A couple of years ago, companies were really thinking about the cloud in a very simplistic sense, as moving their VMs (virtual machines) from their on-premises data centers into the cloud. Now we're seeing an explosion of services and capabilities in the cloud that companies can take advantage of. The cloud enables all sorts of new capabilities and functionalities in cloud apps, allowing businesses to reach new customers and predict the future with machine learning and advanced analytics, to name but a few. But some businesses are still hesitant about moving to the cloud, in light of the existing myths around migration to Office 365, which are in fact quite different from the real state of affairs. Let’s debunk them!
Fact -- Moving to the cloud is a gradual and flexible process
Migration is not a piece of cake -- it is a big project that requires a detailed approach when developing your migration strategy. But you don't have to do it overnight. It is a process, and you choose its scale and speed, depending on your particular needs. In fact, you won't be alone -- at all stages, starting from assessment of your environment to developing the migration plan and finally implementing it, you will get the support of experts.
Fact -- You can invest your time in something better than hardware maintenance and software updates
Traditional digital estate includes hardware (you probably have a few file servers, active directory, mail, and archive servers) that needs to be maintained, and software that needs to be updated -- a lot of headaches for you! Whereas, when you move to Microsoft 365, you can run your business in the cloud and let Microsoft take care of the IT for you, which means no more setting up servers, databases, file shares, or on-premises software for you and your employees. After you move to the cloud, you will find time to embrace change.
Fact -- Migration to Microsoft 365 will save you money in the long run
A lot of companies are worried about high costs of moving to the cloud. In fact, initial investment into cloud migration can really cost quite a sum of money, but our experts can help you with subscription management and deployment optimization, so you will pay only for what you really need. And in the long run, you can actually reduce your costs significantly over your on-premises deployment, as you will get all the benefits from converting your capital expenditure to operational expenditure.
Fact -- The cloud is an impregnable fortress, where data is accessible only to its owner and not anyone else
The idea that your data is nicely contained in an on-premises environment that is more protected than in the cloud doesn't hold water. Microsoft has hundreds of world-class cybersecurity experts focused on the cloud, so the security of your applications and of your data is actually enhanced. Microsoft runs across hundreds of data centers geo-distributed around the world. They are built from the ground up with security in mind -- both security in terms of disaster prevention (like fire or earthquake) and data protection; only the right people can get into the buildings, meaning the engineer who actually works on a physical server has no actual access to the application layer or actual environment and vice versa; those who work on application don't have access to the physical site (this is called separation of duties). Thus, your data is better protected when stored in cloud data centers than locally on-premises.
As far as privacy is concerned, the fundamental principal Microsoft adheres to is that data belongs to the customer, and only the customer can control it. Microsoft 365 is only a tool that runs the service for you and is accountable to you. Besides built-in protection, customers enjoy unique controls that empower them to customize information protection (like data loss prevention, information protection, email encryption, and more).
Fact -- There are various options of cloud migration -- it's up to you to move only some of your workloads or all of them to the cloud
Some companies think that cloud migration is an all-or-nothing choice; that they have to move all of their applications at one time from their datacenters into the cloud. That's not true. You can maintain some of your applications on-premises while putting others in the cloud, and having that ecosystem essentially transparent to all of your users. This is a hybrid deployment, and only Microsoft can provide proper technology to enable that. Hybrid deployment gives you flexibility to move to the cloud at your own pace and on your own terms, or even stay in hybrid mode as long as you want.
Fact -- Exchange Online has much more storage and helpful functionalities you will adore
Exchange is the easiest workload to move to the cloud and it's the workload that most organizations move first. But if you still have doubts about it, here are a couple of arguments in favor of Exchange Online:
Fact -- Microsoft 365 provides options to work offline too
If you need to work in a distant place, like the mountains, wild woods, or high seas, Microsoft 365 gives you the opportunity. When signed in to your account, you can use all O365 functionalities for up to 30 days. After this period is over, you still need to connect to the Internet to get the latest updates and you can get back "into the wild" for another 30 days, if you want. To work with the files stored in the cloud, you should first synchronize your PC with OneDrive before going offline. After synchronization, your OneDrive files will be downloaded to your hard drive and you will be able to access them from there. Once you are back to the "online world," all the changes will automatically be uploaded to OneDrive.
Fact -- Teams in Microsoft 365 is your virtual collaboration workplace
Despite Microsoft 365 already offering collaboration tools like Yammer, Outlook, SharePoint, and Skype -- it's almost certain that Teams is the best solution for your teamwork. Microsoft Teams is a chat-based workplace that gives people one place to communicate and use creativity in innate ways. You can get static threads to communicate, and you can go back to the archives and see them. Teams is designed for cooperation in real time and in a completely non-friction manner. Teams offer a possibility for people to interact in multiple teams and ensures no need to use 15 different collaboration tools. As it is part of the Microsoft 365 suite of tools of cooperation, it is part of what users are already used to, meaning you can allocate tasks right in the conversation by simply creating or sharing and formatting many kinds of documents, from Word to Excel to PowerPoint. It couldn't be more comfortable than that. Customization, enhanced security, mobile calling, email integration and more makes Teams a unique asset to increase your company's efficiency
Fact -- Microsoft is constantly working to make Microsoft 365 compatible with the apps your employees need for effective work
Microsoft is always adding functionality and making improvements to Microsoft 365, so when your users need a new third-party tool, you don't have to worry about its security. Instead, you can rely on a security framework that's already in place, allowing users to take advantage of the productivity. This means your IT department can allow users to adopt the tool that best fits their needs. The single identity gives you the ability to bring in third-party cloud providers and integrate with your Azure AD user account, using the same security and compliance tools that you do for Microsoft 365. Long story short, your users can use business-critical apps, easily integrating them into their Microsoft 365 accounts, giving them access to necessary data and enjoying the security your admins will appreciate.
Summing up our myths-debunking article, let's outline one important point: when you start moving toward the cloud, you may be astonished to find out how many interesting and useful features you may discover exploring Microsoft 365. That's a great opportunity for your business to be more cost-efficient and control the process of your information and communication management, and much more.
2019-01-28