27 Apr Become a Microsoft Teams Superstar With These Great Tips
What is the secret recipe to success in any organisation ’Great teamwork’ that’s what!
Our organisations depend on multiple staff with differing experiences and expertise, to make sure everything runs the way we want it too. Only when things work well can we chart a course to destination success. Without our colleagues, we just could not accomplish tasks and If we were not able to bounce off, share and offload ideas, the world would be a duller place. This also helps with our wellbeing and morale too.
Released in 2017, Microsoft has heavily invested in getting their software into a position where it offers some of the best collaboration and communication tools in the market. If you have not tried Microsoft Teams, now is the time.
In this blog, we want to delve under the bonnet, and let you know some of the great features and tips to make you a Teams Superstar.
1 – Get Mobile – It’s Not Just for the PC
We all have multiple mobile devices, but many don’t realise that Teams isn’t just for your Laptop or PC. It may surprise you, that Teams can be used across a wide range of mobile devices including iPad, iPhone, Android and even WordPress.
Teams is truly portable and mobile, aside from the ability to seamlessly use Teams across your devices, you also can access it through your web browser.
We would recommend visiting your devices app store and finding the mobile app as this will contain functions and features designed to be used on the move.
2 – Become a Slasher
We all want to get things done quickly and make navigating Teams as efficient as possible.
A super way to help is the inclusion of slash commands. There are lots of different commands that can be used to change your online status, or to find out what’s new. It’s worth looking at what will work for you, but below are a few that may be of use;
- /activity – View someone’s activity
- /available – Changes your Teams status to “Available”
- /away – Changes your Teams status to “Away”
- /busy – Changes your Teams status to “Busy”
- /call – Initiate a call
- /dnd – Changes your Teams status to “Do Not Disturb”
- /files – See your recent files
Discover the full list of Teams commands by clicking here >>
3 – Plan To-Do
Within the software, you can set up bespoke groups for your colleagues and use the included To-Do app to set tasks, time frames, importance and send attachments.
The list functionality lets you create different buckets (workgroups) that means you can have visibility of different groups and objectives in real-time. The To-Do app will also notify stakeholders when tasks are due or have failed. It also can email tasks to those assigned to them.
If you have not used the To-Do element of Teams yet, just go and plan something as it’s a great feeling when stuff gets done.
4 – Sometimes a Shortcut is a Good Thing
Keyboard shortcuts are often undervalued, we all know alt-C and alt-V, but your keyboard can do so much more for you.
Did you know in Teams if you are in messaging you can simply press the C key, to go to the compose box! You can also use shortcuts like CTRL+ O to quickly attach a file.
Click here for a list of the keyboard shortcuts >>
5 – Spare Your Eyes with an Immersive Experience
It is easy to get eye strain or to read things on screen the way we think they are written, not necessarily how they are!
Microsoft has a great solution for those busy days or tired eyes in the form of an immersive reader. The reader does just that and speaks the text on a channel aloud at a choice of speeds. If you need clarity and audible understanding of what’s going on, this is a great feature.
Click here for more on the immersive reader in Teams >>
6 – Use @mentions in The Search Bar
We all have a million and one thoughts and things to do and seldom can afford distractions. With Teams, you can instantly send messages to someone by simply using the @mention feature.
This will send a message to @thepersonyouwishtosendamessageto and appear in their activity panel in Teams.
No-fuss, no major distractions, and you also can filter your activity list to only show @mentions from those that are relevant and important to the work you are doing.
7- Save Time and Call
We sometimes all fall into the trap of playing email and messenger tennis, back and forth we go, back and…forth.
With Teams, you can stop this with a single click of a mouse. We can cut out the time-wasting and have a quick video chat or call. It is extremely easy, just open up the chat with the person you’d like to call or video, click on the video or call icons in the top right-hand corner and hey presto… You are talking!
Sometimes, it is just too easy to stick with old habits, but this way of collaborating ensures we can get the information or share the detail efficiently. It can sometimes be nice to hear another human too.
WOW!
There you go! We hope that these will help you become even more of a superstar with Teams from Microsoft. If you have not looked or implemented Teams for your business, we would be happy to let you know more about how it can help collaboration and communication for your business.
Finally, in response to the COVID19 crises, Microsoft released free licenses for Teams to help people work better. You can find out more about Free Licensing Here>>
Whilst these do not have all the bells and whistles, they can give you a good insight into the benefits of the software.
Microsoft Teams Essentials
If you are looking for further information to improve your Microsoft Teams experience check out These Videos:
We Hope these videos help in expanding your skills and knowledge with Microsoft Teams.
If you would like help setting up Teams for your business or to find out the advantages call us on 0114 361 0062.
Want to discover how to stay focused and sane while working from home? Read our Blog >>