On-Premise Exchange or Microsoft 365?

It’s hard to know which technologies are right for your business. Especially when they are so many new advancements, updates and versions releasing every single day. In today’s cloud driven world, one of the many technologies businesses are contemplating is whether or not to move to Office 365.

The standard for years has been an on-premise Microsoft Exchange server; and this solution still works for many businesses. However, moving email and calendar solutions to Office 365 has become a growing trend. Because of this, businesses are faced with the dilemma of deciding which of these systems is be the best fit for them.  

Let’s evaluate theses two technologies based on their features.  

• One of the main benefits of an on-premise system is your email is hosted onsite. This means your company has complete control of the environment. This is useful for things like configuring your backup solution, managing the size of user mailboxes, and how you want mail to flow through your email security solution. 
• It’s likely that your IT staff is familiar and comfortable using on-premise Exchange. This means moving to Office 365 may require you to provide training for your current staff. This transition will more than likely present an initial training cost for your business. There is also a cost that comes with new licensing and migration expenses. 
• If your business deals with highly confidential information, it’s more than likely your business has a security plan in place that requires all company data to be stored in-house. This means your business would require an on-premise Exchange solution.  
• Transitioning to Office 365 requires planning and training for your user community that needs to be taken into consideration during deployment.

• With Office 365, your IT department no longer has to worry about performing security updates or Exchange Cumulative Updates. All of this is done automatically by Microsoft, without any downtime required. This also allows any new features to be utilized right away by your employees. 
• Hosting your email in the cloud means you no longer need physical equipment. This means lower costs for purchasing the actual servers, switches and more, as well as removing support contracts for that equipment. Add that to the lowered power consumption, and you will see your IT costs decrease. 
• Physical equipment also ages. Traditionally, it is suggested to replace physical hardware every five years or so. With Office 365, this requirement no longer exists. 
• Once you have migrated to Office 365, the ease of management increases. This means more time to focus on other areas of your business, such as your personal and team goals and bottom line.

Ultimately, the system that will work best for your business depends on your organizational goals and tasks. Interested in learning more? Contact Plow Networks today.

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