Top 10 Benefits of Microsoft Teams
When I first started working for Code Creators Inc. a few months ago, they replaced my laptop with a brand new one and gave me two extra monitors. In all honesty, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a more official-looking command center. When I first heard about it, I wondered if it was overkill, but now I can’t imagine doing it without it. I can’t imagine going back to my old setup because it was so bad for my eyes and now, I’m so much more productive because of it. It’s impossible to go back to your old ways once you’ve experienced the finer things in life. The Microsoft Teams way of life. Don’t see it? Come with me as we explore Teams, and I’ll demonstrate how much better your life is now (perhaps without you even realizing it).
Microsoft Teams: What’s It Good For?
To begin, here is an overview of Microsoft Teams and its features provided by Microsoft Mechanics:
You understand the mechanics, but you’re still wondering why you should use MS Teams. If you ask Microsoft, however, they will tell you that ‘Within Office 365, Microsoft Teams serves as your central hub for collaboration. You can access your teams, conversations, documents, apps, files, etc. from anywhere on any mobile device, all in one central hub. You can achieve more and better with Teams, whether you’re working quickly to meet a deadline or brainstorming together on a new idea.
Furthermore, I would add that Teams also simplifies your digital workspace in addition to facilitating an efficient system for workplace collaboration. Need an example to help you understand? Please spend a few moments reading this.
The use of Teams simplifies life significantly. It comes pre-loaded with everything you need to enjoy your 9–5 and has apps or APIs for pretty much any productivity-enhancing feature your heart could desire. Do not accept my word for it? Okay, let’s go on a tour of the top 10 benefits of this amazing platform.
10 Benefits of Microsoft Teams
1. To Get Right to the Point
You need to quickly consult a co-worker on something important. We won’t even bother sending an email about this. And unfortunately, email is the only option available at this time. In any case, you decide to formulate a subject line, locate the intended recipient’s email address, compose your inquiry, and send it off in the hopes of receiving a response (and subsequently locating among the seventy-two other similarly brief and incoherent emails finally receive a response in the last 20 minutes). Seem convenient? Absolutely not.
The ‘tap your workmate on the shoulder and ask a quick question’ style conversations that take place in teams make use of Chat (without any deep search into your inbox to find an answer). You can give a conversation a name, start a group chat, and even look up files that have been attached to a conversation. And finally, what’s the point of living if you can’t live it your way? So, you can add some personality to your messages by including GIFs, photos, etc., and people might actually ‘catch your drift’ when you say it.
2. Videoconferencing With MS Teams
These days, a lot of us communicate with our loved ones using video calls. Just curious, how has that been going so far? Similar to an old ‘Can you hear me now?’ commercial, in my opinion. There’s a problem with my login! We need to know the password again. “Are you able to see me?”. But, thank goodness it doesn’t make a difference when using Teams. Calling someone, whether it be via video or just regular audio, is a breeze. Directly from any device, you can press ‘Join’ to immediately enter a meeting, ‘Meet Now’ to initiate one, or ‘Call’ to make a voice-only call. Have a nice call!
3. The Microsoft Teams Planner App
Can’t get enough of ‘staying productive’ by switching between seven hundred apps? APIs in Teams allow for the integration of all planning applications possibly imagine. Now suppose that Planner is the app of your dreams. Microsoft hasn’t released Planner as a standalone app, but the Planner feature in Teams is a great workaround. To use Planner, just add it to the other apps you have installed on Teams. A production machine like yours will go far (for real this time). MS Teams is a hub where you can access all of the Planner’s resources. Wow, isn’t that cool?
In addition, all of your other apps can interact with it in a natural way, such as MS Power BI, MS SharePoint, OneNote, and more).
4. Reduced Number of Email Exchanges
Who doesn’t enjoy reading a long email thread that branches off into multiple conversations and even further into sub-sub conversations? Either you have to do a deep dive into your inbox to find a simple file, or you look like The Scream because you accidentally hit “Reply all” when you meant to hit ‘Just reply to Jaime,’ making email threads a no-go zone for good vibes. No one wants to work in an environment where the threads are more confusing than your family tree. Let’s find ways to simplify our interactions. There comes MS Teams for the rescue.
People work, play, and share interests in teams (i.e., Company Announcements or Marketing). Channels are the building blocks of teams. There’s a specific focus behind each channel. For the Marketing Team, you could have a channel called ‘Blogs,’ for Company Announcements, you could have a channel called ‘General’ (the General Channel is standard equipment for every Team), etc. This categorization provides a more balanced view of the conversation. There will be no longer a need to sift through emails to find out when someone replied to a certain thread or who made a particular comment in a meeting.
Long for email but don’t know when to use it? Share it on a Channel! If you click the ellipsis (three dots) next to any Channel within any Team and then select “Get the email address,” you will see the email address that you can CC emails. But, trust us, fewer emails are better.
5. Microsoft Office 365 Suite’s Integration
Microsoft Teams is like bringing a fully equipped mobile bar and buffet with you everywhere you go. Whenever and wherever you need it, you can access Teams and find exactly what you’re looking for. You won’t have to switch back and forth between apps or waste time looking for lost emails or messages. With Teams, you can consolidate the vast majority of your software programs into a single interface.
With Teams, all files sent through Chats, Teams, or Channels are safely archived in their original location thanks to SharePoint and OneNote integrations. For easy access, you can even ‘pin’ specific files, which saves a huge amount of time. In addition, Teams facilitates effortless in-person and remote collaboration through the sharing of any screen.
When you need to have a quick brainstorming session, you may find yourself pointing at the monitor. It’s not the best we can do, and Teams does better. No longer pointing at the Whiteboard. Teams’ whiteboard functionality is top-notch, allowing you to see exactly what your team is thinking at any given moment. It’s a breeze to share, edit, and collaborate with others whether you’re at your desk, on the go, or at home.
6. Get in Touch with Others & Do More from Any Mobile Device
In a hurry? Sure, no sweat. The functionality of Teams is accessible from mobile devices. Enjoy uniform Teamwork across your mobile device, tablet, computer, and desktop. Do you enjoy your time at the office but find yourself in need of some downtime when you get home? There is an option for privacy in the Teams app. You can schedule your ‘do not disturb mode to go into effect at certain times each day, or you can toggle it on and off whenever you need a break. Don’t forget to take it with you or just leave it. Whatever the case may be, you can access Teams whenever necessary and in whichever format best suits your needs.
7. Easy Scheduling & Group Meetings With MS Teams
Who among us relishes the task of setting up appointments? No one, not even the secretaries who had just received praise, wanted to show their hand. Creating a workable schedule is challenging. Teams’ Outlook integration is even more convenient than the plug-ins Microsoft has made available, such as FindTime. Select Calendar from the left menu in Teams, then click ‘New Meeting,’ followed by ‘Scheduling Assistant,’ to view your available time overlap in a more intuitive format than Outlook.
In addition, your calendar syncs automatically across all of your team’s devices, so you never have to waste a click switching back and forth between your emails and your team’s collaboration space (joking). You’ll still need to make the trip occasionally, but guess what? If you move and organize the majority of your previous email communication into Teams, you will find that using email is no longer nearly as intimidating of a place.
8. The Activity Feed of Your MS Teams Account
Quickly see who said what, when, and where to kick off your day. Quickly review your most pressing tasks, mentions, and messages. It’s like having a meticulous personal assistant at your fingertips. You can dive into your day knowing exactly what the waters below look like and what your coworkers are doing because the Activity feeds will give you a quick rundown of what has happened and what is coming up.
9. Spruce Up the Workplace for The WFH
This may seem obvious, but it has a significant impact. More people than ever are taking advantage of the WFH trend by working remotely, but they are finding that it isn’t always easy to create a picture-perfect environment in which to get work done. Don’t fret! Using Teams, you can easily join a meeting from anywhere in the world. You can even preside over proceedings from some distant corner of the galaxy.
10. Security
Probably you’ve said something along the lines of, “Can you send me that [confidential and super-sensitive personal information] real fast?” Your tax adviser, spouse, or child all just sent you an urgent email or text message requiring an immediate response. Without hesitation, you relay the necessary data. Oops, that’s a huge problem. Security measures can be a major hassle, even though we must all remain productive. Thus, I assumed they were joking when they asked me to send a private document through Teams because it would get there sooner. Nope. My understanding of Teams’ security was adequate, but I had no idea it could be that foolproof. To ponder: safe enough to send bank account details.
A Conclusion
Overall, Teams simplifies teamwork by dividing your business into distinct Teams, Channels, and modes of collaboration, so you can keep your inbox clutter-free and focus on getting work done in Teams. The workplace has become more personable, relaxed, and fruitful. Don’t believe me? Consider sending a full email rather than a short one when inquiring about something, switching back and forth between ‘productivity’ apps, etc. What? You don’t want to? Not in my opinion.
Do you have any inquiries regarding the teams? Let’s have a chat about it. To set up a meeting, please click here.
