Accenture New Zealand has announced the launch of a dedicated Microsoft practice.

Head of technology for New Zealand, Nick Mulcahy, said Accenture's experience and track record of success as a global Microsoft partner offered a compelling match of global expertise and local knowledge for New Zealand businesses.

"This is a big development for us and indeed technology consulting services in New Zealand. Were well-positioned for fast-paced growth and success," he says.

"New Zealand organisations will get to benefit from unmatched global expertise, Accenture's global strategic partnership with Microsoft and the success of Accenture's Australian Microsoft Business Group.

"Combined with our local market leading expertise in ERP and cloud services for medium and large organisations, Accenture has unmatched capability to deliver mission-critical Microsoft ERP, CRM, and Azure projects," Mulcahy says.

"No other partner can deliver the strategy, deep industry-specific expertise, and broad array of tech services and people that Accenture can for New Zealand business."

In May last year, Microsoft announced plans to launch an onshore data center in New Zealand giving organisations access to enterprise-grade cloud services, providing additional assurance around data sovereignty into the future.

Mulcahy says the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic had prompted many businesses to advance their digital transformations more rapidly, and pervasively, than had been planned.

"As many New Zealand businesses use Microsoft technology, Accenture was well placed to help them with their transformations," he says.

"For a lot of businesses, last year was like that new pair of glasses. The pandemic was a moment of truth, forcing enterprises to look at themselves through a different lens.

"It raised the bar for how adaptable and how innovative organisations needed to be, and it revealed vulnerabilities that many had largely been able to ignore before. From inflexible work arrangements and fragile supply chains to untrustworthy information, COVID-19 showed businesses the limitations of how they have been operating," Mulcahy says.

"Businesses across every industry have had to dramatically accelerate their digital transformation timelines and pivoted faster than many previously thought they could.

"However, what we have seen is that the gap between those companies using technology effectively and those that do not is widening," he says.

"This has important implications for the commercial success of those companies that are falling behind with their transformations. According to our global research, the top 10% of companies in any industry using technology most effectively are outperforming the digital laggards by a factor of five.

"That means organisations need a technology partner that brings the experience, relationships and technical expertise to best meet their specific needs and digital capabilities," Mulcahy says.

"For some that will mean bridging the growing digital divide. For others, it will be the first step on their digital journey. Our growing New Zealand technology practice means were very well-equipped to serve both."