Microsoft Teams is a widely used online communication and collaboration tool, particularly for businesses that have made investments in Microsoft's technology stack. The Redmond company frequently upgrades the program, adding new features and improvements. With the most recent features being accessible in public preview, it has now revealed what Teams' future holds.
Microsoft has noted in a rather thorough blog post that Teams channels now allow threaded views for discussions. Although you can choose to send a message to the main display for more visibility, this functions similarly to other messaging apps like Slack and Discord, where replies to a message are collapsed by default under a thread. In order to easily switch context and unfollow when you just no longer want to be involved in a certain issue, you can also follow threads that you are actively participating in.
Microsoft has made it clear that while the current Posts form is perfect for announcements, its Threads layout is better suited for back-and-forth discussions. Owners of the channel can move between the two views without losing any information. The new design is currently being released in public preview on desktop, web, and mobile devices. It is noteworthy that bots can only be activated in the Threads layout.
Other enhancements that are currently accessible in public preview include the ability for Teams users to respond to messages using multiple emoji, improved slash commands, and customizable keyboard shortcuts. The option to start workflows by responding to a message with an emoji is one somewhat peculiar function. For instance, using the ❗️ emoji in response to a message can start a process that immediately opens a helpdesk ticket. Although it could expedite procedures, clicking the incorrect emoji by accident could also inadvertently activate workflows and notification systems. It should be noted that the Workflows app in Teams is necessary to use this feature.
Microsoft has mentioned that Teams will soon get a lot more functionality. Over the following two weeks, we will probably learn more about them.