In partnership with The Business Software Centre

Today’s office changes at a fast pace, especially with the inspiration of a digitally driven world. To maintain appropriate teamwork, productivity, and communication, crucial steps must be made to ensure your business can handle the changes to the office structure.

Microsoft Teams is a rich collaborative experience, integrating people, content, tools, 3^rd party apps, and more. With intelligent design, virtual communication is simplified, creating a fluid virtual office environment. Microsoft 365’s hub includes chats, meetings, calls, and collaboration, from anywhere, offering an efficient and productive tool to your remote working staff. A recent Microsoft survey concluded 52% of employees feel more connected to their colleagues because they are part of the same virtual spaces (Microsoft, 2020).

To view the Microsoft report, please visit: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2020/07/08/future-work-good-challenging-unknown/

In this article, we have compiled a list of some benefits and features to Microsoft Teams that really stand as hallmarks for virtual collaboration.

Get the most out of Microsoft Teams collaboration:

1. Communication: Threaded conversations offer effective communication and are available in private and group messaging. Likewise, messaging is in real time, allowing for consistent communication. Other examples of Teams communication include: creating Channels to ensure virtual workspaces for your team, integration of audio and visual chats, @mentions to highlight important information to particular individuals, and new members to the team can catch-up with the conversation through archives.
2. Integration: Teams is fully integrated with Microsoft 365 and incorporates the cloud. Word, Excel, Skype for Business, SharePoint and PowerPoint, OneNote, Planner, Power BI, Yammer, and Sway, can all be accessed, edited in real time, and shared via Teams.
3. Synced Meetings: Teams can sync with your calendar and your contacts, suggesting dates/ times when other attendees are free to join you. Separate chat threads are created per meeting, which can be private or open meetings, that allow for chats, file sharing, etc. to that meeting. Additionally, you can use VOIP or other audio/ visual options to join in Teams meetings.
4. Customisation: Microsoft allows for 3^rd party application integration. If you need other tools to be incorporated into Teams, Microsoft can assist you. Even apps like YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn can be incorporated! Likewise, you can set custom status messages, informing your colleagues of what you are up to. Additionally, read receipts are available and turned on by default. This is the little eye icon that appears after someone has read a message.

Microsoft is always open to feedback and takes on board suggestions to better their products. After reviewing many suggestions, conducting their own research, and seeing some of the pitfalls with Teams collaboration, Microsoft has announced new features to be added to Teams. These new features specifically focus on bettering virtual teamwork and collaboration. Some changes to Teams include: dynamic view, video filters, live captions, and having 20,000 participants for Teams Live Events. Microsoft announced new features for Teams will be rolled out by September 2020. Please visit Microsoft’s blog page to get a full, detailed list of the upcoming changes.

Microsoft Teams offers the flexibility to work remotely from anywhere and facilitates a large number of office tasks like phone calls, meetings, chats, and team collaboration, all in real time. To make the transition from office to home office easier for your business and employees, we recommend utilising your software licenses by analysing and understanding your Teams usage. Not only that, but we advise to take advantage of Microsoft’s free training available to help ensure your employees are knowledgeable and comfortable with Teams.

If you are unsure of who needs help with Teams, we suggest using our Smarter 365 Teams solution. Our Smarter 365 Teams service helps your business optimise remote working and ensures an efficient, connected, employee network, all from the comfort of each home office. Additionally, Smarter 365 Teams aids in productivity, reduced employee stress, and optimizes ROI on home worker investments.

With one simple click, your Microsoft 365 Teams subscriptions is tracked easily to ensure you are fully using your licenses.

Exertis Cloud has partnered with The Business Software Centre, whose technology provides detailed reports on your application usage, offering the data you need to ensure proper Teams training, full license usage, and optimizing your ROI.

To speak to us about how Exertis Cloud can help you get the most out of Microsoft Teams, please get in touch here.