Item: Microsoft Exchange
Rating: 9
Author: Gerardo Varillas

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Microsoft Exchange to contact our end customers and providers daily, then it is an essential tool for us to keep the communication up to date. Some day we decided to migrate from Exchange to Exchange Online because it seems to be more accessible for the end-users but it didn't work, the users were able to enter the mailbox but all the email subfolders were gone, disappeared, it wasn't there anymore, then all the users got concerned because some of them use to have more than 10 subfolders to organize their emails (customers, providers, warranties, contracts, etc.), we tried to execute a script to migrate the accounts including the subfolders but it didn't work, then they switched back to Exchange On-Premise.

Pros and Cons

Ease of use.
Clear interface.
Easy integration between desktop and mobile devices.

Wizard to migrate a mailbox from Exchange to Exchange Online keeping subfolders.
Wizard configuring a Microsoft 365 mailbox in a mobile device.
The Online version has not had the same options for customizing the interface as On-Premise.

Most Important Features

Feasibility to keep synchronized the Microsoft Team's meetings.
We can access the mailbox from any device and the interface is always friendly.
Ease of mailbox management.

Return on Investment

The native integration with other Microsoft tools helps us to avoid expend money on other platforms or 3rd. party integrations.
The Online version helps us to free some infrastructure resources to use for other projects.
The situation of really don't know the details that you will lose switching from On-Premise to Online version could impact the licensing cost because maybe you will need On-Premise licenses for some users and Online licenses for others.

Alternatives Considered

Google Workspace

1) The cost per user is almost the same (around $3 USD more than Google Workspace) but the Office tools that Microsoft includes are the best in the market. The end-users are really adapted to them and the other tools like Google Sheets and Google Documents are really bad. 2) The interface is so friendly and clear for the end-users. The Gmail interface is very simple, uncustomizable, and a little bit ugly.

Key Insights

Do you think Microsoft Exchange delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Microsoft Exchange's feature set?

Yes

Did Microsoft Exchange live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Microsoft Exchange go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Microsoft Exchange again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Microsoft 365, Zoho Analytics, Zoho Assist, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus, ManageEngine Desktop Central, ManageEngine OpManager, ManageEngine Application Manager

Likelihood to Recommend

I think Microsoft Exchange is well suited when you can set your customized subfolders for one or more mailboxes, it is a very clear interface for end-users and it makes easy email management. The native integration with Teams and calendar is so good because at least 50% of our customers use Microsoft Teams for meetings, then we don't need to create a specific event in another calendar (like Google) to schedule the meeting. The interface is very customizable to make it more friendly for the end-user. I think Microsoft Exchange is less appropriate when you need to configure a new email account and doesn't have some technical knowledge. It is also a problem when you need to integrate a plugin (like Google Calendar) to connect to other platforms because most cases it becomes a very slow performance of Exchange, then you need to uninstall the plugin.

Your mailbox organized as easy as you want.

Overall Satisfaction with Microsoft Exchange