Microsoft Teams is used by over 75 million DAUs around the world, and not every one of them belongs to a large organisation. In fact, small companies in retail, non-profit, F&B, etc. rely hugely on cloud-based collab apps (like Teams) that are easy to deploy and even easier to use.
Teams owe much of its popularity to its integration within the larger MS Windows ecosystem. With most customer-facing SMBs leveraging Windows systems, the Teams experience has a very short learning curve.
Last year, we spoke to Principal Solutions Architect, Tom Arbuthnot, on Microsoft Teams deployment for small businesses. Tom pointed out that businesses now operate on a 24/7 basis – especially given the rise of the freelancing model. While deploying Teams may seem daunting from outside, it offers several compelling benefits:
- It’s scalable - If you want to grow your SMB into something bigger, Teams has a solution for you. Or, if you want to stick to a basic Microsoft Teams Consumer Version, that’s okay too.
- It’s platform-agnostic - Despite its clear roots in the Windows family, Teams is compatible across Mac OS, Android, iOS, and even Linux. This gives you incredible flexibility when choosing infra.
- It integrates well - Microsoft Teams comes with 250+ handy app integrations, and that’s just the Teams Free edition. Its huge API library lets it work in any IT environment.
- It covers your basics - Microsoft Teams effectively replaces your email, video conferencing, telephony, and chat – along with integrations for shifts scheduling, billing, and more.
Now, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, more businesses are turning to digital connectivity than ever before. And this includes hundreds and thousands of small employers with a workforce of 100 or less.
5 steps to deploying Microsoft Teams at small businesses
Your Microsoft Teams deployment should be ready to take on your everyday use cases with minimal IT intervention. This is particularly true right now, when employees may not be able to physically contact It support to get their queries resolved.
Fortunately, a cloud-based Microsoft Teams deployment (not hybrid or on-premise) is capable of meeting most SMB requirements. Here are the steps for getting started:
- Prep your network for Teams
Your networked assets need configuring for Microsoft Teams readiness. So, if you already have a Microsoft 365 or Office 365 domain, or are using One Drive, SharePoint, and Exchange, make sure their configurations are up-to-date. For absolutely greenfield implementations, this step will naturally follow once you obtain your Microsoft 365 Business plan, which includes an advanced (paid) version of Teams.
- Get Teams licenses and install your clients
Teams licenses come in every shape and size, starting from a bare-bones Free version, to an extremely sophisticated Enterprise plan (E5), with specific plans for education, developers, and governments in between. We recommend that you opt for Microsoft 365 Business Basic + Business Voice, available at £15.80 per user per month. Business Voice lets you connect with a PSTN system, exponentially increasing Teams’ capabilities.
You can install Microsoft Teams clients, on desktop or mobile, while leveraging the browser interface for the on-the-go accessibility. Teams on Web has some limitations compared to its desktop client, so it is advisable to install both Teams Desktop as well as the mobile app.
- Create your first team and channel
A team is any group of people with something in common – for example, a restaurant could create a team for all customer-facing personnel. Within a team, you have channels for specific groups – like individual channels for waiters, restaurant managers, etc.
