Microsoft 365

Launching Microsoft Teams: Easy, Right?

Microsoft Teams is changing how we do business. But just because you recognize the benefits doesn't mean that your organization is ready to embrace them. Don't believe us, learn from others mistakes and what steps you should take to avoid them.


As I am sure you have seen in other blog posts, and likely our Microsoft Teams vs. Slack infographic, we are big fans of Microsoft Teams. Unfortunately, a successful implementation of Microsoft Teams takes more than flipping a switch. Successful launch means taking into consideration things like communication, on-boarding, governance and more. (Want to know more, call us and ask to speak with our Change Management team.) 

But for those that think launching teams is easy, think about these not so awesome outcomes we have heard about:

  • One Company didn't structure their communication and education around the who, what, where, when, and why's of Teams, so it just became a second file repository. 
  • Another company found employees creating Teams for everything, including hobbies, cat photos and out of office events, which can happen without proper education and governance. 
  • And maybe the most cringe worthy story we have heard was a tale of a frustrated employee that @messaged her CEO in a public conversation for anyone in the organization to read. Missed the governance conversation with that team.

While these are seemingly big misses, they are avoidable. By taking pragmatic steps and following best practices, with considerations for the uniqueness of Teams... you will be off to the races! 

Microsoft recommends thinking about your plans for deployment and adoption of Microsoft Teams in three phases:

1. Start:

  • Understand teams and channels 
  • Create your first teams
  • Understand how ready your organization is for Teams?

2. Experiment:

  • Create your champions program
  • Governance quick start
  • Define usage scenarios
  • On-board early adopters and gather feedback
  • On-board support

3. Scale: 

  • Define outcomes and success
  • Optimize feedback and reporting
  • Drive awareness and implement training
  • Schedule service health reviews

While all these phases and steps are super important, we find one of the biggest missteps is not understanding organizational readiness, so to help, check out our latest infographic for how to assess that readiness and what to do with that information once you have collected it. 

Download Infographic

Of course if you have any questions along the way, reach out to our OCM team. They would love to support your journey to embracing all the benefits of Microsoft Teams for your organization. 

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