Central provides The Regenda Group – a medium-sized Registered Social Housing Provider (RSHP) with 13,000 homes – with multi-level support.

Microsoft Office 365 is a revolutionary tool, helping businesses across the globe achieve more through its comprehensive software suite housing over 20 applications, intelligent email hosting and cloud storage space, plus world-class security infrastructure.

Offering a host of collaborative, state-of-the-art features in one seamless, consolidated experience, the tool plays an integral role in the day-to-day operations of over 1.5 million company users worldwide. Not only do Office 365’s cloud capabilities remove geographical constraints – allowing around-the-clock access no matter where or when – they also present an abundance of cost and time-saving efficiencies for IT teams and finance departments by automatically issuing updates for products, patches, and new releases.

But while organisations large and small are continuing to invest in the subscription, a limited number of these are truly maximising its potential – with many business owners, and teams as a result, being unaware of some of the key features on offer.

That’s why, here at Central, we decided to put our tech-minded heads together to come up with 5 simple ways you can use your Microsoft Office 365 software to boost ROI – improving productivity within your teams, creating significant time efficiencies across the board, and spearheading creativity.

1. Anytime, anywhere access

Ok, so we’ve already touched on the fact that Microsoft Office 365 enables teams to access files at any given moment, but let’s delve a little deeper.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re working remotely or in the office, on a laptop or smartphone – as long as your device is connected to the internet, the cloud-based model allows users to keep important files up to date anytime, anywhere. Whether you need to tap into a fellow staff member’s document for important information, or finish a piece of work at a later date, this is a key feature that SME’s should not overlook. And with the remote working surge over recent years dispersing teams across different parts of the country – and often world – the value of instantaneous, flexible access is truly indispensable.

2. Creative collaboration

Offering a foundation to share, edit and collaborate through OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, and more, Office 365 crucially unlocks contemporary ways of working.

Gone are the days of one in, one out document editing, constant link sharing to access files, and rushing around to be in five places at once. No matter your location, you can be confident that you have the tools to help you adapt – with the ability to share Office files both internally and externally, co-author in real time, attend meetings virtually, and be productive from anywhere.

Not only does this create a shared understanding across your organisation, but it bolsters the team dynamic and encourages innovative ideas into fruition.

3. Productive email management

With almost 320 billion emails estimated to have been sent and received globally throughout 2021, we know that staying on top of your e-correspondence can be a stressful experience to say the least. But from contact grouping to clutter management, Office 365 has a myriad of features to make managing your inbox a whole lot easier.

The ‘Distribution Lists’ feature presents a simpler alternative to painstakingly typing each email address into your recipient list when sending a group email. With the click of a button, you can send direct mail to organised segments of your contact list – such as an entire marketing department or type of client – and even automatically forward to multiple addresses. Excellent for project work and seamless communications within your department.

What’s more, with Office 365’s ‘Focused Inbox’ feature, there’s a more convenient way to declutter your inbox and streamline workflow. Separating emails into ‘focused’ and ‘other’ category tabs, Focused Inbox brings your most important emails to the fore, whilst any remaining communications are filed out of the way – but still easily accessible.

4. Data loss prevention

Thanks to OneDrive, file accessibility and recovery is extremely straightforward and contributes to the headache-free running of day-to-day tasks.

We already know that being cloud-based is one of Office 365’s many USPs – not least in terms of collaboration – but this model also contributes to a more secure, reliable way of working. As well as saving on local storage space, housing your company’s files on the cloud allows you to sync updates and back up files across multiple devices. Plus, with the added bonus of OneDrive’s ‘Version History’ functionality, users can easily restore older copies of files.

But that’s not all – there’s an abundance of other state-of-the-art features to explore from OneDrive.

5. Enhanced data protection

Office 365 features several built-in data encryption capabilities – which, if you’ve read our recent blog on cybersecurity best practice, you’ll know this is something that should be high on the agenda for all organisations.

BitLocker, for example, is a Windows-integrated data protection feature which safeguards against threats in case there are lapses in other processes or controls – such as access control or recycling of hardware – that have the potential to compromise disks containing data. In instances where someone gains physical access to your hardware, BitLocker eliminates the potential for data theft or exposure through a key protection chain – essentially, the management of credentials used to unlock or recover encrypted disks which requires a high-level of elevation and approvals to access.

And there’s a whole host of further data protection offerings – both default and optional – to discover, if you want to optimise the security of your firm’s data.

At Central, we know that tighter budgets and fluctuating productivity mean that processes need to add real value if they’re ever going to become a mainstay of your firm. That’s why leveraging Microsoft’s productivity suite and its comprehensive range of capabilities is a must.

Beyond these top tips for maximising Office 365’s potential, our managed IT services can help you breathe easy by providing around-the-clock, expert advice.

And you’ll never be just a ‘ticket’ to us. While we pride ourselves on providing leading, strategic support to a range of organisations, we’ve got the resources and flexibility to keep our approach personal.

So, if you’re seeking additional assistance on Microsoft Office 365 or simply want to know more about how we can help to understand and implement your business’ needs, get in touch.

And don’t forget, you can also find news updates from the Central team over on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Whether you’re a business or charity organisation, we believe that technology should be at the heart of everything you do. With the increasing complexity of the digital revolution causing businesses to become victim to cyber-attacks and security breaches more frequently than ever, outsourcing your IT to a trusted partner could add real value to your existing team.

Offering reliable assistance that boasts a myriad of efficiencies — from widened access to industry knowledge and expertise, one often overlooked benefit of improved morale and productivity throughout your team — external partners can significantly reduce the burdens of mounting IT pressures.

So, whether you choose to wholly or partially outsource your IT needs, here are some of our top tips on leveraging the powers of professional IT services to grow your organisation…

• Finding a trusted partner: Here at Central, we believe your IT partner should become a true extension of your team — this doesn’t mean that you must take an all-or-nothing approach. By strategically outsourcing the help your business needs, you’re likely to significantly reduce costs, improve the productivity of your in-house team, and solve any technical problems that may have been having a bigger effect on your organisation than you once thought.

• Knowledge sharing: We believe that a great IT partner should integrate seamlessly into your organisation and act as a true extension of your in-house team. It’s important to remember that they should bring real value to your in-house team rather than viewing them as a replacement, after all, many heads make light work. Finding a partner that truly cares about your business and its objectives will help to generate more ideas within your existing team and share best practice. With more professional heads coming together, this is likely to help minimise downtime, increase efficiencies, and act as a catalyst for business growth.

• Ensuring business continuity: One of the most important reasons for outsourcing your IT support is that you should be able to ‘rest easy’, with the knowledge that your IT service provider can support you around the clock, should any disasters — including data breaches, phishing attacks, and nuisance network downtime. At Central, we believe a trusted partner will help to ease the burden and additional pressures of your existing team, so they can concentrate on the more strategic tasks — helping to drive your organisation forward. 

And at Central, we think that service is even more important than the product itself. We always go the extra mile to look after our customers – and we’ve been doing this for 30 years. We’re committed to making IT as seamless as possible and placing people at the heart of everything we do.

Central can help to understand and implement your business’s digital transformation needs. To discuss your requirements with one of our specialists or for more advice on growing your organisation with professional IT services, Contact us.

And don’t forget, you can also find news updates from the Central team over on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Despite the integral role email plays in maintaining consistent communication in both professional and personal use, many of us take default email privacy and security features for granted.

No matter the size or scope of your organisation – or the status of your individual profile – email hacks and data theft remain some of the most prolific cyber-attacks amongst perpetrators across the globe, with the primary motive being to turn a profit.

And with over 319 billion emails sent and received worldwide in 2021 – each containing personal data – protecting your inbox from tragedy is crucial, especially as companies work to bolster our digital strategies throughout 2022 and beyond.

From ransomware and phishing to fraud and identity theft, there are a whole host of cybercrime categories in circulation to target vulnerabilities. The good news is, there are lots of tips and procedures that can remove both you and your organisation from the firing line, and help mitigate the nuisance and chaos caused as a result of malicious email attacks.

To spearhead your journey towards safeguarding your inbox, here are seven tips from the team here at Central…

1. Get to know your service provider’s Terms of Service

The first step in any digital privacy and security strategy is getting to know your email provider’s Terms of Service – only by knowing and understanding what the gaps are, can you fill them effectively.

While you might – rightfully – assume that your email provider shares the same values as you when it comes to data protection, this isn’t always the case. Take Google as a key reminder. If you’re not careful about who you grant permissions to, third-party developers could be trawling through your inbox. You can see an exhaustive list of those with access, by going to myaccount.google.com and going to ‘security’. 

2. Adopt and maintain regular training protocols

Your employees are your first line of defence in any threat. Ensuring full compliance throughout your organisation is essential in reducing the likelihood of compromise, Furthermore, undertaking regular tests will allow you to evaluate understanding of best practice within your firm to better inform future privacy and security decisions.

For example, company-wide phishing exercises can uncover whether or not your employees could successfully identify a malicious email – with a notification being triggered from clicking a masked link. Alternatively, you could regularly quiz your staff on different scenarios, to see whether their approach to a security threat would be correct.

3. Download anti-virus software

Anti-virus software is self-explanatory – it protects your device against viruses. And with cyber-attacks becoming increasingly sophisticated, these programs are becoming increasingly accustomed to tackling a diverse range of threats – including using behaviour monitoring and machine learning to scope out threats before they even exist.

Not only does anti-virus software scan inbound email attachments for potential dangers, but it also monitors outbound communications to prevent spam emails or corrupted files from being distributed to your network and ruining your credibility.

4. Use multi-factor authentication

While weak passwords are an obvious risk to security, strong passwords aren’t always enough to keep cybercriminals out of your account. Hackers are often either sophisticated enough to guess your login credentials, or have powerful insight into information on the dark web.

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) offers additional inbox protection by relying on more than just a password to gain entry. Such measures include one-time passwords, responding to an SMS prompt, biometric scanning, or even diverting your login attempt to a pre-listed, alternative device.

5. Create custom email filters

Cyber criminals are coming up with innovative ways of evading your spam filter every day, but configuring your email account with tailored filters can help to catch those that slip through the net.

Involving both inbound and outbound proactive email monitoring, email filtering services classify messages into different categories to mark them as safe – protecting both you and your network. By partnering with security and data protection leader, Barracuda, Central Networks offers a complete email management solution – with powerful and customisable governing of messages – to ensure productivity isn’t impacted throughout your business.

6. Encrypt your connections

To prevent private and personal information from being intercepted by data thieves, it’s important to encrypt the connection between your device and your email server. You’ll know if a site is encrypted because it will begin with https://.

While some email service providers encrypt your connection automatically, others require you to actively alter your account settings. Using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) offers peace of mind that your emails are secure, by routing traffic through a separate server and making your online movements less trackable.

Alternatively, you can encrypt individual emails through designated apps that make private messages impossible to decipher, unless you are explicitly authorised to access them – even in cases where your inbox might be compromised.

7. Lock your device in public spaces

Whether you’re stepping away from your device for thirty seconds or thirty minutes, never leave your email account visible for others to read at a glance or – even worse – go in and access. Not only could they retrieve sensitive data from your inbox, they could also change your log-in information to prevent you from accessing it for good.

To temporarily lock your desktop, simply press Windows+L on a Windows device, or Command+Control+A on a Mac. Then, once you’re ready to go again, re-enter your password and see your tabs re-open as before.

Whilst specific requirements will differ from one organisation – and person – to another, these tips provide a great foundation for everyone to bolster their email privacy and security strategies even further.

So, whether you’ve fallen victim to an email attack or are simply concerned about your current level of protection, it’s important to explore what your options are. To hear further advice from our team of cyber security experts, or to learn more about the value we can add to your business, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. 

In a year replete with uncertainty, one thing has become clear – digital transformation is essential if businesses wish to keep pace with the ongoing challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022 and beyond.

From general workplace restructuring and a surging demand for enhanced connectivity, to a complete overhaul in logistical processes, organisations of all shapes and sizes have felt the brunt of the coronavirus crisis. And as a result, some business leaders across the globe are still reluctant to implement any kind of strategy in a climate that’s so uncertain.

Although IT infrastructure plays a crucial role in organisational success, many companies fail to recognise that streamlined user interfaces and expert analytical reports merely lay the foundations of a successful digitisation project.  

So, what exactly constitutes digital transformation success? People – it’s all about changing your approach from the inside out, incorporating state-of-the-art tools and systems into your business the right way and enabling your teams to work with them effectively.

It’s important to acknowledge that there is by no means an overnight, ‘silver-bullet solution’ to propel your firm forward, but here are some of our tops tips for digital transformation success to support your initiatives in 2022 and beyond…

Define your transformation goals

Start your journey by conducting as much research as possible about digital transformation – searching for insight into any relevant systems and technologies and, vitally, understanding the true purpose of your project. Whatever the driver – be it to improve customer experience or enhance operational efficiency through automation – it’s crucial to define these from the offset to ensure that clear goals and lines of accountability can be maintained throughout.

Collaborate with key stakeholders to create a cohesive vision

It’s important to establish a plan that has input from all the relevant stakeholders, as this will then mean that any output aligns completely with the business goals and vision.

And by collaborating with key contributors – such as senior management, business unit leaders, technical teams, and/or an outsourced IT team – you can bolster the implementation and execution of your digital transformation strategy with company-specific knowledge and insight. For example, company leaders can identify the staff members who know a certain process inside-out, including how to enhance it.

Having all key partners, suppliers, and technical representatives involved is a key part in the planning stage and mustn’t be overlooked when starting up those digital transformation conversations – otherwise, the project could soon fall flat.

Obtain support from the top

‘Buy in’ and sponsorship from senior management is a ‘must have’ when it comes to driving your transformation strategy forward, because once you have leaders hooked, budgets and resources will soon follow. But it’s not just about money – it’s about commitment too. With engagement from leaders throughout the project, you can ensure that any new tools and techniques are complemented by the successful management of internal teams.

Involve employees from across all areas of the business

Digital transformation affects every department within an organisation, which is why everyone should play a role in the planning and execution of your strategy.

For digital transformation to occur, there must first be a shared understanding of not only the need for change, but how individuals can contribute and add real value to making it happen. From key decision makers and suppliers to technical front-line members of the team, every staff member should be involved to ensure that your entire strategy is being adopted in every corner of the enterprise – thus increasing the likelihood of success.

Manage risks through outsourcing

Whether planning or implementing your strategy, you should evaluate how to best streamline digital transformation. Outsourcing is one of the many ways you can do this – mitigating risks through access to scalability, industry experts, and high-quality resources to improve workflows and reduce costs.

You may or may not have an internal technical team, but if you do, outsourcing alleviates your in-house staff so they can focus on core business activities, while your external partner takes care of your digital transformation. Our recent blog delves deeper into the ins and outs of outsourcing – so you choose a partner that’s right for your business. While digital transformation certainly offers a whole host of benefits, implementing change can be daunting for many – so be sure to give your strategy the attention it deserves. By allowing time to process a new way of working and reach a shared point of understanding, you can ensure both your employees and digital transformation succeed.