Are you still using Microsoft Office 2010? For businesses that are accustomed to buying a Microsoft Office license, installing it, and using it forever, the thought of paying for it via a monthly subscription may seem like a bad, unnecessary, overly expensive way to go.
However, as is the trend with most things these days, the move to a subscription-based business model is inevitable. And, Microsoft is making it more and more challenging to purchase their software any other way.
The good news is that there is actually quite a bit of extra value in the Microsoft Office 365 package. Let’s review the ones most likely to benefit your organization.
First, let’s talk about security and support. Microsoft ended Mainstream support for Office 2010 In October of 2015 and will end support for it completely in October 2020. That means that, just like Windows XP, Microsoft will no longer release security patches and updates, leaving Office 2010 vulnerable and a security risk to your organization.
Office 365, on the other hand, is in a constant state of update. Since it’s a subscription, you are always going to have the latest and greatest version. Further, Microsoft continues to add value to the Office 365 suite by releasing additional products such as Sway, Yammer, and Teams.
An additional benefit of moving your team to Office 365 is that it takes you one step closer to eliminating the need for an expensive in-house server. One of the primary reasons to have a server is to share files within your organization. Each USER in Office 365 for Business includes 1TB of storage space in the Cloud via Microsoft’s OneDrive for Business application. This is more than enough storage space for most people. In today’s mobile world, OneDrive offers your team a secure way to access files across several devices and even remotely, without having to rely on remote-control software and exposing an in-house server to the outside world.
Sharing files, and collaborating on documents, works better in Office 365 than it does with your current in-house server or storage system. OneDrive is designed around securely sharing files not only with people in your organization, but those outside your organization as well. And, it’s all done with a simple link that you email. Documents stored in OneDrive can also be edited simultaneously, making true collaboration on a document possible.
For this post, I’m going to wrap up with one more additional value-added feature of the Microsoft Office 365 platform. Every user is entitled to 5 installations of the software. Unlike purchasing a boxed copy of the software, limited to a single computer, your Office 365 lets you use the software at home, your laptop, and even your mobile devices, all with the same license.
That’s it for now. In upcoming blog posts I’ll review some additional hidden values you get from Office 365.