Microsoft and Salesforce.com announced a strategic partnership in May, and they've started to reveal the first fruits of this relationship.
Salesforce for Office will provide access to Office files within Salesforce.com, and Salesforce.com information within Outlook.
The first component of this suite - Salesforce Files - is available immediately. It allows the use of files stored in SharePoint for any Salesforce business process.
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Salesforce1 integration with Microsoft Office, SharePoint and OneDrive for Business on iOS devices and Android phones will enable customers to seamlessly open, edit and save documents, company officials explained.
The Salesforce1 App for Outlook will allow users to access and manage their Salesforce information within Outlook. It will require Outlook 2013 and Exchange Server 2013 or Office 365.
Power BI for Office 365 and Excel integrations with Salesforce are also due in the first half of 2015.
They will allow the bidirectional transfer of data between Salesforce and Excel for reporting and visualisation.
The Salesforce1 for Windows app (for Windows 8.1) is currently in closed beta, with general availability expected in the second half of 2015.
At present, Salesforce1 is accessible on Windows 8.1 devices only via a browser.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said "Our focus is on empowering every individual and organisation on the planet be more productive – and that's exactly what this partnership will fuel.
"I'm pleased with the progress our teams have made over the past few months and look forward to showing our mutual customers how Salesforce and Microsoft can help them do more from the cloud with their mobile devices."
Salesforce.com chairman and CEO Marc Benioff (pictured) said "Our customers have always been the heart and soul of Dreamforce and I'm thrilled to share the first milestones of our Microsoft partnership here."
(Mr Benioff was referring to the company's Dreamforce 2014 conference.)
"We're committed to working with Microsoft to further our mutual customers' success."
