If you keep track of Microsoft products, you may be familiar with Microsoft Ignite – an annual conference that features numerous exciting updates and announcements in the Microsoft world.
The latest conference took place in October, and, with the busy holiday season, you might have missed some of the key highlights. So, let’s review them now.
One standout aspect of the event was the significant attention given to Microsoft Teams. Microsoft now positions Teams as the hub of Microsoft 365, and it’s easy to see why the company continues to enhance this virtual workspace. Microsoft Teams has established itself as a go-to tool for teamwork, with a user base of 280 million and a proliferation of 450 new features in the past year alone.
Here, we’ll delve into some of the new Teams features and other announcements from Microsoft Ignite that could inspire your next digital workflow upgrade.
Teams Premium
Microsoft has introduced a new Teams Premium offering that brings an innovative AI component to the platform. This service offers several AI-powered features that mimic having your meeting assistant.
One of the standout features is the automatic generation of chapters from Teams meetings and personalised highlights, eliminating the need to revisit the entire session. Additionally, real-time translation for captions is now available for those participating in international meetings. Another new feature, “Meeting Guides,” customises your meeting options based on your specific requirements.
360-Degree Intelligent Camera for Teams Meetings
SmartVision 60 is the world’s first 360-degree centre-of-room intelligent camera that can track speakers as they move. With a people recognition feature set to be released soon, virtual meetings can now feel more like in-person gatherings.
Gone are the days of limited, single-person video feeds – the SmartVision 60 camera captures the entire team, providing a more immersive virtual meeting experience.
Cisco is Now a Certified Devices Partner for Teams Rooms
Good news for fans of Cisco meeting products – Microsoft has announced that Cisco is now a certified partner for Teams Room Devices. This means you can initiate Teams meetings on all certified Cisco meeting devices for a seamless experience.
Microsoft Places
Microsoft Places is a team management app that supports the growing hybrid work movement and integrates with the Microsoft 365 ecosystem.
With the pandemic shifting much of the world to virtual work, many companies and employees prefer this new way of working. 74% of US companies plan to implement a permanent hybrid work model.
As a leader in the hybrid office revolution, Microsoft Places offers several key features, including the ability to:
- Manage and monitor employee work locations (whether at home or in the office)
- Keep track of coworkers’ availability and whereabouts
- Monitor physical room usage for informed decision-making.
Hours & Location Feature in Outlook & Teams
Microsoft has introduced the “Hours and Location” feature in Teams and Outlook to address the challenges of scheduling in-person meetings in a hybrid work environment.
It can be challenging to plan face-to-face meetings when the work location of team members is uncertain. Without checking beforehand, scheduling conflicts are bound to arise, and someone may be disappointed if they were expecting to work from home.
The new “Hours and Location” feature eliminates the guesswork by allowing team members to specify their work location hourly. This helps ensure everyone is on the same page and eliminates scheduling conflicts.
Loop App Private Preview
Microsoft made an exciting announcement about its Loop app entering private preview, allowing select organisations to test it out.
Loop is a collaborative workspace application designed to assist teams in ideation within a virtual environment. All data from Microsoft 365 apps is seamlessly synced to ensure that information remains up-to-date.
Microsoft Clipchamp Video Editor
At the Microsoft Ignite conference, Microsoft introduced Clipchamp, a new video editing app for Windows PCs.
If you’ve ever struggled with editing videos without the proper tools, Clipchamp may be just what you need. Its intuitive design promises to make the learning curve minimal and the editing process simple and fast.
Get Help Navigating the Microsoft 365 Universe
Microsoft 365 has made significant advancements in a short time and offers a variety of app integrations to enhance your workflow. However, navigating the various options can be overwhelming without proper guidance. Contact Qamba today to schedule a Microsoft consultation and have an expert assist you.
