To make sure enterprises get the most out of their Office 365 package, Microsoft announced it will no longer support Office 2013 by the end of February. Instead, the tech giant will push enterprises to upgrade to Office 2016. If your business is still using the 2013 version, here are some things you need to know right away.

Migrating your organization’s unified communications (UC) to the cloud seems like a no-brainer: it’s practical, it’s cheap, it’s the future. Big-name companies such as Cisco, IBM, Microsoft and Verizon now offer Unified communications as a Service (UCaaS), and it’s only a matter of time before it takes over the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) space.

As the saying goes: Out with the old, in with the new. That’s exactly what Microsoft is encouraging Windows 7 users to do as soon as possible. It’s been reported that Windows 7 in 2017 is so outdated that patches are unable to secure it anymore. Maybe it’s the nostalgic qualities that make it hard for users to take the leap.

The right technology investment can lead to business success. With customer relationship management (CRM) software at the helm of your sales and marketing efforts, you can nurture long-lasting business relationships and improve your bottom line. If you need a little bit more convincing, we’ve compiled five more reasons why your business needs CRM.

Grows with your business
The ol’ Rolodex may have been useful for managing a few clients, but you’re going to need a better solution if you plan to maintain relationships with hundreds, possibly thousands, more.

Virtualizing your desktops comes with a number of benefits, one of which is improved security. Unfortunately, nothing perfect lasts forever, and the virtualization industry is facing a frightening new form of malware. Although this threat is nothing more than a facelift on an old virus, it is just as dangerous as it was the first time it made headlines.

Knowing your friend’s schedules comes in handy when you’re trying to arrange a reunion, and the same can be said for businesses. Through calendar sharing, employees can simultaneously arrange meetings, prioritize projects and set schedules for contacting customers.

VoIP has become the ultimate communication tool for enterprises, but it has also become another vulnerability that hackers exploit. Because voice is essentially transferred as data, the risk of digitized messages being intercepted and heard by unauthorized ears increases.

By now, that voice on your smartphone that you constantly rely on to search for recipes or movie schedules may already be part of your Googling routine. As helpful as it is, barking commands at your Google Assistant, an intelligent personal assistant, isn’t always the best way to go.

In the past year, Microsoft was heavily criticized for forcing the Windows 10 OS update on PC users. After thousands of customer complaints, the tech giant vowed to make changes and appease disgruntled end users. With the new year are signs that the firm is finally tending to these problems.

The new year is well upon us, and with it comes an equally new IT budget. Judging by the advancements in computing technology, many 2017 business wish lists probably include powerful onsite servers, workstations, and the Internet of Things. But as tempting as these purchases may be, it’s important that you don’t dismiss an old yet essential IT resolution: disaster recovery.