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Just as good as the reputation would have you expect!
November 19, 2019

Just as good as the reputation would have you expect!

Jeremy Kramer | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Microsoft 365 Business

Microsoft 365 Business is absolutely integral to the corporate accounting department at my publishing company. We've even recently been on-boarding aspects of the software suite that make previously used software irrelevant, like using Microsoft Teams instead of Skype or Slack.

The seamless integration of Outlook with all other programs in the suite makes document sharing a breeze. Cloud integration with OneDrive makes collaboration so much easier during month-end tasks that require a reconciliation, roll forward, or schedule to be looked at or contributed to by so many people without copy after copy floating around.

But selfishly, one of my favorite aspects of 365 is dark themes. Not only for aesthetic reasons (which do factor in), but for eye strain too! Cutting down on blue light in any way possible is always a plus, and thanks to darker themes in programs that are nearly always open on my PC (Outlook, Excel, etc.), those long-day headaches are far less frequent.

Something else to keep in mind with 365 is the ability for employees to contribute on another machine if their own issued computer is out of commission. With 365, documents need not be tied down to a machine that is lost, stolen, or in repair.

  • Outlook integration: as mentioned in the rest of the review, working with documents, spreadsheets, etc. in Outlook is seamless. Previewing an Excel doc instead of opening can be a lifesaver when there are already 15 windows of Excel open!
  • Aesthetics: while not the most important feature of any software, appearance can go a long way to make the experience feel less like a chore, and can also contribute to usability for a newer user.
  • Time Management: Outlook works with Calendars, Teams, and Contact books to make meeting scheduling and execution easy, but with 365, the cloud focus allows even greater flexibility for someone working from home or calling into a meeting remotely.
  • Memory management: on the more technical side, 365 manages the CPU and RAM of the user's machine in a way that isn't wasteful, and I personally have experienced far fewer crashes in cloud-based documents.
  • In Excel: being an accountant, this is obviously the program I use most, and where I notice the most areas for improvement. Microsoft has historically paid attention to its community feedback, but could do so in a more timely manner, and also come back around to some of the issues that have multiple hundred "me too!" responses, but no official fix other than a program restart, or worse, none at all.
  • In Microsoft Word: historically, page numbering has been a major issue with Word, and continues to be in 365. The system is confusing, clunky, and many users end up needing to put in manual text boxes to number pages. It's a relatively small issue, but frustrating on the occasions that it arises.
  • In Outlook: having a view option for threads that collapses the traditional long-form to something more quickly scan-able would be huge. Compressing the four or five lines of "From", "To", "CC", and "BCC" into a single "John Doe to Jane Smith copying Mike Jones", and offering the longer form for the more traditional types would be an example.
  • Microsoft 365 has had a profoundly positive impact on the streamlining of month-end tasks and collaborations, making the usage of company time that much more efficient.
  • The interfacing with Oracle Fusion Cloud accounting software allows a far higher efficiency rate for myself and my colleagues in accounting.
  • The common language of Microsoft 365 that so many businesses 'speak' allows a high-level of productivity with vendors, suppliers, and other parallel businesses.
Against the most common competitor/peer of the Apple Pages/Numbers/Keynote suite, Microsoft 365 absolutely demolishes. It's hardly a fair fight considering the ease of use Microsoft products enjoy on Apple hardware despite the companies being direct competitors. Apple knows that its productivity software triad doesn't stack up, and concedes that fight because they know they need to.
As mentioned elsewhere in the review, Microsoft has historically paid attention to community feedback and issues, but timeliness can improve, and so can the addressing of long-standing issues about which many users have said "I have this issue too!" but no official solution exists. For issues that do have a solution, however, the solution is usually not difficult to find, and the explanation of features on Microsoft's website can mitigate many problems.

Do you think Microsoft 365 Business Premium delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Microsoft 365 Business Premium's feature set?

Yes

Did Microsoft 365 Business Premium live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Microsoft 365 Business Premium go as expected?

I wasn't involved with the implementation phase

Would you buy Microsoft 365 Business Premium again?

Yes

For technical tasks, in-company information, and cross-team collaboration, Microsoft 365 is perfect. For intra-company collaborations, more creative efforts, and outward-facing reporting, it may be still useful, albeit less seamless. For creative job roles, writers, web editors, designers, etc., the Microsoft suite may clash with their usage of Mac and Adobe suites.