March 2022 Newsletter
Here is our March Newsletter
Video Etiquette
How many video calls have you done this month? In just two short years they’ve become the routine way to communicate. In our page one article this month we explore 4 suggested rules for good video call etiquette. It’s so convenient to hop on a video chat with a colleague to discuss a problem or clear up details on a project. You don’t really think twice about it anymore, do you? There’s always room for improvement. So here are our suggested rules for good video call etiquette:
Create and Share a Meeting Agenda
If you schedule a meeting with several others, let everyone know what the meeting is about and give them a chance to prepare. If you use Teams, there’s a text box at the bottom of the New Meeting invitation where you can add details.
Make sure your background is suitable
Cameras on, everyone. Seeing people is the big benefit of video calls. While people may be intrigued about where you are, blurring your background or working in front of a plain wall will make sure the focus is on you and not your décor.
Don’t Overshare
Ever been caught out when screen sharing? Maybe you’ve received a notification for a personal message, or even forgotten to close down a website before joining your meeting? You can share only the application you want to show by clicking ‘Share’ and choosing the thumbnail shown in the ‘Window’ category.
Stand up
Want to keep your video calls focused and productive? Then get everyone to stand up for them. This might seem strange, but it works really well in real life as well.
Should you monitor your remote workers?
At the end of last year, Microsoft announced it would be adding increased employee surveillance to Microsoft Edge. The changes mean admins can access compliance monitoring through the browser, such as seeing which files have been printed or copied to USB devices. Machine learning is being used to increase the visibility of what’s happening to sensitive files.
But how will this impact employees? Will they feel that their privacy is being invaded? Will it cause trust issues? And do you think this is an appropriate level of monitoring when people have proved that remote work can be just as productive – if not more – than working from the office?
Our advice would be not to buy into this increased employee surveillance unless you want to damage the delicate trust you’ve no doubt worked hard to build with your team. There are other, more open ways to help your people get their work done.
For example, there are plenty of tools that help limit distractions like notifications, and that can temporarily block apps and websites to allow better focus. Your employees can choose to activate these to aid their productivity when they need a boost. You’ll find some within your Microsoft 365 subscription – that means more tools at no extra cost.
