Have you noticed that some tech changes don’t exactly feel like improvements?
Microsoft recently announced that it is retiring the much-loved Reuse Slides feature in PowerPoint. For anyone who regularly builds presentations, this news comes as a bit of a blow.
What Made Reuse Slides So Special?
If you never had the chance to use it, Reuse Slides was one of those quiet, behind-the-scenes features that made life significantly easier. It allowed you to:
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Open a small side panel within your current presentation.
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Browse through other decks without leaving your workspace.
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Pick the exact slides to import when deciding whether to keep the original formatting.
It was the ultimate time-saver for keeping company logos, colors, and layouts consistent across proposals, reports, and training materials. Instead of rebuilding decks from scratch, teams could simply pull in what they already had.
Why the Change?
Microsoft’s reasoning is simple: efficiency through reduction. They stated that the feature was removed because there are now multiple ways to perform the same action, and maintaining overlapping features no longer makes sense.
While technically true, it’s cold comfort for those who valued the simplicity of a one-click solution.
How to Adapt: The New Workflow
The good news is that you can still reuse your content; it just requires a few extra steps. Here are the two primary workarounds:
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The Drag-and-Drop Method: Open both PowerPoint files simultaneously and drag slides from one deck to the other. This generally preserves your formatting, animations, and media.
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The “New Window” Trick: Go to
View > New Windowto open a duplicate of your current deck. This is particularly helpful if you want to reference or pull from a master version while keeping your new file clean.
The Verdict
These alternatives get the job done, but they lack the seamless precision of the original panel. Dragging and dropping can sometimes introduce small formatting quirks that require manual tidying afterward.
Change is inevitable, and Microsoft is clearly pushing for a leaner, more streamlined user experience. However, for businesses that rely on PowerPoint for high-stakes sales decks or internal training, this shift requires some retraining.
Is your team ready for the change? Make sure they are comfortable with these new methods to avoid frustration and lost productivity.
If you need help navigating these updates or want to ensure your team is getting the most out of the Microsoft 365 suite, get in touch with us today!