To Mum, With Love
ProductivityAdoption
OutlookOneNoteOneDriveMicrosoft To DoMicrosoft TeamsPassword ManagerMicrosoft Authenticator
This may seem like a strange title for a blog post, so let me explain.
As many of us involved in IT do, I provide tech support for my family, and also provide them with Office 365 which provides email, Office Apps and a range of tools that are probably less familiar.
Supporting my family has its challenges, in particular, trying to introduce new ways of working with new tools. This isn’t so different from any organisation that changes their technology and the way that they want their employees to work. Many staff are less keen on changing the way they work than we IT folks are, and many are not aware that there are different ways of working, let alone, what the advantages could be to them.
This is the first post in a series that I am planning to do that covers some of the basic tools but explains how they can be used in ways that are beneficial. The target audience is not IT-savvy, they find it hard to change, and hard to understand new tech concepts. In essence, the audience is my parents! But … I have come across this persona when analysing many organisations when preparing for change, and they do end up benefitting and adopting the changes, but need more support and react better to clear instructions and benefits.
The tools that I plan to cover are ones I use every day to help manage my work but also that I recommend others to understand so that the can choose how to use them to get the most out of them.
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Authenticator | Generate multi factor codes and recieve prompts for authentication approvals |
| Microsoft Planner | Used to manage tasks shared between a team of people |
| Microsoft Teams |
Used to carry out multiple tasks:
|
| Microsoft To Do | This is used to manage tasks and flagged emails, it also provides a view of Planner tasks that are assigned to the user. |
| OneDrive | This is used to store personal files and also to synchorise files form cloud storage onto a device. |
| OneNote | Take notes and store information |
| Outlook | Interact with email and manage a calendar and contacts |
| Password Manager | Manage passwords and important data |
Importantly, in this series, I will be covering how to be equally at home with these tools when working with them on a phone as well as on a laptop or tablet.
And Mum, hopefully this can be your handy guide on how to use these tools and get the most out of them.