MICROSOFT CORE COMPETENCES
Product Lines

Microsoft software products are divided into eight main families. These include Windows, Servers, Business Solutions, MSN, Office, Developer Tools, Games and Xbox, Windows Mobile. The other software products and services are divided into four main categories.These include Home and Entertainment, Hardware, Finance, Books and Training.Among these end products, two operating segments, Client and Business Solutions,contributed to the majority of the company’s revenue. Client consists of premium editionoperating systems, including Windows XP Professional, Media Center Edition, Tablet PCEdition, and other standard Windows operating systems, including Windows XP Home.Business Solutions include Microsoft Office, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Visio, SharePointPortal Server CAL, Microsoft Live Meeting, One Note, Office Communication Server,Microsoft Dynamics AX, Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Microsoft Dynamics GP, MicrosoftDynamics NAV, Microsoft Dynamics SL, Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System,Microsoft Partner Program, and Microsoft Office Small Business Accounting.

Core Competencies
Microsoft clearly recognizes their core competencies that bring them high revenue. In fact,Microsoft provides a guide to earning competency, for their business partners, on theirwebsite [2]. These competencies are known as Microsoft Competencies. According toMicrosoft, the objectives of the Microsoft competencies are to help business partnersdifferentiate their skills and expertise to customers, extend their market reach, align theirbusiness with relevant Microsoft marketing initiatives and form closer relationships withother partners. This is inline with the concept of core competency. Although the MicrosoftCompetencies may not be the core competencies of the company, they are closely linked asthis is a strategy in which Microsoft harmonize the