Ryan McCarty , Senior Unified Communications Engineer at a legal firm explores the unique challenges of unified communications within the legal sector, the need for interoperability, user education and technology standardisation. Unique challenges of the legal sector presents Interoperability is crucial as clients dictate meeting platforms Managing change and user adoption strategies in Microsoft Teams Rooms The importance of daily system checks to ensure reliability in high-stakes environments ...
Oct 09, 2024•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Harold Wortman , Senior Product Manager - Mobile Unified Communications at Verizon, discusses the journey of deploying Teams phone mobile, feature development and mobile as a default mode of communication, Teams Phone Mobile offers a seamless mobile communication experience within the Teams platform Significant, with interest from small to medium-sized businesses, enterprises, and government organizations Widespread adoption may take time due to the complexity of integrating with different mobil...
Oct 02, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Doug Wycoff, Director of Digital Technologies and Innovation at Tampa International Airport, and Rebecca Criswell, Account Manager at AVI-SPL, explain the technological innovations at Tampa International Airport, including use of Microsoft Teams, digital signage, and advanced AV solutions. The rapid technological transformation from pre-Covid to present and the acceleration of Microsoft Teams adoption Importance of standardisation across different room sizes and configurations in the airport&apo...
Sep 25, 2024•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast MVP Ragnar Heil , Business Development Manager Microsoft at HanseVision explores the role of Copilot in governance and compliance, as well as the importance of user adoption and change management in successful implementation of Copilot. The need for organisations to prioritise governance and compliance for Copilot Copilot's role in making governance more accessible The role of user adoption and change management in Copilot implementation Managing content freshness and organizing content wit...
Sep 23, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chris Goodwill , Strategic Partner Manager and Solutions Specialist at Symity discusses the evolution of Microsoft's Contact Center and the new Dynamics 365 Contact Center Understanding Dynamics 365 Contact Center, Microsoft's Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) How Microsoft is driving with AI features Dynamics 365 Contact Center vs Teams Ecosystem solutions Licensing and pricing considerations The future of chatbots and multi-lingual support Thanks to Logitech , this episode's s...
Sep 18, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Shabtai Adlersberg , Co-Founder, CEO and President of AudioCodes shares the fascinating journey of AudioCodes over the past 31 years, from its establishment to becoming a leader in the voice industry and more recent journey into SaaS and AI. Shabtai's background in engineering and digital signal processing, before co-founding AudioCodes AudioCodes evolution from focusing on algorithms to developing chipsets and then progressing to gateways and SBCs The impact of partnering with Microsoft on...
Sep 09, 2024•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Microsoft Teams Monthly Update - September 2024 No more General Channel Callback for call queues Microsoft Teams Intelligent recap coming for ad-hoc meetings and calls Teams Client Updates Channel Improvements 5 Town hall Updates Additional languages - Copilot for Microsoft 365 CNS Retirement Updates - old phones will get an update 6 Microsoft Teams Rooms Updates New Certified Devices Events Thanks to Pure IP , this month's benefactor, for your support of Empowering.Cloud and the community....
Sep 06, 2024•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Taimoor Husain , Global Telco M365 GTM Strategy Lead at Microsoft, discusses the Microsoft Teams telephony landscape, the rise of Operator Connect and the future of Teams Phone. The transition from Skype for Business to Teams and the resulting changes in operators' business models The growth of Microsoft Teams Operator Connect Teams telephony options including Microsoft Calling Plans, Direct Routing, Operator Connect and Teams Phone Mobile How Copilot is set to revolutionize telephony by en...
Sep 04, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Brett Johnson , Microsoft 365 Copilot GBB (Global Black Belt), shares his personal and customer experience of how Copilot in Microsoft Teams and beyond is streamlining meetings, communications and workflows. Examples of Copilot for driving efficiency in customer operations How Copilot is revolutionising data handling The future of Copilot, including agent-based capabilities and customer Copilots Thanks to Jabra , this episode's sponsor, for supporting the community and for helping to make c...
Sep 02, 2024•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mahendra Sekaran , Corporate Vice President, Teams Phone, M365 at Microsoft discusses the journey of Microsoft Teams, his role, Understanding IC3 (Intelligent Conversations and Communications Cloud) and ACS (Azure Communication Services) and how they related to Microsoft Teams and leveraging AI in development. The Microsoft Teams journey and Mahendra's perspective Understanding IC3, ACS and Microsoft Teams PSTN connectivity Thoughts on Teams Phone Mobile The importance of reliability, secur...
Aug 28, 2024•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast Alan Ross , Partner Group PM Manager, Dynamics 365 Contact Center at Microsoft delves into Dynamics 365 Contact Center and the role of Copilot in improving agent productivity and customer experience. Features and capabilities of Dynamics 365 Contact Center Decoupling from Dynamics 365 customer service How Copilot enhances the agent experience by providing context-aware suggestions, knowledge search and conversation summaries How Dynamics 365 Contact Center relates to/integrates with Microsoft Te...
Aug 21, 2024•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Sherri Pipala , Senior Director Global Alliances at Neat, and Tyler Troutman , Strategic Market Development Team at Shure, discuss the partnership between Neat and Shure and their collaboration which addresses challenges faced in larger rooms with complex audio requirements and the need for seamless integration between Neat and Shure devices. Neat and Shure have partnered to provide audio and video solutions for Microsoft Teams Rooms Challenges faced in larger rooms with complex audio requiremen...
Aug 19, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Shawn Harry , Microsoft 365 Solutions Architect, shares his journey in the Microsoft Unified Communications space. Tom and Shawn talk about the evolution of the UC landscape and the challenges of managing and deploying Microsoft Teams in enterprise environments. Shawn's early experiences in the Unified Communications space The shift from on-premises solutions to cloud Complexities and challenges of managing Microsoft Teams in enterprise environments The role of a Teams and Microsoft 365 Pro...
Aug 14, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Dan Hall, Global IT Collaboration Solution Owner at a large manufacturing company gives us a view on using Android-based Phones and Rooms for Microsoft Teams and support timeline considerations. The impact of an upcoming Microsoft infrastructure change on older Android phones and Teams Rooms The need for organisations to understand the support timelines of Android-based devices The importance of working closely with OEMs to understand their devices, chipsets and support timelines Considering usi...
Aug 12, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Microsoft Teams Monthly Update - August 2024 Microsoft Earnings FY24 Q4 Modern Work Insights Multiple Teams Client Improvements Custom Emojis and Reactions Copilot Dashboard for all M365 Copilot users Speaker recognition for all Teams Rooms on Windows Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows 5.1.24.0 Microsoft Teams Devices updates Android Teams Room and Teams Phone support date changes Teams Displays end of support September 2025 Roadmap Watch Thanks to Ribbon , this month's benefactor, for your s...
Aug 09, 2024•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chandranshu Singh , Senior Product Manager for Microsoft Teams SIP Gateway discusses the evolution of SIP Gateway from initial release to today, and its value in reducing infrastructure complexities, supporting various devices and enhancing customer hardware investments. Evolution of SIP Gateway from basic call support to supporting a range of endpoints and scenarios Understanding the strategic partnerships with OEMs to maintain compatibility and security Licensing and support for SIP Gateway de...
Aug 07, 2024•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Recorded live at Commsverse 2024, Gunnar Meyer , Head of IT Service Delivery at DERTOUR Suisse, the second largest tour operator in Europe, shares their Microsoft Teams journey and how they have successfully integrated Landis Contact Center to enhance their communication and service delivery. The transition from traditional PBX (Avaya) to Microsoft Teams Leveraging Landis Contact Center for real-time reporting and agent management The benefits of adopting granular permissions and delegating cont...
Jul 31, 2024•11 min•Transcript available on Metacast James Robinson , Director & Principal AV Consultant at AVenture Audio Visual, shares his extensive previous experiences with deploying Microsoft Teams Rooms at scale at BT. James' transition from BT to an independent AV consultancy BT's journey from one of the biggest Lync and Skype for Business deployments to Microsoft Teams The complexity of standardizing AV equipment across managing office locations and deploying 1200 Microsoft Teams Rooms Mixing BYOD, Surface Hub and Teams Room...
Jul 24, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Yoav Barzilay, Microsoft Senior Product Manager, explains the Microsoft Devices Ecosystem Platform (MDEP) and how it fits in the Microsoft Teams devices ecosystem. Microsoft Devices Ecosystem Platform (MDEP) is a distribution of Android Open Source Platform (AOSP) from Microsoft MDEP aims to provide a unified platform OEMs can choose to build on for collaboration devices MDEP focuses on security and manageability MDEP can be used as an OS for collaboration apps in addition to Microsoft Teams The...
Jul 17, 2024•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast John Bailey, Senior Vice President of Technology and Innovation at AVI-SPL, discusses industry changes and the convergence of AV and IT. The industry is experiencing a convergence of AV and IT The need to focus on reliability and stability in meeting room solutions. The current and future role of AI in optimizing the AV and meeting experience Thanks to AVI-SPL for their support of Empowering.Cloud...
Jul 15, 2024•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast Jeremy Dalton , Head of Immersive Technologies at PWC and Cathy Moya , Senior Customer Success Program Manager - Mesh Team at Microsoft, dive into Microsoft Mesh adoption and use cases and how virtual reality and virtual worlds can enhance collaboration and communication. Mesh features include avatars and immersive spaces within Microsoft Teams meetings, enabling more engaging and interactive meeting experiences Virtual reality and virtual worlds, private conversations and a greater sense of tog...
Jul 10, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Microsoft Teams Monthly Update Briefing - July 2024 EU issues 'Statement of Objections' to Microsoft - What does this mean for Teams? Important Microsoft Teams Rooms and Phone update (MC804766) Dynamics 365 Contact Center now GA - Pricing and Options Teams Phone Resource Account changes Copilot for Sales Teams plugin Microsoft Teams Bookable desks GA Skype for Business Server Subscription Edition Thanks to Logitech , this month's benefactor, for your support of the community! Note...
Jul 09, 2024•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Craig Durr , Chief Analyst and Founder of The Collab Collective explores the evolution of meeting room technology, AI's impact and multi-camera solutions. Craig's launch of The Collab Collective The evolution of Microsoft Teams rooms and devices Benefits and challenges of AI agents in meetings Multi-camera solutions in high-impact rooms The proliferation of video bars in the market, is it sustainable? Thanks to Neat , this episode's sponsor, for supporting the Empowering.Cloud com...
Jul 03, 2024•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast Craig Cothern , National Director of IT Delivery at Century Communities, a top 10 home builder in the US, and Oli Lifely , Head of Sales at Luware UK, discuss Century Communities' Microsoft Teams journey and how Luware Nimbus addressed their unique communication challenges. Century Communities' transition from traditional telephony to IP phone solutions, to Skype for Business and then to Microsoft Teams Specific communications needs addressed by Luware Nimbus, including detailed call r...
Jun 26, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chris Fitzsimmons , Senior Solutions Architect at AVI-SPL and MVP Tom Arbuthnot explore Copilot and AI in Microsoft Teams Rooms and BYOD, what is available today, what is coming, and the value it brings Intelligent Meeting Recap and Copilot Intelligent Speakers and speaker recognition in MTR and BYOD Intelligent Camera and identity recognition in the meeting room Hardware considerations for optimising AI experiences. The dilemma of AI progress and user preferences Thanks to AVI-SPL , this episod...
Jun 19, 2024•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Microsoft Teams (and Dynamics 365 Contact Center and Places) Monthly Update Briefing - June 2024 New Dynamics 365 standalone "Copilot" Contact Center Microsoft Places Public Preview Team Copilot and Custom Copilot Agents - Copilot gets proactive! New Teams Devices 9 Teams Roadmap Updates Thanks to AudioCodes , this month's benefactor, for your support of the community! Note that this is an audio-only version of the update, so if you would like to see the accompanying slides then y...
Jun 12, 2024•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast Robert Skyrme , BT/EE Technical Pre-Sales Consultant and Tom Arbuthnot explore everything Teams Phone Mobile, including its benefits and real-world use cases for field workers, sales teams and engineering teams. Teams Phone Mobile is an integration of the mobile identity with Microsoft Teams, eliminating the need for separate telephone numbers and voicemails It allows users to make and receive calls from Teams on various devices, seamlessly migrating calls between the native mobile dialer and Te...
Jun 05, 2024•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Jamie Wheeldon , Chief Architect at Symity and MVP Tom Arbuthnot dive deep into the impact of generative AI on the Modern Workplace. Listen to their discussion around the challenges and opportunities that adopting AI technologybrings, and the need for organisations to educate employees on using AI tools effectively to drive meaningful change. Potential for AI to solve productivity and information overload challenges Ethical considerations including data security and intellectual property Microso...
May 29, 2024•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Richard Barrett , Microsoft 365 Technical Specialist and Tom Arbuthnot discuss the power of meeting recording, transcription and AI tools in Microsoft Teams, and how organisations balance the importance of explicit consent, controls and policies. How explicit consent for recording and transcribing meetings works The ability to control access and also easily share recordings where appropriate Importance of controls and policies regarding transcripts for industries dealing with sensitive data such...
May 22, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Randy Chapman , Microsoft MVP and Solutions Engineer at Logitech, shares his views on the current state of meeting rooms and BYOD, including manageability of devices at scale and the increasing importance of sustainability for customers when selecting room solutions. Different options for bring-your-own-device (BYOD) The challenges of updating and managing BYOD devices at scale Importance of hardware quality and reliability when choosing room collaboration devices A growing emphasis on sustainab...
May 15, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
