Microsoft's never ending search for useful products comes with their latest acquisition of the UMT Portfolio Manager software suite. The purchase will include software and intellectual property of United Management Technologies. The software which help companies identify and prioritize portfolios of projects, as well as deal with projects' deadlines, scopes and budgets, will then be used in Microsoft's Office Enterprise Project Management Solutions.

Chris Capossela, Microsoft vice president of information-worker product management, said "Through the acquisition, we will be able to more quickly deliver on our vision of bringing project and portfolio management capabilities to all levels of an organization."

Microsoft Office is one of Microsoft's biggest selling piece of software, so one would understand the need to raise the bar. Yet, some would prefer that Microsoft do it themselves rather than acquire other companies who have already put in the work.

Microsoft is leaving UMT's consulting business alone, which will be split into a separate business entity rather than buying it along with the software side of things.

For Microsoft Office users, this comes as a pleasant surprise since UMT has been on the market for fifteen years and has become a reliable piece of software used by Global 1000s including AXA Financial, Bristol-Myers Squibb and BT.