Over the past few months, the number of employees working remotely in businesses around the world has skyrocketed. More and more employees are encouraged to work from home as the coronavirus pandemic remains a fear for employers. With this transition to a remote workforce, leaders and managers need to find ways to keep their team and employees connected in order to allow for a seamless operation. That’s where Microsoft Teams comes in.
Microsoft Teams is a unified communication and collaboration platform that combines a variety of tools, all working together to promote efficient teamwork and communication. It has become one of the most popular tools for newly remote teams. As a Microsoft Certified Partner, and a company that uses Teams to communicate internally, we wanted to share some insights on how it works and how Microsoft Teams can benefit remote workers.
If you are unfamiliar with Microsoft Teams, here are a couple of key things that you need to know:
It allows teams of up to 10,000 people to meet together securely and conveniently in a virtual space.
- The Teams platform allows you to access, share, and edit all your Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents all in real-time.
- This platform incorporates a persistent workplace chat, video meetings, application integrations, and file storage all in one.
- Teams allow you to send messages, including files, in a group chat or even on a one-on-one chat.
How Microsoft Teams Can Improve Your Team’s Collaboration and Productivity
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected more than just people’s health; it has also affected businesses across the globe. Recommendations by the World Health Organization state that people who aren’t members of the same household should maintain a distance of at least six feet between one another. Because of this recommendation, governments in various countries enforced lock-downs in an attempt to curb the already rapidly spreading virus.
This meant that most businesses had no choice but to close their offices temporarily, which has led to the increasing popularity of remote work. With teams physically distanced, managers and team leaders have had to find new ways to connect.
One of the main issues that businesses face due to remote working is effectively maintaining productive communication and collaboration between team members. Without the casual exchange of ideas allowed by a shared office, employees can easily lose connection and become un-engaged.
Although there may not be an exact alternative for physical proximity, Microsoft Teams offers the next best thing: a platform allowing employees methods of communication that encourage interaction, immediate communication, and collaboration—both casual and intentional.
1. Real-Time Messaging and Video Conferencing
Microsoft Teams offers real-time messaging capabilities. This allows managers and team members to easily communicate with each other by sending real-time alerts that all users of the platform can receive immediately. Unlimited video conferencing with up to 250 people also gives you the capability of face-to-face interaction.
Slow response times can cause remote workers to feel unheard, unmotivated, and unproductive. This solution instead creates an immediacy of communication that helps boost creativity and innovation.
2. File Sharing
Teams allows members to access work files via the Teams file tab. This makes documents a lot more accessible to team members, since all uploaded documents can easily be accessed by any team member, from anywhere. You can also collaborate on files at the same time as your coworkers, as well as access the entire platform from any location, thanks to the platform’s cloud capabilities.
3. Office Phone Feature
Another feature allows Teams to act as an office phone. You simply need to link your office phone number to your account to have all calls from the office directed to your mobile phone or computer. This capability is invaluable in allowing remote workers to communicate with clients without having to give up the privacy of personal cell numbers.
4. Centralized Communication
By enabling these types of communication and collaboration, Microsoft Teams provides a centralized platform for communication between team members. When all your team is connected in one place, they can be more focused and are less likely to rely on other forms of communication that can cause them to be distracted, like personal messages or a phone call.
Business Benefits of Using Teams
Microsoft Teams offers your business a host of benefits when it comes to productivity-boosting capabilities. Because its features are bundled together, it also comes at an affordable cost for companies of all sizes with packages designed to meet the needs of a range of businesses.
Finally, Microsoft Teams offers businesses an integration feature that allows you to include all your essential apps and services in the Teams platform to create a one-stop hub for your team.
Our Microsoft experts can help set you up with Microsoft Teams and other technology solutions that make your life better and your business more productive. We’re happy to assist you with getting your remote team functioning as smoothly and efficiently as possible. Contact us today with any questions or start your consultation today!
