The work-from-home era threw most Australian businesses in the deep end without warning forcing us to adapt to a new way of working. To combat isolation, we sought tools to facilitate collaboration and communication within our teams. As we responded to the ‘new normal’, Microsoft Teams quickly became an obvious choice for remote working. The app is part of the Microsoft 365 suite and is included in most business’ Microsoft plans so implementing the software with no additional license fees in a time that required us to act fast was a no-brainer.

We love Microsoft Teams. It is a brilliant collaboration app that allows professionals to create specific spaces to share information, have group chat discussions, and connect with audio calling and video conferencing. It’s an all-rounder communication app but with freedom of functionality comes the need to consider the governance required for your workplace to reap the benefits.

3 challenges to consider before deploying Microsoft Teams:

Challenge #1: Controlling the creation of teams and chats

There is no control over the creation of Teams or chats within the application. This can often result in information sprawl with content spread across multiple teams and chats leading to confusion. Complexity can have an impact on productivity; in the case of Microsoft Teams, having an abundance of chats with variations of members means workers have to think a little harder to ensure they are sending their content to the correct group.

Challenge #2: Handling duplicate content

Stemming from the previous challenge, an unregulated amount of Teams created comes multiple copies of documents and files across different collaborative pockets in the app. This creates duplicates within the Files section of Microsoft Teams resulting in many information silos and significant version control issues. Consolidating information becomes challenging when files are widely distributed with different audiences collaborating blindly.

Challenge #3: Knowing where to look

Also related to the second challenge, in many cases, teams and chats are created by users without first considering how to effectively structure their content for ease of access. This leaves the creator and other team members hunting for specific information or files as there is no system in place for organising content. Searching takes time and, if the information is buried deep within a chat, there are multiple versions of a document, or a file is put somewhere unusual, the creator may have to locate and send the content again further wasting time.

Every newly introduced software comes with its challenges. For the smoothest adoption, it is best to recognise the challenges and understand these can all be mediated with governance across the application in the workplace. Having a process in place ensures Microsoft Teams delivers maximum value to your organisation instead of evolving into an overly complex tool. You can mitigate the risks by:

• Assessing your Microsoft Teams set up and configuration
• Seeking areas where improvements could be implemented
• Create a standardised procedure for creating teams, chats, and general use 
• Spending adequate time to train users to use Microsoft Teams to its best capabilities in the most streamlined way

To find out more about Microsoft Teams and how All Covered IT can help you gain the best value out of this tool, contact us today for a chat on 07 5528 6663 or info@allcoveredit.com.au