Microsoft South Africa’s Tech Summit cloud conference, happening next week in Cape Town, is promising interesting insights for developers and businesses which want to take full advantage of the cloud and its related technologies and the exciting changes of our time.

The free two-day conference, taking place on the 13th and 14th February at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, will provide developers, IT professionals, and technologists with the latest insights, developments and trends in cloud computing. Attendees will also be able to obtain advice and insights from experts on subjects such as developer tools and DevOps practices, cloud applications, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics.

Better, faster, stronger

Microsoft explained that the goal of any modern business strategy is to create competitive differentiation and advantage, with IT being a key component of that strategy. IT drives transformative innovation, making it possible for companies to compete more effectively and deliver ongoing competitive advantage.

For instance, weather forecasts provider AccuWeather has to handle more than four billion daily data requests. By switching to Microsoft’s cloud platform, AccuWeather gained on-demand scalability, improved access to real-time weather data, as well as reduced its IT costs by around 40%.

Furthermore, the company could utilise analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities in the cloud through Microsoft Cortana Intelligence Suite, so as to integrate sales data with weather information. Amongst other benefits, this enabled the business to assist customers like coffee giant Starbucks in solving seasonal problems such as running out of ice and cups in hot weather.

Raise your expectations

Although this is just one example of how the successful use of the could enhance a business in measurable terms, there are plenty more. Those attending the tech summit  will have the opportunity to listen to Victoria Grady, General Manager – Azure Experience Marketing and Craig Dewar, Senior Director - Windows 10 for keynotes on Azure and Microsoft 365, where they will spend time sharing Microsoft vision and strategy. The conference will also allow IT professional to experience some of the most recent Azure innovations, including Microsoft 365, through hands-on labs, product demonstrations and technical instructor led workshops.

“Attendees will be able to take advantage of the event Hub, a gathering place where you can learn, network, and meet the Microsoft team, the Microsoft product group, our Partners and our MVP community. There will also be Microsoft cloud and industry experts who can help professionals get the most out of the cloud platform services, with attendees being able to ask them questions, become knowledgeable around best practices, and provide feedback on Microsoft’s Cloud offerings,” says Kethan Parbhoo, Chief Marketing and Operations Officer at Microsoft South Africa.

Together, we thrive

Through these networking opportunities, attendees will be able to discover insights and solutions to their pressing IT and business-enablement questions and problems, including which operational database management system to opt for. For example, they will learn about SQL Server 2017, which offers industry-leading performance and security on Windows, Linux, and Docker containers. Beyond that advantage, Microsoft’s tools further enable developer to build modern applications flexibly - using the language of their choice, on-premises and in the cloud, on any platform of their choice.   

According to Microsoft, this level of access will help ensure that attendees build their cloud skills. The company enthused that, whether one is developing innovative apps or delivering optimised solutions, Microsoft Tech Summit Cape Town is intended to help evolve developers their skills, deepen their expertise, as well as grow their career and business.

To learn more, or to register for the event, follow this link and be sure to keep an eye out for our coverage of the event next week.