Modernizing IT for a New York
Professional Services Organization
with Microsoft Cloud
Case Study
Case Study
A mid-sized professional services organization in New York City partnered with Atlas Technica to modernize its architecture and simplify day-to-day operations. Atlas delivered a governed Microsoft cloud foundation that unified collaboration, deploying Windows 365 and Azure Virtual Desktop for end user productivity, and a right-sized Azure platform to host critical services with resilient connectivity to on-premises locations and partner networks. The Azure build included a fit-for-purpose landing zone, structured networking, identity integration, backup and recovery, and selective Windows Server workloads where that model best served operational needs.
The organization manages a distributed workforce with a mix of knowledge workers and field staff. They needed consistent access to line of business systems without the complexity and cost of maintaining their on-premises VDI host and sprawling endpoint configurations. Objectives included establishing a robust collaboration baseline in Microsoft 365, consolidating and standardizing user access through Azure based workspaces, and building a governed cloud foundation that internal IT and Atlas could operate jointly. A financial review of moving from VMware Horizon to Azure Virtual Desktop framed the decision and sequencing for change,indicating significant return on investment. Atlas’ wealth of onboarding experience brought together well-defined project management, disciplined change enablement, and a steady technical cadence. Workstreams spanned tenant readiness, device and application access, network and identity guardrails, and structured user onboarding. The implementation included a carefully planned migration timeline with emphasis on quality control and user\company acceptance to ensure the end user experience was protectedwhile Atlas steadily improved the client’s posture and operations.
Microsoft 365 became the organizing layer for identity, mail, and collaboration, with Atlas managed services covering configuration, monitoring, and user support. User onboarding guidance formalized how accounts, licenses, and groups are created and synchronized, how email hygiene and archiving are applied, and which devices and profiles are in scope for Cloud PC and AVD access. Following documented process reduced variability and gave internal IT transparency for approvals and change requests as user adoption proceeded.
Atlas replaced VMware Horizon with Azure Virtual Desktop, delivering pooled session hosts with consumption-based billing and native Microsoft 365 integration. ROI analysis documented the shift from private cloud or co-located infrastructure to AVD and showed material cost and operational benefits over time.To extend savings and simplify operations, Atlas used the third-party platform Nerdio to automate scale down and shutdown of session hosts during low-demand periods and to right-size disks as usage patterns stabilized. This reduced compute and storage spend while maintaininguser experience.AVD was built, validated, and handed over within the same governance model as servers and networking, so daily operations, security, and change control remain consistent.
Data resiliency was extremely important to the client, so we started with protection before polish. From the first build, we turned on the guardrails that keep people and data safe. Conditional Access controlled how users signed in, encryption kept information safe at rest, one. We checked these controls as we went, then checked them again, so the foundation was sound. As the platform took shape, we readied operations too, making sure Azure services were healthy and large-scale onboarding of people and devices could happen without surprises. We treated governance and documentation as deliverables, not afterthoughts, so the teams who would run the environment had the workplans, runbooks, and checklists they needed across Azure, Microsoft 365, Intune, and email security.
A unified Microsoft cloud foundation now streamlines operations and strengthens governance, with Azure hosting the right mix of services and reliable connectivity to on-premises sites and partner networks. End user computing is modernized on Azure Virtual Desktop, and Windows Server workloads run under the same Azure governance, reducing complexity and spending compared to the previous Horizon environment. The platform is documented for steady operations and ongoing improvement as the business grows.