We love Microsoft Office 365, but we really, really love the little details they’ve put into making businesses run smoother with Teams.
There’s a slight learning curve when you first start using Teams to streamline your productivity and collaboration. But we’ve rounded up the coolest new Microsoft Teams hacks you can use to supercharge your productivity.
These tips will make meetings manageable and conference calls congenial, and will make you into a multitasking marvel. Bonus: They can also help you engage your team members across the globe in their preferred language and engage the hipster in the next office in his preferred language — GIFs.
Microsoft Teams Hack #1
Say what you mean to say
The incredible increase in remote work and telecommuting have created global workplaces for everyone from major corporations to small start-ups. And this fascinating shift has created a need for fast, reliable language translation.
Enter Microsoft Teams.
You can now translate messages on Teams instantly by clicking the “…” icon and selecting “Translate.” You and your global teammates can now enjoy instant, clear communication without the linguistic ambiguity that comes with interacting in a language one of you isn’t 100% comfortable using.
Microsoft Teams Hack #2
Keep ‘em focused
Let’s keep talking about remote work. Life doesn’t suddenly stop when you need to jump onto a video conference. Sometimes your environment doesn’t convey the professional vibe you strive for (e.g. the four year old spreading peanut butter on the wall behind you).
There’s a Microsoft Teams hack for that!
The next time you’re in a video meeting and you want to keep attention focused on what really matters, click the “…” icon and click on “Blur My Background.” Goodbye whiteboard with potentially sensitive notes. Goodbye peanut butter. Hello focused communication!
If you notice your background is still in focus, try logging out for a second to enable the feature.
Microsoft Teams Hack #3
Make meetings more meaningful
No one loves meetings, but everyone appreciates an efficient meeting. And this Microsoft Teams hack will help you maximize the value of your next powwow.
First, schedule a meeting with a certain team or channel by clicking the camera icon or using your Schedule Assistant.
Teams makes it easy to give your attendees a heads-up about upcoming meetings, and joining a video conference is a breeze. But make sure you also take advantage of the chat feature in the Teams calendar to get housekeeping announcements and questions out of the way before your meeting.
Microsoft Teams Hack #4
Stay current
There’s a whole blog post’s worth of great tips about the command bar in Teams, but here’s a quick overview.
This blank white beauty is more than a search bar, it’s your portal to all the information stored in Teams and your Office suite. You just have to use the right key or shortcut. Speaking of shortcuts, all you need to call up the bar whenever you need it is type in ALT plus E.
It’s worth your time to explore and learn the many (ever increasing) shortcuts you can use on the command bar.For instance, one way to stay on top of new developments is to type in “/whatsnew” and read up to keep your knowledge current.
Microsoft Teams Hack #5
Host a conference call with ANYONE (even if they don’t use Office 365)
There are plenty of occasions to host calls with vendors or clients outside of your organization, and Teams has you covered. You can invite anyone to join a call with just an email address and invite from you. They can also dial in on a mobile device if your account has Audio Conferencing included.
If your client or vendor uses Office 365, they can respond to your invite by clicking “Open Microsoft Teams” and signing in to join the call, but if they don’t, they can still enjoy limited features as within the Teams meeting interface.
Microsoft Teams Hack #6
Schedule meetings without the back-and-forth
Bots are one of the greatest features in Teams. And the Calendar Bot is your new best friend. First, install the Calendar Bot. Here’s a tutorial on installing bots.
Next, save yourself the hassle of emailing dates and times by entering the command “FreeTime 1.” This will show you when your team members are free to meet. You can keep increasing the number until you find a perfect slot. Once you find the best time, you can enter “Book Time__.”
Easy Peasy.
Microsoft Teams Hack #7
Connect with your team on the deepest possible level: GIFs
Teams has a collection of GIFs available to use, but why stop there? You can also use the Giphy app to express your creativity and sense of humor. Here are some inspirational workplace GIFs to get you started.
Let Varay take the hassle out of team communication
If you’re ready to simplify your organizational communication and collaboration, Varay is ready to help. We can migrate your business to Microsoft Office 365 and show you how to use Teams to make the most of your workday.
Contact us today to schedule a free IT consultation and Office 365 quote for your business.
Need help integrating Microsoft Teams for your company?
Schedule a meeting here with one of our client success managers.
