# The top 5 Microsoft 365 challenges and how to manage them Author: Pal Sinha, Barnali Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali Published: 2021-05-26 Category: BUSINESS Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/business Meta Title: Microsoft 365 License Management Best Practices Meta Description: Discover common challenges like visibility, licensing, assignment, cost management, and adoption in our latest article by License Dashboard's Community URL: https://financedigest.com/the-top-5-microsoft-365-challenges-and-how-to-manage-themhtml ![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/microsoft-365-1736838310991-compressed.jpg) _By Libby Bagley is Community Manager at_ [_License Dashboard_](https://www.licensedashboard.com/) _, which specialises in software asset management and licensing expertise for large and fast-growing organisations._ As organisations throughout the country were shuttled towards remote working faster than anyone had planned for, those not already using cloud-based applications, such as Microsoft 365, had to get accustomed to them extremely quickly. But whilst there’s no arguing that the pandemic has had a positive impact on digital transformation, the abrupt shift to working from home, along with a lack of time to acclimatise, means there are bound to be some inevitable hiccups when it comes to managing these tools. More than simply a suite of office applications, Microsoft 365 allows users to access and share files securely, [work collaboratively](https://www.financedigest.com/uk-based-bitfount-raises-5m-seed-to-streamline-collaboration-between-organisations-working-with-sensitive-datasets.html "UK-based Bitfount raises M seed to streamline collaboration between organisations working with sensitive datasets."), use email, update calendars, hold meetings and even socialise. From an operations perspective, these capabilities are an excellent way to facilitate remote working, but they’re also what make it such a [challenge for business](https://www.financedigest.com/the-maserati-100-one-hundred-business-disruptors-challenging-the-establishment.html " ‘The Maserati 100’ One Hundred Business Disruptors Challenging The Establishment") owners and IT teams to oversee when it comes to security, compliance and budgeting. Here are five common areas we find clients struggling with: - **Visibility** – Visibility couldn’t be more [important when it comes to managing](https://www.financedigest.com/four-reasons-whycloud-based-inventory-management-is-important-for-your-ecommerce-business.html "Four reasons whycloud-based inventory management is important for your ecommerce business") your IT estate, especially for those operating a remote or hybrid working model. A lack of visibility results in poor decision making, which in turn leads to unnecessary spend, because you simply aren’t aware of what licenses you already have. Beyond a waste of budget, poor visibility can also be a security risk, with accounts potentially being [assigned to people](https://www.financedigest.com/anyone-can-write-assignment-need-people-able-apply-new-skills-workplace-says-top-investment-management-company.html "“Anyone can write an assignment, but we need people to be able to apply their new skills to the workplace,” says top investment management company") no longer with the business or unpatched software that leaves the organisation exposed. - **Managing licenses –** not only are there a number of frequently [changing programmes](https://www.financedigest.com/ubs-makes-changes-to-buyback-programme-following-credit-suisse-takeover.html "UBS makes changes to buyback programme following Credit Suisse takeover"), plans and subscriptions to stay on top of, but within these there are multiple features and varying security levels to be aware of. It’s perhaps no surprise that license [management continues](https://www.financedigest.com/uk-to-manage-water-resources-carefully-as-drought-continues.html "UK to manage water resources carefully as drought continues") to be challenging, but it should also be a priority to understand what licenses have been assigned and what these licenses allow you to do; if they aren’t being managed properly, this leads to poor assignment. - **Individual vs role based assignment –** a lack of user profiling can result in ineffective license assignment, increased spend, slow adoption, and [poor user experience](https://www.financedigest.com/poor-user-experience-plaguing-wealth-management-firms-warns-radical-company.html "Poor user experience plaguing wealth management firms, warns Radical Company"). Applications need to be assigned to a role rather than an individual. This method is more [cost effective](https://www.financedigest.com/cost-effective-digitized-innovation-to-drive-the-immune-thrombocytopenia-treatment-market.html "Cost-effective Digitized Innovation to drive the Immune Thrombocytopenia Treatment Market") and you can ensure individuals are not oversized or undersized, whilst still retaining access to the tools they require. - **[Cost management](https://www.financedigest.com/managing-the-cost-of-digital-transformation-with-saas-optimisation.html "Managing the Cost of Digital Transformation with SaaS Optimisation") –** not being able to manage costs leads to unbudgeted expenditure, unnecessary licensing fees and limited financial planning capabilities. Microsoft does actually provide some discovery tools for Microsoft 365, however, they aren’t always user friendly and require substantial manual effort. These [reports don’t always have your costs available within the system](https://www.financedigest.com/meta-denies-kazakh-claim-of-exclusive-access-to-facebooks-content-reporting-system.html "Meta denies Kazakh claim of exclusive access to Facebook’s content reporting system") either, making it difficult to understand your true spend. - **Adoption and change management –** Slow adoption is one of the biggest factors [holding companies back](https://www.financedigest.com/fear-of-failure-holding-back-british-entrepreneurs-new-research-finds.html "Fear Of Failure Holding Back British Entrepreneurs, New Research Finds") from maximising their use of cloud-based tools, and Microsoft 365 is no different. Limited change [management often means increased onboarding time](https://www.financedigest.com/time-management-strategies-that-work.html "Time management strategies that work") and poor user experience. Make a point of finding out if there are certain features not being used, or a disparity in use between departments – the answer could be something as simple as a [lack of awareness](https://www.financedigest.com/new-face-digital-tax-revealed-cartoon-dexter-digital-tax-advisor-launches-tackle-lack-awareness-new-legislation.html "New Face Of Digital Tax Revealed: Cartoon ‘Dexter The Digital Tax Advisor’ Launches To Tackle Lack Of Awareness Of New Legislation") or inadequate training. **Better [management of Microsoft 365 starts with increased](https://www.financedigest.com/carrefour-management-increases-offer-in-wage-talks-with-unions.html "Carrefour management increases offer in wage talks with unions") visibility** To [stay compliant](https://www.financedigest.com/why-financial-services-must-stay-compliant.html "Why Financial Services Must Stay Compliant") and manage budgets more effectively, a holistic view of usage is imperative. It’s also just the best way to ensure you’re getting the most out of your investment. Software [asset management](https://www.financedigest.com/french-watchdog-fines-h2o-asset-management-executives-over-tennor-investments.html "French watchdog fines H2O Asset Management, executives over Tennor investments") tools can provide you with full visibility of who is using Microsoft 365, when, and how. This is the first [step towards making sure the right people have access to the right tools at the right time](https://www.financedigest.com/deliveroos-financial-hot-potato-time-for-new-cfo-to-step-up-to-the-plate.html "Deliveroo’s Financial Hot Potato: Time for new CFO to step up to the plate"). Your priority should then [turn towards](https://www.financedigest.com/entrepreneurs-worldwide-turn-their-focus-towards-doing-good.html "ENTREPRENEURS WORLDWIDE TURN THEIR FOCUS TOWARDS DOING GOOD") making sure employees are using these tools to their full effect. If you’ve invested in Microsoft 365 to increase efficiency and productivity, then they [need to be used consistently by everyone within the organisation](https://www.financedigest.com/why-a-modern-organisation-needs-an-agile-approach-to-software-asset-management.html "Why a modern organisation needs an agile approach to software asset management"). During the migration and transition period, the [adoption of such applications](https://www.financedigest.com/bicycle-market-growth-to-surge-owing-to-increasing-adoption-by-end-use-applications.html "Bicycle Market Growth to Surge Owing to Increasing Adoption by End-use Applications") needs to be constantly monitored. All too often, people are quick to use these new tools and features at first, then adoption tails off. [Setting alerts to notify you of such patterns of behaviour can help you stay on top](https://www.financedigest.com/top-10-fintech-trends-set-to-take-off-in-2022.html "Top 10 Fintech Trends Set To Take Off In 2022") of change adoption. A solid software [asset management](https://www.financedigest.com/britains-post-brexit-asset-management-revamp-eyes-liquidity-tokenisation.html "Britain’s post-Brexit asset management revamp eyes liquidity, tokenisation") strategy provides you with increased visibility, in real-time, enabling you to share valuable insights with other departments and key individuals. At a time when [remote working](https://www.financedigest.com/the-psychology-of-long-term-remote-working-productivity-vs-inclusivity.html "The psychology of long-term remote working: Productivity vs. Inclusivity") and the shift to the cloud is increasing, this protects you from licensing non-compliance, optimises software spend, and enables more effective collaboration. --- This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more. ---