As more and more of us look set to work remotely for the long term, we all need a group chat platform that is reliable, secure, and feels comfortable to use. Microsoft continues to announce new features to improve collaboration for teleworkers in Teams, including the unique ‘Together mode’ and meetings for up to 300 participants.
Together mode is a new option in Microsoft Teams, Microsoft’s premier app for teamwork and team connection. Everyone is united in a virtual space as if in a theater instead of being separated in boxes.
On one level, Together mode is a simple approach to making meetings feel better during the pandemic, however there’s also a deeper level that touches on the latest scientific understandings of cognition, social perception, and communication.
Together mode has a unique look, but it also has a unique feel. People typically become more relaxed, more attentive to one another, more playful, and yet more focused on shared goals. The design offers unique benefits: less fatigue from frequent video meetings, better sense of connection with others, and more effective meetings.
Rollout of Together mode begins August 2020.
Other new features in Teams for Summer 2020
- Teams meeting attendee limit has increased to 300 participants - this is available immediately
- Large gallery view (above) expands the Teams grid view to 7×7, which will accommodate up to 49 participants at once on a single screen.
- Scheduled meetings are coming to the free version of Teams
- Breakout Rooms allow meeting organizers to split their Teams meeting participants into small groups to assist ideation, brainstorming, learning, and discussions.
- Multi-window experiences on Windows and macOS clients will give you the ability to pop out meetings and calling into separate windows to help optimize workflow.
Find out more about the science behind Together mode
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