Working for a big company I enjoy all the Microsoft tools I can consume. I also have the infrastructure to support my development and team communication.

I recently helped form a small consulting team that requires the same type of resources. That is when the realization of the true cost of Microsoft's professional development tools really hit me.

Okay, I'll just bite the bullet and get what I'm used to working with to do high quality development projects.  After just a few minutes of looking at street prices and doing some quick math I began to have a realization...doing this right isn't cheap!

Luckily there is help.  If you are willing to get your ducks in a row and do a little documentation  Microsoft will give you some developer manna. 

I went to the Bizspark site and completed the application which describes your company profile and services offer.  The approval process took about a week.  Voila, A Visual Studio Ultimate with MSDN Subscription!

As a start-up Office 365 can be a great solution for all your team communications.  I also enrolled in the Microsoft Cloud Essentials program as part of a business track.  Once you meet the Cloud Essentials requirements you will receive 250 Office 365 licenses! This includes Office and hosted Exchange, Lync, and SharePoint.

Take advantage of what Microsoft has to offer for your start-up.  It just may surprise you and save you a lot of your start-up budget.