Microsoft 365 Business Standard is one of the most essential productivity tools needed for work, may it be in company offices or remote work. Microsoft 365 formerly known as Office 365 Business Premium, has been available since 2011 and started licensing bundle for enterprises from 2017. The package comes with a combination of 50 GB business-class email: Outlook, 1 TB (per user) of file storage on OneDrive and the traditional desktop apps such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote. The users also have the accessibility of adding other interactive tools that can be used across various platforms and devices easily such as Skype, Whiteboard, Teams, PowerBi, Project, Yammer, SharePoint and many more that’ll be discussed in detail in this article. These tools are easily downloadable as-needed when you and your team see fit. It also differs from old bundles as it offers monthly or annual subscription license rather than an everlasting license.
Due to its versatile features, Microsoft 365 is a staple software as a service program for Legal and business professionals. It ensures security, compatibility and easily file sharing with teams and clients. The bundle enhances productivity by reducing overhead and offering remote access.
Why Microsoft 365 Business Standard 365?
Microsoft 365 Business Standard is a cloud powered bundle offering reliability through virtual access and online storage. The services are graded according to enterprise standards for secure document sharing, social tools, tracking workload, co-authoring documents, and productivity tools such as planners and content management. The bundle reduces IT expenditure through its versatile rich tools that can be used across various platforms and devices easily. Some insight on major features of the bundle is given below:
- Word – A processing tool to create, edit, design, and share documents.
- PowerPoint – A presentation tool for slides providing multimedia features.
- Excel – A spreadsheet program for data visualization and analysis.
- OneNote – Stores and shares information in the form of notes, drawings, and audio.
- Outlook – An email service that comes along a calendar, task manager, notes, journal and contact manager. Microsoft 365 Business Standard bundle provides custom email domain for enterprises and 50 GB mailbox for each user.
- OneDrive – A cloud storage service for documents and files for easy access and sharing. Microsoft 365 Business Standard provides 1TB of One Drive storage
- Teams – A go-to meeting internal communication and collaboration application developed to support teamwork while combining video calls, meetings, chats, notes and attachments.
- SharePoint – A browser based collaborative platform providing file storage, organization, and sharing. Other than these traditional tools, the bundle also provides access and integration with other Microsoft services, for example:
- Bookings – A planning app widely used by law firms for scheduling and tracking appointments through an online calendar. The calendar is available on websites, blogs or social media app where clients can book appointments, reschedule or cancel, and even send email or text. At the company office or law firm, it can display bookings for each lawyers and the details.
- Stream – A videos sharing service for enterprise video content that can shared within the company with this application.
- Whiteboard: A digital canvas application where ideas can be represented in the form of easily available tools and content. The app also eases engagement and collaboration.
- Skype for Business – Provides online meeting and calling, instant messaging and even recording a meeting.
- Power Bi – A visualization tool for business analytics, helps create reports and organizing data.
- Project – A project management software where the user can schedule, design, track tasks and assign resources.
- Yammer – A social networking service for business for communication within the organization.
- Connections – An app that builds customers by managing business contacts (which can be integrated with Outlook) for use in advertisements and more.
- Listings – Publishes business information on web and social engines.
- Todo – A cloud-based task management system to help you track and prioritize tasks. It could also be synced with Outlook.
- MyAnalytics – A business analytics tool which keeps a track of productivity and time spent on everyday business activities.
- Planner – An interactive planner to organize personal work or tasks among teams.
- Sway – Creates digital presentations and interactive report making and visual storytelling app board.
How Lawyers and Law Firms Are Using Microsoft 365 Business Standard
The bundle provides immense advantages for an individual lawyer or law firm, streamlining productivity and saving time. It would not only ease the day to day operation but also helps legal teams communicate better with their clients. Some prominent features of Microsoft 365 Business Standard are:
• A secure enterprise-grade cloud-based platform
For law-firms security is a necessity, keeping this in mind Microsoft 365 offers a secure platform compliant with industry standards such as ISO 27001, HIPAA BAA, and EU Model clauses. The built-in security provided by Office 365 bounces threats and malware all the time. The cloud based services provides permissions, version control, data loss prevention and e-discovery to ensure that the documents are controlled and archived with minimum overhead. A single admin portal helps manage users and services.
• Remote access to documents and projects
Microsoft 365 Business Standard comes with 1TB of cloud storage, providing easy access to documents from virtually anywhere. The document could be share internally within the law-firm or even externally with the client reducing paper and making it easy to find the latest version of documents. The accessibility feature can keep lawyers up to date while they’re working outside of the office or on-the-go.
• Improved Management and Collaboration
When working in a team, workflows could be managed and integrated with advanced tools available in Office 365 such as Flow, MS Projects etc. The team members can also collaborate and conduct meetings through Skype and teams. Microsoft 365 Business Standard also provides an efficient client relationship management system through various tools, such as Bookings and SharePoint etc. where communication with the clients can be tracked.
Conclusion
Microsoft 365 is an established cloud service provider compatible with Windows and Mac with a variety of productive solutions for law firms. The versatile nature of Microsoft 365 package not only streamlines day to day activities but also strengthens the communication and correspondence with the client. The package addresses all security concerns of law firms in a cost-efficient package or $15.00 user/month with monthly commitment.
