Microsoft unveils new project management suite

More than 1 500 business managers, technology professionals and developers gathered in Seattle last week for the sold-out Microsoft Office Project and Visio conferences, where Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer detailed advances in the upcoming releases of Microsoft Office Project and Microsoft Office Visio.

In addition, Ballmer announced the completion of the acquisition of software and intellectual property assets from UMT, a leading project and portfolio management and consulting firm.

According to noticias.info, the acquisition will provide Microsoft with new technology and talent that will complement and expand upon the existing Microsoft Office Enterprise Project Management (EPM) solution.

The British University in Dubai (BUD) - the region`s first research based university - is conducting research and activities which it is hoped will result in a greater number of Arab women gaining access to senior positions in the business world, reports Al Bawaba.

However, just as in Western countries, Arab women are dramatically under-represented at senior levels of management, with statistics showing less than 10% of managerial positions being occupied by women.

After carrying out an extensive analysis of the role of Arab women in the work place, the team from BUD`s Institute of Engineering, which operates the university`s Project Management Programme, is poised to launch several initiatives which it is hoped will create new management opportunities for women.

An EDS joint venture has been chosen by the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA), in the United Arab Emirates, for a 10-year, $110 million contract covering the entire scope of the utility`s IT services, blackenterprise.com says.

The venture will provide the ADWEA group of companies with infrastructure, applications, and project management services. More than 150 ADWEA IT employees will transfer over to the venture as part of the deal.

In a statement, EDS said the contract is the largest full-service outsourcing deal to date in the Middle East.