If your business is currently using Microsoft 365 Business Standard, you may be wondering whether it’s worth upgrading to Business Premium. At first glance, the two seem similar: both include the core Office apps, cloud services like Exchange and SharePoint, and Microsoft Teams for collaboration. However, there are critical differences that make Microsoft 365 Business Premium a smarter investment—especially for businesses looking to enhance their security, simplify device management, and prepare for future growth.
Let’s explore five compelling reasons why Microsoft 365 Business Premium quickly proves its value—especially with expert support from CT Link.
1. Comprehensive Device Management Through Microsoft Intune
Microsoft 365 Business Premium meets this demand by including Microsoft Intune—a powerful, cloud-based tool for centralized device and application management. Intune gives IT administrators full visibility and control over policies, settings, and deployments, enabling a more secure and unified device strategy. Whether employees are using company-issued laptops or their personal smartphones, you can ensure every device adheres to the same security standards.
More importantly, Intune allows for:
- Enforcing encryption, password policies, and security baselines across all connected devices.
- Remotely wiping corporate data from lost, stolen, or compromised devices without affecting personal content.
- Monitoring compliance and automatically flagging or restricting access from non-compliant endpoints.
This level of oversight empowers businesses to confidently adopt BYOD strategies while minimizing the risk of data breaches. It also helps organizations meet regulatory and industry compliance standards without introducing operational complexity.
Summary: Intune delivers scalable, centralized device and app management to secure every endpoint—whether it’s in the office or remote.
2. Smarter Access Control with Conditional Access
Managing devices across a remote or hybrid workforce is increasingly important as businesses support flexible work setups. Microsoft 365 Business Standard delivers core productivity and collaboration tools, but as device management needs grow, some organizations may find themselves looking for more built-in control features. As your organization grows, so does the need for more efficient oversight and control.
Usernames and passwords alone are no longer enough to protect against today’s sophisticated cyber threats. That’s why Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes Conditional Access—a smart security feature that evaluates each sign-in attempt in real time. By checking user roles, device health, and location, it blocks suspicious activity before it becomes a threat.
With Conditional Access, you can set automated policies based on factors like user role, device health, sign-in location, and app sensitivity. For instance:
- Block or challenge sign-ins from unusual locations.
- Require multifactor authentication (MFA) when accessing high-risk apps or data.
- Deny access entirely from non-compliant or jailbroken devices.
These policies work in real time and adapt dynamically to emerging threats. Rather than granting blanket access, you define the conditions that make access safe—and Microsoft 365 business premium enforces them for you.
This not only improves security, but also simplifies access for trusted users. With single sign-on (SSO) and intelligent MFA prompts, end users aren’t constantly asked to re-authenticate, which reduces friction and boosts productivity.
Summary: Conditional Access helps you enforce smart, context-aware policies that reduce risk without disrupting workflows.
3. Built-In Business Continuity and Productivity Safeguards
Unplanned disruptions—from cyber incidents to lost devices—can bring productivity to a halt. Microsoft 365 Business Premium is designed to help your organization stay resilient, even when the unexpected occurs.
Features like AutoSave and OneDrive for Business ensure that work is automatically backed up in real time, minimizing the risk of data loss. If a device is lost or stolen, employees can easily resume work from another device without missing a beat.
Meanwhile, mobile application management and remote wipe capabilities keep your data protected—even on personal or unmanaged devices. If an employee leaves or a device is compromised, IT can immediately revoke access or wipe company data while leaving personal information intact.
Microsoft also keeps apps and services up to date with automatic patching and feature updates, reducing the burden on IT teams and ensuring users always have the latest tools and security enhancements.
Together, these features build a productivity safety net that helps businesses recover quickly from disruptions and maintain operations with confidence.
Summary: Business Premium safeguards your productivity and data—even during disruptions—so your business can keep moving forward.
4. Built-In Information Protection and Compliance Tools
Microsoft 365 Business Premium doesn’t just help you work smarter—it helps you stay compliant and secure by default. One of the standout additions is Microsoft Purview, which allows organizations to automatically classify, label, and secure sensitive data such as financial records, customer information, and intellectual property. Unlike manual processes, this intelligent system recognizes patterns and applies protections to documents and emails without user intervention, minimizing human error and potential breaches.
On top of this, Business Premium gives access to robust compliance capabilities that go far beyond what Business Standard offers:
- Data Loss Prevention (DLP): Prevents users from inadvertently sharing sensitive information like credit card numbers or personal data, whether through email or file sharing.
- eDiscovery and Legal Hold: Essential for businesses needing to preserve and search communications for legal or regulatory review. This is particularly useful for industries like finance, legal, and healthcare.
- Message Encryption: Ensures that emails remain secure, even when sent outside the organization. This helps build client trust while maintaining compliance.
These tools help meet regional and global compliance standards like GDPR, HIPAA, and Philippine Data Privacy Act requirements. By proactively securing your sensitive data, you’re not only protecting your business—you’re also demonstrating accountability and care for your customers.
Summary: Business Premium equips your organization with automated tools for classifying and safeguarding sensitive data—ensuring compliance without the complexity.
5. Advanced Endpoint Security Without Extra Tools
Business Standard offers strong productivity features and basic security capabilities that suit many SMBs. Business Premium expands on this by including Microsoft Defender for Business—a powerful, built-in endpoint protection platform that adds an extra layer of defense without the need for third-party tools.
Microsoft Defender for Business offers enterprise-grade antivirus and endpoint detection and response (EDR) to protect against malware, ransomware, phishing, and even zero-day attacks. The platform continuously monitors your devices and uses automated investigation and remediation to neutralize threats before they can spread. For example, if a user’s laptop downloads a suspicious file, Defender can isolate the file, assess its behavior, and remove it without any manual intervention.
This reduces the workload on your IT team and eliminates the need for costly third-party endpoint protection platforms. It also ensures consistent policy enforcement across company devices, improving your security posture without the complexity.
For businesses facing tighter security budgets, Defender’s all-in-one approach simplifies operations and makes advanced protection more accessible than ever.
Summary: Defender for Business gives SMBs automated, enterprise-grade protection without the need for third-party endpoint tools.
Why Work With CT Link?
Choosing the right Microsoft 365 license is just the beginning. But getting the most out of your upgrade takes more than just activating new features.
At CT Link, we offer implementation support tailored to your environment. From license deployment and migration to policy configuration and user onboarding, we’re here to guide you through each step. Our goal is to help you transition smoothly—so you can take full advantage of Business Premium’s capabilities.
We work collaboratively with your IT team, adjusting to your pace and providing advice based on what’s most relevant to your industry, size, and goals. Whether you need help setting up Intune, or fine-tuning conditional access policies, we’ll support your team where it matters most.
Interested in learning more about other Microsoft 365 Business Premium Solutions and how it can help your business operations? Contact us at marketing@ctlink.com.ph to set up a meeting with us today!