Microsoft yesterday announced that the MARS candy company, famous for chocolate treats such as Milky Way, and M&Mmaks, has moved to Windows 10. The move means that with the power of Windows 10, along with Office 365 and Microsoft Azure, MARS can digitally transform how its associates work with each other and also how they get work done.
According to Microsoft, MARS has deployed Windows 10 to “help reduce the cost and time associated with large-scale deployments.” As part of the deployment, MARS is using the “Windows as a Service” model to skip the lengthy upgrade cycle which has resulted in accelerated Windows 10 deployment. MARS also set out to deploy Windows 10 to 5,000 Associates in 12 months but already exceeded its goal by 110 percent by deploying Windows 10 to 12,500 Associates.
In a statement, David Boersma, Senior Manager for End-User Technologies at MARS, Incorporated reflected on what Windows 10 means for the company.
“At MARS, we meet our goals… This company will continue to accelerate its growth organically and through acquisition and we’re using Windows 10 to build the flexibility and capabilities we need to get there.”
Additionally, by embracing the “Windows as a Service” model, MARS refocused the time and energy of its IT department “from chasing the next operating system update to strengthening its collaborative culture through Office 365, including Yammer and Skype for Business.” Other areas which are covered in the switch over include Skype for Business, which now enables the candy company to reduced travel, since associates can “use Skype for Business resolve issues in real-time.”
Other benefits for the company in adopting Windows 10 include the fact that associates can quickly connect and share knowledge with Yammer. Of course, due to the flexibility of Windows 10, senior leaders can also use Windows 10 to get their work done no matter where they are, with Surface Pro and other OEM devices. This eliminates the need to carry multiple devices during a walk through of a store, and carry paper to make note of issues. Joe Carlin, Technology Service Delivery Director at MARS, Incorporated, remarked on this.
“By using Windows 10, MARS associates now finish things on the road instead of waiting until they get back to the office. For example, field associates use their Surface Pro devices in store walk-throughs, and if necessary, use Office 365 to connect with other team members and resolve display issues in one day instead of a week.”
Since MARS holds company secrets and intellectual property, security is a priority, and the company enabled Windows security features like BitLocker to encrypt data and Windows Defender to provide a strong layer of security and authentication. Azure is also included, and MARS is currently testing a hybrid cloud model and recently moved its first live production application, a retail app, into Microsoft Azure as well as about 150 other workloads.
If you’re interested in learning more about MARS reasons for choosing Windows 10, you can head over to this website now. As always, please do let us know what you think of this latest news by dropping us a comment below!
