If you currently collaborate using Microsoft Teams, or are thinking of adopting Teams, here’s some great news! You can now control your Microsoft Teams experience directly from your Jabra audio devices.

The pace of change in the online collaboration space has gone from super-fast to downright dizzying.

At least that’s the conclusion I’m drawing from Microsoft’s announcement that it is integrating the ability to control calls directly from audio devices into its Microsoft Teams collaboration tool. 

It seems like just yesterday Microsoft Office Communicator burst onto the scene, only to be replaced by Microsoft Lync, which in turn was supplanted by Skype for Business, which is being eclipsed by Microsoft Teams, which is already being upgraded.

All in the space of about a decade.

Whew!

Don’t Worry… We’ll Connect You to Your Team

While collaboration technologies may be evolving at a breakneck pace, one thing doesn’t need to change: The Jabra audio device that connects you with this new way of working. All Jabra Skype for Business-certified headsets and speakerphones are also fully compatible with Microsoft Teams.

If you’re into the techy fine-print, that’s because Jabra devices are built to support the USB HID (human interface device) protocol, which is incorporated into both Skype for Business and now Microsoft Teams.

So if you’ve moved to Microsoft Teams – or are thinking of adopting Teams but are concerned about device compatibility – rest assured: your Jabra audio devices will provide the same flexible, outstanding user experience you’ve enjoyed in the past. You’ll be able to easily manage Microsoft Teams’ calling and meeting features remotely from the device, signal your coworkers that you’re busy, pick up an incoming call while editing a document or presentation and much more. And, of course, take advantage of all the crazy-cool new collaboration capabilities Teams offers!

All of which translates into added productivity. And when it comes down to it, that’s what online collaboration is all about. With Teams, Microsoft is making a big-money bet on a new-from-the-ground-up, cloud-based collaboration tool. Today, Skype for Business, is one of the world’s top meeting providers, capably handling more than a billion meetings per year and a staggering 3 billion minutes of calls every day.

Taking Collaboration Beyond Voice and Video

By introducing Teams, Microsoft is acknowledging that companies that seek to be innovative, agile and productive need more than mere voice and video to collaborate effectively. They need a seamless way to bring together people, conversations, content and tools to enable workers to achieve more. With Microsoft Teams, users can hold video and audio conference calls, set up appointments, mark events, share and collaborate on files, create groups and seamlessly handle tons of other important tasks.

This focus on creating a truly collaborative workspace echoes a message we at Jabra have been preaching for several years – most notably through our New Ways of Working initiative, an effort to help organizations increase employee collaboration, productivity and satisfaction – all at the same time. (Yes, it can be done!)

With the news that Microsoft has incorporated call-control into Teams, there’s never been a better time to take advantage of this outstanding collaboration tool. So, go ahead: your Jabra audio devices won’t hold you back!