In our first Brainstorm episode, Mary Jo Foley, Andy Snodgrass, Rob Sanfilippo, and Barry Briggs discuss the avalanche of Copilots announced by Microsoft, whether they’ll live up to the marketing hype, and what they mean to enterprises and to enterprise users.

In the last episode of the Directions on Microsoft EA podcast series, Mary Jo Foley quizzes former Microsoft negotiator Dean Bedwell about common Microsoft negotiation traps customers should avoid and the negotiation levers they can apply to optimize their EA renewal outcomes.

Our panel of Directions on Microsoft analysts talk enterprise product and licensing hot buttons for 2023 and what will be top-of-mind in 2024 -- and answer customer questions.

After years of promoting "Cloud, Cloud, Cloud," Microsoft has shifted to "AI, AI, AI." Mary Jo and former Microsoft CTO Barry Briggs put Microsoft’s big bet  on AI into perspective by comparing it to its other strategic initiatives – past, present, and future.

In episode five of the Directions on Microsoft EA Negotiation podcast series, Mary Jo Foley talks with former  Microsoft negotiator Dean Bedwell about the top pricing,  business, and legal concessions every Microsoft customer should ask for and the best way to negotiate for them.

Think you know all about Microsoft's telephony services in Teams? In this episode, Directions analyst Jim Gaynor talks with Mary Jo Foley about the Teams Phone use cases, licensing requirements and more. Whether you're replacing your organization's phone system or looking for the best way to dial into a Teams meeting, Jim has you covered.

In this fourth installment of a series covering Microsoft Enterprise Agreements (EAs), Directions on Microsoft's director of advisory services and former Microsoft negotiator Dean Bedwell shares his top tips and tricks for a successful EA negotiation.

Directions analysts Rob Horwitz and Wes Miller talk with Mary Jo Foley about what they've learned about Microsoft licensing after delivering more than one hundred Licensing Boot Camps over the past fourteen years.  You learn what’s changed – and what never seems to change – about Microsoft licensing programs and rules. You’ll also find out about upcoming changes and the implications for Microsoft customers.

In this third installment of a series covering Microsoft Enterprise Agreements (EAs), Mary Jo Foley discusses the analysis phase of a successful EA negotiation with senior Directions on Microsoft negotiator Steve Kelley.

Microsoft's products, priorities, and strategies never stop changing. In this episode, Directions analyst and former Microsoft CTO for IT Barry Briggs interviews veteran Microsoft watcher and Directions editor in chief Mary Jo Foley about the strategy she’s used to track big shifts at Microsoft for more than 30 years.