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Microsoft Ignite 2015

Last week was the second of the huge Microsoft conferences, following quickly on from the developer orientated Build. Ignite combined, for the first time, several slightly smaller conference, including SPC, the SharePoint Conference, providing great reach into the increasingly connected Microsoft technology stack for IT Pros, Developers and Advanced Business Users/Strategists (amongst whom I count myself).

With this in mind I thIgniteough t I might share a few insights and observations:

Ignite was a bit of a mixed/ambivalent conference for me.

A key reason for going was to understand the updates etc. to SharePoint. The conference claimed to have 76 sessions on SP, but there were only 2 on SP2016 of any note and it is clear that SP2016 has been both delayed and pushed down the stack (though no one stated that out loud).

On the other hand the reasons for this were clear – the new stuff they are bringing through, especially those based on Office graph (OG) and the Next Gen Portals (NGPs) are very exciting but also not yet ready. Since many of those use SP2016 as the ECM backend it is understandable.

A key concern we have is around how the Microsoft push towards NGPs both impacts our services based business model and fragments the user experience due to poor discoverability to NGPs. The conference helped clarify that for us, especially how we should integrate NGP elements into future intranets and evolve our information architecture to take advantage of what is coming.

The Azure ML stuff is truly exciting and foreshadows a whole host of new features, thinking and possibilities. The power of this is incredible and the ability to extend it using your own R code and models is huge. Of course all this stuff relies on the enormous Microsoft cloud, so hybrid is now the minimum option for clients – something we have started advising. The Azure Stack is a neat way of Microsoft standardising between the cloud and on-premise and making it easy to move from the latter to the former when organisations are ready.

Insights into the various fixes and improvements to the technology are welcome, of course. More impressive is how deeply the cultural change at Microsoft reaches – this is truly a different company to the one partners and clients dealt with 2 year ago, and in good ways. This is evident in so many ways – from the Microsoft staff, to engagement via YamJams and User Voice, through to the products and the way they are releasing them (and keeping them secret!).

Disappointments – I had a few… not being able to get in to a few sessions because of oversubscription, the capricious wifi, the miniscule appearance of Cortana and the complete absence of Hololens and Band.

Upsides… apart from the above was how vibrant the Microsoft community is, how far reaching and audacious the vision for the technology is, how robust the current build of Windows 10 seems (every Microsoft and demo machine was running it – with zero stalled or dead machines) and what a fair city Chicago is in the spring.

About Ignite: https://myignite.microsoft.com/#/home

Watch the sessions: http://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Ignite/2015

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By Simon

Simon Hudson is an entrepreneur and health sector specialist. He formed Cloud2 in 2008 following a rich career in the international medical device industry and the IT industry. Simon’s background encompasses quality assurance, medical device development, international training, business intelligence and international marketing and health related information and technology.

Simon’s career has spanned both the UK and the international health industry, with roles that have included quality system auditing, medical device development, international training (advanced wound management) and international marketing. In 2000 he co-founded a software-based Clinical Outcomes measurement start-up in the US. Upon joining ioko in 2004 he created the Carelink division and, as General Manager, drove it to become a multi-million pound business in its own right.
In 2008, Simon founded Cloud2 in response to a need for a new way of delivering successful projects based on Microsoft SharePoint. This created the first commercial ‘Intranet in a Box’ solution and kickstarted a new industry. He exited that business in 2019, which has continued to grow as a leading provider of Power BI and analytics solutions.

In 2016, he co-founded Kinata Ltd. to enable effective Advice and Guidance in the NHS and is currently guiding the business beyond its NHS roots to address needs in Her Majesty’s Prisons and in Australasia.

In 2021, Simon founded Novia Works Ltd.

In 2021 he was invited to become Entrepreneur in Residence at the University of Hull.

In 2022 he was recognised as a Microsoft MVP.

In 2025 he founded Sustainable Ferriby CIC, a community energy not-for-profit to develop energy generation, energy & carbon reduction, and broader sustainability & NetZero projects in the West Hull villages.

Simon has had articles and editorials published in a variety of technology, knowledge management, clinical benchmarking and health journals, including being a regular contributor to PC Pro, as well as a presenter at conferences. He publishes a blog on areas of interest at noviaworks.co.uk. He is a co-facilitator of the M365 North User Group. He is a lead author and facilitator on the Maturity Model for Microsoft 365. He is the author of two patents relating to medical devices. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Physical Science and a PGCE in Physics and Chemistry from the University of Hull.

Simon is passionate about rather too many things, including science, music (he plays guitar and octave mandola), skiing, classic cars, narrowboats, the health sector, sustainability, information technology and, by no means least, his family.

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