The Record - Issue 20: Spring 2021

113 “Our partners will play a critical role in delivering solutions to meet the needs of citizens everywhere” engaged employee experience,” says Glidden. “Our newest platform, Microsoft Viva, will offer resources and data-driven insights to support public sector workers in their professional devel- opment and help our teams deliver, no matter where they are.” While Microsoft continues to evolve its tech- nologies to suit this seismic workplace shift, its partner ecosystem drives their deployment into the hands of public sector workers. “As governments embrace digital technology to become more resilient, efficient and innovative, our partners will play a critical role in deliv- ering solutions to meet the needs of citizens everywhere,” says Glidden. “Our partnership with Accenture is a good example of the impact of digital transformation across industries. Together, we helped social services profession- als virtually meet with and offer support to peo- ple in need around the world.” Microsoft also worked with KPMG, for exam- ple, helping the US state of Georgia manage more than $3.5 billion in economic recovery funds for citizens affected by the pandemic; and partnered with the Canadian government of Nunavut to provide text translation to and from the Inuktitut dialect. By the end of January 2021, over 110 million cases of Covid-19 had been recorded worldwide, putting enormous pressure on health services across the globe. Digital technologies have been instrumental in the response. “We have seen the life-saving impact of digital transformation on policy-making and the deliv- ery of critical services worldwide,” says Glidden. “For example, England’s Norfolk County Council worked with Microsoft and Hitachi Solutions to adopt an emergency response app that better used data to target Covid-19 relief and support across multiple cities, protecting its most vulnerable citizens.” Another Microsoft partner, Esri, has supported vaccination efforts by providing Azure-based PUB L I C S E C TOR Microsoft Viva Insights offers actionable recommendations to balance productivity and well-being