Custom cloud application developer Neudesic announced the 3.0 release of its Pulse enterprise collaboration software during Microsoft Dynamics Convergence 2012 event March 18-21 in Houston. Neudesic became a Windows Azure PaaS Advisory Council member in December 2011 and also is a Microsoft National Systems Integrator & Gold ISV Partner. In other words, its ties to Redmond are quite strong.

Speaking of which, new features in Pulse 3.0 include a “Unified Activity Stream” that tightens the integration with Microsoft SharePoint and CRM, allowing other Neudesic clients to collaborate and to access documents from within Pulse. One thing the company is keen to point out is Pulse’s availability on premise and from mobile devices, not just the cloud.

Which brings us to the rivalry with Salesforce. Mark Benioff says “social enterprise,” Neudesic calls it “enterprise social,” but with its enhanced status in the Microsoft ecosystem, we’ve pointed out how Neudesic is tasked with the job of helping Windows Azure compete in the cloud marketplace. Leading up to Convergence 2011, Neudesic was touting the social features of its integration with Dynamics CRM: In an April 2011 interview with InformationWeek the company said the software enhancements will put MS Dynamics on par with Salesforce’s Chatter, the enterprise social media platform.

Yes, the benefits of cloud-based social media are taking hold in the business world. And Microsoft and Neudesic want us to know there’s another kid on the block.