Many companies are waiting for Service Pack 1 to be released for Microsoft's Windows Vista before beginning deployment, according to customers of the UK learning company, QA-IQ. Over 70% of attendees at QA-IQ's recent Vista Deployment Summit said they are more likely to deploy Vista following its first significant update, currently scheduled for early 2008. However, while many are waiting before committing to a widespread roll-out, they are already considering the skills that their teams will require to deploy and support the new operating system.

Microsoft Partnership Manager at QA-IQ, Will Hawkins, explains; "While many companies are already planning to upgrade to Windows Vista, they are keen to make sure that the skills are in place for both technical teams and business users to make the most of the new technology and guarantee a streamlined deployment. The announcement that SP1 is to be released in the first quarter of 2008, has made it even more important that companies plan their deployment effectively.

"Deployment of Windows Vista is a simpler process than for previous operating systems, and 'light-touch' and 'zero-touch' deployment will reduce both time and cost, but where organisations are dealing with large numbers of users it's essential for the business to upgrade with minimum impact on business as usual processes. The changes to both Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office System mean that organisations can't rely on their staff immediately adapting to the new systems - training will ensure that productivity maintained."

The important areas for preparation raised at the QA-IQ deployment summit included how to make deployment easier, how to ensure that internal applications will work with the new operating system, how to support information worker staff through the learning curve that comes with a new desktop system, and how to maintain and increase productivity and reduce support costs.

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