Top Ten Mistakes of Microsoft Teams Administrators
7 min readSo, we’re back to glimpse at what other mistakes Microsoft Teams directors make when it will come to the system. It’s as if I’ve never study Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Close friends and Influence People”…
In section 1 we lined:
- Ignoring stability
- Ignoring external customers
- Ignoring SharePoint
- Ignoring Groups
- Ignoring compliance
Obviously it doesn’t quit there, so let’s go as a result of the other issues I see on a frequent foundation when speaking with organisations and IT gurus.
Ignoring Devices
Microsoft Groups is a huge beast. It’s a collaboration platform, and application launcher, a messaging method, a communications software, and far more. But let’s focus on the “communications tool”.
I’ve been doing the job in the Microsoft ecosystem for most of my vocation (there have been periods of time used in the Unix/Linux, Cisco, Nortel, and even website design and style worlds), and have been working with Microsoft instant messaging resources considering that Exchange Server 2000 (indeed, look it up). 1 of my earliest Microsoft certifications was on Dwell Communications Server, and given that then I saved up my certifications with Place of work Communications Server, Lync Server, and even Skype for Company Server. Throughout that time, it was simply black & white – if you made use of these resources for telephony, then you desired certified headsets and units – usually you would have challenges.
When using non-certified units was an exception to the rule, these times with Microsoft Groups it appears to be the norm. And, as you’d expect – this produces troubles. It generates troubles for meeting individuals and callers who struggle to mentally filter out the echo from someone’s notebook microphone. It produces complications for people who have to tolerate wanting up someone’s nose or the facet of their head as they use their laptop webcam.
And in the assembly place space, these are amplified exactly where assembly participants struggle to current, job, or even link to the meeting when employing meeting products.
This is simply because choosing the right products calls for a various set of skills from these that most IT pros poss. In point, it is more the realm of the audio/visible expert – however a lot of of people have not essentially come together for the journey of Microsoft Teams.
Even if they do have all those techniques, is it real looking that the identical particular person has the information and skills to configure Intune to regulate those products? Though possible, it is not functional as they are entirely distinctive abilities and personality styles.
Ignoring Usage
One particular organisation I labored with was touted as a Microsoft circumstance review numerous decades back, as they experienced 86% of workers working with Microsoft Teams – what a get! Every person was equipped to pat by themselves on the back and celebrate this amazing deployment.
But there’s a indicating: really don’t allow the reality get in the way of a good tale.
That 86% usage was comprised mainly of chat. In actuality, 94% of it was chat. Only 3% was voice/online video communications or conferences, and 3% was channel-based communications. They had successfully rolled out Skype for Company.
A further scenario study from a Microsoft husband or wife reported a 400% raise in Microsoft Groups utilization thanks to their project. Wow!!! However, what it didn’t mention that this was an enhance from Skype for Business enterprise. When you really do not have a preference – your utilization numbers are successfully pressured.
Speaking with a couple of contacts I realized at the consumer talked about in the situation examine, their practical experience with Microsoft Teams was woeful. They stated they weren’t truly educated (whilst it was delivered, it was a blink-and-you will-overlook-it approach), men and women ended up utilizing it inconsistently, and some of the features had been crippled.
But they experienced a 400% increase in use. What a gain!
These are just a pair of illustrations that “usage” does not equal excellent usage.
Sad to say, lots of folks don’t have the time, understanding, or fascination to dig beneath the large-amount figures provided in the Microsoft 365 admin center or the Microsoft Groups Admin Center. Most of the IT pros I have spoken to do not even know about the Microsoft 365 Usage Analytics remedy in Power BI, or the Productiveness Rating in the Microsoft 365 admin centre. And if they do know of them, probabilities are the people who are liable for driving utilization (i.e. non-IT personnel) don’t know about the existence of, or have obtain to these resources. And they most certainly wouldn’t know that these tools never supply a comprehensive tale!
Utilization is much more than figures. Usage is knowledge. Usage is fulfillment. Use is achievements.
Ignoring Lifecycle
For numerous, the limited selections supplied by Azure Lively Directory about Microsoft 365 Groups lifecycle is all they know. And boy are they restricted – only a single expiration plan can be made, and it involves a premium license to use it. That has often boggled my thoughts.
Likewise, Microsoft Teams offers an archival operate for Teams, which if picked will established the Crew to go through-only and give you the option to do the same for the related SharePoint web page.
But a Team is extra than just the Crew and the SharePoint web site. It is Planner boards, Forms, applications, attendees, Stream (vintage) videos, Undertaking options, and other individuals. And none of these treatment that you have archived a Staff – they hold heading. Sadly, a popular apply I’ve noticed in organisations when they want to delete a Staff, is simply just to copy the files out to one more SharePoint web site for archival, and then delete the Workforce (as the retention insurance policies should keep on to the messages).
What about the written content in all the aforementioned apps and companies I just outlined? Or the internet pages in the OneNote notebook in the web page? Or the items in the SharePoint lists? Or the pages and news posts in the SharePoint site? The Big dilemma with the lifecycle of Groups is that however a good deal of the content material is simply just not obvious to administrators, and the written content that is to some degree visible – is not uncomplicated to archive/go/migrate/export, if at all.
But there’s worthwhile organization details, records, historical past, and context in all of them which is all-much too-normally missing.
Ignoring Integration
Microsoft Teams is occasionally referred to as a “meta working system”, and that goal is undoubtedly noticeable when you take into account that you can add applications, pop-out chats and application home windows, and soon be ready to multi-activity in it. I would not be surprised if at some point in the near potential we’ll see something like a “Microsoft Groups terminal” where you practically boot into Microsoft Groups and nothing at all else.
To make this operate, Microsoft Groups wants to integrate with numerous units, and offer entry to numerous permissions. Want to insert that 3rd-party bot? It wishes to browse the properties of everyone in your directory so it can uncover individuals you mention.
Want to insert that visual diagramming application to enable transform your Excel spreadsheets into swim lane diagrams? It needs accessibility to your OneDrive.
And for each and every app is a Support Principal designed in Azure Energetic Listing. And who’s observing that – the Groups admin? Do they even have the right admin role to cleanse up just after the application has been taken out? Or to look for by means of the audit log for activities exactly where an application might have browse way too a great deal information?
Even within just the indigenous Microsoft 365 system, a lot of the applications and services electrical power features within Microsoft Teams.
Disabled Planner since you’re not ready to roll it out yet? Bye-bye Jobs in Teams.
Disabled OneDrive for the reason that you’re not ready to migrate off on-premises file shares? Bye-bye information in chats.
Disabled Forms due to the fact you think folks really don’t will need it? Bye-bye polls in Groups conferences and channels.
The list goes on and on. For each and every motion or purpose in Microsoft Groups, there’s about half a dozen factors that relate or combine with it – so tread cautiously.
Ignoring Consumer Encounter
This a person I’m heading to maintain quick and sweet (essentially, really bitter).
It’s no key that IT experts are not followers of close-people. We make jokes like ID10T documents, classify the challenge as being PEBKAC, or that the dilemma lies at Layer 8.
We cripple their means to do points because they just cannot be reliable, they really don’t know what they’re accomplishing, and so on.
But here’s the factor: close users are the kinds who do the things, that will allow the organisation we perform to exist, which in flip employs us.
We are in this article to provide and assist them. Their frustrations with technological innovation impacts their work. Their bad knowledge has a movement-on influence, that indirectly impacts our means to place food items on the desk. Their troubles are our problems.
We require to do improved, and make guaranteed that they have the very best experience doable.
If we function to cut down the problems we make with Microsoft Teams, then maybe… just probably we have a chance at globe peace.
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