Your Quick Guide to Microsoft 365 Technologies for the Modern Workplace
Welcome to the first of our three-part blog series on technologies for the Modern Workplace, where we share how to solve common business headaches with Microsoft 365.
In this three-part blog series on Microsoft 365 technologies for the Modern Workplace, we begin by addressing how to:
1. collaborate effectively with your colleagues
- which clearly has added significance these days
2. communicate your brilliant idea
3. keep pace in a world of information overload
4. find the information or experts you need without burning time
5. stay productive using a mobile device
So, grab a coffee and dive in. Or you can jump to part two now.
Challenge no. 1: How to Collaborate Effectively with Your Colleagues
Setting the right tone for how you and your teams communicate and exchange information is vital to productivity and a positive culture. Most of us have two distinct modes of collaboration: an inner circle of people we work with regularly and an outer loop we engage with sporadically.
The Solution
For those of you who frequently work together on high-velocity projects and core deliverables, Microsoft Teams is an ideal tool. Conversations, files, meetings and associated apps are held in a shared, structured hub that’s accessible to teammates both in and outside your organisation. And since the global pandemic, Teams has seen a 700% increase in users.
Your entire team - including external consultants and gig workers - can access everything they need to move a project forward, including the specific applications required for your projects such as Adobe Creative Cloud, SurveyMonkey and GitHub.
Microsoft Teams is integrated with Microsoft applications including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PowerBI and Stream, so everyone can collaborate and access information without leaving Teams shared work-space. All files are automatically stored in SharePoint. Team members can even customise your intranet with project details and announcements for everyone in your organisation.
Click below to download our eBook on Microsoft Teams, for an overview of its powerful collaboration and communication features.
When connecting with people in your outer loop on a common interest or goal, Yammer allows everyone in your company to share information and find expertise. Groups and conversations are open by default, making them discoverable by everyone.
If Zoom is your current collaboration tool of choice, you may also find this blog helpful: Are Your Meetings Being Zoom-Bombed?
Useful Resources
- Microsoft Teams – the hub for teamwork in Office 365
- Video – get your team up and running in Microsoft Teams
- How to Chat in Microsoft Teams – you can name and favourite your chats for easy reference. Includes advice for sending messages to Skype for Business users
- Microsoft Teams video training
- Yammer – an overview. Connect and engage across your organisation.
Challenge no. 2: How to Communicate Your Brilliant Idea
How do you make your idea stand out and get your colleagues or stakeholders on board? How do you get input from others in the shortest, most efficient way?
The Solution
Microsoft has a few neat options for this. It has tools to ensure your presentation meets the needs of your audience. For example, auto-translation allows you to display subtitles in up to 60 languages. Not only does this make your presentation suitable for an international audience, it makes it accessible to those who are deaf or hard of hearing. Make your presentation more compelling with cloud-powered design suggestions. Create polished slides and captivating motion effects in a few short steps.
Manage your files in the cloud with SharePoint or OneDrive without reconciling multiple versions of a document. Share content securely with anyone inside or outside your organisation and enable them to access files from anywhere.
And let's not forget the power of artificial Intelligence, which enables new methods of creative input and feedback, such as dictation that can be transcribed and translated.
Useful Resources
Here are handpicked links to authoritative resources:
- Using Microsoft Translator in a presentation for PowerPoint 2016
- The evolution of PowerPoint - Designer and Morph
- Get creative with 3D models – insert into your presentation, docs or workbook
- Manage files in the cloud with SharePoint - your mobile, intelligent intranet
- Save your files and photos to OneDrive and access them from any device, anywhere
- How to Co-author Office Files on OneDrive or SharePoint
- Microsoft Stream – engage and inform with intelligent video
- Dictate with your voice in Office – for Office 365 subscribers
Implementing collaboration and communication tools can be daunting. Check out Fresh – the intelligent intranet from Content and Code – an IT Lab company. As an accredited Microsoft Partner, Content and Code’s consultants are expert across the entire Microsoft 365 stack.
Challenge no. 3: How to Keep Pace in a World of Information Overload
We’re constantly bombarded with information and often pick up a lengthy list of to-dos at meetings. Efficiently recording and managing everything you need to keep on top of your job can be testing.
The Solution
OneNote is your canvas to capture, organise and share your notes from any device. You can record or hand-write notes, annotate documents, and sketch out your next big idea with the natural feel of pen and paper and the power of digital ink. You can even snap a photo of a whiteboard and Office Lens will digitise the notes for you. Built-in translation fosters collaboration. A powerful search feature allows you to scan voice-recorded, typed and even handwritten notes.
Useful Resources
We’ve sourced the best reads, so you don’t have to:
- OneNote – your digital notebook
- What is Office Lens? – take pictures of whiteboards or printed documents
- Translate text into a different language, including OneNote
Challenge no. 4: How to Find the Information or Experts You Need Without Burning Time
How do you sift through thousands or even millions of documents to find the one you need? How do you pull in the right experts from inside and outside your company to get a project across the line?
The Solution
To find the information and people you need, Microsoft 365 provides a comprehensive search and discovery experience. It combines AI with company-wide data to help you discover relevant information, subject matter experts and trending topics. By storing your files on OneDrive or SharePoint, you can search using natural language, just as you do on the internet. These file management tools can also identify text in images. With intelligent search, find whiteboards, screenshots and receipts without hassle. Once you’ve found what you’re looking for, AI-powered services allow you to import the information into Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
The tech giant has also integrated LinkedIn profiles with Microsoft 365 so that you can identify experts both in and outside your organisation with the click of a mouse.
Useful Resources
Here’s some of the best guidance we identified:
- Intelligent Search and Discovery - across Office 365
- How to Connect Your LinkedIn and Microsoft accounts
- 10 best-practices for SharePoint Document Management
- OneDrive guide for enterprises – includes a link to a similar guide for small businesses
If you’re overwhelmed by choice, fear not. Our Business Performance Consultants can help you navigate your best options – pop your details into our contact form.
Challenge no 5: How to Stay Productive Using a Mobile Device
Almost half of professionals believe that the use of a mobile device is critical for productivity. How can you make your mobile working as efficient as it can be?
The Solution
Microsoft puts the workplace in your pocket by delivering applications like Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, OneDrive and Microsoft Teams to popular mobile platforms, including iOS and Android. Create, chat, share and present – all from your favourite device - and access your company intranet wherever you are. A personal digital assistant – Cortana – helps Outlook mobile users stay on top of their day by providing reminders when it’s time to join a virtual meeting.
And for when life eventually gets back to normal, Cortana gives directions for both driving and public transport and includes real-time traffic information. If you claim travel expenses, MileIQ enables you to track your mileage automatically and ensure you’re reimbursed.
Useful Resources
- How to set up Office apps and email on a mobile device
- Cortana – discover what Cortana can do for you
- MileIQ – automatic mileage tracking
Closing Words
The Microsoft Modern Workplace is your secure, integrated ecosystem. It’s simple for your user-base, and agile and scalable for your business. Check out parts two and three of our Microsoft 365 mini-series.
Or you can check out our wider Modern Workplace blog series, which includes The Modern Workplace Trends You Need to Know About, and Make it Happen: How to Drive Cultural Change in Your Workplace.
