From more job cuts to partnerships boosting collaboration in the hybrid workspace, here are some extracts from popular news stories this week.

Microsoft to Axe Another 10,000 Staff in ‘Challenging Time’

Microsoft has announced today it will axe 10,000 more jobs by the third quarter of the fiscal year 2023.

Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO of Microsoft, stated in a corporate post on the Official Microsoft Blog:

“We are making changes that will reduce our overall workforce by 10,000 jobs through the end of FY23 Q3.

“This represents less than 5 per cent of our total employee base, with some notifications happening today.”

Nadella stressed that Microsoft is still planning to hire in areas it considers to be high-growth.

He added: “It’s important to note that while we are eliminating roles in some areas, we will continue to hire in key strategic areas. We know this is a challenging time for each person impacted. The senior leadership team and I are committed that as we go through this process, we will do so in the most thoughtful and transparent way possible.”

In the statement shared with the tech firm’s employees Nadella outlined a plan of strategy and prudence and said: “We will continue to invest in strategic areas for our future, meaning we are allocating both our capital and talent to areas of secular growth and long-term competitiveness for the company, while divesting in other areas.”

Nadella said that Microsoft will take a $1.2bn in Q2 related to redundancies, changes in its hardware portfolio and “cost of lease consolidation” – the latter of which will see it create “higher density” across its office space.

The low-key post pointed that Microsoft will be taking a redundancy cost hit north of $1 billion. He stated: “These are the kinds of hard choices we have made throughout our 47-year history to remain a consequential company in this industry that is unforgiving to anyone who doesn’t adapt to platform shifts.”

Those affected by redundancy will receive above-market redundancy as well as six-months extra healthcare cover, he added.

Gamma is launching Operator Connect for Microsoft Teams for channel partners in the UK.

It means that the company becomes one of only two UK providers who can offer the service on a channel model and boosts Gamma’s ambition of becoming a leading provider of Microsoft Teams Phone.

By offering Operator Connect, Gamma will enable its channel partners to scale their direct routing service to provide a cloud-managed solution to customers.

Channel partners can create automation to streamline provisioning, billing, and reporting.

Chris Wade, Chief Marketing and Product Officer at Gamma, said: “We’re delighted to be able to offer our partners the Operator Connect for Microsoft Teams programme and to continue to work closely with Microsoft to deliver enhanced calling capabilities within Teams.

“Gamma has a rich heritage in delivering IP Voice services to our partners, and the addition of Operator Connect further enhances our existing Teams Phone offering.

“Teams is one of the most successful Unified Communications platforms.

“The combination of Gamma’s communications expertise and network reliability and Microsoft’s operator-managed service means our partners and end users will benefit from a reliable and secure service and get maximum value and benefit from their Microsoft Teams environment.”

According to Gamma, introducing Operator Connect is another ‘key component’ in the company’s continued channel development strategy.

Through this strategy, Gamma aims to deliver significant value to channel partners and its SMB customers through professional services.

Google Makes Presenting During Meets Even Easier

Google has made it easier for its Workspace customers to present during meetings.

The company has introduced the ability to view speaker notes within Google Meet while presenting Google Slides directly on the platform.

The feature is designed to improve users’ presentation quality while using Google Meet.

A post on the Google Workspace blog said: “In October of 2022, we introduced the ability to present Google Slides directly in Google Meet. To build upon this, you can now view your speaker notes within Google Meet.

“Simply click the new speaker notes button in the Slides controls bar in Meet to display your speaker notes within the call.

“Present with greater confidence and engage with your audience without having to context switch between notes and slides.”

To use the feature, customers need to select the “present a tab” in Google Meet, choose a Google Slide presentation and then click the speaker notes button in the controls at the bottom corner of the display.

Google has confirmed that the feature is available to users with Google Workspace Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Education Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning Upgrade, and Nonprofits.

GoTo Teams Up With Miro to Bring Whiteboards to its Flagship Products

GoTo has partnered with Miro to bring a new integration to its range of flagship products.

Miro, a visual collaboration platform, is now available for meetings and training sessions in the GoTo application to enable real-time collaboration for hybrid workforces.

GoTo has confirmed that Miro is available for GoTo Connect, GoTo Meeting, and GoTo Training customers.

Damon Covey, Head of Product at GoTo, commented: “At GoTo, what matters to us most is meeting the needs of our customers.

“As hybrid and remote work remain a staple in our workforce, we need to ensure that effective collaboration can occur with the same ease as in the office, regardless of where employees choose to get work done.

“With our new Miro integration, GoTo enables businesses to maintain a high level of productivity through visual whiteboard collaboration from anywhere.”

The integration of Miro into GoTo’s applications will enable businesses to do the following:

  • Collaborate on a Miro board: Due to Miro integrating directly into GoTo’s communications products, customers can access Miro boards without leaving their meetings or training sessions. This is designed to ensure hybrid workers can collaborate more efficiently and effectively.
  • Ideal for hybrid work: By integrating Miro into its platforms, GoTo can drive better engagement across all teams. The partnership is designed to unlock more efficient collaboration through brainstorming, diagramming, journey mapping, and more.
  • Visual collaboration: Users can access tools such as sticky notes, mind maps, timeline builders, code blocks, charts, tables, and more, to help drive real-time collaboration.
  • No need for a Miro account: GoTo has confirmed that its customers don’t need to have a Miro account to use the collaboration tools. Users can create a new blank board within GoTo, which will be accessible for 24 hours. Users who want to save their whiteboards can sign-up for Miro for free.
Kev Chung, Head of Partnerships and Business Development at Miro, said: “Miro is deeply invested in creating new ways for teams to collaborate effectively in distributed, hybrid work environments.

“Our new integration with GoTo creates another method of seamless collaboration and makes it easier for teams to connect, learn, and grow together truly — all in one place.”

GoTo has confirmed that Miro is now available for its customers within the new GoTo application.

Avaya Ponders ‘Handing Control to Lenders’ Amid Backruptcy Talk

Avaya is reportedly ‘in talks to hand control to lenders’ ahead of potential bankruptcy.

As UC Today reported in mid-December, Avaya is facing Chapter 11 reorganisation proceedings for the second time.

RingCentral also recently nominated financial restructuring, mergers and acquisitions expert Jill Frizzley to Avaya’s Board of Directors.

Sources close to the negotiations — reports Bloomberg— have said bankruptcy filing could come ‘by the end of January’ while the apparent talks are ongoing with reported investors Apollo Global Management, Ares Management and Invesco.

The rumoured investors are apparently first liens and have the right to remove assets before others: if debts are not paid.

The supposed talks may extend to debtor-in-possession financing to fund the firm while in bankruptcy. Resulting financial security moves could help ease investor concerns over Avaya’s recent troubled history.

Avaya’s shares fell nearly 97% in 2022, reducing its market cap to around $45 million when two years ago, it was a whopping $2 billion.

In an SEC filing, Avaya stated: “The Company estimates that it will incur approximately $23 million to $26 million in pre-tax restructuring charges, all of which are expected to be in the form of cash-based expenditures and substantially all of which are expected to be related to employee severance and other termination benefits.”

In September, it was announced Avaya expected $26m in costs for cutting jobs. Conversely, the telecommunications firm expects to make substantial savings.

 

 



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