How to Manage Multiple Employees with One Microsoft 365 Business Subscription
Question details
The user wants to know how to efficiently manage multiple employee accounts and assign licenses using a single Microsoft 365 business subscription and payment method.
- Product
- Microsoft 365 Business
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Setting up and managing employee access, handling new hires, and managing departures within a business organization.
- Observed behavior
- The organization needs to provide separate user accounts and individual licenses for each employee while maintaining a unified central payment method.
Ensure you have global admin or user management admin privileges in the Microsoft 365 admin center before attempting to add users, purchase licenses, or reassign existing ones.
Set Up and Manage Employee Accounts in Microsoft 365 Admin Center
The standard method to manage your organization's users by creating individual accounts and assigning licenses from your unified subscription pool.
Microsoft 365 Business allows you to use a single billing method while assigning unique accounts and licenses to individual employees. This ensures proper data security and personalized access to Office applications.
Use the Microsoft business plan selector to choose the appropriate Microsoft 365 subscription for your organization and complete the purchase.
Log in to the Microsoft 365 admin center, navigate to 'Users' > 'Active users' on the left sidebar, and click 'Add a user' to create separate accounts for each employee.
During the user creation process, select the appropriate product license under the 'Product licenses' section for each employee to grant them access to Office apps and services.
When an employee leaves, go to their account in the admin center, block their sign-in, and remove or unassign their license. You can then assign this freed license to a new employee by creating a new account.
Looking for a cost-effective alternative to Microsoft 365?
Managing costly Microsoft 365 business subscriptions can be overwhelming for small businesses. Consider WPS Office as a lightweight, budget-friendly alternative. It offers high compatibility with Microsoft Office formats while keeping software deployment simple and cost-effective.
- 1. Download the installer: Visit the official WPS Office website and click the Free Download button.
- 2. Install on employee devices: Run the installer and follow the on-screen instructions to deploy WPS Office on your team's computers.
- 3. Open existing files: Directly open, edit, and save your existing .docx, .xlsx, and .pptx files seamlessly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can multiple employees share one Microsoft 365 user account?
No, sharing user accounts violates licensing terms and causes serious security and data-syncing issues. You should create separate accounts for each employee under your main subscription.
Do I need to buy a new subscription for every new employee?
No, you only need to purchase additional licenses under your existing subscription. If an employee has left the company, you can also reassign their available license to the new employee.
How do I stop paying for a license when someone leaves?
After blocking the user and unassigning their license, you must also navigate to the 'Billing' section in the admin center to reduce your total license count. Otherwise, you will continue to be billed for the unused license.
Is Office LTSC a better option than a business subscription?
Microsoft generally recommends Microsoft 365 for organizations with more than five users due to its cloud features and regular updates. Office LTSC is primarily designed for specialized scenarios requiring offline, locked-in functionality.
