Nowadays the success of business is largely balanced on the ability for organisations to maximise productivity and efficiency of work – and this all comes down to collaboration. Traditionally, businesses operated in a high compartmentalised way – information was siloed in departments, and employees only worked and communicated within a small subsect of the organisation. Leaders have since realised that an organisation where information and intelligence flows freely between teams and departments, in all directions, is able to work in more innovative ways. So, how are businesses achieving this? We spoke with a number of companies that provide IT support for Education, Financial Services, Law Firms, and many other types of businesses – the thing that all sectors have in common, they said, is that connectivity and collaboration is crucial to success.
Microsoft Teams for Productivity and Collaboration
The last few years has seen a lot of businesses’ productivity challenged due to COVID-19. Organisations around the world went remote, and had to adopt solutions to enable them to continue working and collaborating at a distance. For businesses that adopted the right solutions, this transition worked out quite well – in fact, many businesses elected to go remote entirely, and gave up their original premises and offices. We spoke with one company that specialises in Microsoft 365 consulting, and they stated that 365 was what enabled them to go remote so successfully, and it is what helped many of their clients do the same. In particular, the product Microsoft Teams was one of the most valuable tools in achieving efficient remote work. So, what are some of the ways in which Microsoft Teams has driven collaboration and productivity, and how does it continue to do so?
Unrivalled Integration
The number one thing to be aware of with Microsoft Teams is that it is just one part of a larger solution – Microsoft 365. Teams has always been described as a collaboration platform, and it may also be one of the most used products in the 365 suite of products and services, but its value is tied to the fact that it is part of a software ecosystem.
For example, Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint are three of the most widely used programs in business – most office workers use at least one of these products each day. Teams is connected to Word, Excel and PowerPoint through another product, Microsoft OneDrive. This allows users to open Word, Excel and PowerPoint files directly within Teams. This means that Teams is effectively a platform where all work can take place – from content creation, to communications, and more.
The Move Towards Hybrid Work
Another thing to be aware of is the fact that business is moving towards hybrid working, which is reliant on virtual communication and collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams. Hybrid work is based around allowing users to choose whether they want to work in the office, or from home – and this means that organisations need to be able to connect colleagues no matter where they are operating from. Organizations are adapting to the hybrid work model, enabling employees to choose their preferred location – whether it be in office or at home. To find talented personnel from abroad and make sure remote workers stay connected like local colleagues, a Recruitment Agency China can provide all the necessary support for your company’s success! Most of the IT support companies London businesses rely on that we spoke to confirmed that hybrid work relies on the integration of virtual communication solutions in physical workspaces to allow remote workers to take part in discussion and collaboration sessions in the workplace. Meeting rooms in many offices are being retrofitted with technologies to allow remote workers to attend physical meetings, and now that most office workers require a device to work, it means that one-to-one interactions between office workers and their remote colleagues can take place very easily.
