Ready to unlock the full potential of Microsoft Teams? Our top tips will guide you towards mastering this surprisingly versatile platform. Start by implementing a few of these suggestions, and you’ll soon be harnessing the power of Teams to streamline your workflow and boost productivity.

1. Keyboard Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts offer a powerful advantage for streamlining common tasks, significantly accelerating your workflow. While it may require some initial investment of time to familiarise yourself with these essential shortcuts, the subsequent benefits are substantial. Once mastered, executing commands becomes a matter of mere seconds, eliminating the need for cumbersome menu navigation.

To begin your journey towards mastery, consider the following essential keyboard shortcuts:

Create a new chat: Ctrl+N
Turn off camera: Ctrl+Shift+O
Mute: Ctrl+Shift+M
Background blurring: Ctrl+Shift+P
Search: Ctrl+E
Open your files: Ctrl+6
Open your calendar: Ctrl+Shift+B
Start recording: Ctrl+Shift+R
Start a video call: Ctrl+Shift+X
Open the meeting options: Ctrl+Shift+O
Pause/resume recording: Ctrl+Shift+P

2. Teams Slash/ Command

The / command in Teams is a valuable tool for streamlining your workflow and enhancing productivity. By typing a forward slash followed by a keyword or command, you can quickly access various functionalities within the platform without having to navigate through multiple menus. This saves time, reduces the learning curve, and allows you to focus on your tasks more efficiently.

Whether you need to search for specific content, schedule meetings, manage files, or perform other common actions, the / command provides a convenient and intuitive way to accomplish them. Here is a full list of available commands.

3. Utilise @mentions for Efficient Message Sending and Filtering

A highly effective shortcut for time-saving is to enter the @ symbol in the search bar at the top of the screen. This action will instantly display a list of colleagues, facilitating direct messaging.

The @mention feature can be utilised in reverse. By selecting the “Filter” option and choosing “@mentions” from the dropdown menu within the Activity feed, you can efficiently filter and review messages and alerts sent to you.

4. Translating Messages

Translating messages written in foreign languages is a straightforward process within Teams. Simply hover over the desired message, click the three vertical dots (ellipsis), and select the “Translate” option.

While translations may not always be flawless, Teams offers a valuable feature: video call translation. To enable this functionality, access the “Translate to” menu and select your preferred language. Attendees can then activate captions by clicking the “Subtitles On” button located on the right side of their screen.

5. Teams Planner

Planner is a valuable addition to Teams for effective project management. It offers a visual interface that allows you to create and organise plans, assign tasks to team members, track progress, and set deadlines.

By using Planner, you can improve collaboration, increase productivity, and ensure that projects are completed on time and within budget. With its integration into Teams, Planner provides a centralised hub for project management, making it easy to communicate and coordinate with your team members.

6. Save Teams Messages For Later

When the need arises to concentrate on a specific project, you may wish to flag messages for future reference. To accomplish this, simply hover over any message, click the ellipsis, and select the “Save this message” option.

Subsequently, you can conveniently access your saved messages by entering “/Saved” in the search box. To remove the saved status of a message, locate the bookmark icon positioned in the top right corner of each message and click on it.

7. Conduct Polls

Gathering opinions can be a time-consuming process, but Teams offers a streamlined solution. To create and distribute a poll within Microsoft Teams, simply click the “Forms” icon located beneath the message box.

Once the poll creation window appears, compose your question and input the desired answer choices. For questions that allow multiple answers, activate the “Multiple answers” toggle. You also have the option to automatically share poll results after voting concludes and to maintain anonymity for respondent responses. Finally, to initiate the poll, click the “Send” button.

8. Turn Files Into Tabs

Turning files into tabs in Teams offers a significant advantage for enhanced collaboration and accessibility. By pinning frequently used files as tabs within channels or chats, you can provide easy access to essential documents for your team members.

This eliminates the need to search through file libraries or navigate multiple menus, saving time and reducing frustration. Pinned tabs ensure that important files remain prominently visible, fostering a more organised and efficient workspace.

This feature is particularly valuable for projects that require frequent reference to specific documents, as it streamlines the workflow and promotes seamless teamwork.

9. Microsoft Whiteboard For Teams

The Whiteboard app facilitates collaborative efforts within a shared space. This application empowers team members to access a virtual whiteboard, where they can contribute text or images through sketching tools.

The Whiteboard app can be seamlessly integrated into channels and chats, as well as during Teams video calls.

To incorporate the Whiteboard app into your workflow, ensure it is downloaded. Subsequently, open a desired channel and click the “+” icon, selecting the Whiteboard icon from the “Add a tab” dropdown list. Remember to click “Save” in the lower right corner to successfully add the Whiteboard to the channel.

Similarly, you can follow the same procedure to add a new Whiteboard to a chat. The Whiteboard may be listed among the tabs positioned at the top of the window when you open a chat.

10. Use SharePoint

SharePoint, Microsoft’s platform for safeguarding and sharing files, is seamlessly integrated into Microsoft Teams.

By clicking on the “Files” tab, you can effortlessly share files with your Team members using SharePoint. If a file has been shared within a Channel, your team members can collaborate on it using Office Online or one of its desktop applications.

Final Thought

Remember, the key to mastering Teams lies in consistent practice and experimentation. Don’t be afraid to explore different features and functionalities to find what works best for you and your team. With a little effort, you’ll discover how Teams can revolutionise your communication, collaboration, and productivity.