The collaboration tool Microsoft Teams has added a slew of new apps to its meetings function, giving remote workers access to some pretty great upgrades at a time when we’re all trying to make the most of working from home.
The home office has become the norm for millions of employees around the world, with the global pandemic still in full swing. Fortunately, online resources like video conferencing platforms and project management software have made it easier than ever to stay productive from the comfort of your own home.
Now, Microsoft is upping the ante by providing users with an additional range of third party integrations that will make working from home a breeze, no matter what you’re working on.
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Microsoft Teams Adds 21 New Apps to Meetings
Microsoft announced this week that the company would be adding up to 21 new apps to its Teams platform, allowing users a significantly increased functionality while conducting meetings. And, according to Microsoft, it’s a move that will have remote workers very happy.
“The trend we really continue to see from our customers is that they need more than the meetings, calling, and chatting from Teams,” said Nicole Herskowitz, Microsoft Teams general manager to VentureBeat. “They’re really looking for a new home for work.”
These 21 apps join the 700 other apps available in the Microsoft Teams library, truly making this collaboration platform a new home for work, as the number of apps alone is enough to cover pretty much everything. New apps added include:
- Asana
- Bigtincan
- Buncee
- Decisions
- Monday.com
- HireVue
- Phenom
- Slido
- Wakelet
- Range
- Priority Matrix
- QBO Insights
- SurveyMonkey
- xMatters
- Pigeonhole
- Microsoft Forms
- Lucid Agreements
- Polly
- Soapbox
- Talview
- Teamflect
Other Updates to Microsoft Teams
Apps aren’t the only feature that Microsoft has added to Teams in this new update. The tech giant is also attempting to make the platform infinitely more customizable for users by providing a number of Microsoft-powered apps. These apps include:
- Power Apps for Teams – an intuitive, low-code app builder and manager to make app creation easy
- Power Automate – a workflow designer aimed at bolstering your automated processes across your business
- Power Virtual Agents – a chatbot builder and manager that can help you manage requests in IT, operations, and HR.
- Microsoft Dataverse – a low code data platform that helps users build apps and chatbots, giving you more control over your data
Unlike the other 21 apps added to Microsoft Teams, these apps are aimed at allowing users to build out the platform to make it work exactly how you need it to. You’ll be able to save time, money, and valuable company resources by automating as much as possible, thanks to these apps.
What is Microsoft Teams?
All this talk about Microsoft Teams, and you may not even know what it is!
Simply put, Microsoft Teams is an online communication tool for businesses. Much like Google Meet and Slack, it allows teams to communicate and collaborate through meetings, chat, video calls, file sharing, and a wide range of other apps, as this update has shown.
With 115 million daily active users — a significant uptick since the pandemic started in March 2020 — Microsoft Teams has gone from relative newcomer (launched in 2016) to veritable powerhouse in the business communication industry. While apps like Zoom and GoToMeeting admittedly offer great video conferencing tools, nothing quite matches the level of collaboration found with Microsoft Teams, particularly given this influx of new apps that integrate with it.
