Microsoft 365 (M365) is a subscription-based service that provides customers with access to well-known applications like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook and also enables real-time communication and collaboration with products like Teams and SharePoint. Businesses may use M365 to provide their employees with access to these resources from practically any location or device, all while monitoring access, device security, and compliance. Small and medium-sized businesses can now gain access to enterprise-grade services and applications without the need for costly infrastructure deployment and maintenance. It is not surprising, then, that the service is highly sought after by numerous firms.
Choosing which solutions are most appropriate for their particular needs, however, can be challenging for organisations and IT professionals due to the sheer breadth and complexity of the suite. As a result, many business owners worry that they would overpay for features that they don’t need or underuse tools that could greatly boost productivity or efficiency.
With so many options available, small and medium-sized businesses can easily become overwhelmed and unsure of how to best leverage M365 to their advantage. But don’t worry; in this series of articles I will provide a comprehensive guide to help businesses navigate the intricacies of M365 and identify the tools that will add the most value to their operations.
Let’s consider some of the key components of the suit.
Productivity:
Most M365 SKUs feature well-known tools like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, as well as newer ones like Microsoft Planner or Microsoft Bookings. While entry-level versions only offer web browser access to them, most other SKUs have full-featured applications to be run locally on the computer, offering better functionality. These applications boost your firm’s production and efficiency, and practically every organisation in the globe will benefit from them on a daily basis.
Collaboration:
In order to make real-time collaboration and file sharing more efficient, M365 offers Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive. These three tools are tightly integrated and work exceptionally well together, providing a very friendly user experience for teams with different degrees of technical expertise.
Mobility:
Small and medium-sized businesses looking to enable remote working employees or part of their workforce that may be constantly on the move will find the cloud-based nature of M365 really useful, since data and applications can be accessed from any location, at any time.
Security:
In M365 Microsoft has included robust security features like two-factor authentication, data loss prevention, and encryption. These features will ensure the safety and security of any company’s data.
Scalability:
As businesses grow, so will their needs. M365 is highly scalable, which means it can grow alongside them. Companies can easily add and remove users, upgrade or downgrade plans, and customise the solution to meet changing needs.
Low cost:
M365 provides access to best-in-class productivity tools without breaking the bank. Its subscription model based on a per-user-per-month base simplifies budgeting requirements and makes growth and costs more predictable and thanks to the cloud nature of the service, there are no extra IT infrastructure costs associated.
M365 is available in a variety of SKUs, each of them covering increasing requirements of various types for businesses. There is an M365 plan for every company and user, whether they require basic functionality or advanced security features, plans and licenses can be mixed and optimised for the use that every employee requires.
In the next episode of this series, I’ll highlight some of the key features and benefits of M365 that small and medium-sized businesses should prioritise.
