A company with 50 users currently has Microsoft 365 Business Basic licenses. They now need to use desktop versions of Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) for all users. They also want to keep their existing business email and online meeting features. What is the most cost-effective licensing strategy?
Business Standard includes all features of Business Basic plus the desktop Office apps, providing the needed functionality without extra costs for separate add-ons.
Why this answer
Microsoft 365 Business Basic includes only web and mobile versions of Office apps, not the desktop versions. Upgrading to Microsoft 365 Business Standard provides the full desktop Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) while retaining the existing business email (Exchange Online) and online meeting features (Teams), making it the most cost-effective option for 50 users.
Exam trap
The trap here is that candidates may assume Microsoft 365 Apps for business is sufficient because it includes desktop Office, but they overlook that it lacks Exchange Online and Teams, which are required to maintain the existing email and meeting features.
How to eliminate wrong answers
Option B is wrong because Microsoft 365 Apps for business provides desktop Office apps but does not include Exchange Online for business email or Teams for online meetings, which the company wants to keep. Option C is wrong because Microsoft 365 E3 is an enterprise-grade plan with advanced security and compliance features that are unnecessary for a 50-user company, making it significantly more expensive than Business Standard. Option D is wrong because Microsoft 365 Business Basic does not include desktop versions of Office apps; it only offers web and mobile versions.