Microsoft 365 And Modern Distributed Workforce

In today’s competitive business environment, employees have come to demand the freedom to complete their job from any location. This requires the capability of using any device they choose while maintaining high security and efficiency.

Despite the difficulties that come with the unprecedented events of this time, you must keep your staff safe while giving them the capability to complete all job requirements. The productivity tools in Microsoft 365 can help your organization provide everything your distributed workforce needs to stay productive.

However, despite Microsoft’s best efforts to accommodate the requirements of today’s modern, distributed workplace, many businesses still fail to take full advantage of the platform’s newest capabilities.

So, this article will guide you on how to fully leverage the power of Microsoft 365 to help your distributed workforce perform consistently.

Microsoft’s Modern Workplace Platform: An Overview

Microsoft’s Modern Workplace solution is an idea built on the Microsoft 365 subscription platform that facilitates safe, streamlined collaboration amongst remote teams.

The “modern workplace,” according to Microsoft’s definition, is a new work style that employs the company’s cutting-edge cloud-based Microsoft 365 tools and services. It aims to build a more unified, adaptable structure that can develop alongside your company.

In this context, IT departments must undergo a digital transformation that involves the following:

• adopting cloud computing for storage and access to company resources;
• transitioning from an older version of SharePoint to the current, cutting-edge version of SharePoint;
• eliminating subsites and standardizing the site’s architecture; and
• Integrating Microsoft 365 Groups and Teams with Up-to-Date Team Sites.

When completely implemented, today’s workplace will improve efficiency, foster better communication, and let workers collaborate and contribute from anywhere.

Recognizing Old Habits: Leveraging Microsoft 365

Many businesses have switched to Microsoft 365, but few put the software’s benefits to full use. It is easy to fall into the trap of relying solely on the tried-and-true methods you have used since the early days of Microsoft Office. But, exploring the myriad of new options can vastly enhance your efficiency and security.

Here are four outdated Microsoft practices that many people still engage in:

• Keeping local copies of Microsoft Office documents, such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, rather than using the cloud-hosted services of Microsoft 365, which offer a safer environment and convenient features like autosave and version control.
• Inefficiently and insecurely working on the same file using Outlook email attachments instead of using Microsoft 365 for team collaboration.
• Send huge files over email without protecting the file or the transmission method when manageable links are available.
• Inadequate utilization of SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams may now be used in tandem to enable safe document storage, collaboration, sharing, and conversations.

SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams: The Trifecta of Modern Collaboration

These days, the typical employee may work from home, communicate with clients remotely, and keep irregular hours. Thus, safe, off-site collaboration tools are necessary as teamwork does not stop at the office door.

SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams, in conjunction with one another, can serve as a reliable basis for this new digital workflow. These three applications now get handled by the same system and hosted in the cloud. Your company’s information is now safeguarded by top-tier security measures while remaining conveniently accessible from within and outside the organization.

SharePoint

SharePoint is an excellent cloud-based file sharing and collaboration platform for sharing documents with a wide range of users inside and outside your organization. If you are the one who created the files and folders, you get to pick who gets access to them.

You can view Sharepoint as a replacement for the file servers and drives previously used to store company documents. Sharepoint offers an alternative to files only accessible from remote locations via a virtual private network.

OneDrive

OneDrive is an online document storage platform, but it is designed specifically for individuals to keep and manage their files. Imagine it as a more secure and universally available version of “My Documents” that you can access from any Internet-connected device.

All of your work in OneDrive is secure unless you want to make it public. Like SharePoint, you can share files privately before collaborating with others in real time on shared documents.

Moreover, you can quickly copy or move files between OneDrive and SharePoint. You can even sync data from either OneDrive or SharePoint to your computer if you wish to or need to.

Microsoft Teams

You might think of Microsoft Teams as the centerpiece of the modern work environment.

Teams will fulfill all your collaboration needs for a remote workforce, including chat, meetings, voice, and video calls, as well as fast access to all your material. Teams will serve as the central location for all of your teamwork. Because Teams connects with Word, Excel, Powerpoint, OneNote, SharePoint, and OneDrive, you now have instant access to all the information and tools you require.

It is in your best interest to participate in brief training to become familiar with how to make the most of this effective software program, as Teams is a powerful tool full of features.

3 Key Benefits of Microsoft’s New Workplace for Distributed Teams

Here are three key benefits of Microsoft 365 for managing a distributed workforce:

• The contemporary workplace at Microsoft provides improved features for employees working on remote teams: New platforms, tools, and applications are included in Microsoft 365 to foster employee well-being, connectedness, and learning in the context of the digital workplace.
• The current workplace environment at Microsoft encourages more productive collaboration: The modern workplace offered by Microsoft increases productivity, paves the way for frictionless communication, and simplifies workflows across locations and platforms.
• The contemporary workspace provided by Microsoft is adaptable to the needs of distributed teams: By using the self-service feature offered by Microsoft 365, IT may provide employees the ability to build the resources they require without “gatekeeping” their access.

Conclusion

It is safe to say that the world has arrived at the predicted future now that businesses and workers everywhere have accepted the concept of remote work.

Microsoft 365’s features can transform your organization into the best modern workplace with a well-thought-out rollout and implementation plan to guarantee functioning and security.