Workplace communication will always be important. If your employees are not communicating at work, the quality of your services and products will dip, information siloes will become a daily occurrence, and customers will not be impressed by the level of service you provide them.
As a result, you need a communication platform that combines several digital communication solutions into one user interface. The most common products that organizations are using to fulfill this need are Microsoft Teams and Zoom.
An overview of Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is a collaboration and cloud communication platform that delivers various social and collaborative tools to users through the Internet. It allows you to host video conferencing sessions, message your team in group chats, organize your tasks with an integrated project planner, and share files and documents within secure social channels.
Teams is offered to businesses through the Microsoft 365 subscription service. Teams is available across all business and enterprise plans—excluding Microsoft 365 Apps for business. Collaborating and communicating at work is streamlined with Teams.
Teams supports several useful features that any business is sure to find value in. They are:
- Screen sharing: This feature allows users to share their desktop screen during audio and video calls.
- Video conferencing: Gives staff the ability to initiate face-to-face video calls through the Internet.
- Audio calls: Allows users to make phone calls from any Internet-connected device.
- Chat: An instant messaging feature that also supports file sharing.
- Teams and channels: Allows users to create and manage private groups for their team.
- Calendar: Lets users schedule and view events from a calendar that syncs to all authorized devices.
When communicating at work, especially when staff are spread out across several locations, unified communications solutions are vital for the ongoing operations of a business. Microsoft Teams is an excellent cloud communication platform for companies looking to streamline communications and boost productivity.
What is Zoom?
Zoom is a cloud communication platform that helps improve collaboration among teams. It offers users the ability to host audio and video calls, record them, and carry out live chats. It also supports Zoom Apps, which provide additional functionality by allowing businesses to integrate third-party apps into the program.
Zoom is available in a paid and free version that allows users to host meetings for up to 100 participants or higher (depending on the specific annual plan you subscribe to). As an organization’s cloud communication platform, Zoom offers:
- Group meetings: Video conferences for up to 100 people or more.
- One-on-one conferences: Known casually as "Zoom meetings," users can initiate and conduct an unlimited number of private meetings.
- Meeting recordings: Meeting leaders have the option of recording their meetings to log the details of the discussion.
- Instant messaging: Compose and send written messages instantly, in and outside meetings.
Microsoft Teams vs Zoom: The differences in the platforms
At a glance, Zoom and Microsoft Teams are the same cloud communication platform with different brandings and developers. Both make communicating at work easier, but in slightly different ways. The differences between the two solutions are as follows:
- Integration capabilities: Microsoft Teams was designed to readily integrate with the Microsoft 365 suite, allowing seamless transitions and data synchronization between the individual tools. It can also integrate with third-party apps. Zoom can only integrate with other solutions with the use of add-ons.
- Cybersecurity measures: Teams leverages advanced digital security solutions, such as multi-factor authentication (MFA), advanced threat protection, and more. Zoom’s security features are not as advanced as those found in Teams.
- Task management functions: Teams supports multiple to-do list functions between SharePoint lists, planner, etc., for more productive task management. Zoom does not support this type of feature without a third-party app.
- Tailored solutions: Zoom’s add-ons allow users to customize the cloud collaboration platform to suit their needs. Teams supports extensions and is customizable to a degree, but not as much as Zoom.
How collaborating and communicating at work with Microsoft Teams can benefit your business
Companies today are moving faster than ever before, requiring employees to strengthen the relationships they share with each other. Teamwork is exceptionally important in the workplace, but with staff coming and going and customers expecting you to fix their issues minutes after the inquiry has been made… You will need more than a social tool—you need a collaborative cloud communication platform.
Microsoft Teams is a dynamic collaboration solution built specifically for businesses of all sizes and across industries. The platform integrates with the SharePoint application and Exchange to help teams better manage information, take advantage of cloud storage, and deliver results faster. At the same time, it also provides users with co-authoring capabilities, a function that allows any number of authorized users to access and edit documents at the same time.
With Teams, you and your staff can have peace of mind knowing that you can leverage various communication tools (with built-in collaboration functions) to keep everyone updated on projects, deadlines, and new developments.
Adopt Microsoft’s cloud communication platform with the help of Teams experts
Thanks to collaboration technology, communicating at work has never been easier. Microsoft Teams allows team members to collaborate on assignments, communicate in various capacities, and keep the ball rolling on operations.
The Microsoft Teams experts at Everconnect can help you install Teams, train your organization on its best practices, and provide ongoing support. While there is nothing inherently wrong with Zoom, it is not as robust as Microsoft Teams, and your business deserves only the best. So, if you want to keep your staff collaborating and communicating at work with a cost-efficient tool that will enhance your staff’s productivity, contact Everconnect today.
