We know the basics of Microsoft Teams: video conferencing, chats, sharing documents. But there are many other features within Teams that make it a powerful tool to increase your efficiency. Let’s start off with these tools:
- Notify when available: If you're looking to chat with a specific coworker but want to make sure they're free, find the person you want to talk to in the chat function and click the option "notify when available" to be notified when they have time to meet.
- File editing: Why download more files onto your computer than necessary? Any shared PowerPoint, Word document, or Excel sheet can be edited right in Teams. And with the "conversations" tab, you can ask questions and chat through the Teams app, rather than leaving comments directly on the file. Plus, you can make live edits to the document, so 2 or more people can work on it at once.
- Whiteboard: Those who thrive on visuals can use the whiteboard function to brainstorm, draw out ideas, or use sticky notes to collaborate on projects. And you can return to it as needed even after the meeting is over.
- Forms: This tool lets you create surveys to distribute throughout your company. It is a great way to get feedback on assignments and give suggestions on ways to improve company policies.
- Polly: The polling app is a quick way to vote on various questions, from which topics to discuss at your monthly meeting, to where to order food from for your next company retreat.
- Find Time: While technically a function for Outlook, this is a great tool to coordinate meetings on Teams. Find Time will suggest dates and times that everyone is free based on each participant's calendar, and everyone votes on which option works best for them. It can even be used between multiple companies.
- Icebreaker: An app configured to Teams by Blackink IT, that's designed to build unity within your company. Every three weeks, the Icebreaker bot pairs you with a new person in your organization. From there, you can chat or set up a meeting time to build personal connections with your coworkers.
Teams is a powerful tool that increases efficiencies within the company—have you thought about how you might dive deeper into it and use it as a phone to call or text? In the next few weeks, we will highlight more features on how to become more efficient with Teams!
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