Microsoft, the corporate conglomerate that was the biggest household name in technology for so many years, intends to boost small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in markets like the United Arab Emirates and, by extension, others in nearby markets like North Africa with its new Microsoft 365 Business program.

In a press release Nov. 7 announcing its release and support for the business software suite, Microsoft pointed out that the UAE is leading the Arab world in certain investment sectors, and that SME growth is one of them.

Citing “robust projections” for the future, Microsoft writers mentioned a Dubai business study in 2017 that suggested one thing that small to mid-sized businesses can do to grow and expand is to upgrade their technology.

The new Microsoft 365 business tool, Microsoft says, is a comprehensive way to do exactly that. In announcing the new software, Microsoft is pointing to this merging of Windows 10 operating systems and other tools as a way to boost cybersecurity, do better market research, and generally build a better IT architecture.

“Small businesses are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of security breaches,” Mohammed Arif, regional director of Microsoft 365 Business Group’s division in the Gulf, said in a press statement. “They cannot bounce back from downtime or data theft the way a Fortune-500 company can. That is why Microsoft took care to include some of our most advanced, industry-leading security features in Microsoft 365 Business – so SMEs can concentrate on growth without worrying about the treacherous cyber-threat landscape.”

Speaking to Maghreb News Wire on Nov. 9, ProGlobal Media Account Director Mahvish Hameed said SME growth is all about handling costs and moving forward with the most efficient business processes.

“The right technology can help small businesses,” Hameed said.

He also pointed to the average businesses vulnerability to cyberattacks, saying an estimated 43 percent of cyberattacks are aimed at small businesses.

Microsoft, he said, can help.

“Microsoft gives companies integrated security, management and productivity solutions,” Hameed said. “We want businesses to be able to create a millennial workplace.”

Describing this idea, Hameed said employees should be able to work in flexible ways, working remotely or otherwise adding value to a company in more than the traditional 9-to-5 model.

Hameed also mentioned Microsoft StaffHub, a management tool, as another offering that helps add to the functionality of Microsoft 365 Business for an SME.

Look for more as this set of Microsoft products makes its way to the Maghreb and the Middle East.