Towers Watson, a global professional services company, has expanded the company’s partnership with Microsoft (News - Alert) Corp. With this new partnership, the company looks to adapt some of its software applications for the Windows Azure platform.

To improve its offerings in actuarial, investment, human resource and risk management, Towers Watson has come up with various software solutions over the last few years. The technology is now used by various clients consisting of pension funds, insurers, multinational companies and sovereign funds.

While some applications are already in the pipeline, the partnership with Microsoft will strengthen the modeling software created by Towers Watson’s risk management businesses.

“We have been working with Microsoft for many years, covering different technology areas, and this takes the relationship to a new level,” said Mark Beardall, global application leader, Risk and Financial Services, Towers Watson. “Cloud computing offers unique benefits in flexibility and cost effectiveness, and we are delighted to have access to the Microsoft labs to optimize and fully test our products for the cloud. We are one of the very few global companies in this position.”

Windows Azure is an open and flexible cloud platform that allows users to rapidly create, install and manage applications across a worldwide network of Microsoft-managed data centers. They can create applications with the help of any language, tool or framework.

They can bring together their public cloud applications with their current IT environment as well.

Recently, the company entered into an agreement to buy Extend Health Inc., a San Mateo-based Medicare exchange, for $435 million. Subject to normal closing conditions, the deal is expected to close within 60 days.

Medical transition consulting is what companies do for employees who are retiring and need to select how they will continue to receive benefits. 

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