When Competitors Become Collaborators: How IBM and Microsoft Partner to Power Business Success

This article is sponsored by IBM.

?

In tech, partnerships that once seemed unlikely are now unlocking innovation. Case in point: IBM and Microsoft. By combining forces, these former rivals are spearheading digital transformation for leading enterprises worldwide.

The deepening collaboration between IBM and Microsoft is a catalysing success for their joint clients through projects blending expertise, technology, and cloud. Let's explore real-world examples of what happens when competitors become collaborators!

1. OMV: Fueling the Future

OMV Aktiengesellschaft, an international oil and gas firm, aims to achieve net-zero operations by 2050. Transitioning to sustainable models requires adopting new tech – an opportunity where IBM and Microsoft joined forces.

Working together with OMV, IBM Consulting and Microsoft moved the company to a unified SAP S/4HANA system hosted on Azure. Consolidating 170 company codes into one finance template provided consistency and global visibility.

The results for OMV were impressive:

·?????? 3 days faster monthly financial close time.

·?????? A clearer view of group-level financial performance

·?????? Lower IT maintenance costs by migrating SAP to Azure.

·?????? Machine learning forecasts in Azure Synapse Analytics enabling predictive cash flow modelling.

By blending expertise and technology, IBM Consulting and Microsoft enabled OMV to pursue their green ambitions with centralized, data-driven operations. The partnership provided the cloud infrastructure and industry expertise needed for rapid results.

2. Wintershall Dea: Uncovering AI Potential

Germany-based Wintershall Dea, a leading oil and gas firm, looked to AI and data science to boost efficiency, lower costs and support innovation. To accelerate their AI journey, they tapped IBM's strategic Microsoft partnership.

IBM adapted its IBM? AI@Scale? methodology to Wintershall Dea's Microsoft Azure platform, leveraging cross-company data. With IBM Consulting's guidance combined with Azure's capabilities, Wintershall Dea made great strides:

·?????? Identified over 80 potential AI use cases, 20+ are now under active development.

·?????? Established an AI Center of Excellence to scale skills and share best practices.

·?????? Prioritized AI pilots with high ROI like predictive maintenance and production optimization.

By bridging tech prowess from both providers, Wintershall Dea unlocked more value from data through enterprise-wide AI adoption.

3. Petronas: Making Data Accessible

PETRONAS, a Fortune 500 oil and gas firm, needed to streamline data management and decision-making across its upstream business. Teaming up with IBM Consulting and Microsoft, PETRONAS built an advanced data solution on Azure.

Blending IBM's design thinking and Microsoft's cloud, the UP platform became core to PETRONAS' operations:

·?????? 30,000+ active users across web and mobile accessing data.

·?????? 70+ onboarded communities and business units integrated, and 100+ features developed.?

·?????? Millions in cost savings with predictive data replacing manual monitoring.

With digital transformation powered by IBM and Microsoft, PETRONAS activated data-driven decisions and collaboration – an invaluable advantage.

4. The Sky's the Limit: Global Partnership Reaching New Heights

These examples reveal the immense potential being collaboratively unlocked by IBM and Microsoft for clients worldwide.

The partnership is strengthening as companies invest in partnership initiatives such as:

·?????? IBM Consulting establishing 41 global Microsoft competency centers with 40,000+ Azure certifications.

·?????? IBM providing 36+ software offerings on Azure Marketplace spanning automation, data and AI, and mainframe application modernization.

·?????? Joint plans to enable generative AI on Azure to transform business processes.

Together, IBM and Microsoft are removing the friction enterprises once faced integrating solutions from separate vendors. With coordinated services and platforms, the synergy is amplifying speed, scalability, and innovation.

By pooling their expertise, these former rivals help leading organizations pivot to the future, backed by world-class technology and execution. It's a case study in how embracing today's ecosystem-driven business environment pays dividends.

5. When Competition Gives Way to Collaboration!

The digital landscape is too complex for lone-wolf tech providers to solve alone anymore. With IBM and Microsoft leading the way, partnerships that blend complementary strengths are the growth accelerators of the future.

This new era of co-opetition over competition means enterprises worldwide can adopt emerging tech like AI and cloud faster with reduced risk. It's a win-win for innovative companies ready to bring unlikely allies together to drive transformation.

IBM and Microsoft's strategic relationship illustrates how uniting IT leaders can ultimately breed breakthrough success. More and more former rivals are realizing they can accomplish far more together than apart in our connected business ecosystem.

So, who will be the next tech titan to extend the olive branch? As IBM and Microsoft have demonstrated, by working better-together. the possibilities are endless when competitors become collaborators. The historical grudge match gives way to growth and business benefits.

>> Discover more about Microsoft and IBM's joint AI solutions at Microsoft Ignite 2023:?https://www.ibm.com/consulting/microsoft

#IBMpartner IBM Chris McGuire

#partnership #artificialintelligence #ai #CognitiveAutomation #Automation #tech #innovation #IntelligentAutomation #index #futureofwork #management #technology #ignite2023