Wipro Cloud Strategy Promotes Microsoft BPOS

Wipro Technologies, the IT services arm of Indian megacorporation Wipro Limited, has announced says the company plans to actively promote Microsoft’s Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) — which includes Exchange Online, SharePoint Online and other SaaS applications. The news comes less than a week after Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said he was betting the company on the cloud. Here’s how Wipro plans to assist Microsoft with that bet.

Going forward, Wipro will be a “Dedicated Advisor” for BPOS. Through the agreement, Wipro can enable its customers to migrate over to hosted Microsoft BPOS solutions, which includes messaging, productivity, and collaboration software-as-a-service applications aimed at lowering TCO for SMBs and enterprises.

Interestingly, the official press release indicates that Wipro is developing a “Microsoft Enterprise Architecture Transformation Platform.” While details are scant, it’s easy to speculate based on the name alone that they’re rolling out their own solution to automate data migration from legacy on-premises solutions. We’ll keep an eye out for more on that front.

WiPro certainly isn’t alone with its BPOS ambitions. Computer Sciences Corp., the big U.S.-based consulting firm, has already won a few large BPOS engagements — including a deal with the United Kingdom’s Royal Mail Group.

Meanwhile, WiPro isn’t to be underestimated. With an estimated value in the billions of dollars, Wipro is a major player. We know Microsoft is banking its future on the cloud, and the deal with WiPro could go a long way towards validating that position.