The pandemic led many to see the benefits of remote or hybrid working, and in this new age of working most are turning to Microsoft Teams as an all-in-one solution. 

Microsoft Teams is fantastic but you may find it lacking when it comes to video-conferencing in comparison to an in-person meeting. Switching tabs can become tedious after a while! So we made a list of five features that would improve your Microsoft Teams meeting.

 

1) Documents and Video on One Screen:

Working from home, for most, means doing everything on one screen. You want to be able to read documents on your own as well as seeing the person talking! 

Although you may already be familiar with screen-sharing, this tool is not perfect. You have to follow along with the pace of the presenter which is not efficient. It would be much easier if you were able to be on the same page as the presenter and have the option to read at your own pace, all on one screen.

 

2) Action Items:

Sometimes in a meeting you want to make a plan or organise a follow-up meeting. However, you may not want to take up the time in the meeting to do so. 

This is where an Action Item feature would be useful. Action Items are targeted to individuals and singular issues, allowing you to focus on the rest of the discussion without distractions. 

 

3) Document Annotations:

Alongside Action Items sometimes it is useful to write notes both privately and publicly on the Board Pack. 

On a traditional Board Pack, you would be able to make notes in the margins. However, in the digital age this has proven increasingly difficult. Sometimes mixing the old with the new is necessary for productivity.

Taking notes in the margins improves the quality of discussions. You want to have the most dynamic debates and keeping track of points made streamlines your decision-making processes. If Teams had this feature it would mean you could focus on the important issues. 

 

4) Approvals and Voting:

An essential part of Board meetings is coming to a consensus on actions that need to be taken and approving said decisions. This can be done in many different ways, both during and outside of the meeting. 

You may use surveys or polls before or after the meeting to work out which issues need further discussion. This can help you to focus on specific questions during your meetings rather than going over unnecessary details.

Then, during the Board meeting, decisions must be voted upon. The system varies depending on your organisation but some may choose to have an overt show of hands while others prefer a secret ballot. Whatever your method, it is an essential part of the decision-making process so the option to have both would be useful.

Furthermore, having the option to review documents for approval, before they are uploaded to a shared document area would streamline processes and reduce the risk of error. This would be particularly useful for meeting minutes.  

The final part of the decision-making process is signing to ratify decisions. During remote meetings, this is done through e-signatures after the meeting. This means your Board Members can easily forget to follow up and sending reminder emails takes up your administrators time. It would streamline your processes if you could sign documents during the meeting. 

 

5) Auditing:

Having a clear audit trail is crucial in business. If anything goes wrong, a comprehensive record of actions makes it possible to assess the situation. It can also improve your compliance, governance and security. 

However, generating an audit trail can be tedious and tiresome. You have to compile records from a variety of sources and present them in a clear manner. If Teams had usage reporting and audits then this would make record keeping a lot easier. 

 

Introducing Convene in Teams:

 

With Convene in Teams all of this is possible! 

Your meeting process will be streamlined from start-to-finish. You can now have all the benefits of Microsoft Teams and a Board Portal in one integrated product. 

This means the best security for your documents and a clear audit trail. Microsoft Teams does not allow usage reporting whereas Convene in Teams offers usage reporting, usage audits, full data encryption and EU hosting.

Prior to the meeting, you can build an agenda and Board Pack with a simple drag and drop. You can also create Action Items, before, during or after the meeting allowing you to create hyper-focused discussions on certain issues. Your contacts list will also be integrated with your Active Directory allowing you to send automated reminders into their calendars, streamlining your inboxes as well as your meeting processes.  

For your meetings our extensive range of features are available on Convene in Teams with the added bonus of video conferencing. This includes on the same integrated platform you can vote, annotate, read your Board Pack, and e-Sign any necessary documents during the meeting.

Finally, your post-meeting processes will be simplified, with autogenerated meeting minutes, a document library for easy secure access to sensitive documents, and meeting attendance and tracking for review. These features ensure that your meetings will be smart, simple and secure. 

If you would like to learn more please don’t hesitate to contact us, or book your free demo now. 

Convene in Teams – the ultimate companion for Microsoft Teams.

Gabriella Mangham

Written by Gabriella Mangham

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