Zoom may be the most popular video conferencing platform today but Microsoft Teams is definitely catching up in the features game.
Microsoft Teams wants its users to have easier, more meaningful, and more functional meetings. For this reason, they have added interesting new features to their platform. These new features aim to transform their services to appear like real-life work environments.
With video conferencing becoming the new normal, platforms such as Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams are all playing a huge role in bringing people together. While you may think there is only so much you can do with video conferencing. However, platforms like Microsoft Teams continue to surprise people as they enhance their services to accommodate their users’ needs.
For all its flaws, Zoom is still the biggest name in video conferencing today, especially with its convenient features. But Microsoft Teams is definitely catching up especially with these recent additions.
Experience-enhancing new Together mode scenes
Zoom backgrounds were a huge trend in the last couple of months. However, they could well become a thing of the past. Microsoft Teams is now moving to raise the ante because instead of individualized backgrounds, they’re aiming to transform the setting of the meeting itself.
This new tool will allow participants to meet in various settings. These settings include a coffee shop, auditoriums, classrooms, and conference rooms among others.
Dynamic viewing and brainstorming in Microsoft Teams
Through the upcoming Breakout rooms, facilitators will be able to divide the participants in smaller groups. This is done so that they could have their own brainstorming sessions or their own group discussions. The facilitators control over the groups and could combine them together again with just a few clicks of the mouse button.
Breakout rooms—coming in October—will allow meeting organizers in #MicrosoftTeams to split up participants into smaller groups to facilitate group discussions. Learn more: https://t.co/Y6Cpso8z07 pic.twitter.com/yYVoUhy9tP
— Microsoft Teams (@MicrosoftTeams) September 28, 2020
Another upcoming innovative tool is the custom layouts which will give a more dynamic content viewing experience. This would grant the presenter control of the overall appearance of the content. One example of this is when a presenter transposes a video feed over the foreground of the slide he/she is presenting.
Personalize how content shows up for participants during a meeting with custom layouts in #MicrosoftTeams. Allow for a more dynamic content viewing experience and explore more: https://t.co/D7AC2KuALG #MSIgnite pic.twitter.com/ZHT1wt6StF
— Microsoft Teams (@MicrosoftTeams) September 23, 2020
Structure and organization
Webinars and other forms of structured meetings will become easier to manage once the event registration and e-mail automation arrive. Not only that, after every meeting, a detailed report will pop up to inform the facilitators of user engagement.
Need to plan and organize a webinar? You'll be able to manage attendance, view a detailed reporting dashboard, and understand attendee engagement with Webinar Support—rolling out later this year. Learn more: https://t.co/cSuqQ5arde #MSIgnite pic.twitter.com/bBdOw4Uc4c
— Microsoft Teams (@MicrosoftTeams) September 24, 2020
Simplicity and collaboration in calling
Changes are also underway to the way calling occurs in Microsoft Teams. The overall calling experience will be more streamlined wherein the contacts, call history, and the voicemail can be accessed all at once.
Collaborative calling would also see an IT-type/HR help desk where admins can connect call queues to specific channels as moderated by the facilitators.
Other new features
Numerous other improvements are also coming to Microsoft Teams. Users can expect to see new innovative features that would enhance the meeting room experience, chat and collaboration, Microsoft 365 integration, and the security of the platform among others.
And the best part is that these new features are expected to arrive on Microsoft Teams this year. There is no definitive rollout date as of yet. However, Microsoft will roll out these features and changes before the year ends.
Featured image courtesy of Microsoft Teams/Twitter