Making remote working easier in using Microsoft’s office 365

The shift to remote work over the last 18 months is one of the most significant changes in work culture. To understand how this change is impacting our customers and our employees, we’ve been conducting regular meetings & surveys. One of the latest survey data shows that last year that 70% of employees worked from home at some point.

But there’s no guarantee this trend will continue in the increasingly complex world of hybrid work. For starters, employee expectations have changed. Last year’s Work Trend Index report showed that while 73 percent of employees want the option to continue to work remotely, 67 percent want more in-person engagement. This hybrid work paradox is our new normal, and our ability to come together will be challenging without preparation.

As employees settle into a mode where they’re splitting time between in-person and remote work, most organisations are not prepared. Hybrid work is hard. Remote attendees are finding themselves unseen and unheard. In-person attendees want to be inclusive but are not equipped to run effective hybrid meetings. A glaring example: conference rooms, spaces where the majority of hybrid meetings will be happening, do not have the right hardware, software, or furniture to facilitate hybrid meetings effectively. According to one of the tech report, out of the nearly 90 million meeting rooms worldwide, only 7.8 percent are video-enabled, creating a poor experience for remote attendees.

In June, Microsoft announced new features designed to support inclusive hybrid meetings such as front row for Teams Rooms, a refreshed Teams experience on Surface Hub, and an enhanced Microsoft Whiteboard to enable visual collaboration whether or not you’re physically in the room together. Microsoft also announced next wave in Teams Rooms innovation with a new category of intelligent cameras. There are three unique technologies that power this new category of intelligent cameras:

• AI-powered active speaker tracking, enabling in-room cameras to use audio, facial movements, and gestures to detect who in the room is speaking, zooming in for a closer perspective.
• Multiple video streams that allow in-room participants to be placed in their own video pane.
• People recognition, which will identify and display the profile name of enrolled users within their video pane.

When intelligent cameras are paired with Dynamic View in Teams, you can deliver more equitable meeting experiences where everyone feels seen and represented. As people join the meeting, Teams automatically adjusts various elements of the meeting, so remote participants see the room and content with ease.

Through Microsoft’s close partnership with industry-leading partners including Jabra, Neat, Poly, and Yealink, these features will be available to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the coming months and rolled out as updates over the course of the next year.

To help individuals in meeting rooms contribute more dynamically, Microsoft is updating companion mode in Teams mobile to give in-room attendees quick access to engagement features like chat, live reactions, and Microsoft Whiteboard. In addition, Microsoft is making it easier to access meeting and device controls, like the ability to join a meeting, cast a PowerPoint, mute the room, turn room cameras on and off, and more. The updated companion mode experience will be available in the next few months.

Meeting planning and collaboration will be easier too. New features in Outlook capture details about when and where teammates are working, and how they will join meetings. The redesigned Working hours will allow you to include work schedule specifics directly in your calendar, so others can know when and where you’ll be working. The new RSVP feature lets people specify whether they will attend a meeting in-person or online so the meeting planners can best prepare by booking a room with video conferencing resources or bringing a speaker puck. New hybrid work experiences in Outlook will start rolling out early next year.

The hot desking experience on Microsoft Teams displays allows people to locate and reserve flexible workspaces in the office. Book a space from the device or in advance using Outlook or Teams and access your personal Teams calendar, chats, meetings, and more. Teams displays can be used as a standalone device or as a second screen when hot-desking and upon signing out, all personal information will be removed from the device. This experience is expected to be available on Lenovo ThinkSmart view by the end of 2021.

Prometix as a Microsoft Gold certified partner and certified O365 consultants (Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne & Perth), we have extensive experience in delivering Office 365 based solutions. We have completed MS Teams rollout for large to medium organisations including state/federal governments & private sectors. For more information, please contact us from enquiries@prometix.com.au