Top execs weigh in on post-pandemic business prospects

Alain Crozier, Microsoft corporate vice-president, chairman and CEO of Greater China region

A1: Since the novel coronavirus outbreak began, Microsoft has been providing technical and financial support to help front-line responders in the fight against COVID-19 while also enabling local companies to be productive remotely and resume production. From the upcoming meetings we hope to learn what measures the government will take to continue to support enterprises' and small- and medium-sized businesses' resumption of production in the post-epidemic era as it will help the technology community understand how we can continue to support businesses and organizations that have not yet resumed work.

A2: The outbreak has affected our planning and strategy to a certain extent, but we still maintain confidence in the Chinese market in 2020. The urgent demand for remote working solutions, for example, caused many enterprises and organizations to take notice of Microsoft Teams, which is a key element of Microsoft 365, an integrated personal and organization productivity solution offered by Microsoft. We're encouraged to see our technologies and products empowering millions of people and hundreds of thousands of business in their efforts to fight COVID-19 and revitalize productivity.

A3: During this difficult period, we experienced the challenges and urgent needs of our customers, especially SMBs and partners. We are pleased to see the National Development and Reform Commission has issued a series of supportive and preferential policies in the "Partner Actions" to help small- and medium-sized businesses not only resume production, but also achieve digital transformation so they can achieve even more business value in the post-pandemic era.

A4: The urgent demand for remote working solutions during the outbreak has caused many enterprises and organizations to take notice of Microsoft Teams. During the outbreak, we saw so many great examples of schools continuing their classes during quarantine using technology; doctors helping patients via video conferencing, companies continuing to operate with employees working from home in China using our technology. Obviously, China is leading the modern workplace evolution, and it also provides a valuable reference for companies in other countries and regions that are fighting the epidemic. We believe technology will play an essential role in the new normal, a hybrid working model that combines work-from-home and work-from-office to optimize productivity and balance for organizations and their employees.

A5: Microsoft has always put the health and safety of our employees and their families as top priority. When the outbreak first started, we immediately implemented a Work from Home policy. When we returned to work in our facilities, we continued to honor the principles of employee health and safety above all, and WFH still remains an option for most employees today. Microsoft employees in China remained and continue to remain on normal working status throughout the epidemic period, and many have also made their own contributions to combat the pandemic. Whether personally participating in the company's donation scheme where all donations are matched, volunteering for organizations helping their communities stay safe and recover, or providing technical support for customers and organizations to help them stay productive during the epidemic, we ensure every Microsoft employee in China can contribute.