Benefits of Using Microsoft 365 Business Premium

Microsoft 365 Business Premium (often shortened to Business Premium or M365 Business Premium) is one of the most practical all-in-one bundles for small and mid-sized businesses that need secure collaboration and proper security controls—without stitching together lots of separate tools.

If you’re already using Microsoft 365 for email and Office apps, Business Premium is usually the point where you move from “we can work” to “we can work securely, manage devices properly, and reduce risk.”

If you want help scoping the right licensing mix (and making sure it’s configured correctly), start here:

What is Microsoft 365 Business Premium?

Microsoft 365 Business Premium is a Microsoft 365 plan designed for businesses that want:

The core productivity suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams)
Business email and calendaring
Cloud file storage and sharing
Identity and access controls
Endpoint/device management
Business-grade security (especially for email, identities, and devices)

It’s commonly compared to Business Standard, because both include the “work” tools—but Business Premium adds the security and management layer many organisations only realise they need after an incident.

Quick summary: the biggest benefits

Stronger identity security
Device management
Email and collaboration protection
Better visibility and control
Lower tool sprawl

Benefit 1: Stronger sign-in security (identity is the new perimeter)

Most real-world compromises start with identity: a phished password, a reused credential, or an attacker signing in from an unexpected location.

Business Premium gives you access to stronger identity controls so you can:

Require multi-factor authentication (MFA)
Restrict sign-ins based on risk and context
Reduce the blast radius if a user account is compromised

This is the foundation of a “security-first” Microsoft 365 setup—and it’s one of the most common gaps we see when businesses self-manage.

If you want a practical rollout plan (policies, exceptions, user comms), this is where it fits with cybersecurity.

Benefit 2: Proper device management (so laptops don’t become your weakest link)

Hybrid work is normal now, which means your endpoints (laptops, phones, tablets) are effectively mini-branches of your business.

With Business Premium, you can manage devices more consistently—especially when paired with Microsoft’s device management stack.

Typical controls you can implement include:

Enforcing screen locks and encryption
Managing updates and patching expectations
Controlling access to company data on personal devices
Standardising security baselines for new starters

If you’re aligning this with your wider IT support model, this page is the best starting point:

Benefit 3: Better protection against phishing and business email compromise

Phishing isn’t just “spam.” It’s often targeted, well-written, and timed to catch people when they’re busy—especially finance teams, HR, and senior leadership.

Business Premium helps you reduce risk by strengthening the security posture around:

Email content and attachments
Links and malicious redirects
Identity signals (so attackers can’t easily reuse stolen credentials)

For many organisations, this is also where you start formalising email authentication and domain protection.

If you’re working through email-domain hardening, pair this with: DMARC

Benefit 4: Reduce the “tool sprawl” that makes security harder

A common pattern:

You buy Microsoft 365 for email and Office.
You add a third-party antivirus.
You add a separate device management tool.
You add a separate file-sharing tool.
You add a separate backup tool.

Now you’ve got multiple admin consoles, multiple renewal dates, and policies that don’t always line up.

Business Premium can reduce the number of separate products you need—if it’s configured properly and you actually use the included capabilities.

If your environment is already a mix of tools and vendors, it can help to step back and map what should live where (and what should be retired). That’s often part of: Managed cloud services

Benefit 5: More consistent onboarding and offboarding

Onboarding and offboarding are high-risk moments:

New users need access quickly (without over-permissioning)
Departing users must be removed cleanly (without losing business data)

Business Premium supports a more standardised approach, because you can:

Apply baseline policies consistently
Control access to company data on managed/unmanaged devices
Reduce “permissions sprawl” over time

If you’re trying to make this repeatable across departments and locations, it’s usually best handled as part of a managed service rather than a one-off project:

Benefit 6: Stronger security posture for regulated or high-trust industries

If you operate in a sector where confidentiality and auditability matter (legal, finance, recruitment, compliance-heavy teams), Business Premium is often the minimum sensible baseline.

It supports a more defensible security posture when you need to demonstrate that you:

Control access to sensitive data
Manage devices that handle client information
Reduce the likelihood of account compromise

If your organisation is in one of these categories, you may also want to sanity-check your overall approach here.

Is Microsoft 365 Business Premium worth it?

For most businesses, the value is clearest when:

You have hybrid work (or plan to)
You’ve had a phishing scare (or a real incident)
You need consistent device standards
You want fewer vendors and a simpler security model

It’s often cheaper (and operationally easier) than buying separate tools to cover identity security, endpoint protection, and device management—especially once you factor in admin time and the cost of misconfiguration.

How Under One Cloud helps you get the benefits (not just the licence)

Licensing is the easy part. The real outcome comes from:

Setting a sensible security baseline
Rolling it out without breaking productivity
Managing devices and identities over time
Monitoring and improving as your business changes

And if you’d like to talk through your current setup and what you actually need, use: https://www.underonecloud.com/contact