Instant voice communication with your whole team at the push of a button: Walkie talkie comes to Teams
If you like looking at all the new features in your Microsoft Teams application, you might have noticed the walkie-talkie feature in preview.
Maybe you’ve even tried it out on an Android device?
It seemed like a fun gimmick. Now Microsoft has rolled it out to iOS devices, meaning every member of your team can use it.
And we believe it has the potential to become a powerful communication tool.
Let’s look at what it is before exploring how you’d use it.
If you were alive back in the 1980s, you’d remember real walkie-talkies. They were the most extraordinary way to talk to your friends on the move – long before we had mobiles, of course.
If you’re too young to remember the 80s, then watch a few episodes of Stranger Things, and you’ll get the idea.
With a walkie-talkie, you press a button to talk, and everyone who has a device on the same frequency as yours can hear you speak.
They can only reply when you let go of the button. And only one person can speak at a time.
What that gives you is ordered real-time voice conversation between people.
These new Teams’ feature works in precisely the same way.
There’s no need to call anyone. Instead, like a real walkie-talkie, you push a button on your phone to speak, and everyone in your team channel can hear you.
It works on Android and iOS devices, so long as they’re connected to the internet. It even works if your phone is locked.
Walkie-talkie was created with front-line workers in mind.
The idea is that when you’re away from your workplace, you can quickly and securely communicate without additional devices or being slowed down by the hassle of a phone call (which can mean going through a voice-automated system or waiting for a mobile to be answered).
We can see this being useful for remote workers too. Whether your team is in the office or working from home, it doesn’t matter– they can have a voice conversation in real-time instantly.
Just like the old days when everyone worked in the same space.
Can you see how that would help your business?
Before you can use a walkie-talkie in Teams, you’ll need to ensure it’s enabled. Your administrator will need to do this in the Teams admin center – it’s effortless.
If you’d like us to help you set up walkie talkie for your business, give us a call.
Published with permission from Your Tech Updates.