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Microsoft

Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realise their full potential. They are in partners with The Innovation Trust – Monkseaton Community High School, Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear, Tribal Education Ltd and North Tyneside local authority.

Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft, said: ‘We are committed to working with teachers, policymakers and students around the world to find and implement solutions to help bolster the future of education.’

How does it fit with their business

Microsoft has been working with UK government agencies, local authorities and schools to create tools and processes which can help create a vision for the transformed school of tomorrow.

They are passionate about the role of information technology (IT) in business and education and see the development of IT as playing a major role in making education more engaging for students.

Key benefits in becoming a partner

‘Innovation is the lifeblood of Microsoft,’ said Clare Riley, head of education relations at Microsoft (UK), ‘Being a trustee within "The Innovation Trust" enables us to engage with all the partners involved to bring together our combined expertise with the single goal of improving the learning of every one of the students.'

Microsoft sees a major benefit in being able to work as part of a consortium. Often its normal work is based on being involved with one partner at a time – a kind of bilateral working arrangement. In the consortium the working pattern is much more multilateral as the group will work on a problem together - not in isolation.

The benefits are huge as it is only by working with all the stakeholders - students, teachers, management – together with all the other partners that the maximum impact can be made in raising the achievement levels of the students themselves.

Part of the benefit in being a partner is Microsoft can better understand an issue and see how IT can help solve the problem. It can also use the problem to influence future software development so that it is specifically adapted to focus on the needs within education.

A good example of this is the use of an e-governance solution for school governors. The problem faced by a governor is they must be present at all meetings and this is often difficult for many business people who travel extensively.

The outcome was to develop a Department for Education and Skills (now the Department for Children, Schools and Families) approved e-governance ‘live meeting’ solution that automatically records decision making even though some of the attendees were not physically present.

Another key part of Microsoft’s involvement is to create exemplars, solutions and approaches that can be used by other education organisations. The school themselves do not have the resources to disseminate what it is doing and by having the trust partners involved in this activity the innovative work can be shared much more widely.