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Microsoft 365 is a powerful platform that supports UK organisations in numerous ways, from enhancing collaboration to streamlining day-to-day operations. However, many businesses continue to overspend on unnecessary licences, underused features, and duplicated tools.
The good news is that this waste can be significantly reduced. By making smarter use of Microsoft 365’s security capabilities and Copilot add-ons, organisations can cut costs, improve visibility, and align their technology usage more closely with business objectives. This article outlines practical steps to help you make informed decisions and avoid common licensing pitfalls.
What Does Microsoft 365 Offer as Standard Security and Copilot Features?
Even without add-ons, Microsoft 365 Business Premium comes with a strong baseline of security and AI features. You get identity and access tools such as Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory), multi-factor authentication, single sign-on, and conditional access. There is also built-in threat protection – email scanning, anti-phishing via Microsoft Defender, and safeguards for links and attachments. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) recommends enabling MFA and enforcing conditional access to strengthen your M365 security posture.
Core threat protection is also available, including email scanning, anti-phishing features, and safeguards for attachments and links via Microsoft Defender. Depending on your subscription, you may also have access to data loss prevention (DLP), auditing tools, and regulatory compliance features to support reporting and retention requirements.
How Organisations Overspend on Microsoft 365 Security and Copilot Add-Ons
Overspending on Microsoft 365 is often subtle and goes unnoticed. These are some of the most common causes:
Upgrading to Higher-Tier Plans Unnecessarily
Many organisations move quickly to E3 or E5 licenses – or add premium features across the entire workforce – without validating whether users genuinely need them.
Licenses Left Assigned but Unused
Licenses frequently remain allocated to employees who have changed roles, moved to part-time positions, gone on extended leave, or left the organisation entirely. Without regular review, these unused licenses become an ongoing and unnecessary financial burden.
Deleting Users Without Reclaiming Licenses
If user accounts are deleted during offboarding without first unassigning their licenses, those licenses continue to renew in the background. Without proper process automation or manual checks, this results in silent, ongoing waste.
Duplicate Functionality for the Same User
Microsoft 365’s admin portal does not warn administrators when assigning duplicate or redundant licenses. This may result in users receiving standalone tools that are already included within their existing plan, meaning you pay twice for the same capability.
How to Reduce Waste in Microsoft 365 Security and Copilot Add-Ons
The encouraging news is that most unnecessary spend can be eliminated. With the right processes and governance, organisations can reallocate their budgets more efficiently and unlock greater value from their Microsoft 365 investment.
Downgrade Light Users
Not all users require premium licenses. By reviewing actual usage, you can confidently downgrade users – such as reception or administrative roles – to lower-tier plans like E1 without impacting productivity. Usage-monitoring tools provide clarity and remove the guesswork.
Automate Offboarding
Automated workflows – via tools such as Power Automate – can revoke access, remove group memberships, convert mailboxes, and unassign licenses automatically when an employee leaves. This ensures licenses are reclaimed promptly and consistently.
Consolidate Overlapping Features
Review your broader toolset to identify overlap. If your Microsoft 365 plan already offers advanced threat protection or endpoint security, consider cancelling third-party solutions that duplicate these capabilities. Similarly, evaluate whether Copilot add-ons duplicate existing AI or automation tools.
Review Group and Shared Mailboxes
Many organisations mistakenly assign premium licenses to shared mailboxes, service accounts, or inactive mailboxes. Converting them to free shared mailboxes -or archiving where appropriate – ensures your license spend supports only genuinely active users.
Implement Governance Policies and Renewal Alerts
Set clear governance policies to avoid future wastage. Track renewal dates, set alerts for inactivity, and ensure automatic renewals are reviewed rather than left unchecked. Ongoing governance prevents costs from creeping back in.
Make Microsoft 365 Work Smarter for Your Organisation
Don’t allow underused licenses and unnecessary add-ons to drain your technology budget. By aligning licenses and features with genuine user needs, you can reduce spend, simplify management, and enhance security across your organisation.
Optimising your Microsoft 365 environment is ultimately about maximising the value of what you already have. With the right approach to M365 security and Copilot add-ons, your organisation can operate more efficiently, securely, and cost-effectively.