PCMAN – One of the things that has been keeping Microsoft busy is probably their effort to change the way enterprise works by adding new features on Skype for Business to make it the only communication management tool an enterprise needs.
According to Microsoft’s announcement on November 30, 2015, Microsoft is adding new features that could make Skype for Business the ruling way for an enterprise to communicate. This could even be much greater news if the enterprise has deployed Office 365.
Skype for Business New Features
Since Microsoft acquired Skype from eBay in 2011 and released the stable Skype for Business version in 2015, it has grown into the primary communication management application for any enterprise using Office 365. Three main features that were highlighted on the announcement are:
- PSTN Conferencing. This new feature allows employees to attend meetings using a standard traditional telephone
- Skype Meeting Broadcast. This new feature provides the tools necessary to plan and produce large virtual meetings for up to 10,000 attendees
- Cloud BPX. This new feature enables enterprises to retire their old PBX systems and transition to the cloud. Office 365 will then handle all of the communication management duties.
Particularly with Skype Meeting Broadcast, it would solve the painful issues of having to attend meetings that used awful outdated broadcast technologies such as not being able to hear what was being said, drop in and out beeping, and lack of ways to ask questions or make comments. Bad conference call meeting syndrome will no longer be in the enterprise’s dictionary.
Microsoft has simplified and democratized the running of a meeting by enabling the broadcast tools in Skype for Business. It allows employees to communicate to a large audience by setting up a meeting, plan the presentation, and broadcast it without having a heavy IT or public relations involvement.
Office 365
It is one of Microsoft’s key visions to create a modern collaborative enterprise workforce. One of their ways to realize their vision is by empowering employees with tools that will simplify planning and attending virtual meetings to increase productivity.
By taking the full advantage of Skype for Business, enterprise will also commit to the Microsoft Office 365 ecosystem. It has been proven that setting up meetings and other activities are much easier with Office 365. Companies will also enjoy the benefit of a cloud-based phone system, and meetings applications that offers audio, video, and content sharing from Skype for Business.
Bottom line, Skype for Business is on the move to provide collaboration tools to make enterprises’ meetings and communications more productive.
