Looking for a collaboration tool that makes your organization truly ‘virtual’? Microsoft Teams may be the answer. A relatively recent addition to the Microsoft Office 365 family, Teams has become wildly popular. In fact, it is aiming for top honors in the online collaboration space, going head to head with Slack.
Microsoft Teams is a vast and potent cloud software. This article simply cannot cover every aspect of Teams, let alone cover everything in detail. Instead, our IT support pros in Mississauga talk about the most used features of Teams.
NUMENTIS is functioning at full operational capacity during the COVID-19 emergency. Our team continues to deliver projects on time, and we are available for all onsite and offsite support. To ensure the safety of clients and staff, and to adhere to government guidelines on social distancing, we are limiting in-person meetings and permitting only task-critical travel.
What is Microsoft Teams?
Teams is a standalone program/cloud service that ties-in with Microsoft Office 365. It condenses a lot of features from different Office 365 programs into one platform:
- Video conferencing
- File sharing and storage
- Integration with productivity apps (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote and more)
- And much more
Why would an organization use Teams? Why not just use these apps by themselves?
What Does Microsoft Teams do?
Teams is unique because it brings a lot of capabilities and packages together perfectly for collaboration. The core function of an organization is all the people working together – and that’s what Teams enables. Very briefly, it lets managers and employees:
- Share ideas via video, as chats or visual workspaces
- Multiple employees can edit files at the same time
- Version control and version history ensures back and prevents duplication
- Assign and monitor tasks
- Use ‘bots’ to automate and support activities and operations
- ‘Integrations’ incorporate third-party platforms (and seemingly endless capability)
For an organization’s leadership, all this activity is viewable and actionable. In fact, since management doesn’t have to actively request status updates, it reduces administrative burden.
Another departure is from Microsoft’s ‘walled’ approach. No longer are third-party services, such as Zoom, excluded. Administrators can bring their preferred tools and integrate them directly with Microsoft Teams. Ask your IT support in Mississauga how you can get integrated!
How to Virtualize Different Departments Within an Organization
Every department within an organization has its own requirements. Human resources must manage payroll, taxes, employee records; CRM needs to be able to track request lifecycles; sales needs performance figures and prefers its own software. Let’s break down the common features required.
File sharing – Creating, editing and sharing documents, presentations, spreadsheets and idea notes
Editing and version control – Collaborative document editing, while maintaining hierarchy and preserving latest versions
Schedule management – Calendaring, task assignment, project monitoring
Templates – Standard document templates, procedures and workflow
Security – Complies with Office 365 Tier C standards, two-factor sign-ins and administrative controls over access
If you need further clarification, don’t hesitate to reach out to your IT support in Mississauga.
Did you know Microsoft Teams is being deployed in healthcare to provide coordination and patient care services?
How to Configure Teams for Departments and Functions
Teams has an extremely powerful ability to create ‘channels’. Each channel can correspond to a particular department or project. A separate folder is also created in SharePoint as well. All files related to the project are stored here; they are accessible through Teams as well as SharePoint.
To prevent an overabundance or abuse of channels, administrative control for channel creation can be provided to project leaders or management only.
Who Can Use Microsoft Teams?
Teams is available for free for organizations/professionals that have subscribed to Microsoft Office 365:
- Business Essentials
- Business Premium
- Education
- Enterprise – E1, E3 and E5
- Small business
- New business
Make the Most of Teams with IT Support in Mississauga
Deploying Teams effectively across your organization requires IT services in Mississauga that are experienced in enabling collaboration workflows. It is not simply a matter of incorporating software, employee training is an essential aspect too. Speak to one of the most responsive IT companies in Mississauga about how you can prepare your organization for a truly virtual environment.
At NUMENTIS we are proud to be one of the only IT companies in Mississauga helping businesses adapt rapidly to the challenges thrown up by the COVID-19 emergency. Our IT services in Mississauga are fully functional and we are supporting clients migrate to a ‘work from home’ culture.
