How Microsoft 365 and Azure Can Help Your Non-Profit Organization

Non-profit organizations face many challenges today, such as limited resources, increasing demands, and complex regulations. To overcome these challenges, non-profits need to leverage the power of technology to streamline their operations, enhance their impact, and achieve their mission. That's where Microsoft 365 and Azure come in. Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based productivity and collaboration tool suite that includes Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, and SharePoint. Azure is a cloud computing platform and infrastructure that provides various services and capabilities, such as hosting, storage, backup, security, and analytics. Together, Microsoft 365 and Azure can help your non-profit organization in many ways, such as:

Improve Communication and Collaboration

Communication and collaboration are essential for any non-profit organization, especially if you have a distributed team or work with multiple partners and stakeholders. Microsoft 365 and Azure can help you improve your communication and collaboration by providing you with tools and features such as:

• Email, calendar, and contacts with Outlook
• Instant messaging, video conferencing, and online meetings with Teams
• Document creation, editing, and sharing with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneDrive
• Team sites, intranet, and document management with SharePoint
• Integration with other cloud services and on-premises systems with Azure

With these tools and features, you can stay connected and productive with your team, partners, and stakeholders, regardless of their location or device.

Reduce Costs and Complexity (see non-profit pricing section below for exact costs)

Costs and complexity are two of the biggest challenges for non-profit organizations, especially when managing their IT infrastructure and software. Microsoft 365 and Azure can help you reduce your costs and complexity by providing you with benefits such as:

• Pay-as-you-go pricing, which means you only pay for the resources you use, and you can scale up or down as needed (Microsoft 365 also has annual and monthly plans available. Azure is pay as you go.)
• Automatic updates and patches, which means you don't have to worry about keeping your systems and applications up-to-date and secure
• Access to the latest technologies and innovations, which means you can take advantage of the best features and capabilities that Microsoft has to offer
• Support and training, which means you can get the help and guidance you need to make the most of your Microsoft 365 and Azure solutions

With these benefits, you can save money, time, and hassle and focus on your core mission and activities.

Enhance Security and Compliance

Security and compliance are two of the most important aspects of any non-profit organization, especially when protecting your data and applications. Microsoft 365 and Azure can help you enhance your security and compliance by providing you with features and capabilities such as:

• Data encryption, which means your data is protected both in transit and at rest
• Multi-Factor Authentication Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is a security enhancement that requires users to verify their identity using multiple credentials before gaining access to a system, application, or service. This layered approach to security helps ensure that the person requesting access is indeed who they claim to be, significantly reducing the risk of unauthorized access. MFA generally involves a combination of two or more of the following factors: Something you know: A password, PIN, or answer to a security question. Something you have: A physical token, smart card, or a mobile phone to receive a verification code. Something you are: Biometric identifiers, such as a fingerprint, facial recognition, or voice, that uniquely identify the user. By requiring multiple forms of verification, MFA adds an additional layer of defense against potential threats, even if one factor (such as a password) becomes compromised. For instance, even if an attacker obtains a user's password, they would still need the second form of authentication to gain access. In today's digital landscape, where cyber threats are increasingly sophisticated, implementing MFA is a critical step for organizations to protect sensitive data and systems. It enhances security for end-users and across the enterprise, making it a fundamental component of a robust cybersecurity strategy. , which means you can add an extra layer of security to your accounts and devices
• Advanced threat protection, which means you can detect and prevent malicious attacks and breaches
• Data Loss Prevention Data Loss Prevention (DLP) is a set of strategies and tools designed to prevent the unauthorized access, use, transmission, or leakage of sensitive information from an organization. The primary goal of DLP is to safeguard confidential data, ensure regulatory compliance, and protect intellectual property. DLP solutions monitor, detect, and respond to potential data breaches by enforcing policies that control data flow within the network and across endpoint devices. DLP systems typically incorporate three key functionalities: Identification and Classification: DLP tools identify and classify sensitive data based on predefined criteria, such as data type, location, and behavioral patterns. Common categories include Personally Identifiable Information (PII), Payment Card Information (PCI), and Protected Health Information (PHI). Monitoring and Inspection: Continuous monitoring and inspection of data in motion (e.g., network traffic), data at rest (e.g., stored data), and data in use (e.g., active processes) are conducted to ensure that sensitive information is not exposed to unauthorized entities. Policy Enforcement and Response: Enforcement of data protection policies that dictate how data can be accessed and shared. When a policy violation is detected, the DLP solution can trigger automated responses such as alerts, encryption, quarantine, or blocking of data transfer. DLP can be deployed across various points in an organization, including endpoints (e.g., laptops, desktops), networks (e.g., email, internet), and cloud environments. Implementing a robust DLP strategy is vital for organizations to mitigate the risks associated with data breaches, protect their reputation, and avoid potential financial and legal repercussions. By utilizing DLP solutions, businesses can ensure that critical data remains secure while enabling authorized users to perform their duties without compromising the organization's integrity. Some popular DLP tools include Symantec DLP, McAfee Total Protection for DLP, and Forcepoint DLP. These solutions offer comprehensive features tailored to address the unique needs of organizations across different industries. , which means you can prevent unauthorized access and sharing of your sensitive data
• Audit and reporting, which means you can monitor and track your activities and compliance status
• Compliance with industry standards and regulations, such as ISO 27001, HIPAA The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a critical piece of legislation in the United States aimed at protecting sensitive patient health information. Enacted in 1996, HIPAA established comprehensive standards for the privacy and security of medical data, ensuring that healthcare providers, insurers, and other related entities handle patient information responsibly. The Act sets national standards for electronic health care transactions and addresses the security and privacy of health data. It is essential for organizations handling health information to comply with HIPAA regulations to safeguard patient privacy and ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the data. https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/index.html , FedRAMP, SOC 1, and SOC 2, as well as country-specific standards like Australia IRAP, UK G-Cloud, and Singapore MTCS

With these features and capabilities, you can ensure that your data and applications are secure and compliant and that you can meet the expectations and requirements of your donors, beneficiaries, and regulators.

Case Study

An accounting company Intrada works with recently upgraded its infrastructure.  Their server needed to be replaced.  The customer was not ready, nor did they want to switch to the cloud versions of their current software, like Quickbooks.  Moving all their software programs to their respective cloud platforms would cost them roughly $1400 monthly in individual subscription fees. 

Instead of pushing everything to individual cloud plans, Intrada set up an Azure Virtual Machine A Virtual Machine (VM) is an emulation of a computer system that operates within a physical host machine. It provides a virtualized environment that behaves like an independent computer, complete with its own operating system, applications, and resources. VMs run on top of a hypervisor, which is a software layer that manages the virtual machines and allocates the necessary resources from the physical hardware. This setup allows multiple VMs to coexist on a single physical machine, each running independently and isolated from one another. Virtual machines offer several advantages, including improved resource utilization, easy scalability, and simplified testing and development environments. They are commonly used for server consolidation, enabling organizations to run multiple server instances on a single physical server. Additionally, VMs are valuable for creating isolated development and testing environments, allowing developers to safely experiment without affecting the host system. By providing a flexible and efficient way to manage computing resources, virtual machines have become a cornerstone of modern IT infrastructure and cloud computing. to host the Quickbooks program/database and their other software programs.  The Azure instance costs them roughly $250 per month to operate. This is significantly cheaper than the $1400 per month they were anticipating.  Additionally, the customer did not have to purchase or maintain server hardware.  Servers require electricity, anti-virus, monitoring software, updating, and patching each month. 

While Microsoft Azure accomplished a solution for their Quickbooks and other pieces of software, they still needed a solution for their email services, file storage, and security.  Microsoft 365’s Business Premium package provided them with:

• Exchange (enterprise) emailing services
• OneDrive and SharePoint file storage services that can be accessed anywhere, securely
• Email and device security
• Domain services and device management
• Multi-Factor Authentication Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is a security enhancement that requires users to verify their identity using multiple credentials before gaining access to a system, application, or service. This layered approach to security helps ensure that the person requesting access is indeed who they claim to be, significantly reducing the risk of unauthorized access. MFA generally involves a combination of two or more of the following factors: Something you know: A password, PIN, or answer to a security question. Something you have: A physical token, smart card, or a mobile phone to receive a verification code. Something you are: Biometric identifiers, such as a fingerprint, facial recognition, or voice, that uniquely identify the user. By requiring multiple forms of verification, MFA adds an additional layer of defense against potential threats, even if one factor (such as a password) becomes compromised. For instance, even if an attacker obtains a user's password, they would still need the second form of authentication to gain access. In today's digital landscape, where cyber threats are increasingly sophisticated, implementing MFA is a critical step for organizations to protect sensitive data and systems. It enhances security for end-users and across the enterprise, making it a fundamental component of a robust cybersecurity strategy.
• Single sign-on

Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 are powerful and versatile cloud computing platforms that can help businesses of all sizes achieve their goals. Whether you're looking to save money, improve scalability and flexibility, enhance security and compliance, or take advantage of the latest cloud technologies, Azure has something to offer. With its wide range of features and capabilities, Azure is the perfect choice for any business looking to move to the cloud.

Pricing

Microsoft offers significant discounts to qualified 501(c)3 organizations. 

Microsoft 365:

• Business Basic > Free
• Business Standard > $3.00 per user per month
• Business Premium > Free for the first ten users; $5.50 per user per month

Microsoft Azure:

• Up to a $2000 per year grant

Conclusion

Microsoft 365 and Azure are powerful and versatile solutions that can help your non-profit organization achieve its goals and make a difference. Whether you're looking to improve your communication and collaboration, reduce costs and complexity, or enhance your security and compliance, Microsoft 365 and Azure have something to offer. With their wide range of features and capabilities, Microsoft 365 and Azure are the perfect choice for any non-profit organization looking to move to the cloud.