Pandemic + Work From Home = relying on technology more than ever before.
The tools available in Microsoft 365 have developed to help us stay productive wherever we’re working.
If you’ve been using Microsoft’s software for years, now’s a good time to discover new features.
If you haven’t started exploring yet, you’re missing out on loads of ways to boost productivity and make your life easier. Here are some of the main things to explore.
Microsoft Teams
Teams has made communication and collaboration even more effective than traditional ways of working face-to-face.
Long gone are the days when different versions of the same documents were flying around on email. Set up Teams correctly and your colleagues can work together in real-time – with only one master copy of a document that’s shared and discussed.
You can even turn the clock back to previous versions if somebody makes an error or heads in the wrong direction.
Setting up dedicated channels within Teams lets defined groups of people focus on specific projects and topics. This makes sure people only get notified about the work they’re involved in. Which keeps Teams from being overwhelming or confusing.
It’s a space to help your team work with a focused level of productivity.
Don’t know how to do something?
Try the search box at the top of Microsoft’s apps
The search box is very smart, and can often be the quickest way to do what you need to do.
Instead of Googling your question, this handy box will often take you straight to the button you need to press.
This can help save you a lot of time as it avoids the need to research online. It’ll also make sure you get an answer specific to your version of Word, Excel, or whichever Microsoft 365 app you’re using.
MyAnalytics
MyAnalytics is a productivity insights tool to help your people work smarter. By offering specific data on how you work, MyAnalytics is designed to help you improve how you spend your time and effort.
Along with lots of other tailored advice, it includes data on how much uninterrupted time you have – you know, time each day when you can focus on your actual work.
Now that so many of us are balancing home life and work life in the same location, this data can really help to plan and structure your work.
As well as providing you with data, MyAnalytics also offers suggestions for specific things you can try to improve the way you work.
For example, it can automatically add a couple of hours of dedicated focus time to your calendar each day to block anybody else from stealing the time you need to get things done.
It also helps to link together the various apps you use by offering suggestions based on your activity.
One example of this is how MyAnalytics in Outlook can give you a notification to highlight any outstanding tasks you’ve set up related to the person you’re speaking with.