More and more organizations are migrating to Office 365 — and with good reason. The platform ensures that your workforce always has access to the familiar Office word processing, data analysis, communication and productivity tools they know and depend on, whether they’re in the office or on the go, and from any device they choose. Teams and users can easily collaborate, whether by sharing documents through SharePoint Online, using the video calling and instant messaging capabilities of Skype for Business, or connecting through Microsoft’s internal social media network, Yammer.
IT teams reap lots of benefits, too. Microsoft takes care of ensuring the latest versions of applications are deployed, saving IT pros lots of time and headaches on software upgrades. Microsoft Exchange Online eliminates the need to manage an in-house Exchange server or set up VPNs, and Microsoft even helps protect Exchange Online mailboxes against spam and malware. And IT staff can manage and customize the organization's security options from a single web-based admin console.
Last but most certainly not least, moving to Office 365 offers a wealth of benefits for the business as well. You can choose the features and plans that make sense for your organization, and know that the platform can scale up or down seamlessly as your needs change. The subscription-based service helps you budget more effectively, and you pay for only the licenses you need. Plus, Office 365 provides 24/7 professional support for issues (the details depend on which plan your organization has).
It’s no wonder that Office 365 adoption continues apace. Microsoft’s FY18 Q3 earnings report reveals that there are now 135 million monthly active users of Office 365 and that Office 365 revenue for commercial customers grew 36%, year over year. In fact, a Gartner study reports that 78% of enterprises are using or planning to use Office 365.
Of course, not everyone has migrated yet. It is expected that about one-third of business Office users will have yet to make the transition to Office 365 by sometime in Microsoft’s fiscal 2019 year. Similarly, about 30 percent of Exchange/Outlook customers will still be using on-premises versions of those applications at that time.
If you’re contemplating your move to the cloud version of Office, you’re probably concerned about ensuring a smooth migration that completes on time and on budget, without disrupting the business. And although Office 365 is a managed service, you probably know that there are still critical tasks your IT team needs to perform to ensure security, productivity and strong platform adoption.
Check out our whitepaper, “Office 365 migration: It’s just a migration — what could possibly go wrong?” It details the key steps in building a strong Office 365 migration plan: Plan carefully, migrate smoothly, ensure seamless coexistence, and ensure you can manage the new environment effectively and efficiently after your cloud migration to make the most of your investment. It also explains how Quest’s Office 365 migration tools can help you during each stage, and why you’ll sleep better knowing you have unparalleled support from experts with decades of migration experience.