How to Seamlessly Migrate to Microsoft Teams

More SMBs are recognizing just how team-focused the modern workplace is. Around 80% of employee time is spent collaborating, and there are now twice as many teams in a given office. Employees are growing accustomed to intelligent chat rather than email, and 45% use social tools in the workplace. Since SMBs are twice as likely to hire remote employees, they want collaboration platforms that will support disparate employees, and encourage team productivity. Many are making the switch to Microsoft Teams - a platform that optimizes efficiency, and complements smaller IT budgets. 

If You’re Considering a Move to Teams, Here’s What to Expect from Your Application Roll-Out:

Identifying Your Company's Collaboration Pain Points

Prior to any resource migration, our consultants need to have a thorough grasp on areas of friction within your infrastructure. Common problems include:

• Version Control

  • without real time updates, team members edit outdated content, or produce documents without final adjustments

• Time Management

  • ineffective scheduling tools, inefficient meetings, and unnecessary travel time chip away at productive employee hours

• Document Storage

  • without centralized file storage and share, employees waste time locating assets, and are more likely to use unsanctioned applications

• Integrated Security Solutions

  • in addition to shadow IT, office environments without layered security are often limited in their ability to collaborate with other, more secure external organizations
     

All of these concerns, and more, can be remedied by moving to Teams. The application offers real-time document sharing, so employees are collaborating on the latest version of a given file. Co-authoring isn't limited to Teams, as integrations across Microsoft 365 allow users to sync emails, contacts, and calendars across devices - even when offline with Outlook. Microsoft SharePoint runs on the back-end of Teams, providing users access to customized file storage and company intranets. Both can be secured with tools such as multi-factor authentication, identity-based access controls, Microsoft InTune and Enterprise Mobility + Security. And by consolidating resources within Teams, such as traditional phone, video conferencing, and chat services, your company is able to decrease its attack surface - while increasing efficiency. 

Microsoft Teams Migration Roadmap 

Once we've identified our clients' objectives and challenges, and assessed their technology capabilities, we recommend one of two paths: migrating all employees at once (often preferred by smaller businesses), or initiating a pilot program (helpful for larger corporations looking for internal advocates before company-wide roll-out). Regardless of their preference, our Teams implementations include the following stages:

• Team Work Basics

  • Optimize the cloud environment by migrating email, files, and identity to Microsoft Azure
  • Standardize internal Teams organization, and move files to relevant channels
  • Integrate other Microsoft services and applications into Teams experience

• Adoption and Change Management

  • Provide in-person workshops, Teams training, and troubleshoot user concerns 
  • Offer on-demand training resources via Microsoft, or scheduled live sessions
  • Agree on metrics and track usage to refine offerings and roadmaps
    
    
    

Depending on the needs of individual clients, and their technical capabilities, we offer additional Teams support in the following ways:

• Meetings Management

  • Maintain ongoing meetings management
  • Conduct an assessment to determine user needs for meetings solution
  • Add Teams certified devices and Teams Rooms for a seamless experience

• Custom Solutions

  • Modernize and integrate Line-of-Business experiences into Teams
  • Extend existing productivity solutions into Teams using the app gallery
    
    

Optimizing Your Teams Experience

Once your migration is complete, our consultants will focus on maintaining the security and integrity of your Teams experience. As an Azure application, Teams is highly scalable - meaning it can readily accommodate new users, mobile devices, and computing environments. Ongoing audits allow our consultants to reduce compliance risk, and improve data retention, leakage protection, network optimization, and secure external collaboration. As with any cloud-based resource, extracting Teams' complete, long-term value requires expertise. iCorps' staff can ensure that your Teams' integration is seamless for both staff and clientele. Reach out today to learn how.