On any given day how important is it for your team to collaborate? Working together isn’t just a nice to have, it is a must have. Document collaboration applies to any file or document that is currently in the “draft” stage. Teams work together to draft, gather input, make edits, and publish valuable business documents.
Traditionally SharePoint functioned as a platform to facilitate collaboration with document libraries, search functions, and version history. Today Office 365 offers the functions once reserved for companies that could set up complicated, customized SharePoint platforms. Let’s break down the key tools available for collaboration in Office 365.
Co-authoring
We’ve all been there—getting a team to work together to produce a single PowerPoint or Word document has historically been a challenge. Can you relate to any of these situations:
- Assign one person the (fun) task of reconciling all of the changes that different staff members made to the document?
- Get stuck waiting around as the file was “checked out” by a colleague?
- Lose important changes in the process?
- Accidently send the client the wrong version of the document?
- Lose time, and maybe sleep, before the big presentation?
In Office 365 a new solution eliminates these hassles. Up to 10 people can work on one document at the same time in Word or PowerPoint, and it automatically reconciles the changes simultaneously. This feature makes a world of difference in collaboration and increases productivity.
Right now, you have to use the web version to see real-time changes but this feature will be coming to the desktop version as well. With the current capabilities, on the desktop version of Word and PowerPoint you will see changes that your colleagues are making only when you hit the save button.
OneDrive for Business
Sharing files is one of the very basic steps to collaboration. Without access to the right file at the right time progress halts. In the past, users might employ an assortment of file sharing platforms, rely on email attachments or lug around their laptop to ensure they always had access to the right files.
With OneDrive, each user has their own personal file share in the cloud. No attachments in your emails— just a link to your OneDrive. No need to keep track of several different file sharing services—everything is available in one portal. No reliance on one single laptop— files are available on any device.
Your documents live in the cloud with your complete file structure. Plus, with document history users can keep track different versions of the document, know who has made what changes and even revert to previous versions if needed.
With the option for both Public and Personal folders, OneDrive can function in the absence of a team site and allow users to share documents with different departments and even external contacts.
Yammer
Does your office still have a water cooler culture? Are your users connected to each other? How do you spread valuable information without overflowing the inbox of your entire team?
Known for being a microblogging platform that allows users to post business updates in just 60 characters, Yammer is a resource for less structured collaboration. Users can upload pictures, documents, and links. The content is all shared in the context of a newsfeed. Yammer creates an ongoing group experience when you don’t need documentation on which user is making edits.
Delve
How do you find the documents that you use most often? Is searching through a complicated file structure something each user learns to navigate over time?
These problems are where Delve can help users to dive right in. Delve is a discovery tool and search tool that takes collaboration in Office 365 to the next level. You don’t store documents here; Delve simply—but ingeniously— helps to point users in the right direction.
It’s like a Pinterest page that is sending posts to you based on your work history, what your colleagues are working on, and what subject matter you are focused on.
Groups
The easiest was you can think about Groups is that it creates a distribution list without a single call to IT.
Groups provides users a place to work together, including:
• Threaded discussions
• File sharing
• Joint calendar
• Team OneNote
With a team OneNote, users can share notes that each person takes with the entire group. Sharing notes sounds simple, but it is a powerful collaboration tool that helps increase productivity.
Users find what they need all in the context of that particular team. Groups allow for on-going collaboration within a team. Since set-up is easy, these tools are not just for long-term project teams but can be quickly deployed for temporary or go-to-market scenarios.
Options, Options, Options
With all the new tools available for collaboration in Office 365, it is essential to set-up education and training for your users. Create and rely on a governance structure and change management strategy to ensure that users are directed to employ these tools in a way that limits security risks, meets compliance and regulatory standards.
Learn more about helping your organization leverage today’s digital workplace capabilities by downloading our free e-book, Your Roadmap To The Digital Workplace: A Step-By-Step Guide For Professional Services Firms.
