Get more done with Microsoft Teams with these 10 tips.
With over 270 M users at present, Microsoft Teams is taking real-time communication and collaboration to the next level. It is a hub for workspace in Microsoft 365 and Office 365 business and enterprise applications, integrating people, content, and tools required for effective collaboration. The tool is in use by more than a million organizations as their default messaging platform. Teams can be integrated with other Microsoft business applications and solution that encompasses Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Zoom, OneNote, Trello, and SharePoint, to name a few.
Like others, you may have learned how this platform works, but with features galore within Microsoft Teams, you may not be using it to the fullest. This article will cover some of the most interesting tips for using Microsoft Teams more effectively.
10 Useful Tips for Microsoft Teams to Get More Done
Certainly, you have got the hang of Microsoft Teams and use it to stay connected with your team members. But are you really making full use of the Microsoft Teams software? This one application is an office productivity center that is designed to help you achieve daily tasks with time to spare. To help you get the best out of this tool, we have accumulated some powerful Microsoft Teams tips which can be easily incorporated into your workflow.
✅ Automate Regular Tasks
Do you know that you can automate everyday tasks without leaving Teams? This is a straightforward experience with some templates that enable you to get started building workflows within Teams. Follow this great Microsoft Teams tip and streamline your many regular tasks: for example, after creating a new task in Planner, you can automate a notification to your Project Manager. For this, you’ll need to install the Power Automate app.
✅ Use the Shared OneNote
After taking shared meeting notes, extend upon that OneNote content by inserting real-time notes, imagery, and audio or video recordings into the record. OneNote is a Microsoft note-taking application that enables multiple people to annotate simultaneously and insert audio and video clips. Interestingly, you can access the shared OneNote pre-, during, or post-meeting and synchronize it with your desktop and mobile device.
✅ Bookmark Your Important Messages
You can bookmark conversations on teams to your profile so you can keep track of important messages. You can click on ‘Save this Message’ from the ellipsis on any message to create a bookmark. You’ll be able to see all the saved bookmarks if you click on your profile image and select ‘Saved’. To remove any bookmarks, click on the saved icon.
✅ Start Visual Collaboration
Microsoft revamped its Whiteboard application not long ago, which lets team members collaborate on a shared virtual whiteboard. Each member can freely add text and images to it with the help of the app’s sketching tools. In addition to using this app during Teams video meetings, you can add Whiteboard to your channels or chats. All team members can continue adding to the Whiteboard over time.
✅ Transcribe Important Meetings or Calls
You can automatically transcribe an important meeting in the desktop version of Teams. At the start of a meeting, click on the ellipsis and select ‘Transcribe Meeting.’ This begins a live transcription where the text appears alongside your meeting video or audio in real-time. This can make meetings more inclusive or help people who are late to the meeting catch up. After the meeting, you can download the transcript for reference as needed.
✅ Rely on SharePoint
Another Microsoft tool, SharePoint, is already integrated into Microsoft Teams for secure file storage and collaboration. If your company uses SharePoint with Teams, you can share files with other team members or access SharePoint files that are, by that time, shared with the channel. On uploading a file, it gets automatically saved to the SharePoint site for your team within the folder structure corresponding to the team’s channels.
✅ Personalize Meeting Invites
Another Microsoft Teams tip is that you can personalize your meeting invites to external clients. You can add your company logo, URL, header, and footer details. This option provides a more polished look and feels to your invites, as well as publicizes your website and supports contact details with each invitation sent. Right within the Teams Admin Center, open Meetings> Meeting settings > Email invitation. After entering the needed details, click Preview invite to view your personalized meeting invitation and then Save to make the intended changes.
✅ Enjoy Hands-Free Experience
Microsoft Teams features an Immersive Reader mode that allows you to read chat messages or posts without distractions. You can set fonts, colors, and spacing to have the reading experience of your choice. This feature can be found by clicking the ellipsis.
On top of that, you can use it to get your messages read out loud. There is also an option for grammar tools like Parts of Speech and Picture Dictionary. Basically, it has been designed to allow users multi-task, e.g., listening to a meeting report being read back to you while doing some exercise. Simply click the play button, and reading will begin from the start of your message. In addition, you can regulate the playback speed with the slider.
✅ Forward Emails to a Channel
Forwarding an email to any Microsoft Team channel is straightforward. You can get an email address for your group to keep forwarding messages to. It is especially useful in cases when you want to redirect an important email thread to Teams to enable everyone on the project team to see and join the discussion.
✅ Increase Productivity with MyHub
You can also streamline your navigation with MyHub. Using this feature, you can create hubs that work as favorites, allowing you to locate without delay and jump to the relevant location. It eliminates chaos and brings order to workspaces across Microsoft Teams, Yammer, and SharePoint. Basically, it is a one-stop shop for your teams and communities.
Power Tips for D365 Business Central Users
Dynamics 365 Business Central (D365BC) is an enterprise resource planning solution designed for small and medium-sized companies that automate and streamline business operations. Business Central integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Teams and can be used with the desktop, web, or mobile applications. Here are some interesting Microsoft Teams tips for those using Dynamics 365 Business Central:
There is a feature in Microsoft Teams to let you search for details of your providers, customers, and other Business Central contacts. Besides viewing basic information about contacts, you can also get access to interaction history, related documents, etc. These details can be shared in conversations, giving participants access to contact details.
Simply copying a link to any Business Central record and pasting it into the Teams conversation can allow you to share it with your fellow workers. As a result, the app will expand the link into a small, interactive card containing information about the record.
There is also an option to share links from pages in Business Central to Teams. You need to select recipients like team members, groups, or channels and send the message containing the link.
Lastly, add a Business Central tab to the Teams channel or chat to show Business Central data from lists and pages.
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