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2011 was a trying year for the economy. How did you run the operations in Microsoft Slovenia? Are you happy with the results?
We are working in a challenging economic environment, globally and locally. The economic crisis poses a threat but also provides opportunities for different businesses and companies. It motivates us all to be even better, work harder and to offer superb products and services that our customers would value. It is necessary to take a different approach to management, improve agility -constant and careful monitoring of market developments and changes, fast decision making, adopting new strategies on the fly, quick responses to opportunities ... It is times like these that highlight the innovative thinking of our employees and their ability to think outside the box.Microsoft is a very dynamic company that employs very capable, experienced, highly qualified, dedicated and motivated people. This enables us to achieve good business results and spur great demand for our products for businesses and consumers.

In which areas were you the most active?
Our special focus was on business solutions and services which can help companies reduce their costs, increase productivity and improve their competitive advantage. Our customers range from consumers to businesses of all sizes, NGOs and government organisations. We pay special attention to our customers' and partners' satisfaction. Every year we measure how satisfied our customers and partners are with the quality of Microsoft products and services and the responsiveness and professionalism of our employees. We believe that long term business growth and competitive advantage in the IT industry are based on excellent knowledge, skill and innovation, which is why we continuously invest in building capabilities within our organisation and also our business partner network.
On top of our commercial activities we were also very busy in driving initiatives aimed at stimulating local economic growth. For example, we focused on job creation and skill training through projects such as the Imagine Cup, the largest student competition with more than 350,000 participants from 183 countries and the Simbioz@ project that helps senior citizens obtain IT skills. We were also supporting the country's efforts in increasing IT literacy for underprivileged citizens through the Unlimited Potential program. We also support volunteering activities, motivating our employees to engagein social activities in our environment.

What is your opinion of IT development in the Slovenian economy which is mostly based on small and medium companies? Do you believe IT plays an important role in their operations?
Today IT is the foundation of any business, regardless of the industry or company size.Therefore the more important question ishow can companies really leverage all the benefits provided by IT solutions. On average, companies that manage their own IT infrastructure spend 70%-80% of their budget on purchasing equipment and managing their existing systems. At most, they can invest 30% of their resources in improvements and new applications that would help them become more competitive. With cloud computing the equipment and maintenance costs are substantially lower, freeing up more resources for innovation.
We are beginning to see improved affordability of business software. In the past, only corporations with huge IT budgets could afford to implement CRM or ERP. This is changing rapidly. The cloud levels the playing field for SME's, helping them compete in today's quickly changing business environment by spending less time and money on IT and more time focused on their most important priority - growing their core business.

Which are the most sought after solutions among Slovenian companies?
In addition to an increased interest in cloud computing services and business solutions like CRM and BI, we are noticing the trend of IT consumerisation in business environments. This is a trend where employees use an increasing number of devices in their work that they select and buy themselves. These can be laptops, tablets or increasingly powerful smart phones. Ofcourse, this creates new challenges for IT departments, which used to have more control over devices in the corporate network. These challenges include how to efficiently manage these diverse devices, how to ensure the security and confidentiality of sensitive corporate information, etc. Microsoft, through Windows, proven management tools and business oriented cloud computing services, is capable of providing the right balance between the expectations of today's employees and the requirements of business environments.
 

Where do you see Microsoft Slovenia in 2, 5 or 10 years? What is the scope of your strategy at this moment?
Microsoft has always had ambitious goals. Even when we were small, we thought big. Our early ambitions drove the PC industry towards a goal that seemed unachievable in those times:a PC on every desk in every home.Today, as we are approaching a world of always-on software and services, and computer devices of all form factors that connect to the cloud, our strategy is to focus on providing our users with all the information on any device, anywhere in the world.
We see ourselves as a market leader.We dare to enter new markets, no matter how demanding they are. Results speak for themselves. Over the past decade, our annual revenue has increased from US$25bn to US$70bn, while net income has increased 215%. We jumped from a nonentity in data centers to the position of a leading provider, building a business that brought in more than US$6bn in profit in 2011. The Xbox gaming console also came to life and anchors our very successful entertainment and devices division. And now we bet on the cloud and Microsoft becoming a leading cloud computing provider. I strongly believe that we will continue to surprise positively in the coming years, globally as well as locally.

There will be 17th NT Conference taking place in Portorož at the end of May, the biggest business-IT event in Slovenia. Can you share some information about what we can expect there?
NT konferenca will be dedicated to increasing business productivity and performance in a challenging business climate. One of the opportunities is definitely cloud computing where Microsoft has a leading offer of products and services - on the premises, in a public cloud or in a hybrid model.
We will particularly focus on topics that showcase the latest technology and business trends to the business audience. A special track for business users will include two exceptional speakers: David Coulthard, the legendary Formula 1 driver and Mark Gallagher, renowned business motivational speaker. They will talk about the importance of cutting edge technology and teamwork for success in sport and how to successfully replicate this approach in business.