Businesses and organizations across New Zealand benefit from Office 365

After one year in the market, Office 365 is being adopted by businesses of all sizes and industries around the globe. New Zealand, a nation known for its small businesses and culture of volunteering, is no exception: "Office 365 is a hit 'downunder' where it's on track to be one of the fastest growing products in Microsoft's history," said Rachel Turney, Product Manager, Microsoft Office Division. "Whether small or large, local or global, educational, nonprofit, or entrepreneurial, there is an Office 365 right for everybody."

Office 365 is secure, anywhere access to email and calendars, Office Web Apps, instant messaging, conferencing, and file sharing. Below is a sampling of how businesses and organizations in New Zealand are using and benefiting from Office365 and the cloud. You can also learn more about Office 365 in New Zealand here.

Au Pair Link - The largest au pair agency in New Zealand and Australasia, with 30 employees supporting hundreds of au pairs and their host families with placements and early childhood education. "We've doubled our staff and we don't need to worry, because Office 365 is nimble and flexible. We can use our capital for things that will grow our business, rather than incurring IT costs." - James Robinson, Director, Au Pair Link    Read the story

Child Cancer Foundation - The Child Cancer Foundation provides ongoing practical, emotional, and financial assistance to up to 900 children per year with cancer, and their families.

"Having Lync means that employees can use instant messaging to quickly connect and have questions answered, and the team uses presence and shared calendar information to work more effectively. Plus, we now have cloud-based voice and video to replace our old internal phone system!" - John Robson, Chairman of the National Board, Child Cancer Foundation    Read the story

Christchurch Women's Refuge - Christchurch Women's Refuge supports families in New Zealand to overcome family violence through a variety of services targeted at reaching their vision of a family violence-free society.

"Like all non-profits, we have one eye on funding and a tight fist approach to overheads, with our focus on delivering services to families. Office 365 enables our organisation to outsource email and concentrate our efforts on our purpose." - Christine Wallace, Office Manager, Christchurch Women's Refuge    Read the story

University of Otago - Founded in 1869, the University of Otago is New Zealand's oldest university. It has an enrollment of more than 21,000 students and operates campuses in Dunedin, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Invercargill.

"Using Office 365 for education, we can let Microsoft do what it does well, and we can work on other projects and services for the University to enhance the delivery of teaching and research." - Mike Harte, Director of IT Services, University of Otago    Read the story

Royal New Zealand Plunket Society - Since 1907, The Royal New Zealand Plunket Society has supported the health and wellbeing of babies and young children.

"Office 365 provides great capabilities, and when you really look into it, much greater peace of mind-in regards to privacy and security-than almost any organisation, including Plunket, could offer with its own IT." - Craig Le Quesne, General Manager ICT, Royal New Zealand Plunket Society    Read the story

Western Bay of Plenty District Council - Western Bay of Plenty District Council manages infrastructure & economic development on New Zealand's East Coast. It's part of BOPLASS Ltd, which promotes shared services between local authorities.

"We know that with Microsoft and Office 365, we can easily set it up additional shared sites and get right to work. The increased organisation and efficiency internally will only help us better serve our communities." - Marion Dowd, IT Manager, Western Bay of Plenty District Council    Read the story

Related links:

• Office 365 in New Zealand
• Office 365 in New Zealand - Customer Stories