Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 is a subscription-based service that provides access to a range of cloud-based applications and services, such as Office apps, OneDrive, SharePoint, Teams, Outlook, but also a comprehensive toolset to manage your users, data and devices.
What is Microsoft 365?
Microsoft 365 is designed to help you create, communicate, collaborate, and manage your work from anywhere and on any device and is all delivered through SaaS (Software as a Service), meaning that no hardware or upfront costs are required with a simple per user, per month licensing model.
Formerly Office 365, Microsoft 365 is the umbrella term used for Microsoft’s cloud subscription solutions that provide organisations with a range of services and applications, such as the Microsoft Office suite of desktop products. These can be leveraged to provide a flexible, efficient, and cost-effective way to provide many key services to your organisation and allow your users to work flexibly and securely.
Sharp has a long-standing partnership with Microsoft. Our Microsoft experts have gained Microsoft Solutions Partner accreditations in Modern Work, Infrastructure Azure, and Data and AI Azure and we’re in the top 1% of Microsoft partners globally. Our team is perfectly placed to advise and work with you in implementing Microsoft Business 365 in your organisation or working with you on a more specialist project.
Microsoft 365 packages
There are three tiers: Business Basic, Business Standard and Business Premium.
Microsoft 365 Business Basic
Business Basic is the cheapest Microsoft 365 package on offer. Microsoft Business 365 Basic is well suited to organisations that offer flexible and remote working, where their teams need access to remote working solutions that allow collaboration and improve productivity.
What’s included:
✓ Web apps for Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
✓ Call, meet, and chat with up to 300 attendees
✓ 1TB of cloud storage per user
✓ Standard security
✓ Anytime phone and web support
Microsoft 365 Business Standard
Microsoft Business 365 Standard is very similar to the basic package whereby it offers hosted email and apps, Teams, SharePoint, and data management, however, it also allows users to download apps from the Office suite and store them locally, so that they can be accessed and used offline.
What’s included:
✓ Desktop apps for Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
✓ Ability to host webinars
✓ Attendee registration and reporting tools
✓ Tools to create personalised documents and professional layouts
✓ Plus all of the features of Microsoft 365 Business Basic
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Just like the standard plan, Microsoft 365 Business Premium provides Exchange, OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, and other critical business apps. It expands to allow your teams to work smarter and safer with advanced mobility, device management, and security features.
What’s included:
✓ Desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
✓ All of the features of Microsoft Business 365 Standard
✓ Advanced security
✓ Access and data control
✓ Cyberthreat protection
What’s the difference between packages?
As you move up through the tiers, the major differences between Microsoft 365 packages come in the form of pricing, the availability of desktop applications, and security features. The basic plan only offers web-based apps, whereas standard and premium allow users to install Office apps on their local machines.
At Sharp, we recommend the Microsoft 365 Business Premium for all organisations, given its wide range of services and security that provide all the core infrastructure capabilities that we used to deploy server hardware. With Business Premium you can manage your user identity, bringing all your authentication and security into one place. The devices that access your environment, whether business owned or BYOD are managed and protected, and finally, data governance capability will ensure that your data is only accessible to authorised employees, even if it's copied away from your environment.
You can work with our Microsoft and IT experts to decide what you need. They will work with you to understand your business, operations, growth plans, goals, and needs to advise you on the right package for you.
Benefits of Microsoft 365
Whatever functionality you need for the size of your business, Microsoft 365 offers a whole host of benefits that increase depending on the package you choose:
Because your critical services are hosted in the cloud (which is accessed via the Internet), your staff will be able to work securely from home, the office, or on the go. Programmes and files are available on any device, empowering your teams to work more efficiently.
A monthly subscription-based service means that your organisation pays a fixed monthly fee per user, making budgeting easier. It also allows for licenses to be added or removed in line with business growth, adding flexibility and scalability.
Microsoft 365 operates in the cloud, therefore, you don’t need on-site servers for your messaging, document storage, applications, or device and user management. You’ll benefit from cost savings and no longer having to invest in physical servers and the energy costs and maintenance that come with having to continuously run them.
The use of Microsoft Teams, with its increased accessibility for files and apps, allows for staff to communicate, and edit documents together in real-time, increasing productivity.
New AI tools like Microsoft Copilot which is available in the key productivity apps provide intelligent assistance, enabling users to enhance their creativity, productivity, and skills.
With Microsoft Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power BI, you can streamline everyday processes, automate processes, gain a 360° view of your organisations data, and use business logic to simplify and automate repetitive tasks.
Microsoft 365 stores your data securely in the cloud, preventing unauthorised access and data making recovery easier in the event of corruption or loss.
Microsoft 365 email security apps help to protect your organisation from cyber threats through in-built defenses for phishing attempts and other malware.
We always recommend a multi-layered approach to cyber security to ensure you have all lines of defense covered. Microsoft’s advanced security features form part of this multi-layered approach.
Why partner with Sharp?
At Sharp, we understand that a one-size-fits-all approach is ineffective, that’s why we’ll work with you to understand your business and its unique goals. As part of the Microsoft Partner Network, we have access to the best pricing on some of the most popular hardware and IT software platforms.
We currently have 3 of the 6 new Microsoft Partner Designations - Data & AI, Infrastructure, and Modern Work – and are working towards our 4th for Business Apps. Microsoft introduced their new Partner Designations after retiring their former Gold & Silver partner competencies, in which we had 12 Gold and Silver out of a possible 18 in operational areas such as applications, infrastructure, data security, and cloud solutions, so you can rest assured that your IT is in good hands.
With many years experience under our belt servicing our clients’ IT needs, Sharp is well-placed to migrate your systems to Microsoft 365 with little disruption and will work with your teams so that they have a thorough understanding of your new solution.
What is Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central?
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is an all-in-one cloud-based Business Management solution designed for SMEs. It’s a flexible end-to-end solution that can be customised to manage all your business processes.
Business Central is a feature-rich Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution that enables organisations to centralise their data and operations to improve visibility, collaboration and decision-making across different departments. It helps businesses manage their finance, manufacturing, operations and customer relationships in one integrated system.
How is Microsoft Dynamics 365 Different from Microsoft 365?
Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft 365 are different solutions. Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based productivity solution available through subscription. The Microsoft 365 programmes promote productivity and efficiency in your organisation.
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is used for ERP which is offered in a single package. You can integrate Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Office 365 with the support of Sharp’s Microsoft experts for boosted productivity and visibility in your organisation.
FAQs on Microsoft Business 365
Microsoft 365 operates on a per-user licensing structure. The good thing about this is that it’s a flexible solution, and you can scale up or down your solution as you require.
Your Microsoft 365 administrator can increase a specific user’s mailbox size. If you choose to work with Sharp to implement your Microsoft Business 365 solution, we can look after this for you.
We recommend the Microsoft 365 Business Premium for all organisations, however should you just need email through Microsoft 365, we can recommend the appropriate licensing for you to utilise Outlook in a secure your email environment to protect against modern day threats.
In all Microsoft 365 business packages, from Basic to Premium, all users get 1TB of cloud storage, making it a perfect solution if you need access to cloud storage. The Business Premium license provides additional capability to manage your data compliance and security, making it a great way to ensure conformance to industry and GDPR governance.
Accreditations
Microsoft Solutions Partner Accreditation - Modern Work
Microsoft Solutions Partner Accreditation - Infrastructure Azure
Microsoft Solutions Partner Accreditation - Data and AI Azure
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