Summit Launchpad: HSO’s Jonathan Summers on AI Implementation Success, Industry Focus
In this Community Summit Launchpad interview, Jonathan Summers, President & Managing Director, HSO, talks to Giuseppe Ianni about the evolution of HSO and the four industries it’s focused on, new company initiatives shaped by AI, and how to engage with the team at Community Summit NA 2026.
Key Takeaways
- HSO industry focus: Focused on the Microsoft ecosystem, HSO brings expertise across manufacturing, financial services, professional services, and government. The company pairs technology implementations with industry-specific IP to help organizations maximize business outcomes.
- AI success requires more than technology: Organizations are increasingly being asked to define their AI strategy, but HSO believes the conversation should start with business objectives. The challenge is not just deploying AI tools, but determining how AI can support business goals and deliver measurable value.
- Barriers to AI adoption: Many organizations recognize the potential of AI-powered workflows, agents, and automation, but they often struggle with the organizational changes needed to realize those benefits. Summers emphasizes that operating models, user adoption, and new ways of working are just as important as the tech itself.
- AI implementation success: AI initiatives succeed when organizations embrace an approach that prioritizes experimentation, refinement, and rapid value realization. For example, HSO is actively using AI to improve project delivery efficiency and shorten implementation timeline, helping to refine its own operating model while developing practical approaches clients can use to accelerate time to value.
- What to expect at Summit NA 2026: HSO plans to share customer experiences, data strategy insights, Dynamics implementation lessons, and examples of AI-led business transformation. At Summit, its focus will be on how organizations are achieving tangible results today, rather than simply discussing future possibilities.
- Connect with HSO: Whether attendees are exploring AI investments, navigating organizational change, or looking to accelerate results from existing Microsoft investments, HSO encourages interactive discussions focused on solving business challenges and achieving measurable value. You can find HSO at Booth #1018.
Community Summit NA is the largest independent Microsoft AI & Business Applications User Conference on the planet. Register today for four days of big ideas, education, training, networking, and more to define your relevance in the AI era.
