If I mention to you the words ‘modern workplace’, what comes to mind?
Do you think it's an open plan office with some funky desk design? Or a workplace that is full time working from home with modern setups to replace the more office based working environment?
Let’s put this picture in your head, imagine a Microsoft 365 modern workplace. This can be defined as a digital organisation powered by the enterprise suite of tools provided by Microsoft which are designed to help improve overall productivity and give your business a greater ability to implement home working. From an outsider's perspective, this sounds very complicated and unclear as to exactly what it means and to be honest this is true. This is why in our latest blog article; we will explain to you in simple terms exactly what it means.
Let’s start by explaining what the Microsoft Modern Workplace is
Put simply, the Microsoft Modern Workplace is a complicated way of saying a business that uses the whole range of Microsoft 365 products. This means using Office now known as Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) in addition to Enterprise Mobility and Security, the Microsoft Power Platform as well as any other products that Microsoft can provide. It goes without saying but Microsoft has a whole host of videos that are labelled as the Modern Workplace, however this is much different from what we are discussing in this article so keep reading.
The term ‘Microsoft Modern Workplace’ can be used to describe a business that only uses Microsoft products where needed. This term wouldn’t be used to describe a business that uses Microsoft 365 but stores all its data and documentation on Google Drive.
So, what are the core differences between the Microsoft Modern Workplace and any other similar workplaces?
This can be explained by the technology that they use. Better still, you could also simplify this to be illustrated as the workplace technology stack. If you don’t know what we mean by a technology stack, it is a much simpler way of showcasing what systems you currently use for what purpose, in most cases it’s used to describe either servers or websites.
Keep this in mind that the Microsoft Modern Workplace is only used as a term to define ‘how’ a company’s technology works and how it’s organised, it isn’t at all linked to a company’s values or services.
Check out the table below where we outline the core differences between the two terms:
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Microsoft Modern Workplace
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Other modern workplace
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Security
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Enterprise Mobility & Security, Microsoft Defender
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Easily accessible anti-virus such as Norton or McAfee
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Productivity
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Microsoft 365 suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook)
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Google Docs, Google Sheets and Google Slides
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File Storage
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Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive
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Google Drive as well as Dropbox
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Telephony Systems
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Microsoft Business Voice / Microsoft Teams Voice
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Other telephony systems that are available
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Data Storage
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Microsoft Azure
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Google Cloud/Amazon Web Services
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Operating System
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Windows
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Chronium / Linus
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Messaging, Collaboration and Calling
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Microsoft Teams
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Google Meet, WhatsApp, Facebook
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Why should your business use the Microsoft Modern Workplace?
The Microsoft Modern Workplace will enable your business to use a single system across all elements of your business. This can bring with it many benefits (we will discuss these further in the article) as it’s one single billing system, one admin method and simple for all users of all levels to comprehend.
Microsoft are well known for delivering workplace solutions. They’ve got plenty of experience in offices and domestic use and are regarded as one of the major players in the tech market. If you make the decision to use Microsoft, then you will be rest assured of having access to a whole host of leading products that can be used in any modern workplace scenario.
Ok, great I want to get started with the Microsoft Modern Workplace but what are the benefits of doing so?
Regular product improvements
If you are a business that currently doesn’t use a cohesive workplace system, making updates can be extremely tedious and labour intensive as doing one update could have an impact on other platforms you use and so on. When using Microsoft, you will find that just a single update will have been tested for compatibility across a whole host of products beforehand, giving you peace of mind that the update when made won’t cause you any problems.
Reduced admin time
Having all your software in one place will mean that you have a single admin centre which will enable you to make any changes quickly. This will help to reduce the time associated with admin-related activities.
Simplistic adoption
Instead of having multiple systems which all have different things associated with them, having a single system and set of software that have been built by the same provider makes it much simpler for the end-users to adopt and use quickly.
More reliable security
When moving data between different platforms can open businesses up to data being lost or compromised. With a single provider in Microsoft, you can gain value from end-to-end encryption as well as data in transit encryption. This makes the whole process much more streamlined and safer.
Ok, great I know how my business will benefit from the Microsoft Modern Workplace but what is included?
You will find that the Microsoft Modern Workplace comes to include the following (depending on what your business needs):
Microsoft 365
This will include Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint in addition to Microsoft Teams. Each user will need a Microsoft 365 license.
Microsoft 365 Teams Voice
This is Microsoft’s solution to VoIP and is their premier telephony solution. This will enable you to fully integrate Teams with your phone line system.
Enterprise Mobility and Security
You will find that there are two different options available (E3 and E5) which enable Enterprise Mobility and Security to give remote work a comprehensive security system for your business.
Microsoft Power Platform
Microsoft Power Platform is a low code platform that uses Microsoft Azure to combine the robust power of PowerApps, PowerBI & Power Automate into one powerful business application platform.
Microsoft SharePoint
SharePoint allows you to bring together all your business documents in one place as well as making it much easier for your employees to collaborate and make accurate decisions.
Microsoft Viva
Microsoft Viva empowers businesses with next-generation AI and insights—bringing together the tools and applications businesses need for communication and feedback, analytics, goals and learning to continuously improve employee engagement and business performance.
Next Steps?
If you are a business that is, looking to make the move to the Microsoft Modern Workplace then please talk to our team of Microsoft experts now to discuss your specific working environment needs.
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