Cloud Direct is proud to have been accredited as a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Service Provider (MSP) for the seventh year in a row.

In 2018, the Azure Expert MSP programme was launched to recognise and identify the best that Microsoft’s 400,000-strong Partner Network has to offer. Cloud Direct was one of the first partners to be awarded the accreditation and has maintained its status ever since.

Fewer than 150 organisations across the globe are recognised as Azure Expert MSPs, 61 of which are UK-based. The audit process, which is carried out by external assessors, considers expertise from across the entire organisation to evaluate its ability to deliver Microsoft Azure managed services at scale.

After receiving confirmation of the renewal from Microsoft, Cloud Direct CEO Brett Raynes said: “To once again be recognised by Microsoft as one of its best and closest partners is a huge achievement for the whole business. It is confirmation that our service delivery remains among the best in the world, and that is what we strive for every single day. 

“It also means we can retain full confidence in knowing that we are delivering the best possible service for our customers to enable their transformation and success. We were among the first partners in the UK to receive the Azure Expert MSP accreditation, and to know we have continually met the strict assessment criteria for seven consecutive years is a huge source of pride.” 

Earning our status as an Azure Expert MSP is just one of many ways in which we ensure our close alignment to Microsoft. Our way of working reflects Microsoft’s structure, practices, and principles, to help our customers unlock the array of opportunities that the Microsoft ecosystem presents. 

What it means for our customers 

A seventh year as an Azure Expert MSP confirms that our customers continue to receive service of the highest level. Every day, we are transforming businesses in a way that is achievable, sustainable, and exciting for them. 

As an Azure Expert MSP, we will continue providing… 

Better service 

Nobody does it better. The auditing process for the Azure Expert MSP programme is incredibly strict and rigorous. If you’re working with an accredited partner, you know you’re working with the best.   

Broader offerings 

We evolve with Microsoft. As they innovate, we innovate with them. This means we help you access the latest and greatest in transformative technologies as soon as they come to market, unlocking the power of your data and helping you tap into opportunities in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and analytics. 

Closer partnerships 

We’re best friends with Microsoft. Only Azure Expert MSPs can be certain of that. We extend the benefits of that friendships onto our customers, including exclusive funding opportunities, the expertise of true market leaders, and so much more. 

 

Start your transformation journey with an Azure Expert MSP. It’s the only way to guarantee best-in-class service and delivery. Let’s talk. 

Cloud Direct is delighted to have confirmed its status as a Microsoft Azure Expert Managed Service Provider (MSP) for the sixth consecutive year.

Microsoft set up the Azure Expert MSP programme five years ago to promote only the most capable and experienced of its more than 90,000 partners. Of those organisations, Cloud Direct is one of only 131 to be awarded Azure Expert MSP status, 58 of which are UK-based.

Following the successful completion of the audit process, Cloud Direct CEO Brett Raynes said: “Reconfirming our position as a Microsoft Azure Expert MSP is a great source of pride for the whole team. To have our level of service independently verified as being among the best in the world means we can continue working towards our goal of truly empowering businesses to achieve fearless growth.

“The Azure Expert MSP programme sets high standard for its partners, and we are incredibly proud to be part of it. As a result, our customers can continue having the utmost confidence and reassurance in our ability to deliver successful Azure projects.”

The process, which is conducted by an external auditor, saw the Cloud Direct team assessed on their ability to deliver Microsoft Azure managed service provisions at scale, including the skill to migrate and support infrastructure, data, and applications within Microsoft Azure at the highest level.

What does it mean for our customers?

Resecuring our Azure Expert MSP status confirms that we continue to serve our customers to the highest possible standard. We are empowering businesses to achieve fearless growth in ways that are safe, affordable, and achievable for them.

As an Azure Expert MSP, we will continue providing…

Better service

It’s simple, really: when you work with an expert, you get expert-level service. Microsoft has made it easier to verify the best partners by awarding this rigorous accreditation to a select few top performing partners. Every service that we offer, every customer interaction, is held to a higher standard. We love raising the bar because it makes us up our game and hop right over it.

Broader offerings

Whatever your business needs, we can deliver it. Keen on IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS? We can advise you. Ready to adopt mobile working or the Internet of Things? We know all about it. Need help with app migration, security, or compliance? We have experts in all areas.

Closer partnerships

Being one of the few Azure Expert MSPs in the UK brings us much closer to Microsoft. Our already close partnership is now much stronger, and all the benefits that come our way get passed directly on to you, our customers. Picture this: Microsoft’s capabilities and software paired with our expertise and skills, all working to better your business. The possibilities are endless.

If you want to find out how you can unlock fearless growth with Microsoft Cloud, get in touch with one of our Experts. We’ll show you what’s possible.

In October 2022, Microsoft announced the launch of its new Azure Savings Plan. It’s billed as the easiest and most flexible way to save costs on compute services. According to Microsoft, customers can save up to 65%* on pay-as-you-go prices for select services.

How does the Azure Savings Plan work?

In short, you set your fixed hourly consumption limit to lock in your discount. When usage exceeds the hourly commitment, you will be charged at the usual pay-as-you-go rates. Customers can choose to commit for one or three years, and whether to pay upfront or in part each month at no additional cost.

Image source: Microsoft

Customers that take advantage of the Azure Savings Plan have lower and more predictable spending, which frees them up to reinvest in innovative technology projects.

How is it different to Reserved Instances?

The Azure Savings Plan is not replacing Reserved Instances (RIs). RIs have been a popular cost-saving method for some customers where the discount is applied to a specific virtual machine (VM) in a specific Azure region.

The Azure Savings Plan delivers greater flexibility as it can apply to any compute resource in any global region. Savings are optimised automatically to help you get the best value for money.

Customers may, for a limited time, swap RIs for an Azure Savings Plan, or combine them together.

Now’s the time to review your compute workloads to see which pricing model best works for your business. Is it worth you swapping RIs for an Azure Saving Plan, or having both for different workloads? Our experts can help you identify the best way to leverage the new Azure Savings Plan to optimise costs.

Discover your savings potential

It’s important you plan for known usage, so you can start leveraging the cost savings available to your company. Microsoft’s example of the potential savings available is demonstrated below based on an illustrative spend of $1,000,000.

Image source: Microsoft

Customers can assess potential cost savings with Azure Advisor. This tool is a window into the health of your Azure environment and is founded on the five pillars of the Well-Architected Framework (WAF) for best practice management.

Cost optimisation is an integral pillar of the WAF and should be balanced against the performance of the other four pillars. An Azure expert will be able to assess your spending against your strategic plans and advise on the best way to stabilise your costs with Azure Savings Plan.

Start optimising your costs

If you’re looking to learn more about how you can adopt the Azure Savings Plan, or more broadly save on costs across your businesses then get in touch. We offer a wide range of cost optimisation solutions, from workshops to assessments that all align with the Well-Architected Framework – ensuring you’re following Microsoft’s best practices.

* According to Microsoft

 

For the ninth consecutive year, Cloud Direct has achieved G-Cloud status.

We’re excited to announce we’ve added 11 approved services to G-Cloud 13, the UK government’s Digital Marketplace. The Digital Marketplace is a government-regulated tool for public sector organisations and agencies to find specialist providers for technical digital projects.

With almost a decade of experience as one of the earliest adopters of G-Cloud, our transformational consultancy and support services have been designed to support organisations such as local government, health, education, emergency services, defence and not-for-profit organisations.

Here is the full list of cloud services available from Cloud Direct on G-Cloud 13, under our legal name On Direct Business Services Limited:

• Azure Assessment and Migration
• Azure Managed Service
• Application Modernisation
• DevOps
• Sentinel Managed Service and Security Operations Centre (SOC)
• Cloud Security
• Microsoft 365 Migration and Managed Service
• Teams Calling
• Backup and Disaster Recovery (DR)
• Citrix-on-Azure
• Managed IT

Brett Raynes, CEO of Cloud Direct, says:

“We work with several government organisations who enjoy the increased level of security and accreditation G-Cloud 13 awards us. Our business and the services we provide are all about enabling transformation and as we expect to grow, we plan to increase our customer base amongst public sector organisations. The stringent G-Cloud framework shows our continued commitment to providing first-class service and support to our clients.”

Microsoft launched their Partner Solution Designations at the start of October, are you aware of what these are and how they impact the way you find the right Microsoft Partner? We’ve published a blog post to answer any questions you may have.

How are they different from the old Microsoft Competencies?

In early 2022, Microsoft announced their plans to change its Microsoft Partner Network, which was designed for the on-premises world, by bringing it up to date with the new Cloud computing age with the Microsoft Cloud Partner Programme. As part of this change, Microsoft decided to ditch the Silver and Gold Competencies, and replace them with Solution Partner Designations.

The new designations significantly raise the bar and encompass a greater breadth and depth of requirements and expertise that partners must meet. Making it easier for you to identify, and then work with their most capable partners.

What are the Solution Partner Designations?

There are six Solution Partner Designations, making it simple to identify Microsoft’s most capable partners and understand which partner has the technical capabilities and experience to support your ambitions. These six solution areas are:

• Infrastructure
• Modern Work
• Security
• Data & AI
• Digital & App Innovation

Attaining these designations is more stringent than ever before. Microsoft is measuring partners’ success by analysing their capabilities in performance, skilling, and customer success. Once a partner has secured a Solution Designation, you can have peace of mind that Microsoft trusts them to deliver your projects to the highest standard.

“The Solutions Partner designation demonstrates your organization’s technical capabilities,  experience, and ability to deliver successful customer outcomes aligned to the Microsoft Cloud”

Nicole Dezen – Chief Partner Officer and Corporate Vice President, Global Partner Solutions at Microsoft

How will this impact you choosing a partner?

The recent launch of Solution Partner Designation will, hopefully, have a positive impact on the way you qualify and decide on Microsoft Partners to work with. They’re designed to provide you with an exclusive, consolidated list of partners to choose from. Helping you make your decision on who to partner with, simpler.

Has Cloud Direct secured any badges?

Microsoft has announced that we are not only one of their first partners to qualify for Partner Solution Designation, but they have accredited us with five Solution Partner designation badges; Infrastructure, Modern Work, Security, Data & AI and Digital & App Innovation. And not to mention that we secured 100% on the Infrastructure and Modern Work designations. This puts us among Microsoft’s most cable, and trusted, partners in the UK.

If you have any questions about the recent launch of Microsoft Solution Partner Designations or would like to find out how you can leverage our capabilities to accelerate your Microsoft project, then simply get in touch.

What is the New Commerce Experience (NCE)? 

In January 2022, Microsoft launched the New Commerce Experience (NCE). This change impacted the way customers purchase and manage their licenses through their Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) Program.

The NCE is intended to reduce complexity and provide cost savings for long-term commitments, whilst introducing features to make a CSP a comparable alternative to the previous Enterprise Agreement (EA).

What’s changing in 2024?

From the 1^st of March 2024, education and nonprofit offers will now be launched in the new commerce system. These new offers will be released in monthly waves or batches between March and May 2024, with Wave 1 containing offers with the highest customer value.

Subscription options for NCE

With the launch of NCE in 2022, Microsoft introduced new monthly subscriptions to run alongside any annual subscription, allowing you to save on any future cost increase by committing to the coming years.  Here’s a summary of the three subscriptions available through NCE:

Monthly subscription

With the NCE you will have the ability to purchase your Microsoft 365 licences on a monthly basis without an annual commitment. Microsoft is now offering this to provide flexibility to customers who need to make monthly changes to their Microsoft 365 or Office 365 license plans and seat count. This subscription does come at a 20% price increase across all licence plans.

12-month subscription

Through the NCE, you’ll have the opportunity to commit to your licences through a 12-month subscription. Unlike the legacy CSP model customers who consume on a 12-month subscription, you will have the option to be billed on a monthly or annual basis.

With the 12-month subscription, your pricing will be locked in for the entire term – allowing you to benefit from the additional cost savings of any price increases due in that time. This subscription will allow you to increase but not decrease the seat count.

36-month subscription

Microsoft is introducing a Multi-Year Pricing to the NCE, allowing you to secure 3-year pricing for longer-term licencing commitments. With this subscription, you’ll have the option to be billed monthly, annually or upfront. This subscription will allow you to increase but not decrease the seat count.

What should you do about NCE? 

It is recommended that you speak to us about moving to the NCE as soon as possible to leverage the discounts available.

The NCE is also a good opportunity to audit the current licences you have to make sure you are not paying for licences you don’t need or paying a premium for features you’re not using. We have a variety of tools to do a licence optimisation review with you and can even advise which licences you may want an annual and monthly commitment on to maximise your savings. Speak to us about our licence audit options.

Will Microsoft-led migrations take place?

Microsoft will begin migrating offers remaining in the legacy system starting with offers that are renewing from the 1^st of July 2024 and continuing throughout 2024 and 2025 on the date of a subscription renewal.

To make your transition to NCE smoother, we recommend reaching out to us if we haven’t already reached out to you directly. This will enable us to plan out details that are important to you, such as a monthly term versus an annual term for the subscription and making changes to seat count. Get in touch to make sure there are no surprises when you transition to the NCE.

Will there be promotions available to assist with NCE migrations?

Yes, nonprofit customers who meet the nonprofit grants and credits eligibility requirements and are transitioning to new commerce will be eligible for new promotional offers. These offers will provide a 16.67% discount to nonprofit customers who choose to start in new commerce with a monthly commitment to any of the listed products. This promotional period will run from March 1 to November 30, 2024.

Partner with a Microsoft 365 expert 

As one of Microsoft’s closest partners, thanks to our Azure Expert MSP status and 15 other accreditations, we’re here to help you navigate the New Commerce Experience. We want to ensure you’re getting the most from your licences and leverage the licencing discounts available. Sound good? Simply get in touch to speak with one of our experts.

Already a customer of ours? Speak to your account manager to discuss the best options for your licencing.

Why we launched the Cloud Direct Learning Hub

The margins between success and failure can be quite narrow when it comes to the cloud. After all, that’s why people choose to work with an expert.  

We want everyone to succeed, and that’s why we created the Cloud Direct Learning Hub. It is a free-to-access library of videos, articles, guides and mini-courses to help technical and business leaders learn everything they need to know about Microsoft Cloud. 

 

The importance of learning 

Learning is a huge part of our culture at Cloud Direct. ‘Always be learning’ and ‘more is in you’ are phrases you will hear across the business. And that applies to customers too. We take a ‘teach don’t sell’ approach with customer projects. And it’s not completely selfless. We know that an educated customer will understand our services, appreciate the value we add and invest in projects that benefit their business. 

By learning about Microsoft Cloud customers can understand how it can benefit their business, how to create a business case based on return-on-investment and how to plan and approach a project. That applies whether it is a new cloud project or optimising an existing environment. 

 

Understanding Microsoft Cloud end-to-end 

We have designed the Learning Hub so that it provides educational content across the cloud journey. Whether that is planning a migration, additional cloud services or improving what you already have. The content covers Azure, M365, Teams Voice, Azure Virtual Desktop and Zero-Trust Cloud Security. 

The content will help business and technical leaders make sense of the Microsoft cloud and understand how to use it to improve their business. 

 

Removing complexity 

“We want to help people make sense of Microsoft Cloud,” says Alex Bacon, Cloud Direct’s Head of Product and Marketing. “As the cloud market matures there is more innovation for businesses to consider. We want to remove the complexity of adopting Microsoft Cloud and help people understand what is possible. 

“We ensure our customers embrace best practices from Microsoft such as the Well-Architected Framework (WAF), Azure Sentinel and Zero Trust security. We believe to get the most out of Microsoft Cloud, businesses need to learn about it. We have a ‘teach don’t sell’ methodology and want to help business leaders and technical teams learn about emerging trends, benefits and considerations when planning their cloud strategy.” 

 

Getting the most out of the Learning Hub 

The Learning Hub provides content in bite-sized chunks. One of the best ways to digest the content is by taking one of the video or email courses. You can use the filters to help identify the subject and format that suits you.  

And we’re always here to help. Speak to one of our cloud consultants on live chat to help map a learning path for your business. And if there is a topic you’d like to know more about please let us know – we are constantly creating new content for the Learning Hub. 

Happy learning! Learning Hub – Learning Hub (clouddirect.net)

 

Multi-national IT company Crayon has made a strategic investment to become a shareholder of Cloud Direct (OnDirect Business Services Ltd).

Crayon, which employs more than 2,000 people in 35 different countries, has invested in Cloud Direct to support the continued growth of the business. Cloud Direct’s world-class Cloud Managed Services, partnered with Crayon’s expertise in licensing and cost optimisation will enhance the offering and capacity that both partners provide to their customers.

“We are excited about this agreement as it combines the best of both Crayon and Cloud Direct,” said Crayon CEO Melissa Mulholland. “We both have the global elite status of being a Microsoft Azure Expert MSP and Crayon’s customer-centric approach to cost optimization complements Cloud Direct’s managed services capabilities.”

This collaboration further strengthens Cloud Direct and Crayon’s managed services, creating an end-to-end Microsoft cloud infrastructure and economics offering.

“To have two of Microsoft’s top partners joining forces is great news for customers looking to adopt or optimise their Microsoft Cloud environment. Our expertise in consultancy and managed services for M365 and Azure has seen us go from strength to strength. We are very proud to now have Crayon as part of our continued growth and to further enhance the offering that we can provide to our customers.” Brett Raynes, Cloud Direct CEO.

Unexpected events highlight the importance of establishing and keeping open lines of communication within an organisation.  The spread of COVID-19 has meant businesses have needed to adapt quickly to a developing situation. With the UK in lockdown, all but essential employees are now working remotely, and offices are remaining shut until further notice.

More employees are working from home than ever including many for the first time, which means sharing an announcement isn’t as easy as just gathering everyone in the office. It’s important to find new ways to communicate with your employees when needing to share information, providing them with the ability to stay in touch and with up-to-date health information from reputable sources

COVID-19 creates an increased risk of absence due to illness; it is, therefore, essential that businesses can accurately predict, track, react and allocate resources to cover business demand.

At Cloud Direct we’re working to do our part by ensuring the safety of our employees, striving to protect their health and well-being and providing technology, tips and resources to ensure everyone stays briefed on the situation and any likely business impacts. That’s why we have deployed the Microsoft Crisis Communication application. Now we want to show how you can use it too.

What is the Crisis Communication App?
Microsoft has released a Crisis Communication Application to help businesses cope with the current situation. You can see how many employees across your business are off sick and allocate resources accordingly to cover any absent staff.

Key features of the Crisis Communications Application
Key features of the Crisis Communication Application are as follows:

• Employees can report on their status. Employees will have the ability to report on their status and set out of office responses so you can have a clear view on who is working from home, working in the office, off sick, annual leave or self-isolating. This will allow you to track and coordinate your resources accordingly. You’ll also be able to keep ontop of everyone
• Push news and business updates to employees. Push any company news and updates to all employees, keeping them updated with the latest information.
• Share trusted sources with the business. Share an RSS feed from reputable sources such as the World Health Organisation (WHO). This way you can point your employees to trusted sources rather than getting muddled amongst COVID-19 myths and rumours.
• Share FAQs. Businesses are getting lots of questions daily and new updates are made available. You can upload any common questions you’ve been getting in this section and start directing employees to the FAQs section. You can also share links to the relevant policies e.g. home working or expenses.
• Send a message to a Teams channel. Users can submit questions to a monitored teams channel, allowing your HR teams to respond and direct any questions to relevant resources.

 

How we’ve been using the application

Cloud Direct has been using the Crisis Communication Application for a few weeks now and has been reaping benefits – helping the company better communicate with everyone working remotely.
Better tracking
With employees based across the UK, Europe and South Africa, keeping track of all staff can be challenging. Since rolling out the application we have been able to better track who is working and where they are working from. Allowing us to ensure resources are spread if someone is off ill. Plus, by tracking who is self-isolating, you will be able to claim their wages back.
Updating staff immediately
Within the application, we can push notifications immediately to all staff with any update or business news. This is a great way to share any updates you have on changes within the business or any urgent COVID-19 information worth sharing with employees.

How we can help
Our experts are ready to share the application with businesses to help them communicate better during this challenging period. We’re offering a free 20-minute demo and Q&A session to help you roll out the Crisis Communication Application within your organisation. Claim your free demo below.

If you have any questions on the Crisis Communication Application, home working or any other business challenges or would like further support during this time, please get in contact with us. Our experts are here to support you where they can during this period.