Deploying & Managing Microsoft Office 365 – Tips & Trends
Everything you need to know about strategic Office 365 deployment and management
Businesses in all industries and of all shapes and sizes rely on Microsoft Office 365 as their company’s IT platform. Countless others have considered deploying Office 365 but haven’t made the move. While most business professionals are at least a little bit familiar with Office 365 and the strategic business benefits it offers, the reality is, many businesses are not deploying and managing their Office 365 platform in an optimal way. So, we’ve created a quick guide to help businesses like yours get the most out of their Office 365 platform.
How Office 365 Helps Businesses Stay Productive, Strategic, & Secure
Many companies rely on a Microsoft Office suite to function every day. Microsoft applications have long been the data processing standard for business professionals of all kinds, for everything to drafting documents to keep track of contacts. However, many are still tied to desktop versions that come with the tedious update and licensing responsibilities.
Microsoft Office has come a long way and their effort is reflected in the collaborative, and powerful Office 365 platform. With Office 365, Microsoft has bundled all their office productivity applications in a centralised hub in the Cloud. For users still tied to desktop software, Office 365 will be a game-changer. And for users who have already made the move to Office 365, optimization strategies can offer increased benefit and efficiency.
So, you’re probably wondering – what’s so game-changing about Office 365? The fact of the matter is, trying to narrow down the most strategic benefits Office 365 offers is difficult. When your Office 365 platform is deployed and managed strategically, it really does help your staff work more efficiently on every level. To get an idea of how, check out the leading benefits below.
- Collaboration is seamless and all Microsoft’s applications integrate easily.
- Communication is streamlined with solutions for voice, video, email, and chat.
- Mobility and remote work for your team are easier than ever before.
- Scalability is easy; access a simple menu in your browser to add/remove users.
- Security is heightened by dynamic integration with cybersecurity tools.
Getting Down to Details: How A Strategic Partner Will Help You Optimise Office 365
We’ve briefly covered the different ways in which a strategically deployed and managed Office 365 platform can help your business. However, let’s go into a bit more detail. When you find a managed IT provider to help you monitor, manage, and optimise your Office 365 platform, you can look forward to huge benefits. Read on for the specifics.
- All the Apps You Need, Exactly How You Like Them
One of the biggest reasons why Office 365 is so beneficial for businesses is because of the flexibility and endless opportunity it provides. The great thing about Office 365 is it allows senior managers to make technology decisions that account for the individuals using the platform.
Office 365 has dynamic user controls that allow for peak customization and countless ways to optimise. All the business apps that your team relies on are stored in one, conveniently accessible spot. Even better? Each team member can customise their ‘virtual headquarters’ so that the applications they use most are at their fingertips, fully optimised. There are even newer apps like Flow and Teams that help you streamline your workflow and optimise team collaboration.
No company can simply can’t settle for a one-size-fits-all approach to application deployment and set-up – every organization has unique needs and challenges to consider. Every member of the team has their own skills, habits and ways of working – and the company’s IT needs to offer solutions customised for every team member, at every level. The right provider will be committed to helping you deploy Office 365 in a way that supports every one of your team members.
- Anytime, Anywhere Network Access for Your Team
Now, it’s not enough to have all your apps centralised for your team – they need to be able to access them whenever and from wherever they need them. The new world of work is defined by breaking free from the confines of the traditional desk. Remote and on-the-go work are not simply luxuries anymore – your team requires the ability to access work data from anywhere and on any device, without technical difficulties.
Cloud computing has made this possible and Office 365 provides a perfect and familiar platform required to ensure your business network is always available to your team when its required. Microsoft has an extensive amount of market experience and has developed the security and accessibility tools necessary to ensure business data is consistently available and secure. This offers huge productivity value and allows for a consistent connection between your team and the resources they need.
Further, this has huge impacts on your bottom line. Instead of having to invest in special hardware like company laptops or smartphones that are set up to store sensitive company data with expensive licenses, your team can simply access what they need from the secure Office 365 platform. Team members have access only to what they need and can access it securely no matter what device they may be using.
This makes it easy for your company to reduce hardware investments and embrace more cost-effective options like the BYOD trend. This way, your costs stay low and your team stays productive while using whichever end-point they prefer. The right provider will make sure your Office 365 deployment prioritises and balances peak access capabilities and budget concerns.
- Optimised Team Communication & Dynamic Voice Options
The communication tools in Office 365 are designed to offer consistent, instantaneous connection and seamless integration. This means that whether you’re emailing in Outlook, video-calling on Skype for Business or using the instant messaging features on any of the Office 365 apps, you’re able to connect with the team members you need – whenever and however works best for you.
It’s not just limited to that either. Office 365 Enterprise customers are able to reap even more communications benefits than their SMB counterparts. For an affordable and fixed per-user, monthly rate, companies can take advantage of full voice capabilities through the Lync server that is built into the Office 365 platform.
Lync improves IP capabilities for your team by enhancing your existing phone systems using VoIP. Even better? Users get fully hosted voicemail in the Cloud and still get to choose their preferred end-point – meaning the service can be extended to mobile devices as well. Simply put, in an age of high-priority communication, the right provider will make sure your Office 365 platform is deployed strategically. This way, your business can take advantage of high-quality and efficiently centralised telecommunications, for an affordable monthly rate.
- Unlimited Storage & Strategic Scalability
Physical data centers are often designed with storage limitations and IT professionals are constantly working to balance storage loads to ensure you don’t run out of digital space. Further, trying to keep these data stores secure and backed-up can be a huge task. The right managed IT provider will be committed to implementing Office 365 in a way that will support all your storage and backup needs.
Office 365 allows businesses to take advantage of unlimited storage, meaning the majority of your data build-up – documents, emails, etc. – can be securely stored in your company Cloud. This offers huge scalability potential as well. Knowing you have an unlimited warehouse for data on the Office 365 platform means your data storage solutions will grow alongside your business as needed.
- Streamlined Administration & Maintenance: From Updates to License Management
When it comes to running a large-scale enterprise, team members from all departments and at all levels will have different software requests. When using physical software, trying to cater to the needs and preferences of each team member would be nearly impossible. And trying to do this while staying budget positive and tracking updates and licensing schedules? Forget it.
Office 365 allows enterprises to set up software allotments by user for a low and fixed monthly rate. This means you have a predictable cost, per user and since the licenses operate on a monthly basis, license management is easy. Users can be added or removed as needed. The right provider will offer dynamic Office 365 monitoring and maintenance services which will take system management concerns off your shoulders completely!
Ready to Get Optimised? Get Your Office 365 Platform Deployed Strategically Today
When it comes to taking the Office 365 plunge, there are countless resources available to help with the training of staff and the overall adoption of the platform at your firm. Microsoft has a great collection of resources available through Microsoft Fast Track which can be accessed here. When implementing Office 365, drawing on these experienced-based resources will be endlessly helpful.
Additionally, if your company is ready to implement or optimise Office 365, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team of industry professionals for consultative guidance and implementation support. The Sydney Technology Solutions team is committed to helping companies of every shape and size deploy and manage Office 365 in a game-changing way. With us in your corner, you’ll have an optimised Office 365 headquarters in no time at all.
Stop putting optimization on the back-burner. Free yourself from desktop and work towards optimizing an Office 365 platform that will help your business thrive. Reach the Sydney Tech team for support anytime at (02) 8212 4722 or via email at [email protected].
