Scott Hahn (Accenture)
Microsoft and Accenture have forged a new partnership focused on supporting Australian and New Zealand (A/NZ) start-ups with a focus on sustainability and social impact.
The joint initiative, called Project Amplify, provides support and technologies to help social enterprises develop proof-of-concepts, scale emerging solutions and refine their business models.
Nine A/NZ start-ups have joined Project Amplify, gaining access to digital technology, mentoring and collaboration opportunities with both Microsoft and Accenture staff.
The one-year program has a "long-term goal of accelerating the regional potential and improving millions of lives by addressing diverse societal challenges", Microsoft said in a blog post.
Part of the program will focus on sustainability through cloud, data and artificial intelligence (AI), which can span waste reduction and operations optimisation.
Scott Hahn, senior managing director and technology lead for Accenture A/NZ said: “Start-ups in A/NZ are finding innovative ways to solve critical sustainability and social challenges but need support to scale their solutions and amplify their reach and impact.
"Bringing together Accenture and Microsoft’s global experience, extensive talent ecosystems and access to technology and best practices, we can help to significantly improve access, equality, inclusion, education, health, sustainability and the environment.”
Microsoft has also been focusing on the sustainability issue for years and, in early 2020, made a pledge to be carbon negative by 2030. By 2050, Microsoft hopes to remove from the environment all the carbon the company has emitted either directly or by electrical consumption since it was founded in 1975.
Accenture, meanwhile, recently forged a digital transformation partnership with ServiceNow which will work to address sustainability, among other goals.
