If you are looking for collaboration software for your in-house or remote teams then Microsoft Teams is the perfect solution for your problems. With the capabilities like –

Microsoft Teams Features –

• Document Sharing and Editing
• Saving attachment in chat and channels
• Real-time collaboration during meetings / One to One call
• Video Conferencing
• Video Recording
• Calendar sync with Outlook
• Integration with Office 365 Apps for functionality

and much more for your every need for a group project while working from remote locations. Every aspect of the Microsoft Teams is designed to increase collaboration among the team members. Microsoft Teams is your one-stop for all your need to work collaboration.

What is Microsoft Teams Good for ?

• Integration with Office 365 Apps for collaborations among teams
• Dedicated Chat channels for particular discussion for easy tracking and resolving
• Reduce dependency on e-mails for communications
• Direct accessing of files from different sources like Sharepoint, Onedrive
• Exchange files and chat while on a call in real-time working
• Easily accessibility of app – Available on Android, iOS, Desktop and as a Web application
• Collaboration with internal and external members for business. Full end to end encryption while both in transit and at rest.
• Ability to invite guest users for video or voice calls
• Easy search functionality throughout the teams chat from past
• Generate email address special to channels through MS Teams ellipsis option
• Track your conversations through the thread for easy tracking and replying
• Ability to integrate third-party apps in Microsoft Teams as per your need
• Functions like slash commands are available as shortcuts – for eg /busy /call /dnd and many more
• Tagging people with the command @name in the chat for mention
• Ability to create standard and private channels for specific need
• Integration with the Outlook
• Record meeting for future reference

Who should use Microsoft Teams ?

Companies who want to break the geographical barriers for their employees, who are working from remote locations, Microsoft Teams is a great option for them to achieve more. With Excel, PowerPoint, Sharepoint, and Outlook apps integrated you can become more organized and increase the collaboration within your team. Companies who have adopted this chat-based application have seen fewer email conversations over the period.

Your conversation is in one place with easy functions to search for anything from the past. Instantaneous video calls or meetings are added benefits for using Microsoft Teams. Teams can also work together on the same project by using screen sharing functionality.

Businesses are increasingly adopting Microsoft Teams in their workplace. This study is showing the increasing trend of companies adopting Microsoft Teams for collaboration within teams. For quick adoption of the Microsoft Teams among the organization, businesses are seeking Microsoft Teams consulting and support for quick implementation. The active users for the Microsoft Teams are increasing drastically as in the report by Statista

 Source – Statista

Before you start using Microsoft Teams you need to keep note of few of the points for using it effectively –

• Avoid creating duplicate teams channels and Groups for the same task
• Enforcing naming conventions through out your organizations for avoiding confusions between teams and groups
• Each Task / Project should have its own team
• Focus on creating few channels in the beginning and add more as team members and project grows
• Don’t temper with shared documents

If you are dependent on using office apps like Excel, PowerPoint, Sharepoint, Outlook, and OneNote on a daily basis then Office 365 apps with Microsoft Teams are a way to go from the very beginning.

There are multiple benefits like Calender and Meeting integration from Outlook, Document editing from Sharepoint and OneNote, Word and Excel editing, all available in Microsoft Teams. If you are looking to get started with the integration then you should consider taking office 365 consulting services for integration between Teams

Is Microsoft Teams free ?

There is a free version available for Microsoft teams which you can download from Microsoft website here. The free version comes with unlimited chat and searches functionality, Online meeting and personal calls, 10 Gb store for the team, and 2 Gb store for personal use. Other features like video calls, Screen sharing, File sharing, and guest access are available in the free version to use. Although some Microsoft teams features are restricted and in the free verion.

Are chat in Microsoft teams private?

The chat between the individual team members are private and can only be accessed by individuals involved in the chat. You can go through this chat conversation to know more about the issue in detail.

Author’s Note

In the end, Microsoft Teams Features are great tools for businesses that want remote working to be successful. Situations like Pandemic and uncontrolled scenarios should not be allowed to affect the progress of work on a daily basis.

Remote working could be a challenge but with the right tools Microsoft Teams, businesses, and organizations can use this as an opportunity to grow. Remote working is gonna be there in the future and organizations that adapt to this trend will survive and perform better than others. Usage apps has increase during the COVID and so has the use of software for better collaboration.

Let us know in the comment section how your organization had adopted the remote working culture.