Credit: Spark
Telco Spark is teaming up with Microsoft to offer new business subscribers Microsoft 365 at no cost for one year.
Spark will provide Microsoft 365 business basic with selected business endless mobile plans and Microsoft 365 Business Standard with selected business flexible broadband plans to subscribers signing up before the end of April.
The company's IT partner network will also help set up, discuss and enable businesses who may need help getting the most out of their Microsoft 365 subscription.
“This is the first time we’ve partnered with another big business to give so many New Zealand businesses access to Microsoft 365 at no additional cost, so we are excited to see how that shows up in way of productivity for Kiwi businesses," said Carol Brown, SMB and corporate business lead at Microsoft NZ.
Spark SME lead Greg Clark said 89 per cent of Kiwis wanted to continue to work from home at least part time after the first lockdown. Studies also suggested that 73 per cent of people working remotely were equally or more productive than when in the office.
In a world impacted by COVID-19 working from anywhere was now the norm, he said.
“Giving small to medium Kiwi businesses the tools to work from where they want to just makes sense especially when going in to work isn’t always an option."
Brown said Kiwi SMEs also had a low adoption rate of cyber security for reasons including lack of understanding and perception around cost and implementation.
"Microsoft 365 takes the confusion out of the equation and gives users access to robust security and compliance software and on-going support meaning more Kiwi businesses will be less vulnerable to attacks on their data," she said.
