Managing Microsoft 365 environments has become a cornerstone of modern IT service delivery. For managed service providers (MSPs), it’s no longer simply about offering basic support—it’s about enabling secure, scalable, and efficient environments for increasingly remote and hybrid workforces. Yet despite the critical role Microsoft 365 plays, many MSPs are still forced to manage it through a fragmented patchwork of portals, policies, and manual tasks.
At Nerdio, we believe MSPs deserve better. That’s why we’ve expanded Nerdio Manager for MSP beyond Azure Virtual Desktop to offer a unified platform for managing the full Microsoft 365 ecosystem. With these new Modern Work capabilities, MSPs can now consolidate operations, strengthen security, standardize environments, and scale growth more efficiently than ever before.
This article explores the evolution of Microsoft 365 management and how Nerdio Manager’s Modern Work expansion is reshaping the future for service providers ready to thrive in a cloud-first world.
The way organizations work has fundamentally shifted. Employees expect seamless access to applications, documents, and communication tools from anywhere. Hybrid and remote work models are now standard, and cloud platforms, such as Microsoft 365, have become indispensable in supporting distributed workforces.
However, as client environments have become more complex, MSPs have often been left managing them through siloed systems. Traditionally, managing Microsoft 365 involved toggling between Entra ID for identity, Intune for device compliance, Exchange Online for communication, SharePoint for document collaboration, Microsoft Defender for security, and countless additional portals for licensing and policy enforcement. Every action required navigating multiple admin centers, and even simple tasks—such as onboarding a new user or enforcing a security update—could consume significant time and introduce opportunities for human error.
In a high-pressure MSP environment where efficiency and security are paramount, this fragmented approach isn’t just frustrating—it’s risky. It creates gaps in compliance, slows service delivery, increases labor costs, and reduces the overall profitability of cloud service offerings.
Nerdio Manager for MSP addresses these challenges by centralizing critical Microsoft 365 management tasks into a single platform, helping MSPs move from reactive support models to proactive, scalable service delivery.
With the introduction of Modern Work capabilities, Nerdio Manager provides MSPs with a comprehensive toolset to simplify day-to-day Microsoft 365 operations while strengthening security and consistency across all tenants.
One of the most persistent frustrations for MSPs managing hybrid environments has been the need to switch between on-premises domain controllers and cloud portals when administering user accounts. Simple tasks, including adding a new user, adjusting group memberships, or updating user information, often required accessing multiple systems, waiting for sync delays through Entra Connect, and reconciling changes manually across different environments.
Nerdio Manager’s Active Directory User Management feature changes this dynamic completely. MSPs can now manage users and groups for both cloud-only and hybrid customers directly within the Nerdio Manager platform, thanks to a lightweight hybrid agent installed on client domain controllers. This agent enables real-time changes across environments without complex VPN setups or delay-prone synchronization processes. The result is faster, more consistent user management that improves client responsiveness and operational efficiency.
Security has never been more critical—or more challenging. With regulatory requirements such as HIPAA, PCI DSS, and CMMC tightening across industries, MSPs are under pressure to demonstrate that client environments meet rigorous compliance standards. Historically, building security baselines to align with best practices such as those from the Center for Internet Security (CIS) was a time-consuming, manual process, often out of reach for many small and midsize MSPs.
Nerdio’s exclusive partnership with CIS levels the playing field. Partners can now deploy pre-configured, CIS-certified security policies for Windows 10 and Windows 11 endpoints directly within Nerdio Manager. These baselines can elevate a device’s compliance score from a typical 24% (vanilla Windows) to as high as 98%—all with just a few clicks. Nerdio’s approach saves MSPs thousands of dollars annually compared to purchasing a standalone CIS subscription while simultaneously accelerating time-to-compliance and improving client security postures dramatically.
As regulatory environments continue to evolve, Nerdio’s roadmap includes expanding CIS coverage to Level 2 baselines and operating systems, such as MacOS and iOS, ensuring partners can offer comprehensive security services no matter the client’s environment.
Consistency is the foundation of scalable, profitable MSP operations. Without standardization, every new client setup, policy adjustment, or troubleshooting effort risks becoming a one-off project—costing time, introducing variability, and undermining service quality.
Nerdio Manager’s Solution Baselines solve this by allowing MSPs to define a “gold standard” configuration for key Microsoft 365 services, including Entra ID, Intune, Exchange Online, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft Defender. Instead of reinventing the wheel for every tenant, MSPs can now roll out these best-practice configurations instantly, monitor them for drift, and remediate deviations automatically. This not only simplifies client onboarding but also ensures operational consistency across an entire customer base.
By shifting from reactive management to proactive enforcement of known-good standards, MSPs can reduce support overhead, improve client satisfaction, and create a more predictable, repeatable business model.
Maintaining a strong security posture across multiple tenants often feels like an endless uphill battle. Microsoft’s Secure Score tool provides valuable insights into configuration risks and remediation recommendations, but monitoring it tenant-by-tenant is inefficient and often deprioritized in busy environments.
Nerdio eliminates this obstacle by integrating Secure Score directly into its management platform. MSPs can now view Secure Scores across all tenants in one dashboard, track improvements over time, and prioritize the most impactful actions to enhance security. This capability not only improves day-to-day security management but also provides measurable data MSPs can share with clients to demonstrate service value and reinforce retention.
Even when clients use third-party antivirus solutions, Microsoft Defender offers deep insights into endpoint vulnerabilities through its passive vulnerability management capabilities. Yet this valuable data is often overlooked simply because it’s not centralized.
Nerdio Manager’s Defender Vulnerability Report harnesses Defender’s insights, presenting MSPs with clear, actionable visibility into software vulnerabilities across all managed endpoints. By grouping vulnerabilities by CVE details, affected devices, and severity, MSPs can prioritize remediation efforts and prevent issues before they escalate—without needing to replace existing endpoint security solutions.
Change is inevitable in any managed environment, but unmanaged change leads to risk. Unauthorized configuration changes, drift from baselines, or inadvertent administrative updates can leave clients exposed without anyone noticing.
With Nerdio Manager’s Tenant Monitoring, MSPs gain the ability to audit client environments daily, compare them against established solution baselines, and review historical change records. This not only strengthens internal compliance processes but also empowers MSPs to offer value-added reporting to clients—showing not just where things stand today, but how their environments have improved over time.
Support teams need fast, reliable access to client endpoints, but traditional remote help tools often come with steep per-endpoint licensing fees that erode margins.
Nerdio Manager’s Console Connect feature provides agent-based remote access built directly into the platform at no extra licensing cost. Technicians can remotely control virtual and physical endpoints, run PowerShell sessions for diagnostics, and troubleshoot efficiently—all without switching between external tools or paying third-party fees. This integrated approach makes remote support faster, simpler, and more cost-effective.
As MSPs look to scale, unpredictable pricing models can derail margins and limit growth. Nerdio’s Modern Work capabilities utilize a tenant-based pricing structure that simplifies budgeting and promotes scalability.
Starting at $50 per tenant per month—with volume discounts as low as $20 per tenant for top-tier partners—this model covers unlimited users and endpoints. MSPs no longer need to worry about client growth leading to escalating costs or billing complexity. It’s a simple, predictable model designed to align Nerdio’s success with the growth of its partners.
By consolidating Microsoft 365 management into a single pane of glass, Nerdio Manager empowers MSPs to move beyond fragmented operations. It enables firms to deliver services faster, apply consistent security and compliance standards, and serve more clients with fewer resources.
Moreover, Modern Work management creates a competitive edge. Clients increasingly expect proactive IT support that keeps their environments optimized and secure. With built-in features, such as Secure Score monitoring, CIS baselines, and tenant change tracking, MSPs can demonstrate measurable improvements and provide tangible proof of their value over time.
It’s no longer just about managing licenses or solving support tickets—it’s about helping clients succeed in the modern work era.
The shift to cloud-first IT is irreversible, and MSPs who adapt will be positioned to lead. As Microsoft 365, Azure, and other cloud services continue to dominate client environments, MSPs need tools that allow them to manage at scale without sacrificing security or operational efficiency.
Nerdio Manager’s Modern Work capabilities represent the next evolution in cloud management—one where consistency, automation, security, and client success go hand in hand to help MSPs reach their targets and provide world-class management services.
Microsoft 365 management doesn’t have to be complicated. With Nerdio Manager for MSP, you can simplify operations, strengthen security, reduce operational friction, and scale your cloud practice sustainably.
Ready to future-proof your Microsoft 365 management? Contact our team today to schedule a personalized demo and discover how Nerdio’s Modern Work capabilities can power the next phase of your business growth.
Want to dive even deeper? Watch our on-demand webinar to explore how Nerdio’s Modern Work innovations are helping MSPs streamline operations, enhance security, and deliver even greater value to their clients.
Nerdio Manager for MSP
Nerdio Manager for MSP
