Microsoft Office 2007 Professional Plus blog green

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Microsoft's "green" initiatives have generated rather a little of buzz lately. What does this mean for Microsoft employees? Francois Ajenstat, Director of Environmental Sustainability here at Microsoft, stopped by JobsBlog to answer a few of my questions. Who are the Greenies? And what's with those new compostable forks and green cups in the Microsoft kitchens?
If you have more questions for Francois, leave them in the comments,Microsoft Office 2007 Product Key!
JobsBlog: Hi Francois! Thanks for stopping by JobsBlog! You're on the Environmental Sustainability team. What does your team do?
Francois: Hi everyone – our team is focused on looking at broad Environmental Challenges and how Microsoft can help address them. The big area of focus these days is obviously Climate Change and reducing greenhouse gases but we’re also looking at broader issues such as smart transportation, deforestation,Office 2007 Professional Plus Key, and water issues. People around the office called us the “Green Team” or “Greenies”. We’re looking at how technology can be applied for positive impact; driving partnerships for global impact; and of course driving sustainable practices within our own operations.
JobsBlog: So you're green geeks. The “Greenies” partner with other teams at Microsoft to help us reduce our impact and positively affect the environment … like partnering with research teams to advance science and with product teams to produce more efficient code.
Francois: The issue of environmental sustainability is something that many different teams at Microsoft are focused on – from the product groups to research to our own facilities and operations. For example, the Windows group is focused on efficiency and power management. The Unified Communications team is promoting telework and remote meetings to reduce travel. Groups within Microsoft Research are looking at complex climate change models to predict various environmental issues. Our data center team is focused on bringing “Moore’s Law” to Energy Efficiency in data centers – doubling output while keeping energy demands constant or lower. Real Estate & Facilities is looking at our own operations to reduce waste on campus, provide travel alternatives such as the Connector, and “greening” our events. As you can tell, this is an area that spans all facets of the company.
JobsBlog: On the topic of greening our own workplace,microsoft Office 2010 License, I heard that – due to your team’s partnership with Real Estate & Facilities – Microsoft is on track to reduce solid waste by 50% and the Redmond campus’ cafeterias and kitchens lately became the first in the US to be earn Certified Green Restaurant status. Plus, employees can’t get enough of the Connector,Office Standard 2010 Key! Any other green workplace initiatives you can share with us?
Francois: We actually drove a 50% reduction in solid waste in the first month. Our goal is to become zero waste. That’s ambitious but achievable if everyone does their part. There are fairly a few other activities that we’re doing from a workplace standpoint. All of our new buildings are being built to LEED standards and consume over 20 percent less energy than traditional buildings. In our Mountain View, CA campus we’ve installed 2,288 solar panels covering more than 31,000 square feet of rooftop which generates 480 kilowatts of power. We’ve built our data center facility in Quincy, WA site to use 100% renewable hydropower from the Columbia River Basin.
And of course, our workers are our key assets in making a difference in our workplace. We have an employee community group called MSGreen which drive discussion, education, awareness and engagement in environmental activities around the world. MSGreen has over 1000 members worldwide. Also, through the annual Employee Giving Campaign personnel are encouraged to partner with Microsoft to promote the causes and organizations that for which they are inspired, and Microsoft will match any donations through the campaign.
JobsBlog: On a personal front, you’ve worked at Microsoft since 2000,Microsoft Office 2007 Professional Plus, and most not too long ago, you were the Director of Product Management for SQL Server. What motivated you to make the switch from SQL Server to the “greener” pastures of Environmental Sustainability?
Francois: One of the great things about Microsoft is the fact that we are working on so many different areas that it provides employees with a ton of personal and career development opportunities. There were many reasons that led me to the Environmental Sustainability team. First, I have a personal passion on the topic so it’s great to be able to combine those two worlds.
Second, it’s about the people. Everyone on the team is deeply passionate about the environment and want to make a difference. It’s invigorating to be surrounded by people who want to change the world.
Next is that when I look at this market there is so much opportunity for growth. So many new solutions being developed and I love being on the ground floor of such a big market shift.
And then finally, a major reason for the shift is that I truly believe that Microsoft has a particularly unique opportunity to have a huge positive impact here on the planet and on people and businesses around the world. With all of that, it became a no brainer for me and an opportunity that I couldn’t resist.
JobsBlog: Thanks for stopping by! Any closing thoughts?
Francois: Environmental Sustainability is something that everyone at Microsoft can take part in. Whether in how we act as personnel or looking at reducing the environmental impact of our products. Although our team is “tasked” with bringing together the strategy, people and groups across Microsoft are a critical part of the solution.