Utilizing Microsoft Teams in the Workplace

Microsoft Teams is the next iteration of collaboration and chat created by Microsoft. It's intended to replace Skype in 2020, so Technical Operations is encouraging departments that currently rely on Skype for Business to migrate to Microsoft Teams. This article will show some of the new features that Microsoft Teams brings to the table.

Creating a Team

To create a Team, head over to https://teams.microsoft.com. Once you're logged in, you'll want to click on the Teams button on the left navigation bar, then hover over the Create a team square and click Create a team.

From here, you'll be asked to provide a team name, description, and the privacy of the team. In most cases, the privacy of the team should remain Private.

Once these fields are complete, click on Next. You'll now be asked to send invites to your team members. Type in the email addresses of people you want to invite to your team, then click Add.

Congratulations! Your new teamwork area is ready to go. You can dive into the many different settings Microsoft Teams allows, such as different chat channels, new tabs in each chat channel, and more.

Downloading the Microsoft Teams Client

You can download the Microsoft Teams client for your computer or mobile device by going to one of the following links:

• Windows:https://teams.microsoft.com/downloads/desktopurl?env=production&plat=windows&arch=x64&download=true
• Mac:https://teams.microsoft.com/downloads/desktopurl?env=production&plat=osx&arch=&download=true
• iOS Devices:https://apps.apple.com/app/id1113153706?cmpid=downloadiOSGetApp&lm=deeplink&lmsrc=downloadPage
• Android Devices:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.teams&lm=deeplink&lmsrc=downloadPage&cmpid=downloadAndroidGetApp

These native apps allow some useful features the web client doesn't provide, including push notifications for new messages, the ability to quickly join Microsoft Teams meetings, and more.

Collaborative Sharing

Microsoft Teams allows team members to share and collaborate on documents in a quick, easy manner without having to use any other software but the Teams client. To start creating a new document, click on a Teams channel, then go to the Files tab at the top of the screen. From there, you can click on New to make documents such as Word, Excel, or PowerPoint.

Once you click on a document, you'll be asked to name the document.

Once the document is named and created, you'll be shown the editing interface. 

1. You can click on the Start Conversation button to start a conversation regarding this document with your team. This is a great way to take notes regarding the document, as well as ask questions on what should be in the document and more.
2. The three-dot menu gives options such as opening the document in the Desktop application, on SharePoint, or in your browser.
3. The Saved indicator lets you know when the document is saved in the cloud. You don't need to worry about manually saving, the app will do it for you!
4. You can quickly open a document in the Desktop App using this button, with the same collaborative benefits as working within the Teams app and autosaving.

There are many other ways to collaborate using Microsoft Teams, this just details working with different documents. You can easily upload existing documents for collaboration, as well as storage and easy accessibility for your team. You can also easily share documents with external recipients as needed using Microsoft Teams.