IT professionals and end-users often see technology from different perspectives. You’re likely to be more concerned with all the mechanics and logistics. Conversely, your clients and end-users are scratching their heads. This is a key consideration to include in your Office 365 migration planning. Including user adoption and training activities aids in bridging that chasm, and should be present throughout the migration process.

As Office 365 gains traction in the business community, it becomes even more necessary to shape a business methodology specifically for this program. The business plan should address potential challenges in adoption and training. Follow these tips to successfully craft your Office 365 business strategy.

I’d estimate that we use Microsoft Teams to handle around 90% of our internal communications and reserve email primarily for our formal communications with our clients and vendors. Recently I received an email with a couple of attachments from a vendor that I wanted to save to a Microsoft Team in order to share with my coworkers. Except the Team wasn't there...

Microsoft Teams on Office 365 is a collaborative workspace that facilitates a modern way of working. It is especially helpful for remote teams, although it offers great benefits to in-house employees as well. Microsoft Teams can help boost team productivity, increase collaboration across departments, and help your company complete tasks in a quick, efficient manner. When you connect third-party solutions to Microsoft Teams, you can drastically increase business efficiency, surpassing prior levels. Here are a few of the top advantages of Microsoft Office 365 Teams:

I often talk and write about the importance of user communication when businesses deploy Office 365, it’s an element that so many organizations forget to consider during their deployment. The communication cycle with users should start before the deployment and continue during and after deployment as well. 

I’ve provided suggested topics below for each stage of deployment. You can also consider multiple communication methods. We suggest adding some good, old-fashioned posters to the mix. Many users (who might ignore email) will often stop in the hallways to read this engaging eye-candy.

Microsoft Teams: The Future of Workplace Collaboration

I’m proud to say that I was an early adopter of Microsoft Teams. Now it seems every day I am engaging with people using the tool, both internal staff and external clients. Even as a guest on Teams I have been able to collaborate around projects that clients have created in their tenant. My clients are experiencing firsthand how Microsoft Teams can replace email and become the primary hub for where we work together. Teams has also become an effective tool at jump-starting client awareness into how workflows can be optimized so they are more efficient in all aspects of business. Microsoft Teams offers all businesses an incredible opportunity to increase teamwork through a collaborative, modern, streamlined application.

I recently had the opportunity to watch a broadcast from the Enterprise Connect Conference that took place in Orlando, Florida. Wow, I was excited about Microsoft Teams before, but now with some of the features showcased, I’m really pumped. The new Microsoft Teams capabilities will continue to drive teamwork and build on the vision of an intelligent workplace for ALL employees.

I thought a recap of highlights would be helpful, and if you’re interested in watching the recording, we’ve embedded a video at the bottom of this post. There’s nothing like seeing these highlights in action for yourself.

Office 365 is a toolkit from Microsoft that is designed to allow you to access Office applications on any device at any time. Office 365 provides the opportunity to drive team work. The Web-based toolkit receives regular updates and allows you to share documents and connect easily with colleagues, enabling multiple users to view and edit work in real time. Every minute counts when it comes to getting work done on a deadline, so it is important to make the most of these online features in the Office 365 interface.

Office 365 One Drive for Business is a cloud service that stores all files in a secure, shared space accessible across all devices. It gives businesses the power to create and share work-related documents, avoid data breaches, and clean up outdated processes. Migrating to OneDrive could be the chance your organization needs to stay on top of changing tech trends and optimize productivity. Here’s what you need to know... 

It isn’t enough to decide that Microsoft Office 365 is the correct choice for your company. Your must plan and tackle deployment head on, with as much knowledge as possible about what to expect during implementation and adoption. The more preparation you do prior to migrating to Office 365, the easier your transition will be for you and your users. One of the best ways to prepare your employees for the switch is to recognize and avoid these four common deployment mistakes:

Microsoft Office 365 is a feature-rich software that can significantly boost collaboration, communication, and information security for your organization. It has gained traction in the past few years thanks to advanced cloud capabilities and a suite of tools that optimize and drive teamwork (including Microsoft Teams). If you know Office 365 is the platform for your enterprise, don’t fumble your way through deployment and migration. Get the most value for your investment using this step-by-step guide for pain-free adoption. 

When done correctly, migrating your business's documents, email and collaboration platforms to the cloud can result in a huge number of benefits, including a centralized system of record, easy updates and an increased chance of recovery. That said, migrating to Office 365 is often easier said than done, as there is planning that needs to occur and prerequisites that need to be fulfilled. In order to alleviate the risks associated with migrating to Office 365 and minimize the pins your team needs to juggle, we have compiled our top three tips to make the migration go as smoothly as possible.

You’ve done your research and concluded that deploying Microsoft Office 365 would be in your organization’s best interests. The cloud capabilities might have attracted you, or maybe it's the ability to replace other software that's in use at your business with new Office 365 tools that will provide better collaboration. Either way, the next steps you take are critical to the success and adoption of Office 365 at your enterprise. Migrating to new technology can feel overwhelming until you break it into smaller tasks. It is important that your business plans for the transition to Office 365. KnowledgeWave's checklist can help to reduce the stress of your Office 365 deployment while also helping to increase user adoption and improve business ROI.

2019 is the year to rethink the way your employees work. The right business platform migration could eliminate harmful data leaks, save time, and facilitate easier collaborations. Office 365, a major component of the Microsoft 365 suite, offers a powerful, reliable, integrated experience with apps and services to help organize and grow your business. 

KnowledgeWave is best known for our business software training and we are very proud to provide a variety of training modalities that meet the needs of our clients.