Breaking down Communication & Collaboration Options in Office 365 TMO in O365

Back in the Day… Life Was Simpler Want to communicate with someone? Send an email. Feeling fancy? Hit ‘em up on Skype (Office Communicator for us older folks). Document collaboration was handled in SharePoint using a handful of tools. External folks picked up large documents in FTP sites.

Modern Times; Modern Tools Office 365 gives us the ability to track tasks, share information, and collaborate with colleagues in ways we’ve never had before! Modern Times; Modern Tools

Office 365 is a Cohesive Suite of Tools One O365 application can provide flexibility for a variety of needs. Plus, there are multiple apps that provide similar functionality… Task tracking To-Do Outlook Tasks Planner Document storage/sharing SharePoint OneDrive Teams (psssttt… its back-end is SharePoint and OneDrive) Outlook (Can but shouldn’tshare docs internally via email. You’re duplicating data. Knock it off.) This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC Office 365 is a Cohesive Suite of Tools

It can feel like we have Too Many Options! So let’s take a step back and change our focus from the tools to people and our goals. Who are we working with? Are they in my company/org or outside? Do I need to share information or work together in a collaborative way? Do we need to talk frequently as we work together?

But Let’s Be Clear… It’s This Not This

Let’s break it down by people! Office 365 is the Swiss Army Knife of the workplace We have a variety of tools available to suit our needs. SharePoint is the really big blade, providing putability, findability, organization, security, news… but there are options. Ever run into folks who don’t need a site, just a place to “share files?” Teams! There isn’t a cookie cutter solution because we’re dealing with people. The whole point of having options is to use the one that makes the most sense in a given scenario and for a particular need. Let’s break it down by people!

Who Are We Working With? Me, Myself & I… maybe you I use OneDrive for my personal work files I send emails (Outlook) We – Teamwork Makes the Dream Work! Chat in Teams Collaborate on docs and projects in Teams Use team sites (SharePoint) – These become your department/project/Business collaboration sites Both SharePoint and Teams support external users Us. Collectively; the Organization Broadcast and share with our company in Yammer Share “company public” data on Communication sites Reiterate corporate communication with email Communicate with external folks Thanks to “Coach John” for this way of looking at Office 365 audience scoping!

Me, Myself, and I… Maybe you One person works in OneDrive, as a rule. I may choose to share something with you but it’s not something that’s ready for a SharePoint site /Teams. OneDrive is the PERFECT replacement for your desktop! Sync to computer for easy access Mobile – your files are everywhere you are!

Team Work Makes the Dream Work! SharePoint and Teams are for… well… teams Departments Project groups Organizational Units When we are working as a team we use our SharePoint sites and Microsoft Teams. Why Teams too? Because Teams are backed up by SharePoint sites. Does this mean we never email internally? No but, consider who you’re emailing. Do they work better with email or an app notification? It’s easier to always go to one tool for internal communication than keep track of where the message came from.

Corporation = Us Communication that addresses all of Us as part of our corporation needs to come from a platform scoped at everyone. Outlook, Yammer, and SharePoint Communication sites are designed to address a broader audience.

Another Way to Think About It

Cookie cutter solutions rarely work well Who is your audience? Me My Team Larger group or organization How do your teammates, colleagues work? Fast paced chat Calls Voice or video Working through an email queue Which communication tool will engage others? Live events Social platforms Email (rarely, let’s be honest) Follow emails up with more engaging communication

Thanks for joining! Joy T. Apple @JoyOfSharePoint joytapple@paitgroup.com