ConversationalOffice365Collaboration

ByHeatherSeverino

©2017ConversationalGeek®

ConversationalOffice365CollaborationPublishedbyConversationalGeek®Inc.

www.conversationalgeek.com

Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookshallbereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording,orotherwise,withoutwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher.Nopatentliabilityisassumedwithrespecttotheuseoftheinformationcontainedherein.Althougheveryprecautionhasbeentakeninthepreparationofthisbook,thepublisherandauthorassumenoresponsibilityforerrorsoromissions.Norisanyliabilityassumedfordamagesresultingfromtheuseoftheinformationcontainedherein.

TrademarksConversationalGeek,theConversationalGeeklogoandJ.theGeekaretrademarksofConversationalGeek®.Alltermsmentionedinthisbookthatareknowntobetrademarksorservicemarkshavebeenappropriatelycapitalized.Wecannotattesttotheaccuracyofthisinformation.Useofaterminthisbookshouldnotberegardedasaffectingthevalidityofanytrademarkorservicemark.

WarningandDisclaimerEveryefforthasbeenmadetomakethisbookascompleteandasaccurateaspossible,butnowarrantyorfitnessisimplied.Theinformationprovidedisonan“asis”basis.Theauthorandthepublishershallhaveneitherliabilitynorresponsibilitytoanypersonorentitywithrespecttoanylossordamagesarisingfromtheinformationcontainedinthisbookorprogramsaccompanyingit.

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PublisherAcknowledgments

Allofthefolksresponsibleforthecreationofthisguide:

Author: HeatherSeverino

ProjectEditor: J.PeterBruzzese

CopyEditor: JohnRugh

ContentReviewer(s): KarlaReina

NotefromtheAuthor

I’vebeenworkingwithMicrosoftOfficeapplicationsforovertwodecades,andintheearlyyearsmylearningwasallfromself-education.

SomeofthoselearningmomentsIspentwringingmyfistintheairsaying“whycan’tyouworkthewayIwant?!”.OthertimesIwaspraisingtheapplicationformakingworktasksmucheasier!AsIwaslearningmoreaboutMicrosoftOffice,theInternetwasemerging,anditbroughtwithitawealthofknowledge.Withaquicksearch,tutorialswereavailabletocreatePivotTables,Macrosandmore.

WhileInternetsearchesarestillaviablesource,thetechisemergingsorapidlythere’softennotalotofinformationavailableyet.Othertimes,therearesomanychoicesit’shardtofilterfortherightresults.Office365GroupsandTeamsfitsbothscenarios.

AsaMicrosoftCertifiedTrainer,I’vebeenhelpingotherslearnhowtobeproductivefor15years.Thinkingbacktomyfirstdaysintheoffice,collaborationconsistedofinter-officemail,deskphones,andin-personmeetings.We’vecomealongwaywithInternet,email,mobiledevices,webmeetingsandwebapps.

Thisbookexploreshowpersonalandteamproductivitycollaborationtoolscantransformthewayyouandothersworktogether,transformideastogetherandcreateglobalengagementtogether.

Welcometoawholenewworld!

HeatherSeverino

The“Conversational”Method

Wehavetwoobjectiveswhenwecreatea“Conversational”book:First,tomakesureit’swritteninaconversationaltonesothatit’sfunandeasytoread.Second,tomakesureyou,thereader,canimmediatelytakewhatyoureadandincludeitintoyourownconversations(personalorbusiness-focused)withconfidence.

Thesebooksaremeanttoincreaseyourunderstandingofthesubject.Terminology,conceptualideas,trendsinthemarket,andevenfringesubjectmatterarebroughttogethertoensureyoucanengageyourcustomer,team,co-worker,friendandeventheknow-it-allBestBuygeekonalevelplayingfield.

“GeekintheMirror”Boxes

Weinfusehumorintoourbooksthroughbothcartoonsandlightbanterfromtheauthor.Whenyouseeoneoftheseboxesit’stheauthorsteppingoutsidethedialogtospeakdirectlytoyou.Itmightbeananecdote,itmightbeapersonalexperienceorgutreactionandanalysis,itmightjustbeasarcasticquip,butthese“geekinthemirror”boxesarenottobeskipped.

WithintheseboxesIcansharejustaboutanythingonthesubjectathand.Read’em!

Office365Collaboration:What’sitallabout?

MicrosoftOffice365cameaboutin2011asagroupofcloud-basedsoftwareapplicationsandservices.Overtimetheincludedcapabilitytostoreandsharefilesinthecloudshiftedthewaymanyofuswork:anywhere–anytimeaccess,filesharingbyemailorlink,real-timeco-authoringofdocuments,andmobileapplications(apps)access.

Overtheyears,newfeaturesandapplicationshavebeenaddedtoOffice365,manyofwhichareconsideredcollaborationtools.

Beforewediscussthesetoolsingreaterdetail,let’sbreakdowncollaborationabit.Itcanbedefinedas:towork,onewithanother.

IfyouareworkingwithOffice2013/2016orOffice365,youmayalreadybecollaboratinganddidn’tevenrealizeit!SharingadocumentfromOneDriveforBusinesswithothersand

editing(co-authoring)insaiddocumentisconsideredcollaborating,albeitonamorelimitedandpossiblysmallerscale.MakingrevisionsinadocumenthostedwithinaSharePointDocumentLibraryalsocounts!Workingindedicatedcollaboration/socialspaceslikeYammerGroups,OutlookGroups,SharePointTeamSitesandTeamsisconsideredcollaborationinamorestructured,customizableenvironmentandonalargerscale.NowifOneDriveforBusiness,Yammer,OutlookGroups,SharePointTeamSitesandTeamsareterminologyyouarenotfamiliarwithyet,letsintroduceyoubrieflyhereandlaterwewilldiscusseachoneinmoredetail.

Mid-year2017Microsoft365wasintroducedbyMicrosoftCEO,SatyaNadella.Microsoft365isanintelligentandsecurepackaged

solutionforteamworkprovidingOffice365,Windows10,andEnterpriseMobility+

Securitytogether.ThissolutionisavailableforBusiness(smallandmediumsized

businesses)orEnterprise(largebusinesses).Whilewearenotgettingintothisnewly

bundledoffering,wewillcoverquiteabitinOffice365.

ABreakdownofApplicationsandServicesMicrosoftOffice–aproductivitysuiteofapplicationslikeOutlook,Word,Excel,PowerPoint,OneNote,VisioandAccessisavailableinDesktop,Mobile,andTablet-basedversions.Inthisbook,referencewillbemadetoOfficeinitsmanyforms:thecommondesktopversioninstalledonacomputer,Office2016forWindowsorMac,theweb-basedversion,Office365apps,andtheOffice365mobileappsfortabletsandphones.

OneDriveforBusinessDocumentLibrary–documentstorageandsynchronizationspaceforanindividual’spersonal

documents.ThisishostedonaSharePointServerandhasaverysimilarinterfaceandstructuretoaSharePointDocumentLibrary.

SharePointDocumentLibrary–documentstorageandmanagementsystemthat’spartofaSharePointportal,aweb-basedplatformthatintegrateswithMicrosoftOffice.

SharePointTeamSite–thisisadedicatedspacewithinaSharePointintranetportalforconnectingwithyourcolleagues,storingandsharingfiles,creatingandmanaginglists,stayinguptowithasharedcalendar,seeingrecentsiteactivity,andlinkingtootherapps.

Office365Groups–aservicethatworkswithmanyOffice365toolsandcanbesettopublicorprivate.

GroupsinOutlookincludeasharedinbox,sharedcalendar,SharePointDocumentLibrary,Plannerappandconnectorstomoreinformation.AnexistinggroupcanbeturnedintoaTeam.

GroupsinYammer–BycreatinganOffice365GroupinYammer,youwillgetaYammergroup,aplaceforconversationsandinformationsharing,aSharePointDocumentLibrary,asharedOneNoteNotebook,aSharePointTeamSite,andaprojectplaninthePlannerapp.IfyouarenotfamiliarwithYammer,it’sadedicatedspaceforgroupcollaborationwiththeYammercloud-onlyenterprisesocialnetwork.ThisintegrateswithSharePointandisincludedinOffice365.

Teams–anapplicationthatcombinesworkplaceconversations,chat,meetings,notes,documents,andconnectorstootherOffice365applicationdata/informationandnon-Microsoftproducts.Teamscanbecreatedaspublic-anyoneintheorganizationcanfindandjointhisteam,orprivate–onlytheownercanaddmemberstotheteam.The

TeamsappisavailablewithinOffice365,asamobileapp,aWindowsDesktopapp,andasaMacOS10.10orlaterapp.

SkypeforBusiness–anapplicationprovidinginstantmessaging(IM),videocalls,audiocalls,webmeetings,conferencing.AvailableinOffice365,amobileapp,WindowsDesktopapp,andMacapp.Note:InthenearfutureSkypeforBusinesswillbeintegratedwithandrebrandedaspartofMicrosoftTeams.

Okay,nowyouhaveabetterunderstandingofwhattheseappsandservicesareandhowyoumightusethem.Whatwehaven’ttalkedaboutyetishowalotoftheseservicesandappsareinterconnectedandcanbeaccessedfrommanydifferentplaces.Wewillgettothatsoonenough.First,weneedtodoabitofdiscoverytodeterminewhichofthesecollaborationtoolsmightworkbestforyourgroup’sculture.Evenifyouarenotcurrentlyintheprocessofsettingupacollaborativespace,youwillgettoknowthedifferencesandwhatmightworkbest.Youneverknowwhentheteamworkquestionsmaycomeup…inameeting,breakroom,ortheelevator.Getthatelevatorpitchready!

Office365Collaboration:TheWho,What,When,WhereandWhyTocreateasuccessfulcultureofcollaborationyouneedtoaskkeyquestionsandgatheranswersfromothersandyourself.Thiswillhelpyouchoosethebesttoolforthewayyouandothersprefertoworktogether.Thequestionslistedbelowarejustasamplingofsomethatmaybehelpful.Youmaycomeupwithmoreastheyrelatetogeographicplacementandtimezonesoffellowcolleagues,thetypesofinformationyouworkontogether,andwaysyouwanttobeupdatedonnewandchanginginformation.Asyoureadeachquestion,jotdownyouranswers.Refertotheseaseachcollaborationtoolisdiscussedlaterinthebook.Theycanhelpyoudecidewhichcollaborationappsandservicesyouwanttoadoptandembracewithinyourorganization’sculture.

• Q1:Whowillyoubecollaboratingwith?

• Q2:Howmanyindividualswillyoubecollaboratingwithonaspecificdocumentoroverallproject?Isitjustafew,30ormore?

• Q3:Aretheseindividualsinternaltoyourorganization,external,oramixofboth?

• Q4:Doyouneedtocollaborateonsomethingspecific:emailconversations,adocument/setofdocuments,acalendar,projectmanagementtasks,connectedinflowofinformationlikesocialmediapostsanddashboards,oramixtureofmany?

• Q4:Dotheindividualsyouwillbeworkingwithspendalotoftimeinoneapplicationoverothers?I.e.is90%oftheworkdayspentinOutlooktriagingemailandmanagingmeetingsorsomeothertypeofapplication?

• Q5:Isthecollaborationononecentraltopic/idea/product,oraone-to-many(hubandspoke)relationship?

• Q6:Dotheseindividualsprefertoreceiveemailnotifications,bannernotifications,orsomethingabitmorecustomizable?

Okay,enoughwithallthequestions,right?Let’scollaboratetofindthebesttoolsforyou.

AsaMicrosoftCertifiedTrainer,IhelpotherslearnhowtobeproductivewithOffice365onaregularbasis.ThequestionIhearmostis“Whyaretheresomanychoicesforcollaborationtools?Idon’tknowifIshoulduseSharePoint,OneDriveforBusiness,OneNote,Yammer,Groups,Teams,orSkypefor

BusinessforwhatIneedtoworkonwithothers.”Thegoodnewsforyouisthatifyoualreadyansweredthose6questionsaskedinthepreviousparagraph,youhave“thewho”,“thewhat”,“thewhere”and“thewhy”.Whatwewillfigureoutnowis“thewhich”,whichcollaborationtool(s)worksbestforyourspecificanswers(needs).

WhenMicrosoftTeamsbecameavailablein2016,manyspeculatedthatOffice365

Groupswasgoingaway(beingreplacedbyTeams).Thisisnotthecaseandinfact,

GroupscanbeturnedintoTeams,makingthesameinformationaccessibleinmanyplaces.WhenanewTeamiscreated,agroupisalsocreated.Somemayarguethisistoomuchinformationintoomanyplacesandthatit

makesend-useradoptionmorechallenging.Icompletelydisagreewiththis.Havingaccesstothesamecollaborationspacesinmany

appsandservicesmakessensetome.Ifyoucancollaborateonmanythingsfromone

space,youarestreamliningtheprocess.It’saboutbeingmoreefficientandproductive!

TheBigTakeawaysCollaborationwithinOffice365canhappeninmanyways.Hopefully,thebreakdownofappsandservicesintroducedhelpedyougetafundamentalunderstandingofwhat’sitaboutandwhereitislocatedwithinOffice365.Wewillgetintomuchgreaterdetailwitheachserviceandappasyouprogressthroughthebook.Whilesomeofthecollaborationservicesandappshavesimilarcollaborationtools,somearealsounique.We’llexploreeachtoolbasedonascenariofromapeerandfigureoutwhichOffice365serviceorappmayprovidethebestspaceforteamworktohappen.

Office365Collaboration:Co-authoring

Eliashasakeynotepresentationheandasmallgroupofcolleaguesareworkingon.Hesentthispresentationouttothegroupbywayofanemailattachment.Afewdayslateraseachcoworkerrespondswiththeireditsherealizeshehasmanydifferentversionsofthisfileanddreadstheprocessofmergingthesetogether.Theotherchallengehehasisthatasthesevariousversionsareemailedbackandforthnoonehasvisibilitytothechangesalreadymade.HeheardaboutabetterwaytocollaborateinOffice365andwantstoknowifthiswillhelphisteamworkmoreefficientlyandgivevisibilitytoallseeingthelatestchanges.

Youmightbeshakingyourheadrightnowandsaying,“Yes,Ihavehadthisexactproblemplayouttimeandtimeagain!”

WhileElias’scenarioisspecifictoapresentationfile,thisisnottheonlyfileheandhiscolleaguesneedtoworkontogether.Storingthesefilesinacloud-baseddocumentlibrarymayworkgreatforsharingthesewithothersandeditingwithintheonlineordesktopversionoftheOfficeapplication.Theeditingcanbedoneinrealtimewithmanycolleaguesworkinginthedocumentatthesametime.Thisiswhatisknownasco-authoring.ItcanalsobeupdatingasharedOneNotenotebookorco-authoringadocumentinaSkypeforBusinessmeeting.Let’stakeacloserlookathowEliascanaccomplishthiswithsomeoftheOffice365applicationsandservices.

OneDriveforBusinessisagreatplaceforEliastokickoffthesharingprocess.Sincethisareaissetupforpersonaluse,alldocumentsmovedtohisOneDrivelibraryornewlycreatedfromthesameOneDrivelibraryareonlyaccessiblebyElias.

Therearemanywaysthedocumentcanbeshared,fromOneDriveorwhileviewingthedocumentintheonlineordesktopapp.Withthesetwomethods,thereareoptionsavailabletosendbyemail,grantpermissionstoeditorview,orcopyalinktoaccessthefile.AnotheroptionistoattachittoanOffice365Mailappemail(inasharableway).It’sthesamefamiliarPaperclipAttachcommandyoumayalreadyknowinOutlook,itjustworksinadifferent(better)way.Whenclickedtherearechoicesforhowthefilecanbeattached.ItcanbeattachedinthatoldfamiliarwaythatcausedEliasalltheversionissuesofthepast.Thismightstillbegoodifjustsendingtoonepersonforviewing(notcollaboration).Insteadofselectingthat,hepicksafilefromtheOneDrivelibrarylisted.ThefileisattachedasbeingsharedwitheachpersonontheTolineofthemessage.

WhenafileisattachedfromOutlook2016withthePaperclipcommand,youcanbrowsetheCloudstoragelibrarieslikeOneDriveandSharePoint.Thismenualsodisplaysthemost

recentfilesyouhavebeencreatingandediting,makingiteasytoattachthefile

quickly.Imean,doesitgetanybetterthanthat?Idon’tknowaboutyou,butwhenIamattachingsomethingtoanemailitisusuallythatlastdocumentIjustmadechangesto

andneedtosenditoutASAP!

Okay,sothefileisnowonitswaytohiscollaborators.So,what’snext?Well,let’sgettothegoodstuff,co-authoring,chattingaboutchangesandtrackingwhat’shappened.

Co-authoringWhenyouareworkinginthesamedocumentatthesametime,alotishappening!Whoisherenotificationspop-upintheupper-rightcorner,acolorlegendappearsnexttoalistmakingiteasytofindwhereeachpersonismakingchanges,andifSkypeforBusinessisenabledwithyourOffice365subscription,achatpanelcandisplayinstantmessaginginlinewiththedocumentinview.

WhileEliasisco-authoringwithhiscolleagueshe’shavingoneofthoseAha!momentsandcuriouslyasksrelatedquestions:

Elias:HowdoIknowwhomadewhatchanges?

Heather:TheownerofthedocumentcanviewversionsintheOneDriveforBusinesslibrary.Theseversionsaredisplayedinamajorversionformat,1.0,2.0,3.0andincludedwiththisisthedate/timestampforthechanges,andwhomadetheassociatedchanges.

Elias:DoIhaveawaytomanageversions?

Heather:Yes,theownerofthedocumentcanviewtheversionsandmanagetheversions.BymanageImean,restoretoapreviousversionordeleteaversion.

Elias:Doestheappknowhowtomanageconflictsiftwoormorepeopletrytochangethesametext,celldata,pictureplaceholder?

Heather:Yes,therearesomebuilt-inconflictrules.Ifyouandsomeoneelsetrytomakechangesattheexactsametimetothesamecell,textplaceholder,orotherareaitwillnotletyou.

Elias:Howarechangesbeingsaved?Idon’tseeaSavebutton.

Heather:Wellthat’sthebrilliantthingaboutcloudhostedstorage.Allchangesareautomaticallybeingsavedtothelibraryyouopenedorcreateditfrom.

Elias:Canyouco-authorinOffice2016apps?Istheprocessanydifferent?

Heather:Yes,youcanco-authorinOffice2016appslikeWord,Excel,PowerPointandOneNote.Theprocessforthemostpartwilllookthesame:colorlegendmatchingcolorstoperson’sname,similarcalloutsfordeletes,additionsandeditsonscreen,andchattingintheIMpanel.WhatworksslightlydifferentforsomeapplicationsisSavingandRefreshingrecentchanges.Thistoolhelpsyoutoseethelatestchangesbyothersco-authoring.

Elias:WhydoIhavebothOffice2016andOffice365apps?Isitbettertouseoneovertheotherforeditingandcollaborating?

Heather:WhenyouopenadocumentfromOneDriveforBusinessbywayofawebbrowser,thefilewillalwaysopenintheonlineapplikeWordOnline(browserversion).IfyouhaveworkedwithOffice365beforeyoumayhavenoticedthat

somefeaturesarenotavailableonlinelikeMailMergeinWord,MacrosinExcel,AnimationTriggersinPowerPoint,andVideoRecordinginOneNote.Asfeaturescanbeengineeredforusewithinmodernbrowsers,theyarebeingintroducedbyMicrosoft.Forotherreasons,likeMacros,theyarenotavailabletoworkwithintheonlineversionforsecurityreasons(youcanopenaworkbookthatcontainsmacros,youjustwon’tseethem).Ifyouneedtouseapplicationcommandthatisnotavailableintheonlineversion,thisisgreattimetoswitchtothedesktopversion.Theotherreasonyoumaywanttoworkwiththeonlineappsversioniswhenyouareon-the-goanddon’thaveyourdevicewithyou.Ihave,asyoumayhave,onoccasionusedthecomputerinthehotelbusinesscenter.It’sgreatformakingquickeditsandcollaboratingwithothers.

WhenastudentorpeermentionshowtheywishaMicrosoftapplicationcouldworkdifferentlyorhaveanewfeatureidea,I

alwaysmentionMicrosoftUserVoice.It’saplacewhereyoucanviewwhatothershavesuggested,andifyouagreevoteforit!Ifyoudon’tfindwhatyouarelookingfor,youcansuggestyourideaforotherstovote.I’ve

heardthatoncetheideahitsapproximately100votesorso,theproductdevelopmentteamstartstheprocessofmakingitpossible(ifitis).Useyouroutdoorvoiceandbeheard!

https://office365.uservoice.com/

TrackingChangesEarlieritwasmentionedhowsomethingmightworkdifferentlyintheonlineappversusthedesktopapp.Trackchangesisoneofthese.It’senoughofonetomakesureEliasunderstandshowitworks.IfaWorddocumentissavedtoacloud-based

libraryandtrackedchangeshasbeenturnedonintheWord2016,changeswillbetrackednomatterwherethedocumentisbeingedited.Toaccept,reject,orturnofftrackingchanges,itwillneedtobeviewedinWord2016.

Co-authoringinaWord,ExcelorPowerPointfilehasasimilarlookwithaWho’shereareaintheupper-rightcornerandSkypechatpane.OneNotealsohasalotofgreatcollaborationtools,enoughofthemthatit’sgettingitsownspaceheretodiscusseachone.

OneNotehasbeenaroundsince2003,andEliashasusedthisovertheyearsformanaginghisownprojectandmeetingnotesbuthasn’tcollaboratedwithhiscolleaguesinthesamenotebookyet.Let’sexplorehowthismighthelphimandhissmallgroupofcolleaguesworktogether.

OneNotecanbeamulti-userdigitalnotebooktomanageallprojects.RememberthatTrapperKeeperyouhadbackinschool,youknow,theonethatwasthecoolest(ifyouwerepartofthatgeneration)!Evenifyoudidn’thaveone,justimagineit’sthatcooltimes10!

Speakingofschool,OneNoteisalsousedbyeducatorstomanageclassesandstudentassignments,intheEDUareait’sknownasaclassnotebookandworkswiththeClassroom(whichisbecomingpartofTeams).WewilldiscussTeamslater.

TherearesomegreatOneNotelearningtooladd-ins.Forexample,ifyouarehelpingsomeonelearnhowtoread,checkout

ImmersiveReader:http://onenote.com/learningtools

CollaborationinOneNotestartsfromtheminuteanewnotebookissetup.StartinganewnotebookworksdifferentlythanstartinganewWord,Excel,orPowerPointfile.Before

contentcanbeaddedinthenotebook,thesavedlocationneedstobeselected.Forcollaboration,aOneDriveorSharePointDocumentLibraryworksbest.Byselectingcloudstorage,contentcanbesharedwithothers.Allthosewhohaveaccesstothenotebookcancreatesections,addpages,andaddmanyformsofcontentlikefree-formtextonpages,drawingandinkingonpages,insertingpicturesandscreenclippings,embeddingfiles-printedorasattachments,recordaudioorvideo,includemeetingdetailsfromOutlookmeetingsandmuchmore.

Allthechangessynctothecloudstoragedocumentlibrary(OneDriveorSharePoint)sothateveryoneisviewingthelatestandgreatestversion.

SeeingwhomadewhatchangesandwhenthechangesweremadeworksdifferentlythantheotherfamiliarOfficefileslikeWord,ExcelandPowerPoint.

InOneNote,thereisaribbondedicatedtothesechangesandit’scalledtheHistoryRibbon.Changescanbeviewedbyeachauthororbyrecentchanges-whenthechangesweremade-yesterday,lastweekandallthewaybackto6monthsago.It’squiteusefulafterreturningfromvacationorabusinesstrip;it’saquickwaytocatchuponnewlyaddedcontentandseewheresignificantchangeshavebeenmade.Thesearchresultsaredisplayedinapanelandarehighlightedoneachofthepages.

DeletedsectionsandpagesgotoaOneNoteRecycleBin.YoucanfindthiswithintheHistorytabbedribbon.TheseitemsstayintheRecycleBinfor60daysandarethenautomaticallydeleted.Tosavespace,checkthisfromtimetotime,andmanuallydeletewhatisnolongerneeded.

InyearspasttherewasagreatsiteforOneNoteresourceslikecustomtemplatescalledIHeartOneNote.Whilethatsiteisnolongerinexistence(tomyknowledge),IstillsayIHeartOneNotewheneverItalkaboutit(Ireallydoloveitthatmuch,maybeevenmorethanmyTrapperKeeperbackinthe

day).

TheBigTakeawaysItlookslikewemayhavesolvedallofElias’attachmentwoes.

Documentscanbestoredinonecentralcloud-baseddocumentlibraryandsharedwithmanyforco-authoringinrealtimewhileseeingthelatestchanges.IfquestionsariseaboutthesechangesaSkypechatcantakeplaceinlinewiththedocumentandwhenemailinganattachedfile,itcannowbesharedfromthecloud.

OneNotecanprovideEliasasharednotebookwhichhasitsownsetofuniquecollaborationandco-authoringfeatures.Dependingontheprojectneedsofthegroup,thismaybeamoresuitedworkspace.

Office365Collaboration:Groups

PeteriswhatyoumightcallaRoadWarrior.Constantlyonthego;speakingatconferences,helpingotherslearnemergingtechnologies,andclosingdeals.Inthemanycommunitiesheworksin,heneedsawaytoeasilyswitchfromprojecttoproject;gatherthelatestdiscussions,editfiles,andviewhiscalendarinlinewiththecommunitygroupcalendar.Knowingthathespendsabout90%ofhisworkdayinOutlook,hiscolleaguesuggestshetryOffice365Groups.We’lltakeacloserlookatwhatGroupsareallaboutbutfirstlet’sseewhat’sneededasfarastechnologyforGroupstobeavailableforuse.

Office365Groupsareasubscription-basedserviceandonlyavailableforuseiftheorganization’sOffice365subscriptionisusingExchangeOnlineandSharePointOnline.Theseare

includedintheOffice365BusinessEssentialsandBusinessPremiumplans,andtheEnterpriseE1,E3andE5plans.

GroupsaremostcommonlysetupandaccessedintheOffice365MailapporOutlook2016.SofaritsoundsperfectforPeter!

Let’sdiscussthesetupandthengetintothespecificareasofagroup.

TheGroupsareaislocatedwithintheOffice365MailorOutlook2016NavigationPane(belowInbox,SentItemsandDeletedItems).IfGroupsarenotlistedthereit’smostlikelynotactivatedwithinyourorganization,theorganizationisnotusingtheonlineversionsofSharePointandExchange,ordoesnothavetheversionneededofOffice365.

Whenyouaresettingupanewgroup,youneedtogiveitauniquename.Thereasonforthisisthatitalsosetsupanamedemailaddressforcommunicatingwithallmembersofthegroup.PeterhasdecidedtonamehisGroupBookTour.Theassignedemailaddressisauto-populatedasbooktour@company.com(ifthisemailaddressisnotalreadyinusewithinhisorganization).ThisemailaddressbecomespartoftheGlobalAddressList(GAL)andistreatedlikeasingleidentity.Whenhesendsamessagetothisemailaddress,itwillnotifyallofthemembersofthegroupwiththemessage.We’lldiscussnotificationsandconversationsmoreinabit.Fornow,let’sproceedwiththerestofthegroupsetup.

Groupscanalsobesettopublicorprivate.Ifheselectspublic,membersoftheorganizationcansearchforandjointhegroup.Allcontentinapublicgroupcanbeseenbyanyoneinhisorganization.Ifthegroupissetasprivateinstead,onlythosewhohavebeenapprovedtojoincanseegroupconversationsandcontent.Publicandprivategroupscannotbeviewedoraccessedbythoseoutsideofhisorganizationunlesstheyhavebeeninvitedasguests.

Memberscanbeaddedduringthesetupprocessoratanypointlater.

Nowthatthegroupissetup,let’sdiscusstheservicesincludedinthiscozylittlespace.GroupsarereallyacontainertoorganizeanddisplaymanyservicesofferedinOffice365andSharePointOnline.Itincludesaconversation,sharedgroupcalendar,adedicatedOneNotenotebook,aPlannerprojectboard/planandconnectorstomanyotherservices.

HereishoweachoftheseareasmightbeusefultoPeterandtheothermembersofhisgroup:

Conversation–adedicatedareaforcommunicationwithinthegroupspace.Themessagesarepersistent,meaningtheyarealwaysthere.WhenPeterreturnsfromthattriptotheCaymanIslands,hecancatchuponthebrilliantideashiscolleagueshaveshared.

Files–ThisisaSharePointDocumentLibrarythatisautomaticallycreatedwiththegroup.Accesstothisfollowsthegrouppermissions,publicorprivate;onlymemberswiththepermissionsneededcanworkwiththefiles.

Calendar–Aplacetolistalltheactivitiesandmilestoneshappeningwithprojectsthegroupisworkingon.TheGroupCalendarcanbeviewedinlinewithapersonalcalendarsothatallmeetingsareinview.Thishelpstoseewherethereisoverlapandavailabletime.

Notebook–AsharedOneNotenotebookthatisreadyforuse,nosetupneeded.Addcontentandcollaborate,collaborate,collaborate.

Planner–AnOffice365appincludedwiththeGroup.Greatforassigningandtrackingtasksforgroupmembers.Taskscanevenbeassignedtomorethanoneperson!

Site–AwaytoviewthesameservicesavailablewithintheGroup,justaSharePointOnlineTeamSiteviewinstead.

Connectors–DeliversinteractivecontentandupdatesfromOffice365appsandservicestothegroup.TheseconnectorsgofarbeyondtheMicrosoftappsyouknow.TheyincludemanyforSales,HR,ProjectManagement,andotherindustries.AfewtomentionareAha!,Twitter,Salesforce,Zendesk,MailChimp,GitHub,UserVoiceandTrello.

AtthispointPetersays“Whoa,Nelly,thisisgreatbuthowamIgoingtokeeptrackoftheseupdatesthatarehappeningfrequently?”That’swheresubscribingtoemailnotificationscomesin,Peter.Whenyousubscribetoagroup,themessagesandmeetinginvitationsaresenttoyourinbox.Theyarealsosavedinyourgroupfolder.Ifthemessagesormeetinginvitationsareaccidentallydeleted,thereisstillaseparatecopystoredintheassociatedgroupfolder.ThesubscriptionnotificationsinGroupsworksverydifferentlythanthatofTeams(we’llgettothisinthenextchapter).

Inearly2017,YammergroupswereintegratedwithOffice365Groups.ThismeansthatYammergroupsnowhaveOffice365serviceslikeSharePointOnline,OneNoteandPlanneravailable.Youcanalsocollaborateexternallyinthisgroupbyaddingcustomers,partners,vendorsandotherstothegroupconversationsforinput.Ifyouneedmorethanaconversation,dedicatedexternalgroupsornetworkscanbecreatedinYammertoexpandthecommunitycapabilities.Yammergroups

can’tbeactivatedinTeams.YoucanaddaYammerfeedasaconnectortoachannelinstead.

Inmyopinion,Office365Groupsworkbestforsmalltomediumsizegroupsofinternalandexternalmembers.YammerGroupsaremoresuitedforlargegroupsacrossanentireorganizationorthosethatmayneedmore

visibility.IfyouarenotfamiliarwithYammer,it’sanenterprisesocialnetwork.

TheBigTakeawaysWefoundanexcellentcollaborationspaceforPeter.GroupsisaccessibletohimonthegowiththeOffice365Mailapp,evenonhismobiledevice.WhileworkingfromhisPC,hecanalsoworkinOutlook2016Groups.Onoccasion,whilebeingasocialbutterflyinYammergroups,hecanworkinafamiliarwayasthesameOffice365Groupappsandservicesareavailablethere,too.

IfheeverdecidestoventurebeyondthewallsofOutlook,hemaywanttotip-toeonovertoTeams.Afterall,anexistinggroupcanbeturnedintoateam.Moreonthisinthenextchapter.

Office365Collaboration:Teams

TodayShariworksontwicethenumberofteamprojectsasshedid5yearsago.Shespendsherworkdaysswitchingfromapp-to-apptosendcommunications,attendonlinemeetings,chatwithhercoworkersandupdateprojecttasks.Herwishistohaveacentralhubtoworkwithothersontheseprojects.HercolleagueLeeannesuggestsanewOffice365appcalledTeams.Let’skickthetiresandtakeTeamsforaspin!

TeamsisoneofthenewkidsontheOfficeAppLauncherandisgettingalotofattention(rightfullyso,IMO).

Itsdubbedachat-basedworkspacebyMicrosoftandthatdescriptionisfitting.ThesameappsandservicesavailableinGroups(forthemostpart)arealsoavailableinTeams.Thedifferenceisthehub-and-spokeapproachtotheTeamandChannelsrelationship.ThisapproachiswhatmakesLeeanne’ssuggestiontoShariseemlikeagoodsolutionforherneeds.

Anexistinggroupcanbeturnedintoateam,orwhencreatinganewteam,anewgroupwillalsobecreatedandassociatedwiththeteam.

Shariiscurrentlyworkingon6projects,let’sseehowtheymaytranslatetoaTeamandChannelsworkspace.She’sbeeninvitedtothreedifferentTeams:ProductDevelopment,Sales&Marketing,andOnboarding.

WithintheSales&Marketingteam,shenavigatestothevariouschannelsbyregion:NorthAmerica,SouthAmerica,EuropeandAsiaandcatchesuponrecentconversationswithgeographicallylocatedcolleagues,viewsapinnedPowerBIdashboard,addsinformationtoawiki,andcreatesapollwiththePollybot.

WithanothercoupleofclicksshequicklynavigatestotheProductDevelopmentteamandstartsaSkypemeetingwithinthePhase2ChannelautomaticallyincludingalltheProductDevelopmentteammembers.

She’sdiscoveringthattheexperienceintheTeamsappiscomfortable;allthefamiliarOfficeappsareintegratedinoneworkspaceandinawaythatshelikestowork.

Theprivatemessagingisacozyplaceforone-to-oneorgroupconversationsthatdon’tneedtotakeplaceinthechannelconversationforalltoread.Sometimestheseconversationsthatdon’tapplytotheentireteamoraroundatopicofconcerntoallcanbecomenoise.Theseunscheduledmessagesormeetingsarelessformalandmorelikeacoworkerstoppingbyyourdesktochat.

Can’tdecidewhichoneyouwilluse–GroupsorTeams?Ifoneoftheseisbeingadoptedinyourorganization,Ioftenfindit’sthebosswhodecides.Ifemailiswhatthebosslikes,

Groupsitwillbe.

That’swhyyouarepartofthisconversationhere,right?So,youcanhelpdrivethat

decisionwhenthetimearrives!

WhileShari’sfindingherwayaroundTeams,letspointoutsomeofthekeyareas.

Teams–Acentralhubworkspaceforcollaboration.Ateamincludesindividualchannelsforspecificworkandprojectstotakeplacein.

HerearequickfactsyoumaywanttoconsiderifyouaretheadministratorforTeams,theownerofaTeam,orcreatorofTeams:

• ThemaximumnumberofteamsthatcanbecreatedinanOffice365tenantiscurrently500,000.

• Ateamcanhaveupto5owners.

• Ausercancreate250teams.

• Themaximumnumberofmemberswhocanbeaddedtoateamis999.

• Downloadable32-bitand64-bitinstallersforWindowsareavailableforcentralizedITinstallation.A.dmginstallationfileisalsoavailableforMaccomputers.

Channels–ConsideredaspoketotheTeamhub.Itislistedbelowthechannelandindented.It’sadedicatedspaceforcontentrelevanttothenamedchannel.Eachteamcomeswithonepre-builtchannelnamedGeneral.Thischannelhasthreetabbedareastogetyoustarted;Conversations,Files,andWiki.Conversations–aplacewithinachannelforShariandotherstohavepersistentchats.Yourmessagescanbeeditedordeletedduringthefirst24hoursaftertheyareposted.Whendocumentsareadded,meetingsarelaunched,andpollsarecreated,notificationsforthesewillalsoappearintheConversationsarea.

Emojis,StickersandMemes–ThesearegreatwaysforSharitorespondtoconversationsvisually;givingpraise,officedrama(neverhappens,right?)andaddingsomedailyhumorwithcustommessages.

SharePointDocumentLibraries–Thisiswheredocumentsaddedtoaconversationwillbesaved.Newdocumentscanalsobecreatedhereandexistingdocumentsuploadedhere.Eachlibraryhas1TBofstorageandeachdocumentcanhaveamaximumsizeof10GB.

TeammemberscanalsoaddadocumentlibraryfromanexistingSharePointsiteasatabbedareawithinachannel.ForadvancedSharePointfunctionalitylikeapplyingaworkflowandreviewingversionhistory,theywillneedtogototheSharePointsitetomanagethis.

Tabs–Office365appsandfileslikePlanner,

OneNote,PowerPointandmorecanbeaddedtotheChannelspace.

Connectors–ThesearethesameconnectorsdiscussedinGroups.It’sawaytobringinformationintotheTeamchannelforeveryonetohaveaconversationaround,buildinsightsandrespondasneeded.

ThoselistedinthescreenshotbelowarethemostpopularonesasofAugust2017.Thereareseveralcategoriesyoucanperuse.ForonlinenewsandinsightssetupRSSfeedsandBingNews.YourteamcanquicklyanalyzeandrespondtosocialmediawithconnectionstoFacebookPages,Twitter,HootsuiteandYammer.CRMcontentfromDynamics365andSalesforcecanflowintoateam.IfyouworkwithProjectManagement,connectionscanalsobeestablishedwithJiraandTrello.

Bots–Therearemanybotsavailabletohelp.T-botistheTeamsbotthatcanprovidehelpwhenquestionsareasked.

OtherhelpfulbotsincludePollyforcreatingPollsinconversations,PersonalSecretaryforschedulingmeetings,andKayakforgatheringbudget-friendlytravelfares.WhileT-botisautomaticallyenabledinthechatarea,theotherbotsmustbeenabledintheareatheywillworkin-privatechatorspecificteam.Botsneedtogatherinformationfromteammembersandneedtocommunicatethisintheconversationorchatareas.ThePollyBotsetsupapollbasedonaquestionaskedbyateammember.

SkypeMeetings–Anunscheduledmeeting(alsoknownasMeetNow)canbestartedintheTeamChannelconversationarea.AscheduledmeetingcanalsobecreatedfromthesameareaortheMeetingsareaoftheNavigationbar.Themaximumnumberofpeopleinameetingis80.

Meetings–ThisareadisplaysupcomingOutlookmeetingsforthepersonloggedintoTeams.

PrivateMessages–Outsideoftheopengroupconversations,thisiswhereprivatequestionscanbesenttoT-botforhelpandwhereprivatechatswithoneorseveralothercolleaguescantakeplace(outsideoftheChannelconversation).Therecanbe20membersinaprivatechatincludingthepersonwhocreatedthechat.

Search–Astheteamgrowsandthechannelsfillwithconversations,documentsandothertypesofcontentsearchcanhelpfindbyakeywordsearch,nameofpersonorkeyword.Thesearchresultsthatappeararesortedinthreecategories:Notifications–ThisworksdifferentlythantheemailsubscriptionsforOffice365Groups.Therearemanywaystobenotified:bybanner,emailandmoreandwhatyouwanttobenotifiedabout,like@mentions,updatesandmore.

TheTeamsappisavailableasanonlineappwithinOffice365,asadesktopappandamobileapp.

TheDesktopandOnlineappshavethesameinterface,withslightdifferences.AsofAugust2017,theonlyfunctionaldifferenceIhaveseenishostingaSkypemeetingwithinateam.It’snotavailableintheonlineversionyet,butitshouldbeavailablesoon.Otherdifferencesyoumayseewiththeonlineversionmaybecausedbythebrowseryouareworkingwithandsettingsofthis,likeifappscandisplayinframesorifitneedstoopeninanotherwindow.

Many,includingmyself,areembracingthisnewall-in-oneworkspace.AsMicrosoftaddsadditionalapps,servicesandcapabilities,mycrystalball(orisittheMagic8ball?)saysthismaybetheonlyappyouneedtogetwork

doneindividuallyandasateam!

TheBigTakeawaysSharihasdiscoveredawaytoworktogetherbetter.Shehasamoreefficientwaytoeasilynavigatethe6growingprojectssheisworkingonwithhercolleaguesintheTeamsapp.Notonlyissheabletoaccessthetribalknowledgebeingsharedbyothersintheconversationsarea,sheisalsoabletogetintuitivehelpfromherintelligentbotsnamedT-botandhiscutesidekickbluebirdpal,Polly,andmanyothers.

Whilesheisonthego,theTeamsmobileappisessentialinupdatingtheteamwithsitevisitphotos,documentrevisionsandthosespur-of-the-momentmeetings.OccasionallysheaccessestheassociatedOffice365groupsinOutlook(unlikePeter,whoprettymuchlivesthere).