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Over the last few years, Microsoft has fundamentally changed what is included within Microsoft 365 Business Premium.
What was once viewed primarily as a productivity licence for Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel has evolved into a platform that now includes enterprise-grade security, device management, identity and governance capabilities previously reserved for much larger organisations.
The challenge is that many businesses, and indeed many IT providers, are still operating from assumptions that were true several years ago.
As a result, organisations are often being recommended additional security, compliance and management products that align with their growing needs, without ever being shown what already exists within the Microsoft licensing they are already paying for.
The question is no longer:
“Do we need additional technology?”
The question should be:
“Have we fully explored what Microsoft Business Premium is already capable of?”
Microsoft Has Changed. Many IT Strategies Haven’t.
Microsoft has invested heavily into Business Premium over the last few years.
Capabilities that were traditionally associated with enterprise security and management platforms are now available to SME organisations through a licence many businesses already own.
This includes:
- Endpoint protection through Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
- Identity and access management through Microsoft Entra ID
- Device management through Microsoft Intune
- Email protection through Defender for Office 365
- Conditional Access and Zero Trust controls
- Vulnerability management and security visibility
- Compliance and governance capabilities through Microsoft Purview
So, with all of this capability in the license, why the heck aren’t businesses using it?
Well…
Most technology environments don’t become complex overnight. They evolve through a series of sensible, point-in-time decisions.
- A new security requirement appears.
- A compliance standard needs to be met.
- An insurance questionnaire raises concerns.
- A provider recommends a specialist product.
- A business introduces a new platform to solve a specific challenge.
Individually, these decisions often make perfect sense.
The problem is that they’re rarely revisited.
Over time, organisations can find themselves paying for multiple platforms that perform similar functions, operating across disconnected systems and creating increasingly fragmented environments.
This isn’t necessarily because the products are wrong.
It’s often because the wider technology strategy has never been reviewed as a whole.
The Crux of the Problem
The uncomfortable reality is that unlocking Microsoft’s modern security and management capabilities requires significant expertise.
Deploying, configuring and managing Microsoft Defender, Intune, Conditional Access, Entra ID and more isn’t the same as providing traditional IT support.
It requires specialist knowledge, ongoing investment and a strategic approach to technology management.
For many providers, recommending a third-party platform is easier than investing in the internal capability required to fully utilise Microsoft’s ecosystem.
The result?
Businesses are often presented with additional products as the default solution without ever being shown the alternatives already available within Microsoft Business Premium.
That doesn’t mean third-party products are wrong.
Many organisations have genuine operational, security or compliance requirements that justify specialist platforms.
The issue is whether businesses are being given a genuine choice based on their requirements.
Who Cares?
Business leaders are under increasing pressure to improve security, strengthen governance and demonstrate compliance. Not only to improve resilience, but to also win new business.
- Cyber Essentials.
- ISO 27001.
- Client assurance reviews.
- Insurance requirements.
- Supplier due diligence questionnaires.
These requirements continue to increase.
At the same time, businesses are trying to simplify operations, improve visibility and maintain control over costs.
Adding more technology isn’t always the answer.
In many cases, the opportunity lies in making better use of technology that already exists inside the primary ecosystem you use: Microsoft.
Our Approach
Over the last 18 months, we’ve invested heavily in our Microsoft capability across support, projects and account management. This has been no small feat!
Our Microsoft Solutions Partner designations across Security, Modern Work, Infrastructure and Data & AI reflect that investment and allow us to help organisations unlock significantly more value from the Microsoft ecosystem.
Rather than immediately recommending additional products, our approach is to understand what capability already exists within a client’s environment, where Microsoft can provide a strategic foundation, and where specialist third-party solutions genuinely add value.
The objective isn’t to replace technology for the sake of it.
It’s to create more secure, visible and strategically managed environments that support the long-term goals of the business.
The Question Every Business Should Ask
Technology environments rarely become complex overnight.
More often, they evolve through years of sensible decisions, new requirements, changing risks and recommendations from multiple suppliers.
The result can be an environment made up of numerous products, platforms and specialist services, each solving a specific problem, but without anyone regularly stepping back to ask:
- Is all of this still necessary?
- Are we fully utilising the technology we already pay for?
- Do we have clear visibility across our environment, or has it become increasingly fragmented over time?
- And perhaps most importantly, is our IT provider strategically managing our technology estate, or simply introducing and supporting an ever-growing list of third-party products slapped over basic support?
For many businesses, these questions have never been formally reviewed.
Yet they’re often where the biggest opportunities for simplification, visibility, improved security and greater operational control begin.
Free Microsoft Business Premium Review
As a Microsoft Solutions Partner across Security, Modern Work, Infrastructure and Data & AI, we help organisations understand what’s already available within their Microsoft investment.
Our free Microsoft Business Premium review will help identify:
- Existing capability within your licensing
- Areas of overlap across your technology stack
- Opportunities to improve security and governance
- Potential operational and commercial efficiencies
- Where specialist third-party products continue to add value
Book your free review today, we’d love to hear from you.
Join our free webinar - Wednesday 15th July
Want to see what Business Premium can do before you commit to a review? Join us for a free online session on 15th July where we’ll walk through the key features, what most businesses are missing, and how to get more from your existing Microsoft investment.
