Mobile technology and ubiquitous internet connectivity have transformed the way we make a living, allowing most of us to work from anywhere using almost any internet-connected device. Small- and medium-sized businesses in suburbs like Edgecliff can finally enjoy productivity and efficiency that enable them to recruit talent from all over the world and compete with much larger firms.
One of the most valuable tools is Microsoft Teams, which has already become an industry standard in the world of business communication and collaboration despite being released only one year ago. In addition to the other oft-overlooked apps in Business and Enterprise plans — such as Yammer, Flow, Skype, and OneNote — Teams is changing the way people do business by providing a fully collaborative online workplace that brings everything together under one hood.
Stronger communications
Microsoft Teams gathers people, conversations, and content under a single collaborative platform to simplify the way people work. At first glance, this platform is all about communication tools, including some that enable chatting in threaded conversations that keep everything clearly presented and conveniently kept in one place.
To be clear, Teams is far more than just a replacement for email clients or instant messengers. It’s a highly sophisticated solution for discussing and working on projects with groups of any size. You can chat privately with certain members of the group and, with native integration with Skype, it also supports audio and video conversations without users having to open another app.
Seamless working experiences
Unlike its major competitor Slack, Teams is baked right into desktop Office 365 productivity apps you’re probably already using, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Planner, and SharePoint.
For example, if everyone in a chat group is working on the same document at the same time, you keep the document open and chat with co-workers in the same window. No more frantically switching between two apps. Similarly, with SharePoint integrations, users can browse company team sites while collaborating through chat.
Customisable workspaces
Everyone has their own way of working, which is why Teams offers users the opportunity to customise their workspaces, whether they’re logged in through a web browser or a mobile or desktop app. Microsoft also made sure to integrate this program with third-party applications, which makes it a perfect choice for organisations with specific demands, such as sales automation.
For example, your sales and marketing teams might integrate Twitter with Teams to automatically notify employees about a mention of the company. There’s nothing stopping you from building customised implementations like this for every department in your business.
On top of these features, Teams also offers all the standard functions you would expect from a collaboration platform, such as the ability to create channels for different topics, find and share documents, or email specific groups of people.
Enterprise-grade security
Because Teams is built on Microsoft’s proprietary cloud technology, it delivers some of the most advanced security and compliance measures available. Auditing and reporting features come built-in as part of the overarching Office 365 Security and Compliance Center, and administrators can also carry out compliance-related content searches and electronic-discovery routines.
Furthermore, Teams is compliant straight out of the box with standards such as the Privacy Act 1988, Notifiable Data Breach Scheme, and the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
How does Teams fit in with your business?
Teams is an incredibly versatile platform that works for pretty much any group project, particularly in the case of organisations that routinely work with employees or contractors located off-site or those who have a fairly mobile workforce.
Some of the most common use cases include groups of people who need to regularly share files and co-author documents, or large groups of people who need to share ideas, find content, and work together more efficiently.
Total Calibration helps businesses in Sydney build a fully cloud-enabled computing infrastructure with virtual workspaces that travel with you no matter where you go. If you’re looking for a familiar Office 365-based environment, drop us a line today to learn how we can help.
