Article summary
- Ballad Health is rolling out Microsoft Teams Channels and Microsoft 365 Groups to help employees collaborate, organize work and reduce email clutter.
- These features are available within Microsoft Teams.
- Teams serve as workspaces, Channels organize specific topics, and Microsoft 365 Groups control access to each Team.
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Across Ballad Health, many of us do extensive work on projects that require organization and regular collaboration. To do the job right, we need the right tools – which is why we’re introducing our Microsoft Teams Channels and Microsoft 365 Groups.
Within the Microsoft Teams application, a Team is where you and your coworkers collaborate — post messages, share files and meet. When you are added to a Team, you automatically gain access to its conversations, files, calendar and connected apps like Planner and OneNote. A Team is developed by having a Microsoft 365 Group.
A Channel is a shared space inside a Team for a specific topic or purpose. Everyone in the Team (or in that Channel) can see the posts and files there. This keeps updates organized and easy to find.
In simple terms:
- A Team is the workspace.
- Channels organize the work inside that workspace.
- A Microsoft 365 Group controls who can enter and access it.
These new features make it easier for team members to communicate, collaborate and find information, reducing email clutter, keeping important updates in one place and improving visibility across teams.
To create a new Team and Channel in the Microsoft Teams application, team members must request a new Team, using the ServiceNow link “Teams Creation Request.” If you indicate your Team will store protected health information, it will require management approval before the Team is created.
For additional resources and support, you have access to:
For additional support or questions, contact the IT Service Desk through the ServiceNow Employee Center or call 423-431-6290.
More about MS Teams Channels and 365 Groups
Using Channels and 365 Groups will help streamline the confusing array of emails, texts and different versions of evolving documents that are usually part of projects. It also can help ease the volume of file-sharing we do via email.
These new features will:
- Improve collaboration and information flow
- Reduce reliance on fragmented communication
- Increase efficiency and transparency across clinical and administrative teams
- Ease the challenges in locating historical decisions and files
- Eliminate redundant work across teams
