Consolidation helps standardize fewer services and migrate data from existing on-premises and cloud services without risking compliance violations, and enables fewer instances for the same service (like Microsoft 365 tenants), the two organizations in place before the acquisition each have their own tenants (as you would expect) with SharePoint consulting services.
.jpg)
Consolidating cloud services makes sense in many ways. Cost reduction is the most basic benefit. So let's start by discussing the cost savings before exploring other more important benefits more broadly.
1. Cost savings
Often, consolidating cloud services cuts costs in half. For example, organizations that use Dropbox for Business alongside Microsoft 365 pay $20 per user per month for file sync and share features in Dropbox, in addition to the $35 per user per month for an Office 365 E5 license. . Eliminating Dropbox by migrating file syncing and sharing to OneDrive and SharePoint represents a savings of 51% per migrated user .
To cite an example of our own (AvePoint), by analyzing the fees paid for conference call and webinar services in addition to what we were spending on Microsoft 365 features, we found that we could save $400,000. per year using only what Office 365 already offered. We were able to reduce our annual costs by more than 60%, simply by consolidating two solutions into one.
To save costs, it is enough to be careful in the use of organizational resources, and to reduce and limit unnecessary expenses incurred. Saving costs also frees up funds that are unnecessarily spent on redundant services and funds more essential services that were previously relegated to the background or inaccessible with SharePoint Development Chicago.
2. Improved user experience and less complexity
Cloud consolidation in Microsoft 365 provides a better user experience because it reduces the complexity of the full range of tools used by employees. Microsoft 365 services are designed to work together from the start, with Teams being the prime example of how Microsoft enables aggregation of Shar point , OneDrive, Planner , calling and chat (and more). others) in a single integrated service.
Services designed to work together enable integrations such as links between Outlook and OneNote, moving an email conversation from Outlook to Microsoft Teams for conversion and larger-scale discussion, and a search experience standardized thanks to the new Microsoft Search.
Employees don't need to find yet another app to standardize multiple, disparate departments, and adoption is easier because what they learn from one Microsoft 365 tool carries over to other tools on the broader platform. Cross-team experiences are also enhanced, as different teams use common tools – e.g. ex. : Microsoft Teams, Yammer – rather than very diverse tools using different interfaces, approaches and architectures.
3. Information risk reduction
Information risk is reduced through cloud consolidation because consistent approaches can be used to identify sensitive data, classify content, and block inappropriate sharing or distribution attempts. If the number of cloud services used is reduced, the amount of data repositories to be managed and secured will also be reduced, as will the number of services that can be breached.
4. Reduction of the attack surface
Cloud consolidation reduces the attack surface available to malicious actors, both internal and external. Fewer services, fewer applications, and fewer vendors also represent fewer attack vectors. Some of the most common types of attacks include compromised accounts (often through phishing attempts or password brute force attacks), distributed denial of service attacks, exploitation of vulnerabilities in the settings of security and application code, and misconfigured access rights .
Ultimately, if your organization does not back up data to a particular cloud service, it is not at risk of being breached or compromised there. Gartner reported in 2015 that 95% of cloud security breaches are due to customer fault, and that limiting the number of cloud services used is a solid approach to mitigating these faults.
5.Reduced complexity for IT management and system administration
As the number of cloud services used continues to grow, it is important that someone manages and administers access rights, ensures appropriate data protection, configures security requirements and meets compliance criteria.
Consolidating cloud services into Microsoft 365 reduces disparity, complexity, and variation between services. The number of services tracked through audit logs, alert mechanisms and notification devices is reduced.
It's also much easier for an organization to hire cloud professionals who are Microsoft 365 experts than it is to find professionals with skills in multiple cloud services.