The Microsoft Unified Support Proactive Services List Looks Good on Paper. Here’s the Reality..

If you’re relying on Microsoft Unified Support for proactive services, you may think you’re getting ahead of IT problems. But for many enterprise IT leaders, the reality doesn’t match the promise. As environments grow more complex and IT teams are asked to do more with less, “proactive support” has to mean more than quarterly check-ins and templated reports.

Without a consistent and targeted plan behind those proactive services, it’s like putting a smoke detector in every room but never checking the batteries: comforting on paper, useless in practice.

That’s where US Cloud comes in. We offer an enterprise-grade Microsoft Premier Support replacement with a full suite of proactive services that actually help you future-proof your infrastructure—while saving you 30% to 50% versus Microsoft.

US Cloud delivers 30-50% cost savings over Microsoft.

Microsoft positions Unified Support as offering a broad range of proactive services, including:

• Health checks for Microsoft 365, Azure, and Windows Server
• Risk assessments
• Security audits
• Optimization reviews
• Best practices guidance
• Support for migration planning
• IT strategy guidance

Support driven by sales feels like this—piled high with junk you don’t need.

However, in practice, many of these services are led by Customer Success Account Managers (CSAMs) who are often overloaded and, critically, carry sales quotas. They aren’t technologists, and they’re not there to partner on long-term improvements. What gets delivered tends to be generic, and what gets recommended often aligns with Microsoft’s revenue goals more than your roadmap.

Who wants to be sold something when they’re looking for support from the service they’re already paying for? Probably not you, either.

Despite the appealing checklist, many enterprises report that Microsoft’s proactive services fall short in execution:

• Misaligned Priorities: CSAMs tend to push bundled upsells in response to issues rather than offer real-world solutions.
• Lack of Customization: Reviews and guidance often feel canned, not tailored to your team’s real-time workloads or business goals.
• Slow Turnarounds: Getting time with qualified engineers can take weeks—especially for forward-looking guidance.

What is meant to be a proactive service ends up arriving in the hands of customers too late. In the end, they effectively become reactive services, dressed up a little bit.

US Cloud provides a proactive support model that meets modern enterprise needs head-on. Our services are led by senior Microsoft support specialists who align with your IT goals—not Microsoft’s. Here are just a few of the proactive services we offer with the help of designated support engineers (DSEs):

• Microsoft Security Assessments: Strengthen your cyber resilience before threats strike.
• Azure Cost Optimization: Identify waste, lower costs, and increase ROI on your cloud spend. Our clients average seven-figure savings.
• Microsoft 365 & Teams Health Reviews: Ensure collaboration tools are secure, optimized, and scalable.
• IT Road Mapping & Advisory Sessions: Strategic input on future initiatives, cloud migrations, and architecture planning.
• Enterprise Agreement (EA) Negotiation Support: Cut through complexity and avoid overpaying. Just getting a quote from US Cloud can earn you leverage during your next EA negotiation.

And because we’re 100% focused on support, these aren’t add-ons or afterthoughts—they’re a core part of every US Cloud support plan.

US Cloud includes proactive services standard, not add-ons.

Bede Gaming, a global online iGaming platform  and software provider, partnered with US Cloud after becoming frustrated with the cost and limitations of Microsoft Unified Support. Their team needed fast, expert support and strategic services to maintain uptime, ensure compliance, and stay ahead of rapid platform growth.

US Cloud delivered proactive assessments and 24/7 ticket coverage across Azure and Microsoft 365. The impact was immediate: faster issue resolution, smoother release cycles, and substantial cost savings compared to Unified Support.

Here’s what Bede Gaming’s Technical Operations Manager said about the results of the Azure Cost Optimization program:

“That tool allowed us to make some quick wins. Really quick. Like tracking down these VMs that were just turned on for three years. And they were fairly big machines as well.

There were lots of other quick wins, too, with getting rid of this for £100 ($135) per month or that for £50 ($67.61) per month and it doesn’t sound like a lot of money when you spend five billion a year, but considering the fact that these are monthly ongoing savings and there were so many opportunities, that’s going to build up over time. Yeah, it’s 50 quid now, but within 10 months, that’s £500 ($676.05). That’s a team meal for a year. This is how I’ve kind of been looking at it.”

—James Lumsden, Technical Operations Manager, Bede Gaming

Like the team a Bede Gaming, without tailored proactive services, you could be sitting on effortless savings.

Small monthly savings compound to significant annual benefits.

When you switch to US Cloud, you’re not just getting better support. You’re unlocking strategic advantages:

• Financial Leverage: 30–50% cost savings or a quote that changes the tide of your Microsoft negotiations. Period. Use that difference to fund innovation.
• Faster Engagement: <15-minute response times. No backlogs. No delays.
• Expert-Led Strategy: Senior Microsoft experts focused on outcomes, not upsells.
• Future-Proofing IT: Our proactive services help you stay ahead of outages, threats, and unnecessary spend.

Here’s the truth Microsoft won’t advertise: they often stall late into the renewal cycle to limit your evaluation window. This gives them leverage to push bundled deals and renewals that favor their roadmap—not yours.

Don’t wait. A quote from US Cloud gives you price transparency and leverage, even if you stay with Microsoft.

Microsoft delays engagement to limit your evaluation window.

You DO Have a Choice for Microsoft Support—but only if you act before they choose for you.

Talk to our experts today and regain control over your Microsoft support.

Book a Call