Article 5 Reasons to Migrate to Cloud-Based Email
By Insight UK / 18 Dec 2019
By Insight UK / 18 Dec 2019
To say email is important to the everyday operations of an organisation is an understatement. Since its arrival in the workplace in the 1980s, it has supplanted the telephone as the predominant form of communication and collaboration in virtually every business.
Although the adoption rate of new collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams is growing, email is still popular. It is estimated that 294 billion emails are sent every single day by 3.9 billion users. Although the rate of growth is declining, the volume of messages is set to increase to 320 billion by 2021.[1]
Email provision is therefore viewed as one of the key functions of the IT department. Traditionally email systems have either been on-premise or offered as a hosted solution. However, cloud-based email is a significant upgrade for organisations, IT departments and end users.
A cloud-based email platform like Microsoft Exchange Online helps IT departments manage and secure these communications more effectively than traditional email systems, while cloud-based clients allow employees to be more productive.
1. Cost efficiencies
The first advantage is that cloud-based email eliminates the need to maintain on-premise infrastructure as applications and data are stored remotely. This naturally has cost advantages as organisations don’t need to invest in and refresh equipment. Instead, organisations pay a monthly or annual subscription fee.
2. Scalability
This shift from a capital expenditure (CapEx) to an operational expenditure (OpEX) model enables greater flexibility. During a busy period, organisations can increase the volume of users or storage and then reduce during quieter times. The only way to increase capacity using an on-premise system would be to invest in equipment that would be wasted during periods of low demand and would still incur operational costs.
3. Reliability
Cloud-based email offers greater reliability, guaranteed by 99.99% SLAs. Because data is stored across multiple sites, it can be quicker to get back up and running if an organisation suffers a disaster than with a conventional backup solution.
4. Easier maintenance
In general, cloud-based email requires less maintenance. All updates are handled remotely by the vendor and the absence of physical infrastructure means IT departments can spend more time driving business change rather than fixing servers and applying patches. At a time when IT departments are being asked to do more with less, cloud-based email can help drive digital transformational goals.
5. Superior security and compliance
Microsoft Exchange Online customers are protected by the billions that Microsoft spend on cloud security. Specific email protections include anti-malware and anti-spamware filters, and administrators can also set Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policies that prevent employees from accidentally sharing sensitive information.
The key benefit of cloud-based email for end users is the ability to access email on the device of their choice, driving productivity in the field, and increasing employee satisfaction. Administrators can set policies that restrict which devices are able to access corporate data and can remotely wipe a handset if it is lost or stolen.
It’s also possible for administrators to take measures that boost compliance, such as retention policies and discovery tools. With Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure, organisations have the option of storing data in certain geographies. These features are especially useful for businesses in highly regulated industries or those subject to GDPR.
Microsoft Office 365 offers Exchange Online and Outlook Online in a single package. The combination of an enterprise-class email platform with a modern email client helps unlock the full potential of cloud-based email. Organisations acquire powerful management tools, while end users are able to access data on the device of their choice and benefit from intelligent features that drive productivity.
Email has been around for a long time but is still valued for its ubiquity and reliability. The cloud helps ensure this decades-old technology is ready for the digital era.
To get started with Microsoft Exchange and cloud-based email, read our guide ‘How To Get More Value From Exchange Online’.
