Ringing true

If I had to name the single-most-used (and most-useful) app on my laptop, I think it might be Microsoft Teams – maybe even more so than my browser! It’s fast becoming my main communication tool. It’s not only on my phone; it is my phone.

Much has been written already on our new ways of working in these times of Pandemic Pandemonium. And it truly has been fascinating to see companies embrace home working. Exactly how dramatic or long-term these changes will be are matters of some debate, but most commentators seem to agree that pre-existing trends toward remote working and cloud service provision have been accelerated. As has the move away from traditional office-based workspaces.

Nowhere is this more true than in the ways we communicate with our colleagues and customers on a daily basis.

MS Teams was already well on its way to replacing email for internal communications. It has been more readily taken up by our users than Sharepoint as a means of building shared spaces, files and collaborative conversation. Its flexibility has never failed to impress. There are more apps and plugins available than I have yet had time to test. And, so, it has made sense to expand Teams for many of our users to add external voice calling and audio-conferencing.

As you might expect, Microsoft have built on their existing cloud platform, together with their reputation for reliability and security, to bring calling (Voice over Internet Protocol; VoIP) to their business customers.

Adding this function to your existing Teams structure is quick, easy and incredibly flexible. Compared to maintaining a separate phone system, it also becomes very affordable. It’s the ease of having everything in one place that truly transforms Teams into every office’s tool of choice.

There are third-party plug-ins that allow you to make even more use out of the service – such as call recording that allows you to analyse calls for specific word usage and professional training solutions that make it simple for your workers to upskill.

If you would like any advice on adding VoIP to your Microsoft package, to learn more about plug-ins for Teams, or to understand the benefit of professional technology management, SITOC is happy to help. Microsoft have made a discount available if you sign up before the end of April 2021 - and we can arrange a free trial.