Microsoft Teams

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Microsoft Teams

Photo courtesy of Microsoft Inc.

Introduction

Zoom to Teams Transition

LIU has decided to transition from Zoom to Microsoft Teams as the primary platform for videoconferencing. This change aims to streamline communication, enhance collaboration, and optimize costs across departments. Microsoft Teams offers a fully integrated solution with our existing Microsoft 365 services, allowing for seamless scheduling, file sharing, chat, and video meetings—all within a single platform. Additionally, Teams provides stronger integration with our learning management systems and IT infrastructure, improving efficiency for both academic and administrative functions. The move is also expected to reduce licensing costs and simplify user support by consolidating tools. Training and support resources will be made available to ensure a smooth transition for all users.

Key Details:

Transition Timeframe | All virtual meetings and collaborative efforts will be conducted through Microsoft Teams
Training | To ensure a seamless transition, we will be offering training sessions on effective Microsoft Teams usage.
Support Resources | Documentation and resources to help you become familiar with Microsoft Teams can be found on out IT website. For questions, you can contact the IT Service Desk.
Feedback | Your feedback is important to us. If you have suggestions or concerns during this transition, please share those with us by sending an email to it@liu.edu

We recognize that embracing change can present challenges, yet we are confident that Microsoft Teams will deliver the collaboration features required and enhance our overall communication experience.

Here is a short comparison of the tools between Zoom and Teams.

Zoom Feature	Microsoft Teams Equivalent	Notes
Meeting Scheduling	Teams Calendar / Outlook	Schedule directly from Teams or Outlook
Waiting Room	Lobby	Control who enters the meeting
Breakout Rooms	Breakout Rooms	Pre-assign or manage during meeting
Screen Sharing	Share Content	Share screen, window, or use Whiteboard
In-meeting Chat	Meeting Chat	Persistent chat available before/during/after
Recording	Recording to OneDrive/SharePoint	Auto-share via meeting chat
Virtual Backgrounds	Background Effects	Blur, built-in, or upload your own
Polling	Microsoft Forms	Integrated live polls/quizzes
Reactions & Raise Hand	Reactions and Queue	Hand raising and emoji feedback
Attendance Tracking	Attendance Report	Downloadable after meeting
Course Material Integration	OneDrive/SharePoint + LMS	Direct access and sharing

Conclusion

Transitioning to Microsoft Teams will enhance our ability to collaborate and communicate effectively. By familiarizing yourself with these tools, you can ensure a seamless migration from Zoom and continue to deliver high-quality education and support to our students.

Key Features Comparison

Meeting Scheduling

Zoom: Schedule meetings via the Zoom app or integrated calendar.
Teams: Schedule meetings directly in Teams or through Outlook integration. You can also set recurring meetings and send invites easily.

Video Conferencing

Zoom: Host video meetings with HD video and audio, virtual backgrounds, and breakout rooms.
Teams: Teams provides HD video and audio, customizable backgrounds, and breakout rooms for group discussions. Additionally, Teams offers AI-powered noise suppression and real-time transcription.

Screen Sharing

Zoom: Share your screen or specific applications during meetings.
Teams: Share your entire screen, specific windows, or PowerPoint presentations. Teams also allows collaborative editing of shared documents during meetings.

Chat and Messaging

Zoom: In-meeting chat and persistent chat channels.
Teams: Teams offers robust chat functionality with persistent channels, private chats, and integration with other Office 365 apps. You can also use rich text formatting, emojis, and GIFs.

File Sharing and Collaboration

Zoom: Share files during meetings and via chat.
Teams: Teams integrates seamlessly with OneDrive and SharePoint, allowing easy file sharing and collaborative editing. You can co-author documents in real-time and access shared files directly from the Teams interface.

Recording and Transcription

Zoom: Record meetings and save locally or to the cloud.
Teams: Record meetings and save them to OneDrive or SharePoint. Teams also offers automatic transcription and searchable recordings.

Security and Compliance

Zoom: Provides encryption and meeting security features.
Teams: Teams offers enterprise-grade security with end-to-end encryption, compliance with GDPR, HIPAA, and other regulations, and advanced threat protection.

FAQs

Does Teams allow conference calls or meetings?

Yes. With Microsoft Teams users can schedule meetings and place calls directly to faculty or students. For more information about online meetings and conference calls. To learn more about placing a call, review this link.

How does Teams conference call or meetings different from Zoom?

The biggest differences are the steps taken to start or join the conference call and of course the interfaces of the software; how Teams looks vs how Zoom looks. With Microsoft Teams users can schedule meetings and place calls directly to faculty or students. With Zoom, we can schedule meetings or have a meeting with groups or one-on-one with individuals. For more information about online meetings and conference calls. To learn more about placing a call, review this link.

In Zoom we were able to chat in meetings. Is this feature available in Teams?

Yes. In Teams we can chat with each other within a meeting and outside of meetings in private chat rooms. Microsoft Teams allows you to chat one-on-one with an individual, with a group and within any Teams Meeting.

Zoom had a ton of integration options. Does Teams offer any integrations?

Similar to Zoom, Teams offers integrations with the desktop version of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Microsoft Office Tools such as Microsoft SharePoint, OneDrive, etc. This feature allows easy sharing of files, folders, and documents, enhancing collaboration and productivity.

In Zoom, some meetings are recorded. Are we able to record meetings in Microsoft Teams?

Yes. Any Teams meeting or call can be recorded for future viewing. The recording captures audio, video, and screen sharing activity, and you can share it securely across your organization. A recording will expire and be automatically deleted after 30 days. To learn more click here.

Note:

Meeting recordings won’t capture whiteboards, annotations, shared notes, or content shared in the stage view by apps, and won’t include videos or animations embedded in PowerPoint Live presentations.
When you view a meeting recording, you’ll see no more than four peoples’ video streams at once.

Will Teams have the same capacity limits for meetings like we had in Zoom?

Yes, the max meeting capacity for Teams is 300 participants.

Does Teams have both a desktop and an application for access, similar to Zoom?

Yes. Teams has a web version (via the web browser), a downloadable application (for windows and mac), and a mobile app. To have access to all Teams features, it is best practices to use the applications (App) over the desktop version. Use this link to download the Teams application.

Does teams have breakout rooms like in Zoom?

Yes. In Teams, you can create breakout rooms. Only the meeting organizers on a desktop version of Teams (Windows, Mac and VDI) can create and manage breakout rooms. Organizers or presenters must first join the meeting to create or manage breakout rooms. For more information about breakout rooms in Teams, review this link

What will happen to my Zoom recordings?

By default, usually Zoom recordings are not available after the end of each semester. You will still have an opportunity to download any recordings that are still available on your web zoom portal to download and save until May 27, 2025.

Getting Started

Setting Up Your Account

Ensure you have a Microsoft 365 account provided by the university.
Download and install the Microsoft Teams app on your computer and mobile devices.

Hosting a Meeting

Click “Join” to start your scheduled meeting.
Use the toolbar to manage participants, share your screen, and access meeting options.

Using Breakout Rooms

During a meeting, click on the breakout rooms icon.
Create and assign participants to breakout rooms for group discussions.

Scheduling A Meeting

Open Teams and navigate to the Calendar tab.
Click “New Meeting” and fill in the details.
(Optional) Set meeting options like automatic recording and meeting access.
Invite participants by entering their email addresses.