Perth-based Velrada has been selected as Microsoft’s Australian growth partner of the year while Melbourne-based Engage Squared was the overall Australian partner of the year.
Perth-based Velrada has been selected as Microsoft’s Australian growth partner of the year while Melbourne-based Engage Squared was the overall Australian partner of the year.
Velrada was also a global runner-up for the Dynamics 365 Field Service partner of the year award.
Announcing the awards overnight, Microsoft said Velrada’s customers included BHP, Catholic Education Western Australia and law firm Maurice Blackburn.
It gained international attention last month when its Power Roster platform was selected to run the resourcing and logistics for the G7 meeting in the UK.
Chief executive Robert Evans said the company had capitalised on the ‘once in a generation’ shift to digital technology, which was accelerated by the COVID pandemic.
“We moved swiftly to support Australian and global businesses to continue operating, sometimes in entirely different ways,” he said.
Mr Evans said one of Velrada’s major projects completed during the year was with BHP.
It used mixed reality and Hololens devices so that BHP experts were able to connect with maintenance workers on mine sites, despite COVID travel restrictions.
Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella ‘visited’ this project during a virtual tour of Australia early this year.
Velrada said its Microsoft online services revenue soared last year by 538 per cent.
Executive director Dominic Nolan said the firm was forecasting that growth will increase by nearly 50 per cent in FY22, aligned to the Microsoft Dynamics global growth agenda.
“Along with our participation in the Microsoft Inner Circle and Partner Advisory Council we see ongoing investment in IP as the pillar for growth to solve the ‘last mile’ functionality for our client’s needs,” Mr Nolan said.
Meanwhile, Microsoft said Engage Squared was a clear leader in delivering exceptional digital employee experiences in many of Australia’s corporations and government agencies.
The consultancy was recognised for its work with St John Ambulance WA, to help connect office staff and first responders delivering primary healthcare.
It accelerated a planned 10-week launch of the Yammer social networking program into just 7 days.
Engage Squared also worked with Catholic Education Western Australia to roll-out Microsoft Teams to its 162 schools.
Chief executive Stephen Monk said the last 12 months had been challenging for everyone, including Engage Squared.
“A key strategy of ours was to double-down our efforts to actively engage and align our work with Microsoft – looking ahead and planning for where the technology and the market would go next,” Mr Monk said.
“This strategy helped us win new clients, supported our expansion into Western Australia and Asia and, of course, achieve some fantastic outcomes for our clients.”
Meanwhile, Perth-based Bremmar Consulting was named a finalist in the Non-Profit category.
"We’re a small business who focuses on creating mutual success for both our team and clients so it’s extremely rewarding to have recognition from Microsoft for having such an impact on non-profit organisations in WA," managing director Brenton Harris said.
The Bremmar award had a strong correlation to the support and work provided to Cahoots - a Western Australian NFP that creates opportunities for children and young people who live with disabilities
Another Australian company to feature in the awards was ASX-listed Data#3.
It was named a global finalist in the OEM Device Distributor/Reseller category.
Data#3 chief executive Laurence Baynham said the company’s Device as a Service (DaaS) solution helped clients manage their challenges.
“Demand has been growing for a new approach to the device lifecycle,” he said.
“Driven by the proliferation of devices, the migration to cloud and the surge in security risks, enterprises are ready to move away from traditional device management.
“The day-to-day headaches of maintaining devices, combined with large capital outlays for device refreshes has, for too long, held IT teams back from achieving their full potential.”
