Forrester Research On Microsoft Office
Posted on 05 June 2009 by officeadmin
New research from Sheri McLeish at Forrester Research shows that 80% of enterprise customers are still using some version of Microsoft Office to perform their day to day office tasks. Her report indicates that a surprising 8% are using alternatives to Office, such as:
- Google Premier Apps (3.3%)
- Sun StarOffice (2.6%)
- Lotus Symphony (1.9%)
McLeish tells us
The bottom line is that Microsoft Office works, and it works really well for most companies , maybe almost too well for those still using 2003 or earlier
These figures lead to one conclusion: that Microsoft Office is still the most prevalent productivity suite among business users.
The Future Of Microsoft Office
According to Forrester’s data, a large majority of companies surveyed have plans to upgrade to Office 2007, with 14 percent planning to do so in the next six months, 27 percent in the next year and 26 percent in the next two years.
Whilst the declining economy has affected the uptake of Office 2007, the predicted upturn should encourage adoption of Office 2010. Despite the pressures that the recession is currently exerting, very few companies are considering alternatives to Microsoft Office. Sheri McLeish thinks that this is due to the legacy and interoperability of Office.
Satisfaction With Microsoft Office Alternatives
Part of Forrester’s research included a satisfaction survey that aimed to measure the satisfaction of workers using alternatives to Microsoft Office. The survey used a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 denoting “extreme satisfaction”. The report indicated that 29% of those using Office alternatives selected a satisfaction rating of 2, and 43% selected a 3. It seems that Office alternatives don’t quite cut the mustard.
