadmap?

Is your company planning significant rollouts of Microsoft technology over the next two years? Or developing new products or solutions on the Microsoft platform? Our forward-looking Microsoft Roadmap will save you countless hours of research, help you avoid costly mistakes, and equip you to derive more value from your company's Microsoft investments.

Directions on Microsoft Roadmaps are used by thousands of companies across the globe to plan projects, schedule migrations and budget purchases with precision. Our team of Microsoft technology experts have tracked down the important dates, documented all the key features, and identified the critical dependencies for over 100+ versions of Microsoft enterprise products -- all summarized in a single, easy-to-use resource. Now you can get the same information that your peers have and make well-informed technology decisions about your IT future.

"Your roadmap is the Rosetta Stone of deciphering Microsoft. For the first time I have a clear understanding of
Microsoft's major product groups and their timetables -- technologies central to our business.”

Steve Rossiter, Partner, Transoft

Microsoft Enterprise Roadmap Sample

(download pdf)

"A must-have for any executive or technologist to effectively and efficiently
manage and implement Microsoft solutions."

Anthony Vecchiarelli, Sr. Director, Avanade

What is it?

Each quarter we publish an up-to-date Roadmap that contains 72+ pages of essential planning information for Microsoft customers and partners who need to schedule migrations, plan evaluations, arrange training, and budget purchases. For each of the 100+ Microsoft product versions summarized our Roadmap provides:

Product overview and usage scenarios
Relevant service packs and support retirement dates for existing versions
Codenames, release dates, and important new features for future versions
Dependencies on other Microsoft products
Pointers to relevant product evaluation and licensing guides

"Your roadmap helped me cut through the fog of information I get from the Internet. It also won me points with our East Coast office because I was able to point to features that will give us a better way to do a current job.”

Regional IS Director, Cozen O'Connor

How is it delivered?

Our Microsoft Roadmap service is delivered in three ways:

1. Report: Each quarter, we publish a 72+ page reference that puts critical planning information about Microsoft's enterprise product set all-in-one-place and at your fingertips. A searchable version of the current Roadmap is always available in the members area of www.DirectionsOnMicrosoft.com. Click here for a [Sample Roadmap Report]

2. Poster: We also publish a convenient pull-out wall poster each quarter with illustrations and charts so you can see a summary of all Microsoft enterprise products and their interrelationships at a glance. Click here for a [Sample Roadmap Poster]

3. Analyst Briefings: Our expert analysts host a Roadmap TeleBriefing every quarter to summarize what's new and what's changed. Directions on Microsoft clients get the chance to hear insights and observations from our analysts in-person and ask specific questions.

“At the National Defense University, our students are CIOs running IT programs with budgets of eight, nine, or ten digits a year. I want to get them thinking about your Microsoft Roadmaps as the premier example of the kind of information they need for software planning, for intelligent software management -- particularly of Enterprise Agreements -- and for planned IT technology transitions. Your resource set is exceptional."

Carl Clavadetscher, PhD, Professor, IRMC, National Defense University, U.S. Department of Defense

How do we do it?

Throughout the year, our eight-man team of analysts combs through hundreds of sources, including Microsoft sites, events, speeches, commentary and press releases. Our analysts are also in constant contact with managers inside Microsoft product groups. They verify, synthesize and compile enormous amounts of information through a rigorous, multi-phase review process. We spend the hundreds of hours it takes to track down the information, check the details, and make the analysis so you don't have to.

"Directions on Microsoft gives me all the IT information I need about Microsoft in one service that I'd otherwise have to find in many other places. I always keep the latest copy in my briefcase and this saves time and helps me make better, faster decisions because I don't have to review multiple sources."

Henry J. Dennig, Managing Director of Technology, The Annie E. Casey Foundation

What's it Worth to You?

Is our Roadmap worth the price? Sometimes Microsoft or one of its resellers will give you a roadmap for a specific product. Sometimes you can hunt down the information you need for yourself.

First, we don't have a hidden agenda. Our core mission is to supply IT decision makers like you with actionable information about Microsoft's product roadmap that's clear, accurate and entirely free of marketing hype. We're not trying to sell you software, just equipping you with independent and thoroughly vetted information that will save you time and help you make smarter decisions for your company.

Second, what you don't know can be costly. New versions of Microsoft enterprise software deliver potentially useful features and capabilities. But they also introduce new dependencies and new support implications that could impact your decisions. Without the complete picture you run the real risk of making mistakes that can easily cost your company tens- or even hundreds-of-thousands of dollars: For example, developing a solution for a product Microsoft is likely to abandon, migrating to a new version too soon (or too late), or purchasing Software Assurance for a future version you aren't likely to receive. Our Roadmap gives you the big picture view across more than 100 Microsoft enterprise products. Instead of reacting to shifts in Microsoft's product roadmap, you'll spot the shifts that impact your business while there's still time to do something about it.

Third, your time is valuable. Even if you could track down and verify the Microsoft roadmap information you need for yourself, is it the best use of your time? Wouldn't it be better to have all the basic facts at your fingertips so you can focus your attention on strategic activities such as building business cases, architecting new solutions, budgeting for licenses, and planning migrations? Our Roadmap lets you maximize the ROI on your time for a tiny fraction of the cost of doing the research yourself.

"We spend a great deal of time and money making sure that we carefully manage our Microsoft
technology and licenses. You have made our jobs a lot easier and now we can focus on other things using the time that we've saved."

Christ van Gestel, Product Group Manager, IVENT

Convince Your Boss!

Cut and paste this letter if you need to justify Directions on Microsoft to your boss:

Dear [your boss's name here]:

I'd like to purchase a license for the Directions on Microsoft research service. This is an independent analyst firm out of Seattle, WA that has focused exclusively on Microsoft technologies and licensing programs since 1992. A Directions on Microsoft license will give us access to a trusted source of information about Microsoft's product strategies, technology roadmaps, licensing programs, marketing activities and organizational changes.

If you're not familiar with their work, they produce quality information to help companies evaluate and plan for new Microsoft enterprise products. You can review some samples at this link on their website: http://www.DirectionsOnMicrosoft.com/Samples.html

A subscription to their services is $1,495 and would give us one full year of the following:

Monthly Update Newsletter. Objective and easy-to-consume news and analysis will make it easier for us to efficiently track shifts in Microsoft technologies and strategies that could impact our decisions.
Quarterly Microsoft Product Roadmaps. All-in-one-place references summarizing 100+ current and planned Microsoft enterprise technologies will help us target our purchases and development efforts.
Bimonthly Research Reports. Definitive guides to new Microsoft enterprise products will help us intelligently evaluate new Microsoft technologies and initiatives.
Licensing Outlines. Easy-to-understand guides to Microsoft's complex licensing programs and rules will help us accurately budget our software purchases and stay in compliance without over buying.
Semiannual Microsoft Org Charts. Names, titles, job descriptions and reporting relationships for Microsoft's top 600+ executives will help focus our Microsoft relationship efforts.
Searchable Database. Online access to a comprehensive dataset of Microsoft-focused research and analysis will make it easier to find answers to our Microsoft-related questions.
Monthly Analyst Briefings. Monthly briefings by subject matter experts will help us quickly get up-to-speed on new Microsoft technologies that may impact our plans and projects.

I routinely expend significant time and effort trying to track down and verify the information I need about Microsoft on my own. This information is hard-to-find and the information I do find is usually incomplete and often misleading.

The Directions on Microsoft service will put reliable information about Microsoft technologies, product roadmaps, and licensing programs at my fingertips so I can focus my attention on strategic activities such as building business cases, architecting new solutions, budgeting purchases, and planning migrations. In my opinion, a subscription to this service is well worth the investment.

Bottom line, the Directions on Microsoft service will equip us with objective and timely information about shifts in Microsoft technology, strategy, licensing programs, and initiatives that impact our business at a small fraction of doing the research ourselves. It is information we'll use to improve and speed our decisions and maximize the ROI on our Microsoft investments.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

[your name here]

How do I get the Roadmap?

1. Subscribe. Get the next four quarterly Roadmaps -- both hardcopy and online versions -- along with access to our comprehensive suite of Microsoft-focused information resources when you subscribe to our complete service. Annual subscriptions start at $1,495 for a 1-user license or $2,995 for a 5-user license. Subscribe.

2. Individual Copies. Not ready to subscribe? Get a copy of the current Roadmap report and poster for just $995 ea. Contact Us.