July 3, 2026

Everything Microsoft Didn't Tell You About Teams with Everything Microsoft Didn't Tell You About Teams with Josh Blalock [MVP]

Microsoft Teams is one of the most widely used collaboration platforms, but many of its most valuable capabilities remain overlooked. In this episode, we uncover the features, settings, and best practices that Microsoft rarely highlights—helping IT professionals, admins, and everyday users get more from Teams.

The discussion goes beyond chat and meetings, exploring hidden productivity features, collaboration improvements, and administration tips that can significantly enhance the user experience. You'll learn how Teams integrates with Microsoft 365 services, where common configuration mistakes occur, and why understanding governance and permissions is essential for long-term success.

The episode also examines the balance between user flexibility and organizational control, covering topics such as notifications, file collaboration, channels, apps, automation, meeting experiences, and security. Rather than focusing only on new features, the conversation emphasizes practical techniques that save time, reduce confusion, and improve adoption across organizations.

Whether you're an IT administrator managing a large Microsoft 365 environment or a business user looking to become more productive, this episode provides actionable advice that goes beyond Microsoft's official documentation. By understanding these lesser-known capabilities and avoiding common pitfalls, you can build a more efficient, secure, and collaborative Microsoft Teams experience.

You probably use microsoft teams every day, but you might not realize how many hidden tools sit just beneath the surface. microsoft packs teams with features that can change the way your team works, especially in this work-from-home era. If you run a business or just want to get more from every meeting, you’ll want to know what you’re missing. Work-from-home isn’t going away, so why not unlock the full power of your team’s favorite platform?

Key Takeaways

Explore private channels to keep sensitive discussions organized and focused. Only invited members can access these spaces.
Utilize shared channels to collaborate with external partners seamlessly. This feature allows for easy communication without switching apps.
Use the Praise and Approvals features to boost team morale and streamline request management. Recognizing hard work keeps everyone motivated.
Leverage dynamic roles in meetings to maintain organization. Assign roles like presenter or attendee to manage participation effectively.
Take advantage of meeting recaps and transcription features. These tools help you catch up on missed meetings and review key decisions.
Master search and organization hacks to find messages and files quickly. Use filters and pin important content for easy access.
Customize your Teams experience by adding third-party apps. Integrations can enhance productivity and streamline workflows.
Prioritize security by managing guest access and implementing data loss prevention strategies. Protect your information while collaborating.

Hidden Microsoft Teams Features

You might think you know all the tricks in Teams, but there are some hidden features that can make your workday smoother. These tools help you focus, boost teamwork, and even make remote work feel less distant. Let’s dig into some of the best-kept secrets.

Private Channels

Private channels give you a way to create focused spaces for smaller groups inside your team. You can use them to talk about sensitive topics or share confidential files. This keeps distractions low and helps you stay organized.

Setup and Permissions

Setting up a private channel is simple. You just pick the team, choose “Add channel,” and select “Private.” Only people you invite can see and join the channel. This means you control who gets access. Private channels are perfect for leadership discussions, project planning, or anything that shouldn’t be open to everyone. You can’t convert a private channel to a standard one, so plan ahead.

Tip: Use private channels when you need to keep conversations focused and confidential. This is great for business leaders or project managers who want to keep things on track.

Shared Channels

Shared channels are another one of those hidden features that can change how you work with others. They let you collaborate with people both inside and outside your organization, all in one place.

Use Cases

Here’s a quick look at how private and shared channels compare:

Feature	Private Channels	Shared Channels
Purpose	For discussions that shouldn’t be open to all team members.	For collaborating with people inside and outside your team or organization.
Membership	Must be invited to join; guests cannot create them.	Only team owners can create shared channels; must be invited to join.
Creation	Any team owner or member can create them; admin can limit this.	Only team owners can create shared channels.
Conversion	Cannot convert to a standard channel; linked to the parent team.	Cannot convert to a standard or private channel.

You might use a shared channel to work with a partner company or a client. This way, everyone can chat, share files, and stay updated without switching between different apps.

Praise and Approvals

Teams has hidden features that help you recognize hard work and keep things moving. Praise lets you give shout-outs to teammates, while Approvals helps you manage requests and sign-offs.

How to Use

You can send praise right from the chat or channel. Just click the Praise icon, pick a badge, and write a message. This simple tool boosts morale and keeps your team motivated. Approvals make it easy to track requests, get signatures, and keep everything in one place. The dashboard shows all your approvals, so nothing slips through the cracks.

Praise and Approvals have a user-friendly interface, so you don’t waste time.
The like and dislike system encourages everyone to join in.
Automated workflows mean you spend less time on paperwork and more time getting things done.

Note: These hidden features can help you build a positive culture, even if your team is fully remote or work-from-home.

Some other hidden features you might want to try include channel analytics, the “raise hand” button in meetings, and the ability to pop out chats for multitasking. You can even book appointments with Bookings or manage huge teams with up to 10,000 members. Microsoft Teams keeps adding new tools, so it pays to explore.

Teams Meeting Tips

Running smooth meetings in Teams can feel tricky, but you have more control than you think. With the right meeting options and a few hidden tricks, you can make every session productive and stress-free.

Dynamic Roles

Switching roles during a meeting helps you keep things organized. You can assign roles like presenter, attendee, or organizer before or during the call. This flexibility lets you manage who can share content, mute others, or admit people from the lobby. If you want someone to lead a section, just change their role in the meeting options. You can switch roles on the fly, so you never lose momentum. This keeps your meetings focused and gives everyone a chance to participate.

Assign and Switch Roles

To assign or switch roles, open the meeting options either before or during the call. Select the person’s name, then pick the role you want them to have. You can move people between presenter and attendee as needed. This feature helps you handle large groups or special guests without confusion. If you need to change roles quickly, use the participant panel for fast access.

Meeting Recap & Transcription

Teams now offers a powerful recap and transcription feature. After your meeting ends, you get a summary with recordings, transcripts, and AI-generated highlights. This makes it easy to catch up if you missed something or need to review decisions.

Access and Share Recaps

Check out this table to see how the recap feature boosts your productivity:

Evidence Description	Benefit
Audio recaps create a single content summary of up to eight meetings.	You stay informed on key discussions, critical decisions, and actionable takeaways.
The new Recap app centralizes recordings, transcripts, and AI-generated summaries.	You get a unified experience for handling meeting intelligence.
Teams recaps allow quick review of event recordings and transcripts.	You can access past event materials without switching screens or apps.

You can find recaps in the meeting chat or calendar. Share them with your team so everyone stays on the same page. This feature saves time and helps you follow up on action items.

Raise Hand & Breakout Rooms

Large group meetings can get noisy. Teams gives you tools to keep things running smoothly. The Raise Hand feature lets you signal when you want to speak, so you don’t interrupt others. Breakout Rooms split your group into smaller teams for focused discussions.

Best Practices

Here’s how you can use these features to your advantage:

Use Raise Hand to show you want to talk without breaking the flow.
Create Breakout Rooms for brainstorming or small group work.
Divide participants into up to 50 rooms for better collaboration.
Organizers can jump between rooms to guide conversations.
Work on documents together in Breakout Rooms, thanks to Microsoft 365 integration.

Recent updates to Teams meetings include a simplified Gallery view and adaptive video tiles. These changes improve video quality and make the interface easier to use. Built-in tools like pin and spotlight keep key speakers visible. You can adjust meeting settings to fit your needs and make sure everyone stays engaged.

Tip: Explore the meeting options before your next call. You’ll find settings that help you control who can present, record, or join the meeting. Small tweaks can make a big difference in how your teams connect.

Optimizing Teams Rooms Audio

Shure Solutions Overview

You want your meetings to sound as good as they look. Shure leads the way in Teams Rooms audio solutions, bringing nearly a century of audio expertise to your workspace. When you step into a room equipped with Shure, you notice the difference right away. The IntelliMix Room Kits and IntelliMix Bar Pro deliver unmatched sound quality and reliability. These solutions fit any workspace, from small huddle rooms to large boardrooms. You get seamless integration with Microsoft Teams and Zoom, so your team can focus on collaboration instead of troubleshooting.

IntelliMix Room Kits & Bar Pro

Shure’s IntelliMix Room Kits and Bar Pro make setup simple. You don’t need to worry about complicated wiring or compatibility issues. The system connects easily and adapts to your business needs. You get secure audio with AES-256 encryption and certified setups for Teams Rooms. Shure’s complete audio signal chain—from microphone to DSP to loudspeaker—ensures every voice comes through clearly. Steerable Coverage technology lets you capture voices from anywhere in the room, making video calling feel natural.

Tip: If you want a quick upgrade for your conferencing space, try IntelliMix Bar Pro. It’s a plug-and-play solution that brings professional audio to your meetings.

Feature	Shure Audio Solutions
Audio Quality	Unmatched sound quality and reliability
Integration	Seamless integration with Microsoft Teams and Zoom
Security	AES-256 audio encryption and secure network access
Scalability	Solutions scalable for workspaces of every size
Certification	Meets Teams Rooms and Zoom Room setup certifications

Audio Quality for AI Meetings

You rely on clear audio for productive meetings, especially when using AI-powered tools like Microsoft 365 Copilot. If your audio isn’t crisp, Copilot can miss important details or create inaccurate summaries. Shure’s advanced features help you capture every word, so your team gets the most from AI collaboration. You notice stronger user adoption because communication feels effortless. The simplified setup and seamless interoperability mean you spend less time managing technology and more time connecting.

Impact on Copilot & Summaries

When you use Teams for video calling, you want your AI tools to work flawlessly. Shure’s IntelliMix automatic mixing and Steerable Coverage technology enhance sound reproduction. This makes Copilot’s meeting summaries more accurate and actionable. You get quick, adaptable collaboration infrastructure that keeps your business moving forward.

DSP, Noise Reduction, Echo Cancellation

You know how distracting background noise and echo can be during video calling. Shure’s digital signal processing (DSP), noise reduction, and echo cancellation features make your meetings smoother. Microsoft Teams achieves top scores in echo cancellation and noise reduction, so you hear only what matters. These features suppress unwanted noise while keeping voices clear. You stay focused on the discussion, not the distractions.

User Experience Benefits

You experience more productive meetings because everyone can hear and be heard. Shure’s technology lets you concentrate on ideas, not audio issues. You build trust in your conferencing system, knowing it delivers every time. Your team feels more connected, and your business benefits from better communication.

Note: Investing in high-quality audio solutions transforms your Teams experience. You unlock new features and make every meeting count.

Teams Chat Shortcuts

You probably spend a lot of time in chat every day. If you want to move faster and keep your conversations organized, you should try some of the shortcuts and hidden tools inside teams. These chat tricks help you save time, stay focused, and get more done with less effort.

Slash Commands

Most Useful Commands

Slash commands are like secret codes that unlock quick actions in chat. You just type a slash (/) in the search bar, and a list of commands appears. These commands let you jump between chats, start calls, or even check your mentions without clicking through menus.

Here are some of the most useful slash commands you can try:

/chat: Start a new chat with anyone in your organization.
/call: Begin an audio or video call right from chat.
/meet: Schedule a meeting with your chat group.
/goto: Jump straight to a specific channel or team.
/unread: See all your unread messages in chat.
/saved: Pull up your saved messages and posts.
/mention: Mention a teammate or channel in your chat.
/files: Open the Files tab for a team or channel.
/task: Create or manage tasks without leaving chat.
/who: Ask the Who bot questions about your coworkers.

You can use these commands to speed up your workflow and keep your hands on the keyboard. No more hunting through menus or losing track of important chats.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Time-Saving Tips

Keyboard shortcuts turn you into a power user in teams. You can switch between chat, calendar, and files with just a few keys. This keeps your hands off the mouse and helps you work faster.

Here’s a table with some of the best shortcuts for chat:

Shortcut	Function
Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+6	Switch between main views (Activity, Chat, Teams, Calendar, Calls, Files)
Ctrl+E	Jump to the Search bar instantly
Ctrl+N	Start a new chat
Ctrl+Enter	Send your message right away
Ctrl+Shift+K	Start a video call from chat
Ctrl+Shift+M	Mute or unmute yourself during a call
Ctrl+.	Open the Keyboard Shortcuts menu

Using these shortcuts saves you time and reduces the strain on your hands. You can answer calls, send messages, and share your screen without ever reaching for your mouse.

Tip: Try learning one new shortcut each week. You’ll be surprised how much faster you can move through chat and teams.

Message Formatting

Rich Text & Code Snippets

Clear messages make chat easier for everyone. Teams gives you formatting tools to help your messages stand out and stay organized. You can use the Format option in the compose box to add bold, italic, or underline to your text. You can also highlight important points, change font size, or create lists for better structure.

If you make a spelling mistake, teams will underline it in red. You can right-click to see suggestions and fix errors quickly. For technical teams, you can even add code snippets to your chat, making it easy to share scripts or commands.

Use bold for key points.
Try bullet lists for steps or ideas.
Highlight important info so it doesn’t get missed.

These features help your chat stay clear, professional, and easy to read. When your messages look good, your team communicates better.

File Management in Teams

Managing files in teams can feel overwhelming, but you have tools that make it easy. You can keep your documents safe, share them with your team, and work together without losing track of changes. Let’s look at some features that help you stay organized and productive.

Version History

When you work on files in teams, you don’t have to worry about losing important information. Version history lets you see every change made to a document. If someone makes a mistake or deletes something by accident, you can go back to an earlier version. You never lose your work, and you always have a backup.

Restore Files

You can restore files with just a few clicks. Open the file, check the version history, and pick the version you want to bring back. This keeps your team’s work safe and prevents data loss. You can also see who made each change, which helps you understand how your document has evolved. When you collaborate in teams, everyone edits the same file. You don’t have to manage different copies or worry about confusion. Real-time updates mean you always see the latest version.

Tip: Use version history when you need to undo changes or track edits. It’s a lifesaver for group projects and busy teams.

OneDrive & SharePoint Integration

Teams connects with OneDrive and SharePoint to make file sharing simple. You can upload documents, share them with your team, and edit them together—all without leaving teams. This integration saves you time and keeps your workflow smooth.

Seamless Sharing

Files shared in teams are automatically uploaded to OneDrive or SharePoint. You can access them from any device, and you don’t have to worry about losing track of your documents. The OneDrive sync app lets you sync files between your computer and Microsoft 365. Files On-Demand helps you manage storage space, so you only download what you need.

Here’s a quick look at the advantages:

Advantage	Description
Streamlined Workflows	Move files easily between OneDrive and SharePoint, making collaboration faster.
Secure File Sharing	Teams uses strong security to protect your files while you work together.
Enhanced Productivity	View and edit files right inside teams, so you don’t have to switch apps.

You can share files with your team in seconds.
Everyone can edit documents together, which boosts teamwork.
You see who is working on the file and where changes happen.

Note: Seamless sharing in teams means you spend less time managing files and more time getting work done.

You can rely on these tools to keep your files safe, organized, and easy to find. Teams gives you everything you need to collaborate and stay productive.

Customizing Teams Experience

You don’t have to settle for the default setup in teams. You can shape your workspace to fit your style and your team’s needs. Let’s look at two ways you can make teams work better for you: adding third-party apps and fine-tuning your notifications.

App Integrations

You can supercharge your workflow by adding third-party apps right inside teams. These integrations bring your favorite tools together, so you don’t have to jump between different platforms. Want to manage projects, track sales, or automate tasks? There’s an app for that.

Adding Third-Party Apps

Here’s how third-party apps can boost your productivity:

Compliance tools help you stay on top of data security and reporting.
AI and machine learning apps automate tasks and deliver smart insights.
Analytics apps turn raw data into easy-to-read charts and reports.
Collaboration tools create shared workspaces and keep everyone connected.
Customer service apps let you track tickets and respond faster.
Project management tools help you plan, assign, and follow up on tasks.
Productivity boosters automate reminders and streamline your day.

You’ll find popular options like Planner, Loop, Asana, and Trello. These apps let you check tasks, update files, and get reminders—all without leaving teams. Some apps even send updates straight to your activity feed, so you never miss a deadline. The best part? Most apps follow Microsoft’s security model, so you can trust your data stays safe.

Tip: Try adding a project management app to your favorite channel. You’ll see how easy it is to keep everyone on track.

Here’s a quick look at what you get with top integrations:

App Type	What It Does
Project Management	Plan, assign, and track tasks
Analytics	Visualize data and create reports
Automation	Set reminders and automate workflows
Customer Service	Manage support tickets and customer chats
Collaboration	Share docs and work together in real time

Notification Settings

You probably get a lot of alerts in teams. Too many notifications can make it hard to focus. The good news? You can control what you see and hear.

Reducing Overload

You can filter and customize your notifications to focus on what matters most. Teams lets you choose which alerts pop up, which ones make a sound, and which ones stay silent. This helps you cut down on distractions and stay productive.

Here’s how you can take charge:

Open your profile and go to settings.
Find the notifications section and pick how often you want to get alerts.
For busy channels, use the three dots to set custom notifications.

You can set some channels to “off” if you don’t need updates. For important projects, turn on all alerts so you never miss a thing. Customizing notifications helps you stay in control and keeps your day running smoothly.

Note: Small changes to your notification settings can make a big difference in your focus and productivity.

You have the power to make teams fit your work style. Try out these features and see how much smoother your day can be.

Microsoft Teams Security

Keeping your workspace safe in teams is more important than ever. You want to let people join your conversations, but you also need to protect your business. Let’s look at how you can manage guest access and prevent data loss without making things complicated.

Guest Access

Inviting guests into your teams can boost collaboration. You can work with partners, clients, or vendors right inside your channels. But opening the door to outsiders brings new risks. You need to stay alert and use smart strategies to keep your information safe.

Best Practices

Check out this table to see common security risks and how you can handle them:

Security Risks	Mitigation Strategies
Authentication problems	Use Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for guest accounts.
User error	Train employees on data sharing rules.
Malicious users	Block risky domains and set allow lists.
Offboarding issues	Review and remove access for former guests often.
Access from unmanaged devices	Set policies for device management.
Malware uploaded via guest accounts	Scan files from third parties for malware.
Data loss via Teams chat and file shares	Use strong data loss prevention tools.
Slow security response	Respond to security issues quickly.
Inconsistent control across apps	Standardize controls for all platforms.
Missing risky behavior patterns	Check user behavior for anything unusual.
Simple controls for complex setups	Build flexible and complete security controls.

You can lower your risk by following these steps. Always check who has access. Remove guests who no longer need it. Teach your team how to share files safely. Set up device policies so only trusted devices connect. Scan uploads for malware. These actions help you keep your workspace secure without slowing down your work.

Tip: Review your guest list every month. This habit keeps your teams clean and safe.

Data Loss Prevention

You share a lot of information in teams. Sometimes, you might send sensitive data by mistake. That’s where data loss prevention (DLP) comes in. DLP helps you spot and stop risky sharing before it becomes a problem.

DLP Policies

Microsoft Teams connects with Microsoft Purview DLP to protect your data across all your apps. This system uses smart detection to find sensitive info, like credit card numbers or business secrets. It gives you real-time tips if you try to share something risky. You get controls that adapt to different situations, so you can block, warn, or allow sharing based on the context.

These features help you follow rules and keep your data safe. DLP can find and classify sensitive data automatically. This means you spend less time worrying about leaks and more time focusing on your work. You also meet compliance needs without extra effort.

Still, you need to stay alert. Teams makes it easy to share, which can lead to mistakes. The open permissions model means anyone with access can share or delete files. APIs change often, so backup can get tricky. Make sure you review your DLP policies often and update them as your needs change.

Note: A strong DLP setup protects your business and helps you work with confidence in microsoft teams.

Teams Productivity Boosters

When you want to get more done in less time, you need the right tools. Microsoft Teams gives you features that help you manage tasks, automate approvals, and keep your business running smoothly. Let’s look at how you can use Planner, To Do, and automation to boost your team’s productivity.

Planner & To Do

You probably juggle a lot of tasks every day. Planner and To Do inside teams make it easy to keep track of everything. You can assign tasks, set deadlines, and see what everyone is working on—all in one place. This helps your team stay organized and makes sure nothing slips through the cracks.

Task Management

The To Do tab lets you assign tasks to your team members. You can check off items as you finish them. Planner gives you a bigger view, so you see all your projects and who owns each task. This setup keeps everyone on the same page and helps you spot roadblocks early.

Here’s a quick look at how these tools help you manage work:

Feature	Benefit
Assigning tasks in Planner	Keeps work organized and ensures visibility across the team.
Centralized access to tasks	Promotes accountability and streamlines workflows.

Assign tasks to anyone in your team.
Track progress without switching apps.
Use analytics to see which projects need attention.

You can use analytics to spot trends and improve how your team works. If you see a task falling behind, you can jump in and help. This makes your business more agile and keeps your projects on track.

Approvals & Automation

Approvals in teams help you move faster. You don’t have to chase people for sign-offs or worry about missing a request. Automation takes care of the routine steps, so you can focus on what matters most.

Workflow Setup

You can set up automated approvals that handle requests from start to finish. When someone submits a request, the right people get notified right away. You can start approval flows from chats, channels, or the Approvals app. This flexibility fits any workflow.

Feature	Description
Automated Approvals	Streamlines requests and processes by allowing users to create, manage, and distribute approvals easily.
Notification System	Approvers are notified upon request submission, ensuring timely responses.
Multi-Channel Integration	Initiate approval flows from chats, channel conversations, or directly from the Approvals app.

Define decision criteria for your AI tools.
Provide all the documents and information needed.
Let AI review requests and give you clear decisions.

AI-powered approvals in Microsoft Copilot Studio make your workflow even smarter. You can set rules, upload files, and let the AI handle routine decisions. This saves time and reduces errors. You get more accurate analytics on how fast approvals move through your business.

With these tools, you spend less time on paperwork and more time growing your team. You see where bottlenecks happen and use analytics to fix them. Teams gives you the power to automate, analyze, and improve every part of your workflow.

Search & Organization Hacks

You probably know that finding things in teams can get tricky, especially when your chats and files start to pile up. But you have some powerful tools at your fingertips that can help you stay organized and save time. Let’s look at how you can master search and keep your most important info right where you need it.

Advanced Search

Ever feel lost in a sea of messages? You don’t have to scroll forever. Teams gives you advanced search features that make it easy to find exactly what you need. The search bar at the top of your screen is your best friend. You can use it to search for messages, files, or even people.

Filters & Shortcuts

You can narrow down your search results with filters and shortcuts. Here’s how you can make your searches faster and more accurate:

Use filters like ‘From:’, ‘Type:’, and ‘More Filters’ to focus your search.
Try search modifiers such as ‘from:’, ‘before:’, ‘after:’, and ‘in:’ to find messages by sender, date, or channel.
The Global Search bar lets you enter a slash (/) to see quick commands and jump to different parts of teams.
For example, typing ‘from:John’ will show you all messages from John.
You can also filter results by file type, date, or even by a specific team or channel.

Tip: If you remember just a word or two from a message, type it in the search bar and add a filter. You’ll find what you need in seconds.

Here’s a quick table to help you remember some handy search tricks:

Search Modifier	What It Does	Example
from:	Finds messages from a person	from:Alex
before:	Shows messages before a date	before:2024-06-01
after:	Shows messages after a date	after:2024-05-01
in:	Searches in a specific channel	in:Marketing

Pinning Content

You don’t want to lose track of important chats, channels, or files. Pinning helps you keep your workspace tidy and your key info always within reach.

Chats, Channels, Files

When you pin a message, chat, or file in teams, you make sure it stays visible at the top of your list. This is a game changer for busy teams who need to access the same details again and again. You won’t have to dig through long chat histories or search for that one file you need every day.

Pin a chat to keep a project conversation handy.
Pin a channel so you can jump in quickly when you need updates.
Pin a file that your group uses often, like a shared document or spreadsheet.

Pinning content helps you and your teammates stay on the same page. You save time, reduce stress, and make sure nothing important slips through the cracks.

Note: Try pinning your most-used chats and files today. You’ll notice how much easier it is to stay organized and focused.

Teams Mobile Features

Staying connected on the go matters more than ever. The Microsoft Teams mobile app puts your whole workspace in your pocket, so you never miss a beat—whether you’re at your desk or out in the field. Let’s look at how you can get the most from the app and keep your workday running smoothly.

Mobile App Tips

You might think the mobile app is just a smaller version of the desktop, but it packs a lot of power. You can chat, join meetings, and share files from anywhere. The app helps you stay productive, even when you’re away from your computer.

Here are some of the most useful features you’ll find in the Teams mobile app:

Real-time communication lets you send quick updates and check meeting summaries on the fly.
Easy scheduling helps you organize meetings and share documents with just a few taps.
Enhanced security keeps your data safe with multi-factor authentication and secure guest access.
Seamless integration with Office 365 tools means you can collaborate on documents and projects without switching apps.
Virtual meetings support large groups and offer features like live captions and meeting recording.
Collaboration tools, such as chat and file sharing, make teamwork simple and effective.
Productivity features keep your work activities in one place and help you minimize distractions.

Notifications & Sync

You don’t want to miss important updates, but you also don’t want your phone buzzing all day. The Teams mobile app gives you control over notifications. You can choose which alerts you get and when you get them. Set quiet hours for evenings or weekends, so you can focus when you need to and unplug when you don’t.

Syncing happens automatically. When you read a message or join a meeting on your phone, your desktop app stays up to date. You never have to worry about missing a chat or losing your place in a conversation. If you switch devices, everything follows you.

Tip: Customize your notification settings in the app. Turn off alerts for less important channels and keep only the ones that matter most.

Offline Access

Sometimes you lose your signal or need to work in places without Wi-Fi. The Teams mobile app has you covered. You can read recent messages, check your calendar, and even draft replies while offline. When you reconnect, the app syncs your changes and sends your messages.

Offline access means you can keep working, no matter where you are. You stay prepared for meetings, review notes, and keep your projects moving forward—even if you’re off the grid.

Note: Download important files ahead of time if you know you’ll be offline. This way, you always have what you need at your fingertips.

With these mobile features, you turn any location into your office. You stay connected, productive, and ready for anything.

You’ve just unlocked a new level in microsoft teams. These hidden features and smart tools can change how you work every day. When you try advanced tips—like optimizing audio for AI meetings—you’ll notice big improvements:

Better sound with AI-driven noise reduction and echo cancellation
Smoother teamwork and communication
Faster, more organized workflows
Higher productivity for everyone

Go ahead and experiment. Share your favorite discoveries or questions about teams in the comments. Let’s help each other get the most out of microsoft.

FAQ

How do I quickly find old messages in Teams?

You can use the search bar at the top of your Teams window. Type a keyword or phrase, then use filters to narrow your results. This helps you find messages, files, or people fast.

Can I use Teams on my phone without missing updates?

Yes! The Teams mobile app syncs with your desktop. You get notifications, can join meetings, and chat on the go. Set quiet hours to control when you get alerts.

What’s the best way to share files with my team?

Upload your files directly in a chat or channel. Teams stores them in OneDrive or SharePoint, so everyone can access and edit the latest version together.

How do I keep my meetings organized?

Assign roles before or during meetings. Use features like Raise Hand and Breakout Rooms to manage discussions. Meeting recaps and transcripts help you review what happened.

Can I add apps to customize my Teams experience?

Absolutely! You can add third-party apps for project management, analytics, or automation. Just click “Apps” in the sidebar and explore what fits your workflow.

How does Teams help protect my data?

Teams uses strong security tools like guest access controls and data loss prevention policies. You can set who joins your team and what they can share, keeping your information safe.

Why is audio quality important for AI-powered meetings?

Clear audio helps AI tools like Copilot capture every detail. Good sound ensures accurate meeting summaries and action items. Shure audio solutions make your microsoft teams meetings sound professional.

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>> Yeah, welcome to another edition of the M365 of M podcast,

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where we talk about Microsoft topics around with MDPs,

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product experts, engineers, and community leaders,

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shaping the future of Microsoft 365, AI, and modern work.

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Today, we are joining by someone who's been

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part of Microsoft collaboration journey for more than 20 years,

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from Skype for business to Microsoft Teams,

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and now AI part workplaces with Microsoft 365 co-pilot.

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Trust Blahlock is multiple Microsoft MVP for Teams

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and Microsoft 365 co-pilot.

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Technology, if I can go to a tour,

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create one of the expert things on YouTube channel,

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and co-founder of the comps VNext conference.

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Today, we are exploring how as teams evolved,

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why hardware becomes more important than ever,

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and how AI changing meetings and what every IT leadership

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now before investing in co-operate,

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core, revelation, technology.

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Josh, welcome to the M365 podcast.

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>> Thank you so much for having me.

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It's a pleasure to be here.

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We have some cool topics to unfold today,

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so I'm excited to dive into it all with you.

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>> Yeah, today we have not so much time,

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so can you tell us a little bit about your journey into Microsoft,

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in the Microsoft world,

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and how did you start with unified communications?

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>> Yeah, my journey at the beginning of my career,

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really, was kind of chosen for me.

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I started out in the Air Force, the United States Air Force,

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and that was the job that they gave me was IT, right?

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They're like, you're going to do computer,

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you're going to work on servers, and the first job assignment

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I got after my tech school training was to go and work

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on exchange 5.5 servers, running email servers

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for the base that I was stationed at for a couple of years.

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So I didn't really know much about it,

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but I knew what email was, and so I was like,

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okay, cool, let's do exchange 5.5,

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and at that point, exchange 5.5 was actually pretty old.

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They were behind the time,

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so we went through some upgrades,

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and that's kind of where I got started on my Microsoft journey.

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And for a good, I don't know, five, 10 years after that,

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I was kind of a Microsoft server technologies generalist,

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Active Directory, SharePoint,

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I did all the different server technologies in that realm,

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ISA server, for those who remember ISA server,

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but eventually when they said, hey, here's this new thing,

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let's try this, it's OCS 2007 R2, go ahead and install that.

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Let's get it working alongside of our exchange,

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and the company has with the time to stir it at me.

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And so once I did, and I saw how it started to bring

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everything together with chat, with calls,

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with all that, that fascinated me, right?

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I was, at that point, I was more interested in that

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than anything else I'd worked on.

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Everything else was more of a job to me,

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but unified communications was like,

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this is interesting, I actually find this to be fascinating.

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Let's dig deeper there.

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And so that kind of got me started back with OCS 2007 R2,

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and it kind of built from there.

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I still was a generalist for a while,

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but eventually some opportunities opened up

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for me to focus my day job on link server 2013,

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and that turned in the Skype for Business Server

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and the story goes on from there.

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Yeah, let's talk a little bit short

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over the evolving from Skype business to Microsoft Teams.

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What are you missing from Skype to Pro Business?

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- I, you know, I think what was,

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it's a very interesting and different world then, right?

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Because you had on-prem server technologies

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that were, Skype for Business was the first time

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that you were starting to get cloud-based technologies,

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'cause they had Skype for Business Online.

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And that was, that was really where you started

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to have a lot of people migrating into the cloud

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and using Skype for Business Online.

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That's kind of where I was able to carve out my space

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in the Microsoft MVP community,

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'cause I wrote a whole e-book on,

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it was the hybrid handbook for migrating

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from Skype for Business on-prem to offline

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and all the capabilities and things that came with that.

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And then Teams started this slide into that story, right?

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Migrating from Skype for Business Online into Teams

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or blending on-prem worlds into Teams.

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I think some of the things that I missed the most

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and they still exist today,

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and there are still customers out there today

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on-prem still with Skype for Business Instances,

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but you just don't see that very much

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and you don't deal with that in the Microsoft Teams world too much.

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I think that's what I missed most

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is working with on-prem server technologies,

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actually seeing that components implement together.

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There were a lot of frustrating days back then,

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troubleshooting all the different network issues

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and but I liked that component.

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And now with everything being cloud-based,

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it's cool, it's neat to do,

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but you feel as an engineer, right?

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As someone who came from an engineer background,

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you feel a little bit more hands-off,

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went from the technology than you used to

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when it was actual physical servers

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and your own data centers, your own server rooms

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that you were managing and I can't walk into a server room anymore

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and hit reset on that server, right?

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It's in the cloud, it is what it is.

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So I just probably would have missed most

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about the Skype for Business Days

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versus all in the cloud with Microsoft Teams.

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>> Yeah, one question, a lot of people are interesting

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in now in getting NVP, you are an NVP

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and I think it's especially because

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Shure have started an NVP program.

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Can you tell me a little bit about the Shure NVP program?

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How did you become an NVP and what role

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does the Shure Academy play in this?

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>> I think the best way to unpack that is to start

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with my own journey there

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and I actually had someone else that was an NVP,

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I used to work at a company called Rackspace a while back

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and while there there was Rackspace had acquired

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a SharePoint company that had a number of Microsoft NVPs

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working for it at the time.

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So suddenly Rackspace had all these Microsoft NVPs,

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they were SharePoint focused and so I'd reached out

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to one of them, Todd Clint, and asked them,

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hey, I'm interested in this path, what do I do?

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How do I start going down that path?

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Possibly becoming an NVP, but how do you,

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and he's just had great advice, he's like, look,

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Microsoft NVPs are measuring all these ways,

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it's about being an evangelist,

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it's about creating content and influencing people

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and sharing your knowledge.

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And this is the essence of the Microsoft NVP program, right?

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It's less about wanting it, it's more about finding

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what you're passionate about

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and the way that you like to share that information

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and sharing it and fostering that type

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of community.

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So he said, find something you like to do and then share it.

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And it was, it was great advice from him,

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and I kind of took that and ran with it.

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And I started, everybody was doing it at the time,

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I started blog, right?

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There wasn't a lot of videos happening,

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people weren't creating video content.

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There was a little bit of writing e-books and things.

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There wasn't a lot of podcasting back at that point either.

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So I started doing the blogging thing for a while.

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And the social media thing, back then, Twitter was huge

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for the UC community.

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So we were on Twitter, we were doing it.

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I started doing those two things.

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And the blogging was okay, but to be honest,

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I decided I wasn't really passionate about it.

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I didn't love that medium for sharing my content.

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And so as doing videos was starting to become

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a thing that people were beginning to pay attention to

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on social media, I said, you know what?

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I'm gonna go ahead and just turn the camera on one day.

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And I'm gonna start creating my own webcasts

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called the Skype for Bee Recap.

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And I ended up, and actually you brought the cowboy hat

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when we first got on the call earlier,

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I was sitting there, I just got in the cowboy hat

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from my wife for Christmas or a birthday or something.

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And I was looking at myself in the camera, right?

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And I'm like, oh my gosh, my hair, what is going on?

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My hair today.

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So you know what? Nobody knows who I am.

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It's not gonna hurt anything if I just throw this cowboy hat on.

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It'll be unique, it'll be different.

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I'll be that guy in a cowboy hat talking about technology.

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Why not?

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And so I did it and it kind of stuck.

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It was my little personal branch for a while,

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but I discovered very quickly that even if I wasn't really

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great at it at the time because you build your craft,

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you hone your skills, you get better at doing videos

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and podcasts over time.

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But even though I wasn't great at it right away, I enjoyed it.

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I was fascinated by creating videos.

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I thought it was a really cool way to share content.

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And I was passionate about that in addition to the technology.

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So that's what I started doing.

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I started sharing my content via video.

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And honestly, I think that with a few other things

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is what ultimately led to me being admitted

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into the MVP program, which took a while, right?

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Took a couple of years of work and effort

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and building a following, building an audience, sharing

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your knowledge and just finding your groove with it,

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finding where your passion actually lies.

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So that's how I got into it into the MVP program.

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And that would be my advice to people

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looking to get into it too is, hey, this is what it's all about.

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Sharing your knowledge, building community,

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and doing it in a way that you're passionate.

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So if that's your interest, that's my sage wisdom,

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therefore it.

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And half of that question you brought up, the Sure Program, right?

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There's a brand new program that we launched a Sure

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called Be Sure Ignition Program.

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And currently, this is really mostly

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consisted of Microsoft MVP's themselves

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because the program itself is actually

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modeled very heavily after Microsoft's MVP program

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in terms of the way it operates, the way it's structured,

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its purpose, right, to go out and create evangelism

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about Sure Products and Solutions.

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Alongside the Microsoft Teams world.

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So I imagine this won't be our only program

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because we just made a really big play in the Zoom room space

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as well.

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So we'll probably have other programs that come to light.

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But for now, this program is very Microsoft Teams focused.

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And the point of it is to start small,

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start with some people that are already heavily

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evangelizing Microsoft Teams rooms specifically

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because that's where Sure Makes Equipment is

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in Microsoft Teams rooms.

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And so, a lot of people that are passionate about Teams rooms

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and are also passionate about telling the story

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about how Sure Solutions enhanced Teams rooms

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build an amazing co-pilot story for the organization

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that is realizing that value for the first time.

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And it's a brand new program just launched.

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It'll be an annual type of program just like

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the Microsoft MVP program is.

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But the idea here is pretty soon, we're probably

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going to start seeing some of the members from that program

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utilizing some of their cool shiny new content creator gear

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to create content about some of the solutions

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that you would expect to see in a conference room.

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Sure, our IntelliMix room kits are soon

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to be released in Telemix Bar Pro.

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The ceiling mic's that have varied all kinds of conference

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rooms across the globe.

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This is where we're going to see this group really shy.

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Yeah, please don't kill me for this question.

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I think a lot of people know Sure for for musicals,

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especially I don't say the biggest group are content creators.

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I think it's the most selling, the SMV center,

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the most sell podcast and video cast microphone.

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And now is it's new that sure creates especially hardware

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for yeah, for yeah, for for for.

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Yeah, I don't know what's is in new program or is it's all done.

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Exactly.

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And rest I think with surprises, a lot of people is that they

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always shares new to the collaboration space

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because we we just launched last year, we just launched

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our IntelliMix room kits, right, which are Windows-based,

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certified teams room systems for every room size.

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And it's a modular approach because it's Windows-based.

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But they think, oh, you just launched those,

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you're new to this space.

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But the reality is that sure's MXA line of microphones and or

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like the MXA 902, which is a microphone

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loudspeaker combo for the ceiling, the MXA line of audio devices is

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for conferencing, right, they're built for conferencing rooms.

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And the MXA line just hit its 10 year anniversary.

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So sure has actually been creating audio solutions for conference

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rooms for 10 years.

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Now, we have not been building full room systems for that whole time.

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So when you're when you see sure is conferencing equipment

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in conferencing rooms, it's usually alongside one of our partners.

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We partner with neat now.

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We partner with logic tech.

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We partner with all these other manufacturers that have room

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solutions when they would get to large, complex spaces where audio

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was very challenging or auditoriums, where it was

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particularly challenging for a traditional room system,

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they would turn to sure and say, we need to add your

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audio equipment with all the complexity that you

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solve for with your DSPs and all the auto mixing you do, we need to

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add that to our room systems so that we can reach these bigger

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more complex high value spaces, expensive board rooms, all of that.

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So that that's where sure has been in the space for a long time.

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But when it comes to building certified room systems, yet that is

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relatively new, our in telemix room kits just came out last year.

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And even then, we partnered with, um,

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Huddly for the camera portions of those room systems.

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However, we announced that I see this year the in telemix bar pro

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and all in one form factor Android based M-depth based bar

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for large rooms that is coming out in just a month or two here,

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that it actually shares very first product with its own home

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grown video capabilities and the bar.

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So that's very exciting. It's a very innovative approach to video

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and we're very excited to see our our portfolio in the

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collaboration space grow to where it's not just Windows

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based room systems with a partner video solution sure has its own

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video solutions on the Android side now as well.

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And our portfolio of course is only going to grow over time.

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And that ignition program is going to be a key component of telling that story.

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Right. Yeah. It's cool. Happy also a little short.

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I announced this.

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Academic me is there is also a role in this, uh,

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or is it completely a different topic this year?

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I'm not even going to roll in it. I misheard because I was setting my water now.

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Uh, the sure academic have this also a role?

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Yeah. So the there's a lot of great content from sure academy out there in

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terms of learning audio capabilities. Um, and I think over time and

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probably in this coming year, we're going to see we would likely see sure academy

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have more, um, more content or interaction with the

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collaboration side of the business, right? Because it is a newer segment

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and sure academy has been largely focused on shares more traditional lines of

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business, which makes sense. The pro audio side, the content creator side,

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MXA even, um, but we're probably going to see more sure academy

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content and interactions and engagement with the community, uh, as it relates to

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conferencing capabilities in the coming year, I would imagine.

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Right. Yeah. Before we really detive in, in true hardware and, uh,

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someone that's a lot of, I say, content creators, uh, community

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experience and so on. And there it's one thing they say it's, uh, um, your audio

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it's more important than your video, uh, but the more people, uh, prove me wrong, uh,

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they invest so much money in, in, in, in, in, in, in, in, in, in, in, come a right

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treatment and, and so on. Why has audio, not these standing, uh, in, in, in, like,

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like video, like, like the record video? I, you know, it's an interesting,

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it's an interesting question because of the cycles that we've gone through, um,

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over over the years, when you think back to like the 1980s, right, meeting rooms,

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um, did, from being just places where we sat down, had meeting someone sat there

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taking notes and all that, they introduced, start introducing, um,

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you know, audio solutions to these rooms, uh, speaker phones and, and different

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audio capabilities and eventually some meeting room types of solutions, but they're

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very audio-centric. And then as you get a little bit further into it, the late 80s,

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into the 90s, video solutions start to become in focus. Oh, we can now do this,

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but they were very big, very expensive to implement and use. Uh, and then as we get

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to the 2000s, the 2010s, uh, and as we approach COVID, a lot of these

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solutions start to become a lot more affordable, a lot easier, a lot simpler. And so

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people now are like, look, we can, we can actually put video-based systems in way

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more rooms than our five expensive high-profile boardrooms. We could put them in

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regular meeting rooms. This is great. And so there's been this focus on video for

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quite, quite a while now, right? Because the audio piece feels like it's just,

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it's always been there. We can always hear people, at least for the last

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couple decades, the last few decades. So let's put this, this focus on video

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in more recent times, but you're absolutely right. In the midst of this focus on

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video, a lot of people lose sight of the fact that, look, if your video fails,

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it's okay. The meeting can still go on. You can still hear people with audio.

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If your audio fails, now you're done. Your meeting is over. You can't, you know,

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you can't hear anything. You're not communicating anymore.

347
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And for that's a really big focus. The next chapter of this conversation, though,

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which is where I have a lot of passion right now. And I'm really excited about what this means as a,

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as a Microsoft 365 co-pilot MVP. You're talking of what co-pilot is doing during meetings

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with agents like facilitator, interpreter, because of what co-pilot is doing now during meetings,

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the for me, and especially after meetings where co-pilot, you're asking co-pilot, hey,

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I was part of a meeting. I want you to give me all the action items. I want you to give me this

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summary. I want you to build a document based on what happened in that meeting. Because of that,

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you now have to look at the audio in that meeting as a whole different thing. It's no longer just

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spoken words and audio. Now audio is actually real-time data that co-pilot is going to use

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to do a whole bunch of stuff to build documents, to create task lists, to send emails,

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to automate things with co-pilot, co-work. This is all like, if you don't have ultra-clear, highly

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reliable, 100% accuracy audio in those rooms, in every room, then you are now crippling co-pilot.

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You are now telling co-pilot it has to operate on a lesser level because it cannot,

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it cannot fully know what happened in that meeting because your audio was good enough or OA.

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It wasn't the back audio. It wasn't the highest quality audio. People could understand it,

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and the call so it was good enough. But could co-pilot understand it? Well, well, maybe not super well.

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That's a problem because now all these companies are starting to use that data to get more work done.

364
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And I think that is the quintessential shift that we find ourselves in as organizations to where

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businesses have to stop thinking about their spend in the meeting room as good enough. They now have

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to think about the fact that they are building the foundational layer for all the AI investment that

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they are making in the platform. I love that question because audio is coming full circle

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back around to where it is of the most importance in that space. I don't want to say that video

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has no importance because I believe that as we move forward, Microsoft, Zoom, whoever that is

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running these platforms, they are going to increasingly use the video in those spaces for this data

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as well. I think that at some point I'm going to be able to ask co-pilot or co-worker,

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hey, tell me, I know what Mirko said in the meeting, but what did Mirko look like? Did he look impressed

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by the conversation? Did he look annoyed at the conversation? Tell me how he was reacting to this

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in real time. That's video insights that we don't yet have, and I think that's going to be very important.

375
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Yeah, it's really good. I also worked for some years on the different part in the hearing aid industry,

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but there is nothing for you. It's a problem. It's more important, but different rooms for

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environments. I say, you are on the street. It's loud. You are in the meeting room, and it's a small

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room, a big room, a cathedral. I don't know. A lot of what role plays hardware to get a good sound

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in what plays software, especially AI, to get a good sound? Yeah, I mean, so there's also a fantastic

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question as it relates to how it functions, because a lot of our, when you think about conference rooms,

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and the equipment we're putting in there, we have, this is going in a little bit deeper in the weeds,

382
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but I'll try to keep it high level. On our room kits, for example, on the compute for the room kits,

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or even on some of the devices, like the ceiling micro-rays, the MX-A902 and some other devices,

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they have onboard software-based DSPs, digital signal processors. Now, previously DSPs were

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physical, separate physical devices, right? I want to buy all these ceiling micro-rays,

386
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and now I've got to buy this physical DSP to connect all of them to mix the audio, decide which

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mic is going to pick up which area of the room. It's really cool, specialized stuff, but previously,

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all that audio cleanup, the mixing, the reverb, the cleaning up of the sound before it gets sent

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00:24:58,560 --> 00:25:07,520
back to the platform, happened by a DSP. Now, the DSP being software on board the systems, people

390
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don't have to buy the separate DSP. They don't have to run more tables. They don't have to configure it.

391
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It's automated on the device. So in a sure solution, if you are in a conference room,

392
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and your co-worker is sitting next to you with a bag of potato chips crinkling the bat and

393
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chewing with their mouth wide open, making all kinds of playable noises, clickity-clacking on

394
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their keyboard, really loud. The onboard software-based DSP of the equipment is smart enough to say,

395
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that's not voices, I'm going to eliminate all of that. I'm going to clean up that audio and then

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I'm going to send it to the platform. And then the platform, Microsoft Teams in the cloud, says,

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I'm going to do what I do for all manufacturers. I'm going to look at the audio and try to make sure

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it says clean as I can make it so that we can make transcripts and all that. The good news for

399
00:26:06,160 --> 00:26:11,440
Microsoft Teams in the cloud is that it doesn't have to do a lot of work because you've got sure

400
00:26:11,440 --> 00:26:19,040
on this end, doing what sure has done best for over a hundred years now, producing the best

401
00:26:19,040 --> 00:26:24,960
sounding highest quality audio in the market before it's ever sent back for AI processing.

402
00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:32,960
So that's now the role of the two. Microsoft Teams cloud-based audio processing, audio cleanup is

403
00:26:32,960 --> 00:26:41,200
a lot more important for a lot of other hardware choices that maybe don't do as good a job at

404
00:26:41,200 --> 00:26:47,760
cleaning up the audio in the room before it gets sent on. But at the end of the day,

405
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when you're thinking, oh, that's great. Well, why do I need super great equipment in the room? Microsoft

406
00:26:52,000 --> 00:26:58,000
will just do it in the cloud. Microsoft does it to an extent, right? But that's not what their

407
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bread and butter has been for the last hundred years. Their professional area of expertise is not

408
00:27:03,760 --> 00:27:10,240
the audio processing and cleanup. That's something that they do on a high level and they do a pretty

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decent job of getting it cleaned up for for your transcripts. But ensuring that the audio is as clean

410
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as it can be before it ever gets to Microsoft is really the key to having the best data for your AI

411
00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:34,160
on the back end. Yeah, the DSP is it's a really, really good topic and I have a question. So it's like,

412
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I don't know, we take a vacuum cleaner and company says, oh, it says 10,000 watts and so on DSP has

413
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bits, so they process. But what is really important when a company think about buying conference

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00:27:55,760 --> 00:28:04,640
hardware, it's like bits on on DSP or is it something different? I mean, I think that when it comes

415
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to organizations making these decisions, you know, when it comes to the technical, the technical things

416
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that are being measured and all the technical specs, you can see a lot of manufacturers that tend to

417
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want to wade into the, well, this has this many watts or this many, you know, they can really get

418
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down there and try to break that down. For organizations, what actually matters is how does it actually

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sound? You know, at the end of the day, you can give me a bunch of a list of really fancy specs for

420
00:28:38,000 --> 00:28:44,320
what you guys do and ensure products do have a very nice list of fancy specs to go through.

421
00:28:44,320 --> 00:28:51,280
But I always like to say, look, I come from the consulting world, I come from the software based

422
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side of things, I come from a Microsoft center ecosystem. What matters to every customer that I've

423
00:28:56,800 --> 00:29:03,840
ever talked to is what the experience actually is. How does it actually sound? When I'm in a meeting

424
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and I'm looking at the transcript that is riddled with errors after the meeting, am I, do I feel better

425
00:29:12,240 --> 00:29:17,200
about that bad transcript? Because at least someone told me that it had these amazing specs when I

426
00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:24,720
bought it? No, I don't care about that. I care about the results. I care about how good does it sound?

427
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How clear is that audio? How accurate is my transcript actually going to be? And so when I encourage

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decision makers to do is explore a POC where you're curious. If you're like, look, I know that there's

429
00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:44,720
all these amazing specs. I'm hearing this from this manufacturer and sure is telling me this.

430
00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:51,280
Put it to the test, put it in your environment, not worrying so much about what all the specs are

431
00:29:51,280 --> 00:29:58,080
that you're looking for. You know, when you talk to Sherp, for example, right? You know what Sher's

432
00:29:58,080 --> 00:30:03,120
reputation is and the music industry and the content creation industry, you know they've been doing

433
00:30:03,120 --> 00:30:09,360
it for a hundred years. That reputation speaks well. So take it for a test drive. The other manufacturer

434
00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:14,880
is making some great claims. Great. Take that for a test drive. See how it performs in your actual

435
00:30:14,880 --> 00:30:22,080
collaboration scenarios and then let the proof actually be what drives your decision making. Because

436
00:30:22,080 --> 00:30:31,280
at the end of the day, specs are specs. The actual experience doesn't always align with phenomenal

437
00:30:31,280 --> 00:30:41,520
specs. Both audio and video that's that's true. So. There are these are I've forgotten the real name

438
00:30:41,520 --> 00:30:51,200
but it's like Microsoft Teams, Certificated, Hardware. Yeah. Why is this important? And what does it mean

439
00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:58,960
makes it really an impact? Yeah. I mean, Teams certified hardware is there's all kinds,

440
00:30:58,960 --> 00:31:05,280
there's lots of categories for that, right? There's Teams certified cameras both for conference rooms

441
00:31:05,280 --> 00:31:12,640
and for personal use cases. Teams certified headsets, meeting rooms, meeting room peripherals,

442
00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:22,080
lots and lots of different categories. And so the idea behind all of that is that Microsoft has developed

443
00:31:22,080 --> 00:31:29,600
a certification program that is very rigorous, right? It is not it's not like you pay to play

444
00:31:29,600 --> 00:31:37,360
situation. You don't show up as a manufacturer and say, I'm paying Microsoft this much to be evaluated

445
00:31:37,360 --> 00:31:42,880
and I'm checking a few boxes and now I've achieved certification. Microsoft actually goes

446
00:31:42,880 --> 00:31:53,680
to a very in-depth testing process alongside its software in various scenarios where they actually

447
00:31:53,680 --> 00:32:01,360
do collaboration in different use cases along with with its engineering team. It is robust. It is

448
00:32:01,360 --> 00:32:07,040
it is grueling to go through as an engineering manufacturing company that is making a product.

449
00:32:07,600 --> 00:32:13,760
It's a high bar to have to meet the certification checklist for the category you're trying to get

450
00:32:13,760 --> 00:32:19,280
certified in. And beyond that when it comes to room systems, you can't just get certified for room

451
00:32:19,280 --> 00:32:27,760
systems. You're certified for a specific size room. So, you know, if you come out with a smaller bar,

452
00:32:27,760 --> 00:32:35,840
Microsoft going to say we certify that bar for a board room that's 20 feet. It needs to be certified

453
00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:42,160
to meet different sizes, rooms and scenarios. So, that's what it means, right? To be certified is that

454
00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:49,920
A, you are meeting a certain manufacturing benchmark. You're ensuring that certain features and

455
00:32:49,920 --> 00:32:59,760
capabilities are present so that they work with Microsoft's design. One example would be headsets,

456
00:32:59,760 --> 00:33:05,040
right? On a headset, Microsoft wants you to have that Teams button because that Teams

457
00:33:05,040 --> 00:33:11,760
is meant to do a certain function within the Microsoft Teams app. I push the button on my headset

458
00:33:11,760 --> 00:33:17,920
and boom, this thing happens in my meeting or on my call. That's a requirement, right? For headsets.

459
00:33:17,920 --> 00:33:22,960
There was various other Bluetooth requirements that had to be met before as well.

460
00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:31,840
So, there's checking those boxes, but then there's also actually going through testing of quality,

461
00:33:31,840 --> 00:33:37,360
making sure you're reaching certain quality benchmarks. The video comes across a certain way. Because

462
00:33:37,360 --> 00:33:42,560
Microsoft doesn't want a device to be a certified device and then someone plugs it in and a video

463
00:33:42,560 --> 00:33:49,520
quality is grainy or the audio quality sounds like a tin can. That's not, they want to make sure that

464
00:33:49,520 --> 00:33:56,080
you are actually getting a high quality experience. So, that's the importance of being a certified

465
00:33:56,080 --> 00:34:05,600
Teams solution. Can you plug in non-certified solutions and use them with Teams meetings? And yes,

466
00:34:05,600 --> 00:34:12,640
you can. Microsoft is not going to support that scenario. So, if you go to Microsoft and say, hey,

467
00:34:12,640 --> 00:34:18,000
I, we're having a Teams meeting, but the audio is terrible. Please help us fix that.

468
00:34:18,000 --> 00:34:23,120
One of the first things they're going to check is, are you using a Teams-certified device for your

469
00:34:23,120 --> 00:34:31,920
audio? If you are not, that is not a supported scenario from Microsoft's viewpoint. So, support is the

470
00:34:31,920 --> 00:34:38,320
other angle where certification matters. You want to get support from Microsoft? Make sure you're

471
00:34:38,320 --> 00:34:46,960
using a certified solution in that space. Yeah, I think a little bit, when I am the buyer in the

472
00:34:46,960 --> 00:34:56,960
company for hardware or something else, I'm the meeting room. I don't know if this is a real

473
00:34:56,960 --> 00:35:06,400
job meeting room specialist. I don't know. So, I have invested by some from your competitors,

474
00:35:06,400 --> 00:35:11,920
Agato. I have bought all these, I don't know, these these these sound waves for the wall.

475
00:35:12,800 --> 00:35:20,560
And there's so much for you can do for acoustic and I am, yeah, I think a little bit how you feel.

476
00:35:20,560 --> 00:35:28,480
I am a bought for other thousand euros of some load speakers. It's other by car. I want to

477
00:35:28,480 --> 00:35:39,760
find I do this. Okay, I'm see it. But yeah, where should they plan or when when started planning

478
00:35:39,760 --> 00:35:51,840
meeting rooms, what role, all the things in good acoustic and what can hardware do to to make it

479
00:35:51,840 --> 00:35:58,400
better or software and how they evaluate it, I think they cannot buy all the stuff on the deck.

480
00:35:58,400 --> 00:36:03,840
Yeah, no exactly. I mean, it's, you know, it's you're starting to make big decisions and

481
00:36:03,840 --> 00:36:11,200
and big investments at that at that point. But so you're always going to and usually you're going to

482
00:36:11,200 --> 00:36:15,520
end up as a meeting room specialist for an organization. You're a lot of times, especially if you're

483
00:36:15,520 --> 00:36:21,120
building standards for a lot of rooms across a global organization, even if it's not global, it's,

484
00:36:21,120 --> 00:36:26,080
you know, a national organization, you've got dozens of locations, we're talking, you know, dozens of

485
00:36:26,080 --> 00:36:30,160
rooms, hundreds of rooms, you're getting you need to build standards, right? So you're going to

486
00:36:30,160 --> 00:36:36,000
end up working with a an integrator, probably at least a consultant that's going to come in and

487
00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:40,800
take a look at some of the pain points, take a look at some of the challenging spaces, take a look

488
00:36:40,800 --> 00:36:48,000
at what you might need to ensure that those rooms are, you're dealing with the painful acoustics of

489
00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:54,160
those rooms glass walls or just other other things that are going to make the room challenging.

490
00:36:54,160 --> 00:36:57,520
And you're going to be, you're going to at that point be able to say, look, we're going to rule out

491
00:36:57,520 --> 00:37:04,080
these types of audio solutions, you need to focus in this direction. And that, you know, but

492
00:37:04,080 --> 00:37:10,160
though a lot of that comes down to as well, just the type of hardware that you're picking and hardware

493
00:37:10,160 --> 00:37:16,960
ends off where combination because, you know, like I mentioned earlier, that's what you were,

494
00:37:16,960 --> 00:37:22,480
what you were asking is about the challenging spaces, not the simple, indeed, easy to do spaces.

495
00:37:22,480 --> 00:37:28,640
They're asking about challenging spaces. How do you build standards around that? And like I mentioned

496
00:37:28,640 --> 00:37:34,720
before, we're talking about MXA, that's where a lot of our partners out in the ecosystem that they

497
00:37:34,720 --> 00:37:42,800
also have competing solutions. But for years, they have turned to sure when they needed to build

498
00:37:42,800 --> 00:37:48,480
rooms for their customers where it was a little bit different of a room. It was bigger. It was more

499
00:37:48,480 --> 00:37:55,040
challenging. It was more difficult to solve for the acoustics were, were painful to solve for.

500
00:37:55,040 --> 00:38:01,680
They said, we can't do it with our regular mics and speakers. We need, we need next level.

501
00:38:01,680 --> 00:38:09,840
We need the best in audio. Sure, we need you to come in with your DSP capabilities with all the

502
00:38:09,840 --> 00:38:15,200
different audio capabilities that has the SP built in. We need you to be able to take the

503
00:38:15,920 --> 00:38:22,480
reverberant rooms and de-verb them at the device level, at the software level. We need you to be able to

504
00:38:22,480 --> 00:38:29,760
take the echoey noises that we can't get out of our Rinssen repeat meeting room systems. We need

505
00:38:29,760 --> 00:38:35,200
you to help us eradicate that from these these problematic spaces, these challenging spaces.

506
00:38:35,200 --> 00:38:41,200
That's where they've turned to sure as a specialty solution for a number of years.

507
00:38:41,920 --> 00:38:48,640
The great news for end customers is that, you know, now they don't have to look at that as a two vendor

508
00:38:48,640 --> 00:38:53,440
solution. They don't have to look at that and say, well, I'm, I'm getting this vendor because they have

509
00:38:53,440 --> 00:38:59,920
meeting rooms. But now I also have a different logo. Sure, because of the audio, I guess it's what I

510
00:38:59,920 --> 00:39:05,520
have to do because there's no better solution. Now they can look at it and say, oh, sure has native

511
00:39:05,520 --> 00:39:13,520
meeting rooms, certified rooms. We can use them for the room and the complex audio, clean up all the

512
00:39:13,520 --> 00:39:20,880
painful audio solutions and have a truly everything under one roof solution. That's powerful, right?

513
00:39:20,880 --> 00:39:25,760
That's a huge message. But at the end of the day, a lot of those room specialists are going to turn

514
00:39:25,760 --> 00:39:31,840
to, they're going to turn to an integrator and a consultant to help guide them to those processes

515
00:39:31,840 --> 00:39:37,760
because some rooms require extra treatment, right? Some rooms you're going to want to say, hey,

516
00:39:37,760 --> 00:39:43,200
the audio equipment is amazing, but let's put some of these, these sound absorbing panels on the wall.

517
00:39:43,200 --> 00:39:48,320
Well, let's do some other things, you know, and so they're a furniture as an under consideration.

518
00:39:48,320 --> 00:39:53,040
How does the furniture work with the equipment you're putting in the room? You know, there's a lot of

519
00:39:53,040 --> 00:39:59,040
special considerations that you have to take into the facts. So have a good integrator, have a good

520
00:39:59,040 --> 00:40:04,080
consult that you're working with and of course, make sure you're choosing a company that is known

521
00:40:04,080 --> 00:40:11,680
for solving those types of problems acoustically. Yeah, I will be true, I'm biased because it looks

522
00:40:11,680 --> 00:40:20,720
cool with these wall acoustic panels. But we have, I don't know, it's, for me, it's already a new

523
00:40:20,720 --> 00:40:29,520
topic. I don't know, it's a new topic about the comp us to be next. It's, it's what is and why it's important.

524
00:40:29,520 --> 00:40:40,240
Yeah, sure. So comes to be next is a community, like a community great conference, right? And it was

525
00:40:40,240 --> 00:40:48,320
like eight, eight, nine years ago, we just finished up that I think eighth eighth show in May,

526
00:40:48,320 --> 00:40:57,680
early May, but it was really born from the idea of every, every ignite, every Microsoft ignite that I

527
00:40:57,680 --> 00:41:03,360
went to. I would come off of that ignite. I thought it was so cool, so fine. And I'd get on Twitter

528
00:41:03,360 --> 00:41:09,040
and I'd see all the, all the other Microsoft MVPs from the Skype for Business and Microsoft teams

529
00:41:09,040 --> 00:41:13,760
and link space. They would all get on and they'd like, yeah, ignite was great. It was good to see all

530
00:41:13,760 --> 00:41:18,160
my friends again and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, but man, I really miss, I really missed link

531
00:41:18,160 --> 00:41:24,800
conference. I really missed where we had a conference from Microsoft that was just focused on link,

532
00:41:24,800 --> 00:41:30,880
on the area that we care about because ignite is, it was link. It was Skype for Business. It was

533
00:41:30,880 --> 00:41:39,040
also exchange. It was SharePoint. It was Azure. It was every, which means that's a lot of content to

534
00:41:39,040 --> 00:41:46,560
have to sort through if you are a attendee and you only care about UC. That's a lot of

535
00:41:46,560 --> 00:41:53,360
ex-follower vendors to have to sort through if you only want to see the UC vendors. And so I thought,

536
00:41:53,360 --> 00:41:59,200
I never got to go to a wait conference. So I had a little bit of Thomo, right, a little bit of missing

537
00:41:59,200 --> 00:42:07,360
out there. And I was like, how cool would it be to have a community built conference by the community,

538
00:42:07,360 --> 00:42:13,360
for the community that did that, that tried to bring that back to life since Microsoft is no longer

539
00:42:13,360 --> 00:42:19,920
doing that. And so I talked to a few other MVPs and we formed a small organizer group, Adam

540
00:42:19,920 --> 00:42:26,480
Ball, Pat Richard, Jonathan McKinney, and we founded CAHM's Vnext. And we founded it with the idea,

541
00:42:26,480 --> 00:42:34,800
we'll do a one day event out in Denver just to see, just to see if people would come, if people

542
00:42:34,800 --> 00:42:42,560
would fly in across the US, if people would sponsor it, right, and make it a success. And it was a very

543
00:42:42,560 --> 00:42:47,760
good success. So the next year and every year after we continued to grow it, we made it a two-day

544
00:42:47,760 --> 00:42:55,040
conference out in Denver. You have three, four tracks running at the same time. Speakers come in from

545
00:42:55,040 --> 00:43:02,400
across the globe. We have people attending from all over North America. And we've extended beyond

546
00:43:02,400 --> 00:43:08,960
just the Microsoft Teams world into, of course, co-pilot, a little bit of power apps and a little

547
00:43:08,960 --> 00:43:14,480
bit of SharePoint, because the teams world really blended all that stuff together. But with the focus,

548
00:43:14,480 --> 00:43:21,840
still being unified communications, so that when you walk around on the Expo floor, every sponsor

549
00:43:21,840 --> 00:43:28,480
there, they all do something related to unified communications. Every person, attendee, that's there,

550
00:43:29,280 --> 00:43:33,760
they're going to be related to your job. So you have something in common with everybody, just

551
00:43:33,760 --> 00:43:41,680
strike up a conversation. So it's smaller, it's more unique, it's more niche. And that's what we

552
00:43:41,680 --> 00:43:49,280
loved about it. That's what everybody that keeps going loves about it. And after this last, this last

553
00:43:49,280 --> 00:43:57,760
event, I made the very difficult decision after a lot of thoughts to actually step away from the event

554
00:43:57,760 --> 00:44:03,280
as an organizer. So I am proud to have been a founder and organizer for all these years.

555
00:44:03,280 --> 00:44:08,320
But I left the organizing after this last year. I left it in the hands of the other three

556
00:44:08,320 --> 00:44:14,480
and said, I'm stepping away as an organizer. And I'm going to put all the time that I'm going to

557
00:44:14,480 --> 00:44:20,240
recover from all the organizing I did. I'm going to refocus my efforts back on my YouTube channel

558
00:44:20,240 --> 00:44:25,760
and back on video creating. So I'm kind of taking a constant creative shift back toward video.

559
00:44:26,400 --> 00:44:31,200
And it was a good run. It was a lot of fun. I look forward to attending. Comes with me next

560
00:44:31,200 --> 00:44:37,120
as a attendee in the future, maybe even as a speaker. But it was an amazing run organizing it.

561
00:44:37,120 --> 00:44:41,680
I'm super proud to have founded it with that group. They're an amazing group of guys. And I look

562
00:44:41,680 --> 00:44:47,280
forward to what they're going to do in the future. Yeah. So thank you so much for joining me today,

563
00:44:47,280 --> 00:44:53,520
Josh. This was really great. I hope we have, I have so much more questions, but we are running on

564
00:44:53,520 --> 00:45:02,400
of time. So I hope we can do and. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. This was awesome. Thank you. Thank you so much.

565
00:45:02,400 --> 00:45:11,840
I've learned a lot and have a great day. And yeah, something for the listeners, all the links from

566
00:45:11,840 --> 00:45:22,960
you are on the MC65 podcast episode. We have it in the show notes. And yeah, great. Thank you. And I

567
00:45:22,960 --> 00:45:28,960
think that people can have a lot of a lot. And it's more a topic, not everybody talks about. So

568
00:45:28,960 --> 00:45:34,160
it's really interesting. Thank you. Thank you, Miracle, for inviting me, letting you have the microphone,

569
00:45:34,160 --> 00:45:38,400
the chance to be able to tell the story a little bit. And this was a pleasure. Hopefully we'll get

570
00:45:38,400 --> 00:45:41,360
to do it again one day.

Mirko Peters

Founder of m365.fm, m365.show and m365con.net

Mirko Peters is a Microsoft 365 expert, content creator, and founder of m365.fm, a platform dedicated to sharing practical insights on modern workplace technologies. His work focuses on Microsoft 365 governance, security, collaboration, and real-world implementation strategies.

Through his podcast and written content, Mirko provides hands-on guidance for IT professionals, architects, and business leaders navigating the complexities of Microsoft 365. He is known for translating complex topics into clear, actionable advice, often highlighting common mistakes and overlooked risks in real-world environments.

With a strong emphasis on community contribution and knowledge sharing, Mirko is actively building a platform that connects experts, shares experiences, and helps organizations get the most out of their Microsoft 365 investments.

Josh Blalock

Global Director, Alliances & Engagement @ Shure! Microsoft MVP, UC/#AV Expert, MBA

With over 20 years of experience in engineering and architecting Microsoft technologies, I have a deep passion and expertise in Skype for Business, Microsoft Teams, and Microsoft 365, as well as unified communications, video solutions, and Copilot/AI capabilities.

My more recent roles - including my current role at Shure - have focused on the social marketing elements of building brand credibility in new growth areas for collaboration device manufacturers and strengthening Alliance relationships.

I also create awesome (I'm biased) content on the Microsoft Teams platform and certified devices, which you can find on my YouTube channel, @ExpertofThings.

Additionally, I am a co-founder and board member of Comms vNext, a community-led conference that brings together Microsoft UC professionals and enthusiasts to learn and network. As a multiple-time Microsoft MVP (specializations in both the "Microsoft Teams" and "Microsoft 365 Copilot" categories), I enjoy sharing my knowledge and insights with the Microsoft UC & #AI communities and helping them achieve their communication and collaboration goals.

Everything Microsoft Didn't Tell You About Teams with Everything Microsoft Didn't Tell You About Teams with Josh Blalock [MVP]

Key Takeaways

Hidden Microsoft Teams Features

Private Channels

Setup and Permissions

Shared Channels

Use Cases

Praise and Approvals

How to Use

Teams Meeting Tips

Dynamic Roles

Assign and Switch Roles

Meeting Recap & Transcription

Access and Share Recaps

Raise Hand & Breakout Rooms

Best Practices

Optimizing Teams Rooms Audio

Shure Solutions Overview

IntelliMix Room Kits & Bar Pro

Audio Quality for AI Meetings

Impact on Copilot & Summaries

DSP, Noise Reduction, Echo Cancellation

User Experience Benefits

Teams Chat Shortcuts

Slash Commands

Most Useful Commands

Keyboard Shortcuts

Time-Saving Tips

Message Formatting

Rich Text & Code Snippets

File Management in Teams

Version History

Restore Files

OneDrive & SharePoint Integration

Seamless Sharing

Customizing Teams Experience

App Integrations

Adding Third-Party Apps

Notification Settings

Reducing Overload

Microsoft Teams Security

Guest Access

Best Practices

Data Loss Prevention

DLP Policies

Teams Productivity Boosters

Planner & To Do

Task Management

Approvals & Automation

Workflow Setup

Search & Organization Hacks

Advanced Search

Filters & Shortcuts

Pinning Content

Chats, Channels, Files

Teams Mobile Features

Mobile App Tips

Notifications & Sync

Offline Access

FAQ

How do I quickly find old messages in Teams?

Can I use Teams on my phone without missing updates?

What’s the best way to share files with my team?

How do I keep my meetings organized?

Can I add apps to customize my Teams experience?

How does Teams help protect my data?

Why is audio quality important for AI-powered meetings?

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