It is no secret that all major cloud providers, including Amazon (AWS), Microsoft, Google, and IBM, are in a severely competitive environment. The pace of development and releasing new services is enormous, which keeps the aggressive growing customers' expectations even more aggressive. What truly hit me early last month are the investment decisions Microsoft took. At least three new data center regions will appear on the map in the next couple of years: Poland, New Zealand, Italy. Great step forward with significant expansion and clear deployment strategy. I have been a huge fan of AWS for a long time, but I need to admit that Microsoft's move is very appealing to me, primarily in the context of cloud computing.
However, not only the cloud computing field will grow. Microsoft has other productivity and process improvement tools to offer too, among others:
Microsoft Azure - bespoke massive cloud computing enabler - set of cloud services for networking, databases, analytics, IoT, and AI.
Microsoft 365 - our day-to-day friend that helps organize work and increase collaboration. Teams application became quickly one of the top means of communication when we all went remote during the COVID lockdown.
Dynamics 365 and Power Platform – intelligent business applications that enable organizations to grow, evolve, and transform to meet the needs of customers and capture new opportunities.
The local context of the investment
At least $1b will be invested in Poland itself. I live in Warsaw, Poland and I allow myself to express my happiness about this decision - this is fantastic news for the country, companies, and IT professionals. People who have already advanced in MS Azure and its ecosystem will feel the benefits first. Microsoft has been in Poland for more than 30 years and has a vast network established here - around 6000 local partners. The country is presently undergoing a massive digital transformation, and even if it is lagging on a world-wide scale, it is pretty advanced in Europe. The prime minister of Poland gave his endorsement mentioning that the new data center region is a massive step towards country digital excellence in Central and Eastern Europe.
The bespoke decisions and government engagement might make the country a European Digital Valley if the trend persists. I am glad that the notion of the valley is in the air. The circumstance is encouraging, inspirational, and motivational for many people in the data science, IT, or software development field. I perceive this move as a significant trigger for many companies in Poland to rethink their cloud deployment strategy.
Sustainability commitments
Microsoft is not only taking expansion decisions but also committing to sustainability. It might sound vague for many people, but working in an energy management company, I understand how it is vital to keep a high-level picture in mind as far as sustainability is concerned. Having a responsible and committed company such as Microsoft in a country operating on a bog scale is an integral part of the deal.
What is here for me?
If you are reading my blog, there is a considerable chance you are somehow involved in the data science field, broad analytics, IT, or just learning how to get there. Now it is a great time to step into the community and discover some new technologies. Microsoft cloud is a great platform to continue or start with.
Microsoft is also working to bridge the skills gap among the IT community and enhance technical acumen for cloud services to support future employability opportunities.
There are certainly a lot of upcoming job and development opportunities that curious people can take advantage of. A tremendous shortage of skills and increasing demand on the market make cloud computing even more luring for people seeking a job or thinking about upskilling. LEt's take a look at some statistics from the recent Udemy report "2020 Workplace Learning Trends Report: The Skills of the Future".
Source: www.udemy.com
The above lists of top technical skills and highly demanded talent profiles are impressive. The knowledge of at least one cloud technology provider service is roughly as much expected as English language fluency in international corporations. As you have already noticed, MS Azure is enlisted everywhere, is desirable in all industries such as IoT, AI, data science, and software development.
Microsoft is actively investing in different educational initiatives and collaborates with many open source technology developers to democratize the learning of cutting-edge solutions. This month, there was an announcement of a new partnership between Microsoft and Docker to integrate Docker Desktop more closely with MS Azure and the Visual Studio line of products. The cooperation emphasizes once again, how vital the containerization technologies are for future software development. Another current effort is the Azure Community Mentoring Program 2020, organized by Microsoft Azure User Group Poland. This kind of program is a critical driver for the entire adoption cycle of the Cloud.
Here are some of the outstanding resources to start your scholarly:
Let's learn together and keep each other up to date with new development opportunities news :)