Everything you need to know about Microsoft Teams

Microsoft’s video conferencing and chat software has been waiting in the wings for some time now, but with the massive shift to flexible work requirements in recent times it’s now front and centre for many organisations – and even better, you can get it for FREE.

It’s perfect for keeping your team connected and productive whether they’re at home or in the office, with video calls, instant messaging and more. Plus, if you already use Office software, it works with them to be twice as good! 

Why not use Zoom?

With the explosion of work from home workforces, the uptake of video conferencing has gone through the roof. The Australian Cyber Security Centre has important information on this to help protect yourself.

Zoom in particular has now become synonymous with video conferencing, with its ease of use and convenience.

But be wary of Zoom, there are a number of security concerns as of April 2020 – see this article from Business Insider. Excerpt below:

• In a 48-hour period, reports surfaced that Zoom didn’t use end-to-end encryption for its video meetings and had leaked thousands of email addresses to strangers.
• Compounding its security woes, the Windows version of Zoom is reportedly vulnerable to attackers who could send malicious links to users’ chat interfaces and gain access to their email passwords.
  If you must use Zoom, PLEASE ensure that you only set up meetings with passwords to join, so you don’t get ZOOM BOMBED by strangers!

On the other hand, Teams is much more secure and offers all the features of Zoom, plus more to boot.

Benefits of Teams

• Accessible on any and all of your devices
• Video chat with teams of all sizes, both within and outside of your organisation.
• Call people easily with both video and audio.
• Use group chats and one-to-one messages (and reduce the number of emails you need to send)
• Access, share, and edit documents in real time.
• Plus so much more!

The Teams checklist for working from home

View the full list here.

1. Make sure all meeting invites include a virtual ‘join’ option so that team members can join from wherever they are. Turn video on so the team feels connected and can interact face to face.
2. Your work rhythm at home may look different than when you’re in the office, especially if you have kids at home. Communicate your schedule and availability to your coworkers so then know when to reach out to you.
3. Use the chat window on video calls to give everyone the chance to share their thoughts.
4. When you start a meeting, hit ‘record’. Team members who aren’t able to join an watch later or search the auto transcript for important info. That way, people can catch up on anything they missed.
5. Missing the usual hallway talk? Think about chat messages as your virtual watercooler and set yourself a reminder to check in with your colleagues regularly. Top tip – GIFs are always a winner.
6. Have fun! Use teams for fun activities and challenges to boost morale. At the very least, throw on a different background for meetings or turn yourself into a potato.

howtogeek.com

Want to see Teams in action?

Here’s a great example of how you can use Teams when working remotely.

At activIT systems we love using Teams for our team huddles every morning, to share screens and documents quickly, and of course to share jokes and food inspo in dedicated channels.

Ready to get started?

Check out Microsoft’s quick start guides here or check out Collab365’s how-to videos to get up to speed.

activIT systems can help you with Teams set up, roll out, and configuration, so your team can stay secure and connected, no matter where you’re working from. Contact us to find out more.

If you’re looking for more help with setting your business up for success during COVID-19, check out our full guide.