Did you know? Office 365 suite is used by more than a million enterprises across the globe. In the United States alone, more than 879,851 companies are using Microsoft Office 365. This statistic clarifies that MS Office 365 suite is a popular product among businesses of all sizes. If you are also planning to opt for Office 365 services, you should consider hiring a seasoned professional who can guide you through the process. The reason being is Office 365 has been evolving since its initial release in 2011.

By partnering with a knowledgeable Office 365 consultant, you can not only make the most of your investment but also harness a host of business benefits offered by the Microsoft Office 365 suite. Besides this, a seasoned consultant will train your workforce and offer long-term strategic guidance to make Office 365 suite work for your business advantage, both now and in the future. However, when it comes to hiring Office 365 consultants, you have to be cautious since the field is crowded and everyone calls themselves ‘experts’ or ‘consultants’. To overcome this conundrum and choose the right consultant, continue reading this informative piece.

4 Practical Ways to Choose the Best Office 365 Consultant

1. Knowledge

Last year, Microsoft changed its Office 365 suite name to Microsoft 365. It's the same product offering the same great values to businesses with a new name. Firstly, your consultant should be aware of this as it shows they are keeping pace with time. Secondly, your consultant should have a sound knowledge of the entire spectrum of the Microsoft 365 suite.

This includes how each component of Microsoft 365 works, and how they can work synergistically with other elements. Since you have already briefed your business requirements to your consultant, and they have done their research work, chances are more they understand your business better in the context of existing requirements and what it will require in the future. For instance, if you want to improve internal collaboration and communication in your business, your consultant should be aware of the benefits offered by MS Teams and how popular app integrations with MS Teams can help you achieve more. The decision of hiring a consultant should not be based solely on technical expertise, instead, you should also look for whether the consultant has a solid grasp of the business’s day-to-day challenges and social aspects. Always choose the one that can walk in your workforce’s shoes when it comes to tackling business challenges.

2. Microsoft 365 Migration

Your consultant should be aware of all the data your company possesses so that they can help you in the digital transformation with Office 365 data migration. Without expert help, you may lose the direction from your core business functions and end up wasting your both time and effort. An experienced consultant will help you seamlessly migrate all your business data including Dropbox documents, social media content, etc. to a cloud environment without any hassle. In other words, seasoned professionals will always make sure that data migration doesn’t have to be stressful for businesses.

3. Experience

Choosing a Microsoft 365 consultant is similar to onboarding a new team member in your business. They have to align well with your business goals and understand your company’s culture. Always look for someone who has an excellent client satisfaction rate along with rich flexibility, strong prowess, and the ability to communicate coherently with your personnel. Since Microsoft cloud is not easy to deal with, your consulting partner should be capable of harnessing the benefits offered by Microsoft 365 solutions including Dynamics 365, Power BI, Exchange Server, SharePoint Office, and more.

4. Responsive

A professional Microsoft 365 consultant will stay in touch with you after implementation. It's wise to ask about the practical support and strategic guidance they offer post-implementation. Always keep in mind that Microsoft 365 is evolving incessantly, according to the market demands. Therefore, opting for Microsoft 365 consulting services from someone that offers ongoing managed support can turn out to be a great decision.

Wrapping Up

When looking for a consultant for Microsoft 365 implementation in your business, it is strongly recommended to conduct extensive research on the internet, particularly on authoritative websites like Clutch, GoodFirms, etc. This will help you narrow down your search since everyone calls themselves experts or consultants. Besides doing research, you can consider this informative piece as a checklist to ensure you follow all the practical ways when hiring the best Office 365 consultant for your business. Using this detailed piece as a checklist will help you ensure you are partnering with the right consultant.