Microsoft is taking its cues from Facebook as it totally shakes up Office

It's been a while since teenagers thought Facebook was cool, but they still use it more than any other social site.

Similarly, the most exciting thing to happen to Microsoft Office in the last 10 years was probably the demise of Clippy, and yet it's still the center of many millions of people's working life, even amid mounting competition from the likes of Google and Slack.

"I think people don't understand how much it's loved," says Julie Larson-Green, chief experience officer of Microsoft Office.

To meet that competitive threat, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has ensured that Office comes to every device under the sun, from the Windows PC to the Mac to the iPhone and Android. 

At this week's Microsoft Build event, the company showcased various efforts designed to make sure that Office stays relevant in a changing world. And although Microsoft did not explicitly mention Facebook as a template for its strategy, there are many obvious parallels between the social network and Microsoft's game plan for Office. 

The key is in fully taking advantage of all the data that Microsoft Office has locked up among its billion-plus users, the same way Facebook did to turn into the behemoth it is today. And if it pulls this off, Microsoft will have made Office just as hard to displace as Facebook.