Teams is the primary collaboration tool for most organizations
Although Microsoft Teams may be installed on every computer and is their primary collaboration tool, it is not necessarily being fully utilized. According to the survey, only 60% of respondents reported that more than 50% of employees actively use Microsoft Teams. Furthermore, many employees only use Teams for basic chat functionalities and may overlook more advanced features, resulting in incomplete utilization of the platform. These users who rely solely on chat may falsely increase the utilization percentage, but they are not making full use of the product.
Challenges with Teams adoption
Despite the popularity of Teams, many organizations still face challenges with its adoption.
Teams sprawl occurs when employees have the freedom to create new teams without any regulatory oversight. Although this allows for easy Team and Channel creation for collaboration purposes, it can lead to a rise in inactive teams scattered throughout your environment. This can result in an increasing number of teams, with many of them being redundant and unnecessary.
Security and compliance concerns
Another important finding from the survey is that security and compliance are top concerns for organizations using Teams. Most of the respondents said that they were concerned about data security and privacy, while others said that compliance was a concern. These concerns are understandable, given the sensitive nature of the data that is often shared through Teams. To address these concerns, organizations need to ensure that they have proper security protocols in place, such as multi-factor authentication and data encryption.
The impact of Teams on productivity
One of the main reasons why organizations adopt Teams is to improve productivity. Respondents said that they believed Teams had a positive impact on their productivity. This is likely because Teams allows employees to collaborate more easily and efficiently, reducing the amount of time spent on manual processes such as email and document sharing. Additionally, Teams offers a range of productivity tools, such as task management and integration with other Microsoft apps, further enhancing productivity.
Neglecting governance can lead to Teams sprawl within organizations, causing disorganization and confusion amongst IT and employees alike. Teams sprawl occurs when new teams are created without regulatory oversight, which can result in an increase of redundant and unnecessary teams. With Microsoft Teams’ governance, organizations can determine how teams function, allowing for effective management and access to data while ensuring data security adheres to the organization’s business standards. The survey found that 55% of respondents see a need for governance within their organization. By implementing governance, organizations can avoid Teams sprawl and ensure efficient team collaboration.
The future of Teams
Many organizations are planning to expand their use of the platform in the coming year. 68% of respondents said that they planned to use Teams more in 2022, while 22% said that they planned to implement Teams for the first time. This shows that Teams is likely to continue to grow in popularity as remote work becomes more widespread.
Conclusion
Although Teams remains a popular choice for remote teams, the report highlights adoption challenges, along with security and compliance concerns. Despite these challenges, as organizations continue to adapt to remote work, Teams is poised to become even more vital in driving collaboration and productivity. For those seeking a comprehensive understanding of how Teams is being used in today’s remote work environment, looking at the full report is highly recommended.
