commercial real estate firms-office-365 - strategic saas · ‐video conferencing ‐document...

WHY COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE FIRMS

ARE EMBRACING OFFICE 365

Find out how out-of-the-box Cloud services in Office 365 can help you grow your practice

INTRODUCTIONCOMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE FIRMS ARE

JOINING THE OFFICE 365 REVOLUTION

Do you want state‐of‐the‐art tools for managing your practice, but don’t have the time to sort through all of the options?

If the answer is “yes”, then you need to take 10 minutes to read this paper. Getting the right cloud technology tools means you can focus on your customers and tenants instead of dealing with administrative overhead.

Trying to handle management of documents, security, regulations, client contacts and accounts receivable, while keeping technology costs under control, is a challenge for any firm. This paper will show you how technology – out‐of‐the‐box technology – will create more efficient business operations and bring order to your practice.

Here are a few of the comments we are hearing from firms like yours…

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“We have a myriad of

communication tools and very little time for training, so our tools need

to be intuitive.”

“Our customers expect more

information, faster, and they want to review it on any

device.”

“Our customers want more

reports, more access to information, and more

involvement than we can deliver.”

“We want to implement and

follow best practices with our content.” ”

Microsoft Office 365 combines Productivity, Communication, and Collaboration to deliver best-in-class management tools for law firms

TABLE OF CONTENTS

HOW CAN YOU BUILD STRONGER CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS?

LEARN HOW TO WORK SMARTER

IS THERE A SOLUTION TO INFORMATION SECURITY?

WHAT ABOUT COSTS?

CONCLUSION

CUSTOMER RELATIONS

Important Questions Answered in this Section:How can technology improve my employee and customer relationships? How can I meet expectations for access? How can I keep key people informed on complex cases?

COMMUNICATION

Whether your firm is small or large, your customers expect you to have IT capabilities including immediate access to information, the ability to share documents securely over the internet, and communication options that meet their specific needs. Moreover, you are expected to deliver these services as needed without delays or additional costs.

Communication is changing so fast today that it’s not easy to figure out your best option. When have you had so many communication options?

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“Our customers expect more

information, faster, and they want to

review it on any device.”


• LEARN HOW TO WORK SMARTER • IS THERE A SOLUTION TO

INFORMATION SECURITY?• WHAT ABOUT COSTS?• CONCLUSION

CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION

Every client has their preferred communication tool. That means you need to offer all the options they expect. Whether your client is a Baby Boomer, a Gen Xer or a Millennial, you can meet all of their needs with out‐of‐the‐box technologies available with Office 365.

RECOMMENDATION 1 – EMBRACE COMMUNICATION

‐ Instant Messages ‐ Audio Conferencing‐ Video Conferencing ‐ Document Sharing‐ Presentations ‐ International Communication

Additional Capabilities

Federation: With clients, vendors, and opposing counsel – this gives you all the capabilities noted above with outside entities.

Presence: Wherever you are working. you can see if people on Skype are available, in a meeting, or do not want to be disturbed.

“Our customers each have a unique

communication style. How do we

meet everyone’s needs?”




Implementation Time and Skills Required

Skype for Business is a component of most Microsoft Office 365 Suites. As such, it is included with Office Pro Plus (that’s the title of your Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook clients). These tools all come in one download and are regularly updated.

Skype for Business will install a small application on your PC and/or mobile device. It maintains your credentials ‐‐ no manual logging on ‐‐ and provides a host of services. To contact a person on your Skype client, just select the person and the mode appropriate for the client.

Training

Skype for Business is very intuitive. You can learn about all the features and develop advanced skills with just an hour or so of training.

“We have a myriad of communication

tools and very little time for training,

so our tools need to be intuitive.”

CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION


• LEARN HOW TO WORK SMARTER• IS THERE A SOLUTION TO


CUSTOMER DATA ACCESS

“Our customers want more reports,

more access to information, and more

involvement than we can deliver.”

RECOMMENDATION 2 – EMBRACE COLLABORATION

Office 365 provides organizations with several ways for collaborating with clients (“External” or “Guest” users).

How can I meet my client’s expectations for access?

Your clients expect data, reports, documents, and feedback and they want it today. Amazon can do it, can you?

With the right tools, you can produce all of the information your customer expects, and in record time.

Here are out‐of‐the‐box capabilities you can expect from a cloud information store:

Document Sharing – Secure, easy to deploy Access on any device – More and more people consume and interact with information

using their smart phone or tablet Report Summaries – Prepare and share your latest updates online with clients




CUSTOMER DATA ACCESS

“We want to implement and follow

best practices with our content.”


SharePoint, Office 365 Groups, and OneDrive require thorough design and execution in order to deliver the capabilities needed by your clients. These out‐of‐the‐box services can be enhanced by skilled consultants. In most cases, an experienced business process consultant is required to create and fine‐tune the collaboration and sharing that clients expect.

Training

Client training is not required given a thoughtful deployment and implementation of SharePoint Online, Office 365 Groups, and/or OneDrive. Remember, if it’s not easy to use, the service is not meeting the needs of your clients.




HOW TO WORK SMARTER

Important Questions Answered in this Section:Do you have access to data from any device? Can you communicate with team members and co‐author documents? Is it easy to find all documents within three clicks? Can you create reports without IT support?

COLLABORATION AT THE SPEED OF THOUGHT

Every team has a different approach to collaboration. Every case involves a new set of personalities. Why force your clients and internal teams to all stick to one path? With cloud services, there are many paths to the same objective (just like there are many work styles which deliver astounding results). Offer your teams the options so they can choose what best meets their needs. Whatever options they choose, you still have governance, security and central control.

Clients and employees today expect information, files and documents available on any device anywhere. Combine this fully integrated collaboration with robust security and powerful tools, and you have the capabilities you need to success in today’s competitive world.

“People who don’t work in the same

location need to work together.”

• HOW CAN YOU BUILD STRONGER CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS?

LEARN HOW TO WORK SMARTER• IS THERE A SOLUTION TO


DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

Do you have access to data in any device?Is it easy to find all documents within three clicks?

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT WITH ALL THE BELLS AND WHISTLES

If you are still using file shares, you should definitely consider the cloud. Maybe you have a document management system, but finding documents is still a challenge.

“Our documents are hard to find, there

are too many duplicates. We have issues with securing data. We need a

solution.”




The solution is a modern document management system.

There are a variety of industry‐specific choices to assist with practice management and case management. These services can also be delivered through cloud, improving access and security.

Many people are not aware that Office 365 includes a robust document management system. Microsoft’s SharePoint Online is a sophisticated document management service that offers all the bells and whistles. Important features such as versioning, co‐authoring, flexible security models and ease‐of‐access are all out‐of‐the‐box.

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

RECOMMENDATION 3 - EMBRACE DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

‐ Version Control‐ Role‐Based Permissions‐ Metadata and Tagging‐ Document Approval‐ Robust Search Capabilities


Setting up an effective document management system requires thorough design and execution to deliver the capabilities your organization needs. SharePoint also includes a number of tools that you can take advantage of by working with knowledgeable consultants.

Training

Some end‐user training will be necessary to ensure all parties know how to effectively use the new document management system.

“We struggle with juggling selling

new business and delivering services to our client base.”




MANAGING YOUR SALES PROCESS

How do you find and keep prospects engaged? How do you maintain continuity while running the practice?

MANAGE YOUR PIPELINE WHILE DELIVERING SERVICES

Growing your firm depends on adding new clients and expanding current customer relationships. The seller and doer model of CRE firms challenges even the most‐organized employees. In order to deliver services and bring in new customers, you need to implement a continuity solution. No one can manage everything without some degree of automation.

Consider implementing a simple‐to‐use contact management system. Options include Salesforce, Sugar CRM and CRM Online. Any of these tools will get the job done if your team commits to the sales process and you invest in custom configuration based on your sales process. This, of course, means investing a good deal of time and money.

Our clients use a simple contact management tool we deliver within SharePoint Online. In fact, we use it too. For firms managing under 100 prospects, the use of SharePoint Online – a part of Microsoft’s Office 365 – is highly productive. A basic sales management tool is the best way to start for most businesses.

“We struggle with juggling selling new

business and delivering services to our

client base.”




MANAGING YOUR SALES PROCESS

“We need a solution that is ready in

weeks not months.”

RECOMMENDATION 4 – IMPLEMENT A FLEXIBLE SALES MANAGEMENT TOOL

‐ Uses SharePoint Online List Apps‐ Easy Data Entry‐ Pipeline Management‐ Reporting‐ Task Management


The out‐of‐the‐box productivity tools in Office 365 will get you off to a good start, but you need to grow and improve to keep up with the competition. Achieving that growth means a major commitment to the success of your business, and numerous case studies confirm the deployment of a custom sales management tool will pay off for years to come.

All of the capabilities mentioned above can be configured without custom code. In the past, this kind of customization would require a team of programmers. Today, with the powerful tools in SharePoint and Office 365, you enjoy huge productivity improvements in just weeks.

Training

End users will now be able to find their data with fewer clicks and less training. However, a short training course is suggested to immediately fast‐forward your growth.




SECURITY & RELIABILITY

WILL THE OFFICE 365 SECURITY MODEL PROTECT YOUR FIRM AND CLIENTS?

IT security is a hot topic today. Protecting information assets was a challenge even before ransomware and malicious behavior became endemic. Your firm may have documents with HIPAA and other data security issues. However, it’s not possible to build a perfect security model in the modern interconnected world. So what can you do?

Start with the best services model available

Microsoft has spent billions of dollars building a secure service in the cloud. That means the security capabilities out‐of‐the‐box in Office 365 are greater than most companies can deliver in their own data center. To learn more about Microsoft’s security capabilities go to: https://www.microsoft.com/en‐us/trustcenter.

CRE firms are facing threats from around the world as well as by their own users accidentally losing or compromising sensitive data. The requirement for broader access therefore makes security management more challenging.

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“I can’t over‐emphasize how important good

support is, especially when you can no longer lay hands on the server. I’m impressed with

Microsoft’s support for Office 365.”

‐Mike Henderson, Infrastructure and Support Manager | Webroot


• LEARN HOW TO WORK SMARTER IS THERE A SOLUTION TO


As a leader in cloud security, Microsoft has superior policies and controls compared to theon‐premises data centers of even the most sophisticated organizations.

OFFICE 365 SECURITY CONSISTS OF 3 COMPONENTS

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1 Office 365 Built‐In Security

Office 365 Customer Controls

Office 365 Independent Verification& Compliance‐ HIPAA, FISMA, ISO 27001

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BUILT-IN SECURITY

Office 365 is a security‐hardened service with sophisticated built‐in security features, so customers benefit from Microsoft’s two decades of experience in managing online data and its significant investment in security infrastructure.

Office 365 Security Includes:

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24‐Hour Monitored Physical HardwareMicrosoft data centers are strategically located around the worldwith 24‐hour security and natural disaster plans in place.

Isolated Customer DataData storage and processing is segregated through Active Directory structure and capabilities specifically developed to help build, manage, and secure multi‐tenant environments. This allows for easy scalability.

Automated OperationsStaff access is strictly controlled via role‐based access control and lockbox processes. This automated process ensures that the engineerrequesting access has met eligibility requirements.

Secure NetworkData centers are segmented to provide separation of critical back‐end servers and storage devices. Edge router security detects intrusions and vulnerability. The use of TLS/SSL also establishes a highly secure connection.

Encrypted DataAll email content is encrypted on disk using BitLocker 256‐bit AES Encryption.Protection covers all disks on mailbox servers, and Office 365 also transfersand stores secure/multipurpose Internet mail extension messages.

Microsoft Security Best PracticesSecurity Development Lifecycle, Traffic Throttling, Prevent Detect, and Mitigate Breach are just a few of the processes that make up O365 security.

INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION & COMPLIANCE

Office 365 has turned security into a scalable process that can quickly adapt to security trends and industry‐specific needs. Microsoft engages in regular risk management reviews, and develops and maintains security framework to meet the latest standards. Office 365 extends the controls implemented to meet these standards to customers even if they are not subject to the respective laws or controls.

Compliance at Its Best

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ISO 27001A rigorous set of global standards covering physical, logical, process, and management controls allows for data transfer outside of the EU.

FISMAOperating under FISMA requires transparency and frequent security reporting.

HIPAA BAAThis US law applies to healthcare entities, and governs the use, disclosure, and safeguarding of protected health information.

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4 EU Model ClausesThe EU Model Clauses address the international transfer of data. Office 365 was the first major business productivity cloud service provider to sign.

Cloud Security Alliance (CSA)Office 365 fulfills compliance and risk management as defined in the CSA Cloud Control Matrix, meant to help customers transition efficiently to the cloud.

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Elements in a Cost Comparison: On Premises Vs. Cloud

This table shows the shift in expenses when a company moves to the cloud.

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Note this list just includes a few of the ways Office 365 can help your business save money!

Schedule your cost analysis:Send request to

[email protected]

CLOUD COST COMPARISON



INFORMATION SECURITY? WHAT ABOUT COSTS?• CONCLUSION

ON-PREMISE VERSUS CLOUD SERVICE

You will enjoy notable cost savings with a pay‐as‐you‐go cloud solution versus an install‐and‐own on‐premises solution. This shift from capital investment to operational expenses is often attractive. A cloud model allows CRE firms to use the resources and expertise of cloud‐hosting experts, pay only for what they use, and realize significant cost savings over time.

The management at most CRE firms understands the importance financial savings and an improved operational model. Moreover, much of the integration of services is out‐of‐the‐box with Office 365, which makes for huge cost savings and improved productivity and communication.

Strategic SaaS has performed hundreds of cost comparisons over the last few years and the facts are in. Any way you look at it, Microsoft Office 365 is an excellent value.

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Moving to the cloud saves money, reduces risks and provides significant operational advantages.

CLOUD COST COMPARISON



INFORMATION SECURITY? WHAT ABOUT COSTS?• CONCLUSION

COST EXAMPLE: ON-PREMISE VS CLOUD SERVICE

Example: Migrate 50 mailboxes and 20 public folders from existing Exchange 2010 environments.

This real world example shows how much you can save over a six‐year period (see graphics

below). Strategic SaaS performs this kind of analysis to help our customers rationalize moving to

the cloud.

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100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

600,000

700,000

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6

Cumulative Costs Over 6 Years

Future On‐premises

Office 365

TotalHardwareMicrosoft Software and Services3rd Party Software and ServicesOperationsDeployment and MigrationDisaster RecoveryNetworkingTotal Annual Cost for 6 yearsTotal Annual Cost per UserAverage Monthly Cost per User% difference versus on-premises

US$ - US$ - US$ - US$ -

US$ US$US$ -

US$ 25,244 US$ 5,000

Future On-premises Office 365US$

- - US$

-71%

US$ 3,600

1,003

US$

US$

49.75 US$ 169.02 US$ 2,028.18 US$ 596.95

29,847 US$ 101,409

17,889 US$29,204

US$ 49,316

This company shows a

71% savings moving

to the cloud.

CONCLUSION

Commercial Real Estate firms that take full advantage of the productivity tools that come with Microsoft Office 365 enjoy greater business flexibility, access, reporting, communication and more. Your firm will quickly see results, and your clients will see more value in your services.

This paper highlighted some of the powerful out‐of‐the‐box productivity tools in Office 365, and presented a few examples of cost models for your transition to the cloud. We hope you found this information useful and can apply it to your own practice.

Request a consultation with our productivity experts today. Our team has worked with CRE firms all across the US and we understand your challenges.

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Office 365 helps meet many criticalrequirements for law firms.

It’s no wonder law firmsare running to Office 365!



INFORMATION SECURITY?• WHAT ABOUT COSTS? CONCLUSION

Microsoft Office 365 will free up resources and increase efficiency, all while staying under budget.

Moving to Office 365 is a complex project that requires expertise and time. That’s why most organizations choose to make their

migration with an experienced Microsoft Partner.

The Strategic SaaS team has performed hundreds of

successful 0365 migrations, so let us help you get your firm moving in the fast lane!

GET MY FREE OFFICE 365 CONSULTATION

commercial real estate firms-office-365 - strategic saas · ‐video conferencing ‐document...

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