A Simple Guide to Microsoft Teams

A Simple Guide to Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams is a useful and versatile platform that’s seen a huge surge in use through 2020. As a collaboration and communication tool, it allows you to chat with your team, hold video meetings, collaborate on files, store data and files, and has great application integration with the Microsoft suite and other programs. While it’s traditionally used in businesses large and small, it is also highly-effective as a remote schooling/remote teaching solution for educational facilities at all levels. Here’s some insight into the different features of this platform and ways it can be used to facilitate learning, remote work and more, from our independent managed IT services team.

Key Functionalities of Microsoft Teams

• Multi-device functionality – This platform is accessible on any device, with different versions for Android, Windows and iOS, making it easy to download and utilise on all types of desktops, laptops and tablets. This is especially useful for remote working or working with students, as people are likely to be working on personal as well as business devices if they’re at home.

• Collaboration – It’s a cliché, but it’s true – teamwork makes the dream work! Regardless of where your class or team is working, you can all connect and collaborate in real-time through Teams. With video capabilities for up to 49 people at the same time in each meeting, as well as breakout rooms where smaller groups can get together, working together is easy. You can also schedule meetings for specific times and days, and have a total team of up to 10,000 people so your entire organisation can access a single group.

In addition, you can have multiple chats from different teams and conversations open at a single time, allowing you to track conversations and progress without getting lost in the chatter.

• Search functionality – Did a colleague or student upload a file or mention an issue but you can’t find it? No problem! Teams has powerful search functions that make it quick and easy to find different files as well as search for different projects or even chats. It will search all Teams information, including submissions from Exchange, OneDrive for Business and SharePoint Online. In addition, you can also view your most recent conversations, pinned chats and channels offline.

• Third-party app integration – Businesses, schools and other organisations generally use multiple apps and platforms throughout the day. Fortunately, Teams has good third-party app functionality, allowing seamless work between the platform and programs like MailChimp, YouTube, CloudCRM, Salesforce, Smartsheet, Zoom.ai, Asana, and hundreds of others.

• Security –One of the biggest concerns around remote working and remote learning is cybersecurity risks. While no platform is guaranteed to protect you against every and all attacks, Teams does offer some good security functions, including data encryption and two-factor identification.

• User-friendly – Even the most powerful collaboration and communication platform can be rendered ineffective if it’s not intuitive and easy to use for the average end user. This is even more important during a time where remote schooling and remote working is a preferred choice, and where access to your in-house IT support may be more challenging. Teams is designed to be simple as well as effective, which is one of the main reasons why it’s one of the most popular platforms on the market. It’s being used by everyone from school children to industry-leading businesses, and everyone in between.

Microsoft Teams is just one of the many remote working solutions available on the market, and it’s worth checking out a few different options to find the one that’s right for your business or school. If you’d like assistance in sourcing and implementing a remote working or remote teaching solution, chat to the team at Otto IT today.

As an independent managed IT services provider that’s not affiliated with any software manufacturer, we can partner with your business to make remote working more effective, more productive and more secure than ever before.Otto IT works with small and medium sized businesses in diverse fields to bring the benefits of tech, cloud services, cybersecurity and collaborative tools to you, affordably.