Using Teams Chat

• In chats you can have a One on One and group chats
• You can make a video and audio call directly from Chat – Making Calls
• You can pin your chats so that they sit at the top of your Chat Feed – you can pin up to 15 chats. (See above)
• You can hide a chat if it is no longer relevant and you can delete a message you just sent
• You can share your screen in a Chat
• Creating Chat Groups
• You can search for messages within Teams in the command box at the top of Teams.

Why Chat is important?

A lot of remote workers find the thing they miss the most about the office is casual conversations. Chats keep us connected. Be deliberate about reaching out and connecting with your co-workers.

Think of chat messages as your virtual watercooler and set yourself a reminder to check in with people regularly. Emojis, GIFs, and stickers are a fun way to keep in touch.

Meetings and Calls

Meetings in Teams include audio, video, and screen sharing.

Teams meetings are best when you create and join them from the Teams app. The PLD Team recommend creating meeting using the Calendar within Teams. The meetings synchronize with your Outlook Calendar.

Schedule a Meeting from the Calendar within teams

• Select New meeting
• Type in a meeting title
• An online meeting is created by default
• Choose a start and end time and add details if needed
• Enter names in the ‘invite people’ box to add them to the meeting

View Meetings

• Select Calendar to view your appointments and meetings for the day or work week
• These appointments stay synchronized with your Outlook calendar
• Select a meeting invite to see what the meeting’s about, who’s attending, and to respond to the meeting.

Joining Meetings

You can join from a link, the Calendar within Teams (recommended), from a Chat and from a Channel.

Video on Joining a Team

In a Meeting

• We encourage you to turn your video on for the meetings if you feel comfortable. The face-to-face interaction goes a long way to help us feel connected
• When you join a meeting, you can set your audio and video settings- turning video/audio on or off and blurring your background
• Once the meeting has started you can change these settings. You may want to mute your mic when you are not talking but remember to turn it back on when you are speaking.

• Teams tries to anticipate what you’ll want to see in a meeting. When someone starts speaking, Teams shows them. When someone shares content, Teams shows that.
• A crowded call can make it difficult for people to share their opinions and contribute.
• Whoever is leading the meeting – pause frequently to allow time for questions and people can use the chat window to share their thoughts during the meeting. An agenda for the meeting is also very helpful.
• You can also use a Digital Collaborative Whiteboard (it is integrated into Teams) during a meeting.

Sharing your Screen during a Meeting

Record your Meetings

Record your meetings in Teams to capture audio, video, and screen sharing activity. Team members wo aren’t able to join can watch the meeting later. That way, people can easily review anything they missed or need repeated.

For more details on Meetings, see: Microsoft Teams Help and Learning

Blurring your Background during a Meeting

In Microsoft Teams, you can show your desktop, a specific app, presentation, or any file while in a meeting.

• Select Share
• Select what you want to share:
  – Desktop lets you show everything on your screen
  – Window lets you show a specific app
  – PowerPoint lets you show a presentation
  – Browse lets you find the file you want to show
• After you select what you want to show, a red border surrounds what you’re sharing
• Select Stop sharing to stop showing your screen.