Microsoft

Microsoft is a global technology company whose products are embedded across almost every level of Australian local government. For councils, Microsoft's most relevant products are Microsoft 365, which covers email, document management, and team collaboration. Further Microsoft applications include Teams, SharePoint, Microsoft Azure, the cloud infrastructure that many council systems and software suppliers run on, and Microsoft Dynamics 365, a customer relationship management platform used councils to manage constituent interactions and service delivery. 

Microsoft is available through Commonwealth whole-of-government procurement arrangements and is listed on state government registers across Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and other jurisdictions, making it one of the most straightforward vendors for councils to procure from. Many of the platforms councils rely on are hosted on Microsoft Azure, giving councils a consistent and well-understood security foundation across their technology stack. 

Microsoft Azure has been assessed at the Protected level under the Australian Signals Directorate's security framework, making it one of the most rigorously assessed cloud platforms available to Australian government. Azure data centres in Sydney and Melbourne allow councils to store and process data within Australia. Microsoft holds ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II, and PCI DSS certifications across its cloud products.