If your business uses Office 365, there are a lot of features and benefits that you may not even be aware of. Here are some tips on how to get the most out of this great program.
While for many companies, both large and small, integrating or upgrading to Microsoft Office 365 can be a daunting process, it is no doubt essential to any business looking to maintain high industry standards, and therefore constitutes a smart investment.
Office 365 is the next step in Microsoft’s vision for a streamlined interface, allowing you to efficiently access the systems you require for your tasks.
The main downside to 365 for many companies is that unlike previous Office products which could be sold to companies for a one-time only fee, Office 365 does operate on a subscription service model.
However, with the amount that 365 can offer its clients, many have chosen to overlook this change in favor of reaping the many benefits of the program.
In this article we’ll be taking a closer look at how to get the most out of Office 365 for your business, should you choose to upgrade.
What is Office 365?
Office 365 is the latest offering from Microsoft in regards to office based software. You’ll still find the old, highly useful favorites such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc, but you also get the benefits of monthly updates, keeping your business up to date with the latest features as well as security settings.
Office 365 is also cloud powered, allowing you, your employees, and your customers to efficiently interact like never before, both in and out of the office. 365 also offers ample opportunities for boosting collaboration and group efficiency with ‘Microsoft Teams’ which becomes a hub for teamwork, allowing your employees to discuss tasks, plan meetings, and share necessary files.
365 comes with its own cloud-based storage system called ‘OneDrive’, which has a whopping terabyte of online storage, allowing your drive to grow with your business.
Alongside this impressive offering, 365 also has a wealth of business apps, which allow you to plan and schedule just about anything you need to ensure your company runs successfully.
Making the Most out of Office 365
Of course, when you’re paying for a system monthly, 6-monthly, or yearly, it is important to get the most out of it for that period.
A lot of the potential time-wastage (and therefore money-wastage) comes during the transitional period of moving from your old system to Office 365, therefore, it’s best to be well prepared before enacting this change to be sure you’re making the most of what 365 has to offer every step of the way.
Communicating Change
The major concern any manager or director should have when switching over to Office 365 is user adoption. Even the most impressive system is completely worthless if none of your staff have the first idea how to use it! To help the transition go smoothly, make sure staff are aware of the incoming changes, set a roll-out day, or days, and have meetings surrounding them. This will ensure you and your staff are on the same page, keeping moral high.
Leading by Example
Anyone in management should be well-versed in using the new software before it is rolled-out company-wide. This will help increase staff confidence in the new system, especially if they know they can come to you should they struggle to adapt.
Seeking opportunities to show staff the benefits of 365 will also help to ensure a smooth transition. Try switching your traditional conference calls to Microsoft Team meetings. Alternatively, try sharing a 365 Word document. This will allow staff to become hands on with the update, allowing them to explore the benefits such as multiple editors in real-time.
Office 365 Training
This is probably the most important ‘make or break’ element of rolling out 365 within your workplace. While of course it isn’t feasible for all staff to receiving full 365 training or certification, it is important that you ensure the right staff are fully trained.
This will help ensure the burden of fine-tuning transition isn’t falling upon the shoulders of just one member of staff, and that those trained can act as ambassadors for their team, re-teaching what they have learned to their colleagues.
In terms of the training available, there are two main avenues you could explore, bootcamps and training certifications. Bootcamps are ideal for bringing an individual up to speed with the general features and characteristics of a program, and would be ideal for managers, allowing them to easily troubleshoot staff members’ problems.
Training certifications are more specified towards different features or aspects of 365, such as MCE Microsoft 365 Enterprise Administrator, and is an ideal training option for the IT specialists or technicians within your company.
Certification Camps
In terms of bringing your team up to speed with Office 365 through training or bootcamps, you should settle for nothing less than what Certification Camps has to offer. With affordable packages available, including flights and accommodations, budgeting becomes easy. Off-campus learning is also available, meaning if you can’t spare a staff member, they can still become trained from the comfort of their office!