Survey finds that 7 in 10 office workers count on being able to work outside of the office, and close to 45% have been multi-tasking by working while watching television; 36% while eating a meal at home; 19% while going to the bathroom.
HONG KONG — Nov. 8, 2013 — Microsoft is declaring November 8 Get It Done Day, to motivate people who seek to balance life’s demands on their own terms to take action. Across different countries around the world and also online at office.com/getitdone and #GetItDone, Microsoft is empowering people everywhere to share their story and inspire others to express how technology helps them get the things they care about – from work to home – done from anywhere. Since launch, Office 365 is gaining traction around the world. Office 365 adoption rate is increasing in triple digits with the user base Hong Kong demonstrating a similar growth rate. Over 60% of the Fortune 500 are now paying to use Office 365, while Office 365 Home Premium is having over 2 million active subscribers.
In the busy commercial world, on matter where you are – at the office, airport or the gym – the need for you to get things done away from the office has never been greater. As life and work blend together, over half (56%) of office workers said they are expected to be able to get work done no matter where they are; more than one third (37%) said they get their best ideas outside of the office; close to half (47%) have worked when they were on vacation and 7 in 10 office workers (70%) count on being able to work outside of the office in places like airports, trains, cafes and parks; according to a recent study conducted online by Harris Interactive on behalf of Microsoft Corp among 1,000 information workers in U.S.
“The Harris survey reveals that people not only want, but need to be able to work anywhere, online or offline, at all points throughout the day,” said David Hooper, Director of Office Division of Microsoft Hong Kong. “Nowadays, ‘office’ is no longer confined to four walls, and that’s exactly where Microsoft Office 365 can help. As we fight off the ‘enemies of done,’ from lack of WiFi to that important document you need to send now that’s sitting in your computer at home, Office 365 is productivity reimagined and way beyond anything else in its class. It is much more than just the Office used by a billion people around the world. This is the new Office, for the new world of work and play.”
In Hong Kong, the broadband penetration and mobile device usage is among the highest in the world. From government statistics, as of July 2013, household broadband penetration rate is 84% and mobile subscriber penetration rate is 233.2%, whereas there are close to 20,000 public WiFi access points. The Modern Family Lifestyle Survey conducted by The Public Opinion Programme at the University of Hong Kong earlier this year reinforced the fact that technology helps get things done. 60% of the survey respondents consider the ability to access and share information flexibly using different devices throughout the day important, and more than 60% of these people agree that technology can help them get more organized, and thus save time.
New Office 365 updates to help more people get work done
Microsoft today also announced several product updates that will improve the productivity of even more people:
- New Updates on Sharing Office 365 Home Premium. Starting next month, Office 365 Home Premium subscribers, can share subscription benefits with up to four members of their household. Each household member can use the available installs on their own PCs, Macs, or mobile devices, and each family member gets an additional 20GB of SkyDrive storage (total 100GB), and can manage their own copy from their “My Account” page.
- Microsoft Office Web Apps. Microsoft has updated Office Web Apps with two highly anticipated features – the introduction of autosave in the Word Web App and real-time co-authoring, a feature that allows multiple users to contribute to and edit documents simultaneously in the Word Web App, PowerPoint Web App or Excel Web App.
- Yammer. All Microsoft Office 365 plans now ship with Yammer Enterprise, and all existing Office 365 customers will receive Yammer Enterprise licenses. In addition, Office 365 customers no longer have to purchase individual licenses for users within their external networks. Microsoft has also created the Yammer Partner Enablement Program, designed to provide deeper insights and best practices for how to sell, implement and integrate a successful enterprise social solution.
- Power BI for Office 365. Currently in public preview, Power BI will be officially available in the first half of 2014. Power BI enables people to easily combine private and public data in the cloud to create rich, insightful visuals for the management to make faster, more educated decisions. To learn more and register for the preview visit www.powerbi.com.
More companies turn to Office 365 to get things done
Companies understand the demand for people to get work done no matter where they are. Today, BNSF Railway Co., one of the largest freight railroad networks in North America, announced they are turning to Office 365 to give their 45,000 employees the tools they need to be productive and responsive, regardless of location, on any device, while reducing IT costs, providing cloud services, and integrating social media.
“The bulk of our employees don’t work at a desk, but that doesn’t matter with Office 365,” said Jo-ann Olsovsky, Chief Information Officer at BNSF. “With Office 365, our employees can securely access the information they need to help operate the railroad and to ensure safety on the line from any device. Mechanics in the shop can check their manuals in the cloud and sales and marketing representatives can download service presentations while in a customers’ office. It’s a solution that connects everyone from wherever they need to get work done.”
More information on how Office 365 can help people Get It Done is available at http://www.office.com/getitdone. The Office 365 Facebook and Twitter profiles feature more stories about how people and companies are coming together to get things done, anywhere and anytime.
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| A recent study conducted online by Harris Interactive showing the needs of getting things done away from the office. |
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About the survey
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Microsoft Oct. 16–23, 2013, among 1,000 U.S. employed adults ages 18 and up. Respondents use technology (such as computers, smartphones and tablets) every day to get their work done and work in a traditional, executive/shared/not at the company headquarters, or virtual office. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
