Webinar Recap: Harnessing the business benefits of Microsoft
Recently, we hosted our first webinar of the year, a Microsoft Tech Talk, where we delved into how organisations can harness the business benefits of their Microsoft stack effectively.
Our Microsoft Tech Talk recap
During the webinar, we focussed on the concept of an IT roadmap, discussing where individuals may currently sit on their journey with Microsoft and the strategic considerations they should have depending on their unique situation.
Tom Barker started the webinar by sharing the core truth; each organisation is likely to be in a different position regarding its IT roadmap, driven by the business requirements. When it comes to the utilisation of Microsoft, understanding where you sit on your IT roadmap is the first step.
We covered Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365, Security, and looking at Managed Services with the right partner as the key areas of an organisation's roadmap.
Microsoft Azure
The beauty of Microsoft Azure is its ability to adjust to suit your business needs as opposed to fixed infrastructure typically found on-prem. However, utilising Azure effectively requires in-depth knowledge of your business needs and data usage to ensure you can scale up and down cost-effectively.
David, our Head of Cloud Architecture, shared that running an Azure assessment and workshop is crucial to discovering and assessing your business needs.
Then, taking a strategic approach by following the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework, following Microsoft best practices, removes friction from transitioning to Azure and focuses your business on having a clear strategy guiding your cloud adoption journey.
David also explored two key solutions within Microsoft Azure which all businesses should consider: Azure Virtual Desktop and Azure Site Recovery and the benefits of both.
Microsoft 365 and Security
Microsoft's recently made their generative AI tool, Copilot, widely available to smaller businesses. We discussed what organisations need to consider to be able to integrate this revolutionary tool within their estate.
While Microsoft Copilot is a powerful tool, its utilisation requires significant planning to avoid exposure of potentially sensitive data. Regulations and restrictions should be implemented to enable Microsoft Copilot to gain access only to the data you want it to access.
In addition, generative AI is only as effective as the data that sits behind it. For organisations eager to deploy Copilot, they need to be considering where they sit when it comes to data governance and compliance and the gaps they need to fill to tighten their internal security and data management.
We covered the Copilot building blocks, covering the features and aspects of Microsoft you should be considering. We shared a two-tiered approach to embedding Copilot.
Firstly, we discussed the guidelines to get ready to deploy Microsoft Copilot. Then we examined the tools that need to be harnessed to optimise your usage of Microsoft 365 Copilot.
A Holistic approach to Microsoft services
Finally, as with all things there needs to be value attributed to each of the solutions that were discussed. As part of our engagements we discussed the value in a total cost of ownership exercise feeding in not only the Microsoft licenses but the services designed to support the environment as a whole to extract the most value possible.
Offering IT support where you need it most
Regarding Microsoft, there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Knowing the best approach to deploying and increasing your ROI from Microsoft can be challenging. We're here to support you whatever your IT needs are, including Microsoft, IT support, cyber security and managed services.
Reach out to us today to find out how we can support you with your IT goals and roadmap.
Ready to speak to an expert?
If you have any questions about your Microsoft stack, or you're ready to improve the Microsoft approach within your organisation, then we're here to help.
