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Email is still very much the dominant form of electronic communication, with 269 billion emails sent/received every single day in 2017 and 2.9 billion daily email users predicted by the end of 2019 (source).
But, with all these email messages, our inboxes are noisy and crowded. What can you do to ensure that your team is communicating not just effectively but efficiently as well?
New collaboration tools are available that you should consider adding to your set of daily workflow. They solve the issue of the following three key things getting lost amongst the ever-growing inbox:
• team communication (chat, calls),
• collaboration (file sharing, integrations),
• and keeping up to date (notifications).
You may have heard of (or already be using) Microsoft Teams, Slack, Google Hangouts, Chanty, Glip, or other similar solutions. Using such a tool will help you transfer all your important communications, from your overcrowded inbox and various other applications and services, all into one place.
At Direction Forward, we delineate different types of communications into different channels. For example, Slack is our main internal communications platform – direct messages between individuals, group chats, realtime notifications from our systems and clients’ systems. Whereas email is for external communications with clients and suppliers/providers.
It is true that using another tool could result in more work (as it’s another thing to monitor) or cause confusion as to how it fits into your workflows (at least initially). So do look at your needs before strongly adopting any such service. But, done right, it could be a massive benefit to all of your team’s daily working lives.
Contact us to discuss more about modern communications solutions.
Microsoft have announced that they will close down Skype for Business on 31 July 2021. Microsoft are replacing this with Teams – their integrated app for chats, calling, screen sharing, and document collaboration.
Teams and Skype for Business can currently run alongside each other as two separate solutions that deliver similar and overlapping capabilities. Teams has the advantage of new collaboration capabilities, such as channels, access to files in Office 365, bring in email threads, and integrating other applications.
From 1 September 2019 all new Office 365 customers will be onboarded to use Teams instead of Skype for Business. However, the Skype for Business service (and the Skype consumer / home service) will continue to operate for existing customers. Teams users are able to connect with users on the Skype for Business service (and the Skype consumer / home service).
Microsoft first soft launched Teams in 2017, and they now say it’s at its best potential as a powerful tool, not just as an upgrade to Skype for Business. Microsoft have stated Teams shortens cycle times, improves the efficiency of key workflows, and cuts out unnecessary overhead. Microsoft is offering free instructor-led training if you wish to learn the benefits of Teams.
Skype for Business customers should start to plan to migrate to Microsoft Teams. Microsoft are adamant this is the new chapter in business communication and promises it to be an advancement on Skype for Business.
FAQ
1. Another Microsoft application? Eh? What?
Skype (consumer / home). Skype for Business (formerly Lync). And now Teams. It’s a mess of product branding and delineation of what the different applications are and do. In short: Skype will continue; Skype for Business will be replaced by Teams; Skype and Teams will talk to each other.
2. Can I transfer my Skype for Business contacts over to Teams?
No you can’t. Yes this is stupid. And yes we’ve told Microsoft how stupid this is! Contacts within your organisation will automatically appear in Teams as they are part of your internal Global Address List (GAL). External contacts currently cannot be transferred – we hope that this changes in the future.
3. Can I transfer my Skype for Business conversations over to Teams?
No. The two applications are based on different technologies and therefore conversations cannot be transferred. You can import email threads into Teams, as well as Office documents and connect other applications.
4. Can I transfer my Skype for Business meetings over to Teams?
No. Again, this is down to the fact that the two applications are very different and so meetings cannot be transferred. Microsoft recommend ‘cutting over’ to Teams, i.e. choosing a point to stop using Skype for Business for meetings and start using Teams. Any Skype for Business meetings already booked in that you wish to conduct via Teams will need to be re-created in Teams.
5. Are there any additional costs for Teams?
No, Teams is available at no additional cost as part of all Office 365 Business and Enterprise licenses. If you use additional audio conferencing capabilities with Skype for Business, these can be brought over to work with Teams.
DEF CON is the world’s longest running and largest underground hacking conference. During the latest conference, it was reported that all current versions of Windows 10 have serious issues with vulnerable drivers that could compromise systems.
Researchers from the firm Eclypsium found a flaw within the drivers for certain pieces of hardware. Their analysis found that the problem is widespread, affecting more than 40 drivers from at least 20 different vendors. All the drivers were certified by Microsoft and from trusted vendors such as Intel, AMD, Nvidia, and Realtek. The implications of this are serious as a flawed driver can compromise a machine and allow attackers to hack into a system, change privileges and add threats.
Eclypsium’s researchers stated, “drivers that provide access to system BIOS or system components for the purposes of updating firmware, running diagnostics, or customizing options on the component can allow attackers to turn the very tools used to manage a system into powerful threats that can escalate privileges and persist invisibly on the host.”
It was found that applications can be compromised so that they could be accessed and used by attackers acting as the user. Hackers could use accessible “low-privilege” applications to effect Windows operating systems, for example through Windows Kernel which is at the heart of Windows operating systems.
Microsoft have responded, “In order to exploit vulnerable drivers, an attacker would need to have already compromised the computer. To help mitigate this class of issues, Microsoft recommends that customers use Windows Defender Application Control to block known vulnerable software and drivers.”.
Some vendors, for example Intel, have already issued updates for the discussed drivers, whilst others are still to be released.
This news is another reinforcement for the practice of always keeping your Operating System and your machine’s devices/drivers up to date. The most concerning thing in this case is that the compromised drivers were certified (i.e. marked as safe) by Microsoft for global release and use.