Microsoft Teams Premium customers now have access to the latest intelligent solution from the software giant, which includes the Teams Meeting Recap function. While currently only available in English, additional languages and more features will be added in the second half of the year. This exciting development is aimed at the business world and has great potential to improve efficiency. In this article, we will explore the function’s benefits and potential drawbacks to provide a balanced understanding. It’s important to note that the implications may not be straightforward.
The newly announced updates will aid in managing post-meeting administration, creating action lists for later reference, and efficiently gathering information. To achieve these goals, it’s obvious that the meeting is recorded and attended by all participants online. If some attendees join from the same physical location, the system may struggle to differentiate between voices and produce inaccurate notes, such as labeling them as “Paris Meeting Room” instead of individual names.
Main Recap Functions
Timeline Markers
The video timeline of the meeting will display several indicators, such as the attendees who joined or left the call, as well as when a name was mentioned, or someone’s screen was shared. While this feature is beneficial for smaller meetings, it can cause confusion during training sessions or online town hall meetings with larger audiences. Marking every attendee who joins or leaves will only clutter the timeline without providing any helpful information.
Name Mentioned
Names that are mentioned during the call are not only displayed on the timeline but also listed next to the video screen on the management interface. This feature is beneficial when you need to quickly find out when your name was mentioned and in what context, such as the task or topic being discussed. With just one click, this information can be easily accessed without having to listen to the entire hour-long conversation.
Speakers
On the timesheet, the speaker’s section displays a separate line for each individual who spoke during the meeting. The system records the duration and time of each speaker’s contribution, enabling users to quickly and easily listen back to any critical information shared. This feature proves especially helpful when you remember who said something important but not all the specific details. By filtering out the relevant speaker, you can save time and avoid missing crucial information shared by your direct manager in the future.
Topics and Chapters
Within the menu of topics, AI will assist in dividing the discussion into segments based on the mentioned topics. Additionally, you can promptly navigate to specific chapters, similar to certain YouTube videos. By clicking on a listed topic, the video will immediately transition to that section, allowing for seamless following of the screen sharing and voice discussion.
Content
On this tab, you can quickly review all files shared at the meeting, so there is no need to search for any related documents or presentations in the invitation or among emails; all come automatically by the AI assistant.
AI-generated Notes and Tasks
We have reached an exciting part where AI notes, and tasks section comes into play. It filters out the parts of the conversation during negotiations that may require additional tasks. This ensures that any promises made during the meeting will not be forgotten, and there is no need to make a separate note or entrust someone to keep the call minutes.
Everything will be easily accessible in one place. This function provides an excellent opportunity to keep up with follow-up work systematically. It also helps to keep light-hearted promises easily, as artificial intelligence is watching and taking notes. In the future, many people will have more tasks, or we will only undertake the follow-up work that we need to. The operation will be transparent, and at the beginning of every meeting, we will discuss the list of actions announced last time. This function will be available in the EU and UK only from mid-August.
Meeting Transcript
These functions prioritize the readability of meeting minutes by dividing them based on speakers and preparing a complete transcript word by word. They can be especially helpful when dealing with difficult-to-understand accents or situations where listening to recordings is not an option, such as in a crowded airport waiting room.
Microsoft Teams Premium
Starting on February 1, 2023, Microsoft introduced a new solution that was developed to meet the increased demand for online negotiations during the pandemic. Their solution offers real-time translation in over 40 languages, making it easy for users to read subscriptions in their native language. Additionally, the new Teams service includes several brand solutions that automatically display a company’s logo and characteristic colors or backgrounds during negotiations. To ensure secure information sharing, users can record meetings with special authorization or activate end-to-end encryption.
With Microsoft Team Premium, it’s effortless for external partners to join a meeting without downloading the Teams application. They can enter the meeting from a browser, email, or text message. Users with a premium license can set automatic reminders to ensure they don’t miss any upcoming appointments. All these features are available here, for $7 per month, per user.
