June 28, 2022

7 good reasons to base your IT strategy on Microsoft

Caroline

Caroline

5 min reading

Are you hesitating to base your IT strategy on Microsoft? Here are the 7 good reasons to know.

Microsoft 365 provides access to intelligent tools that enable employees to work in the best possible conditions: exchange, share information and collaborate. However, this migration is often a big unknown.

As a manager or member of the IT department of a company, are you still hesitating to base your IT strategy on Microsoft? In this article, we give you 7 good reasons to do so.    

What is Microsoft 365?

Microsoft 365 is a suite of innovative applications that bring together all your business needs: security, productivity, sharing and collaboration. It is the entire Microsoft ecosystem for the workplace, combined in a single subscription.

In concrete terms, Microsoft 365 includes collaborative tools, messaging and security solutions. It therefore responds to the challenges faced by company managers and IT departments: improving employee productivity, ease of use of tools and security of the organization's data.

Let's see what the benefits are. We have counted 7 of them, but this list is of course not exhaustive!

The benefits of Microsoft 365

1. Flexibility

Microsoft 365 offers maximum flexibility, as it allows users to connect from multiple devices, regardless of location. This is particularly welcome in times of widespread remote working. And it does not compromise data security, as data is guaranteed even without restricted access.

Using Microsoft 365 means having a single, centralized workspace that can be accessed anywhere and at any time. A simple Internet connection is sufficient to access the platform from any tool.

In addition, the Cloud offers your company additional flexibility and time savings, leaving the IT department free to focus on more strategic projects than service maintenance. No more time-consuming IT infrastructure maintenance procedures!

In addition, Microsoft 365 can be set up to meet the specific needs of your organization.

IT Strategy on Microsoft

2. Scalability

Microsoft 365 is a scalable suite, which means that it is possible to start with a simple version and then move on to a more complex environment. Advanced tools such as Power BI and Power Apps are then integrated. This is left to the choice of the company and the users.

3. Performance

With tools such as OneDrive and SharePoint, the sharing and accessibility of documents is maximised within your company. Microsoft 365 facilitates the sharing of information between employees, offering better document management and knowledge management, and other benefits follow logically: better internal communication and collaboration, increased employee productivity, etc.

At a time when 51% of French people want more clear information on their company's actions (Edelman, trust barometer 2021), these advantages should not be overlooked.

Moreover, a study by Forrester showed that companies using Microsoft could achieve savings of €25 million over 3 years (calculated for an organization with 7,000 employees). So performance is not only organizational: it is also economic!

In short, the use of the Digital Workplace proposed by the Mozzaik365 extension allows improving the internal communication. The use of the Mozzaik365 extension allows improving the collaboration and the knowledge management and to gain in motivation and efficiency within the teams... which translates into economic gains.

4. Compatibility

Microsoft is compatible with many tools. Integrated with an application marketplace (the AppSource), the Store aims to reference all applications compatible with Microsoft 365. This will improve the overall efficiency of users.

IT Strategy : 7 good reasons to base it on Microsoft

5. Security

According to an IDECSI study in partnership with IFOP, almost half of the employees (45%) of the companies surveyed say they are worried about the security of their data and the digital tools used in their work. Aware of these particular challenges, 81% of the employees surveyed want to take part in their company's security. Cyber attacks are on the rise (since the beginning of the health crisis, they have increased by 400%), which logically pushes organisations (and their employees) to be concerned about these issues.

To address these concerns, Microsoft 365 provides data protection capabilities and tools to protect against online threats and unauthorized access. It also provides the ability to protect and manage company data across multiple devices: computers, phones and tablets.

For example, Ransomware protection is provided for email hosted in Microsoft 365 and for files stored in OneDrive (see our article on securing your desktop).

Another protection is offered against hackers accessing users' mailboxes and exfiltrating the mail in them. Thanks to Microsoft, this can be prevented by setting up a mail flow rule, which stops the automatic tracking of emails.

6. The cost

Many companies switch to a cloud-based solution to save time (as we have seen above, it does increase flexibility and efficiency). But the question of cost is also important. With Microsoft 365, there is no more need for multiple third-party tools that must be managed and paid for individually. These are expensive in the long run, both in terms of productivity and budget.

6.1. The budget

By streamlining tools to focus on the features offered by Microsoft 365, it is possible to save hundreds of euros per user per month!

Indeed, many collaboration features are already included in the price of the Microsoft 365 license, so it would be a shame not to benefit from them.

  • Do you need a Kaban? → Microsoft Planner
  • Do you need a KPI dashboard? → Power BI
  • You need a custom application → Microsoft Power App, etc.

6.2. Productivity

Thanks to the multiple functionalities of Microsoft 365 such as Teams, SharePoint, OneNote or OneDrive, users can gain in productivity (they can move their projects forward faster and more efficiently), while benefiting from a better flow of information on the same platform. For example, thanks to the Cloud , teams can work on the same document at the same time. All this, at a necessarily reduced cost.

7. Frequent updates

Microsoft listens to the market and is constantly updating its solutions to adapt them to the needs that emerge regularly. These updates ensure the security and proper functioning of your devices, whatever they may be.

For example, Microsoft recently launched :

  • Loop, in response to the growing popularity of Notion ;
  • The ability to comment on videos on SharePoint, in response to the popularity of animated content;
  • An advanced SharePoint search bar, to optimise access to information, despite the growing amount of digital documentation in the company.

In addition...

Microsoft can be enriched with various functionalities, thanks to natural and secure extensions such as Mozzaik365. With our solution, you have many features for internal communication, team collaboration and knowledge management. This allows you to create an attractive and engaging Digital Workplace with all the benefits of Microsoft.

Conclusion

By basing their IT strategy on Microsoft 365, companies, and more specifically CIOs, are choosing a solid, secure suite enriched with the latest innovations for collaborative work. It is a long-term investment that will be appreciated by all users and will offer many gains in terms of efficiency, productivity and security.

Free Internal Communication whitepaper ! Get your copy now.

Get my resources