Office 365 provides a range of applications that will change how you work, communicate and collaborate. Many law firms will initially make the move to the Office 365 platform because it is the most recent version of Microsoft Office. At some point, users begin to realize there is a lot more to Office 365 then the standard applications they are use to using. Many new features in Office 365 can be and should be leveraged to increase productivity and efficiency.

While, this post does focus on using these features in a law firm setting, these new tools can be used by any business, organization, school or non-profit, to increase workflow optimization. The following are just a few of the important Office 365 applications and features that will benefit any size firm:

Microsoft Office 365 is a powerful, complex software solution. Achieving both personal and business success with Office 365 will take training – a lot of training, most likely. IT professionals may struggle with convincing stakeholders of the value that additional Office 365 training can provide for the business. If you want to successfully convince your employer Office 365 training is necessary and beneficial, follow these tips.

Businesses that have migrated to Office 365 are beginning to see and use an exciting new feature – Insights for MyAnalytics. MyAnalytics allows users to track the time employees spend on certain applications to enhance productivity and efficiency. Insights for MyAnalytics is a separate add-on that provides actionable insights for employees, which can help boost office productivity. Here’s what you need to know about this new update – and how it can help you grow your business.

Many businesses encounter challenges during Microsoft Office 365 adoption and migration, largely due to the complexity and power of the program. Office 365 is not just new software, it's a new way to work. Common obstacles include trouble converting via legacy solutions, low bandwidth, lack of support, poorly constructed pilots, and lack of a clear migration path. Here are some of the most common challenges to Office 365 migration and how to avoid them.

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.

Upgrading to Windows 10 can reap benefits across multiple industries, but perhaps the most important changes are in healthcare. As a company in the healthcare industry, you must comply with HIPAA requirements. Part of these requirements is to ensure patient information privacy – something an older version of Windows could compromise. By upgrading to a new operating system like Windows 10, you can remain compliant with HIPAA and provide multiple benefits to your healthcare organization.

As a financial institution, you have immense responsibilities with regard to customer privacy. Your customers trust you with their most sensitive financial information. Using the wrong Windows OS could compromise this trust and expose sensitive information. However, knowing which operating system to choose can be a challenge with all the options available – should you choose Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise? Here are a few pros and cons of each version to help you make the right choice for your banking company:

The machine-based world of technology can appear void of human touch to many outside of it. Which can make selling technology services to living, breathing humans even more of a challenge.

One method for adding a dash of humanity is incorporating emotion-based selling techniques – a powerful (and proven) weapon used by salespeople around the world.

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:

If your business is still using a past version of Windows without issue, you may be wondering why you should upgrade. Why change a good thing? After all, company-wide operating system rollouts can be intimidating, even with the best implementation plans. However, Windows 10 offers more than enough benefits to make even the staunchest resisters consider an upgrade – it’s called an upgrade for a reason.

Consider the following 10 reasons to upgrade to Windows 10:

Peanut butter and chocolate. Ham and eggs. Star Wars and J.J. Abrams. Some things are just better together.

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.