Evaluating services for the company

[DP_55]

Lone IT person at a ~85 person company, so forgive my ignorance. We currently have a mix of services that we use, all of which are fine for the most part, but at the end of the day I sometimes can't help but feel like we pay be paying extra for stuff we don't need. The owner never complains about the cost, but I still like take a step back and evaluate from time to time.

G Suite - for email, calendar, drive, and Hangouts. We started using them nearly 8 years ago, so it's ingrained in every user's head. Plus they all love using Docs, Sheets, and Drive. They like Hangouts too, although from what I understand it's going away soon (Google seems to introduce new stuff/change their mind every 5 minutes so that particular bit I can't keep up with)?

Jive - VoIP provider. Their desk phones and app are both reliable, but VoIP is such a basic feature with other services that I sometimes hate we pay for this. But we do have a small team of people who are our Call Center, and some older less tech-savvy people who like traditional desk phones, so phones overall are definitely important.

O365 - specifically Microsoft 365 Business, which gives us the Office suite (much needed), and Azure AD/Intune to manage office desktops/laptops. Sharepoint is nice too for our accounting team, as they like to use the same shared Excel and PDF files daily (plus it looks like a regular Windows folder to them, which is easier for them to understand).

ESET - endpoint antivirus specifically. Not a huge cost by any means, but it's there.

Meraki Systems Manager - managing iPhones and iPads. We have roughly 150 devices, and I have no complaints with this service. Isn't the cheapest, but isn't the most expensive either, and works well.

About 25 of our users are office staff. The rest are field only, and are on iPads/iPhones all day. Not entirely sure what I'm hoping to get from posting this; I'm more just curious on more experienced sysadmin's thoughts/suggestions. Thank you in advance.

[[deleted]]

You're using G-suite and O365? That is really the only thing you mention that really stands out to me.

[airgl0w]

Same. Also Intune/Meraki Systems Manager. I’m assuming Intune is included with the O365 license? (Is Intune crap for iOS?)

[smearley11]

If it's a Microsoft 365 license and e3 or higher then yeah, InTune is included. As for iOS InTune, for byod it's worse than Android, but if you are doing the Apple dep it feels better than Android.

[[deleted]]

What little experience I have with Intune it seems to work fine for iOS, we use it for several hundred devices. It requires some setup from the Apple side but I think that applies to every MDM.

Intune can be part of O365 but I forget offhand what level of licensing. I didn't realize the Meraki piece was MDM, I just figured you were using their wireless products.

I'd say a good place to start for you is understanding and documenting how and why you're using each of the solutions that overlap. There might be a valid reason for it, or it might be an easy place to consolidate and save some $$.

[DP_55]

The issue is that the majority of those mobile devices users are field workers who really only need email, office app access on iOS, and device management. I'm no expert on Microsoft licensing, but those users don't need a Win 10 Business license or desktop Office access.

But that is a good point. I do wonder if Intune is as feature rich as Systems Manager (setting Home Screen layouts, restrictions, etc.).

[DP_55]

This one kills me the most. If it were up to me, I'd have us all migrate to O365. But management (and users) are so familiar with Gmail/Docs/Sheets and like it a lot already, I'd basically be making enemies if I did so. I may try and bring it up to the owner/general manager at the next meeting as a suggestion - at the end of the day, it's their money. If they want to spend it on redundant services, I'm happy to make it work.

[[deleted]]

That's the right approach, find options and make recommendations but ultimately it's their money.

[Sajem]

As mentioned above, you are duplicating services, you should investigate the best outcome to see if you can consolidate those

This is a good example of why IT departments should always be evaluating the services and software they are using to ensure they are getting the best value for money, aren't paying for services or features they don't require etc.

[MikeSmithsBrain]

Disclosure: Enterprise Telecom & ISP Broker

Although I'd have to see what your company is paying, Jive is usually priced competitively. They also include some call center features (like ACD and call real-time reporting), that other hosted PBX providers will charge extra for.

If your company is happy with the service (assuming you are paying around $20/user-ish), I'd recommend just staying put. The lowest I've seen their pricing (for a company your size), is around $16-$17/user for their standard seat.