Microsoft Teams: Incredibly Powerful or Incredibly Frustrating

Microsoft Teams has become one of the most widely used business tools in Sussex. From chat and meetings to calling and file sharing, it promises to make teamwork easier especially for businesses with hybrid or remote staff. 

Yet many small businesses in Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill, Crawley and Horsham tell us the same thing: 

“We use Teams… but it feels messy and difficult to manage.” 

The problem usually isn’t Microsoft Teams itself. It’s how Teams has been set up, or not set up at all. 

Why Microsoft Teams Often Feels Chaotic

Microsoft has made Teams incredibly easy to turn on. A few clicks, and suddenly everyone can: 

• Create teams
• Invite external users
• Share files
• Spin up SharePoint sites in the background

Without a plan, this leads to: 

• Duplicate Teams 
• Files saved in random locations 
• Confusing permissions 
• No clear ownership 

This is something we see regularly in Sussex businesses, particularly those that have grown quickly or moved to Teams during lockdown without time for planning. 

Teams and SharePoint: The Relationship Many Businesses Don’t Realise Exists

A key misunderstanding is thinking that Teams and SharePoint are separate tools. In reality: 

• Every Team automatically creates a SharePoint site
• Every channel stores files in SharePoint
• Permissions are shared between the two  

If SharePoint isn’t structured properly, Teams cannot work properly. This is often why businesses in Crawley or Horsham struggle to find files and feel like “Teams has made things worse”. 

Step One: Planning Teams Around How Your Business Works 

Before creating Teams, it’s important to stop and ask, “How do we actually work as a business?” For small businesses in Sussex, Teams usually work best when structured around: 

• Departments (e.g. Sales, Operations, Finance)
• Projects or major clients
• Management and internal communication 

What We Often Recommend 

• Fewer Teams, used well
• Clear purpose for each Team
• Named owners who are responsible for the structure and access 

This approach works especially well for professional services, construction firms and local service businesses across Mid Sussex and West Sussex. 

Step Two: Getting Channels Right Instead of Creating Chaos

Channels are where day‑to‑day collaboration happens. Common mistakes include: 

• Too many channels
•  Channels created without a purpose
• Using chat instead of channels (or vice versa)

Best‑Practice Channel Setup 

• Use channels for topics or workflows 
• Keep naming consistent
• Archive channels when projects end

This improves clarity and keeps Teams usable over the long term, something many growing businesses in Burgess Hill and Haywards Heath struggle with as headcount increases. 

Step Three: File Storage That Actually Makes Sense

One of the biggest frustrations we hear is: “Files are harder to find since moving to Teams.” This is almost always a structure issue, not a Teams issue. 

Good file structure should: 

• Reflect your business processes
• Be consistent across Teams
• Avoid unnecessary duplication

Key File Management Tips 

• Avoid saving business‑critical files in private chats 
• Use clearly named folders within channels
• Train staff on where files should go

For businesses with compliance or client confidentiality concerns, this is particularly important. 

Step Four: Permissions & Access Control

As Teams grows, access control becomes critical. Across Sussex businesses, we commonly see: 

• Everyone with full access
• Ex‑employees still able to view files
• External users have more access than intended 

Microsoft Teams gives you powerful access tools, but they must be actively managed. 

• Team owners should be limited
• External access should be controlled
• Access should be reviewed regularly  

This is especially important for businesses handling sensitive data in finance, HR, legal or client services. 

Step Five: Ongoing Management, The Bit Most Businesses Miss

Microsoft Teams is not set‑and‑forget. As your business in Crawley, Horsham, or Haywards Heath evolves: 

• New staff join
• Projects start and end
• Clients come and go
• Security risks change  

Without ongoing management: 

• Teams sprawl grows 
• Permissions drift 
• Files become disorganised again

This is where managed Microsoft 365 support adds real value, keeping Teams aligned with how your business actually operates. 

Why Local Support Makes a Difference 

Working with a Sussex‑based IT provider means: 

• Someone who understands local business challenges
• Advice tailored to smaller teams (not enterprise theory) 
• Hands‑on support when Teams needs restructuring 

Whether you’re based in Burgess Hill, Haywards Heath, Crawley, Horsham or elsewhere in Sussex, having access to local expertise makes Microsoft Teams far easier to manage and far more effective.

Microsoft Teams Should Save Time, Not Waste It 

When set up properly, Microsoft Teams can: 

• Improve communication
• Reduce email overload 
• Make files easy to find 
• Support hybrid working 

But a poor setup leads to confusion and frustration. 

If Teams currently feels “a bit out of control”, that’s usually a sign it needs structure, governance and ongoing management, not replacement. 

Microsoft Teams Support for Sussex Small Businesses 

As a local Managed IT Support provider, Sussex Tech Support helps Sussex businesses design, configure, and manage Microsoft Teams so it supports productivity rather than hindering it. This includes: 

• Planning Teams structure 
• Designing SharePoint sites
• Managing permissions and security
• Supporting users day‑to‑day 

The post How to Set Up Microsoft Teams Properly for Small Businesses in Sussex (And Why So Many Get It Wrong) appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Here’s a question I suspect most business owners haven’t thought about yet.

If one of your team buys something inside an AI chat window… is that okay with you?

Because that’s exactly where things are heading.

You’re probably already familiar with tools like Microsoft Copilot and ChatGPT helping people write emails, summarise documents, or answer questions. 

The next step is much more practical. And potentially much more sensitive.

Buying stuff.

Last year, ChatGPT quietly introduced a feature called Instant Checkout. In simple terms, if you ask a shopping-related question, you can be shown products and complete the purchase without ever leaving the chat.

Now Microsoft is rolling out something very similar: Copilot Checkout.

If someone asks Copilot for recommendations, say software, equipment, subscriptions, or services, Copilot can show relevant products. 

If the seller supports Copilot Checkout, the user can click “Buy”, confirm delivery and payment details, and complete the purchase right there inside Copilot.

No jumping to a website. No checkout page in a browser. No familiar “are you sure?” pause.

From Microsoft’s point of view, this is powerful. 

Its data suggests people are far more likely to complete purchases when Copilot is involved, and they do it faster too. 

That’s why this feature won’t just live in one place. It’s expected to appear across Copilot, Bing, Edge, MSN, and more.

For consumers, this feels convenient.

But for businesses, it raises a different set of questions.

The first one is simple: Do you want your team buying things this way?

In many businesses, purchasing is deliberately slow. There are approval steps. Budgets. Supplier lists. Controls. Someone checks what’s being bought, why, and by whom.

Copilot Checkout has the potential to quietly bypass some of that, especially if it’s used casually or without guidance.

Then there’s the data side.

To make checkout work, payment details, shipping information, and account data need to be involved. 

Copilot Checkout launches with platforms like PayPal, Stripe, and Shopify. These are reputable systems, but the question isn’t whether they’re trustworthy. It’s whether your policies account for this new way of buying.

If an employee is signed into Copilot with a work account, whose payment method is being used? 

What information is Copilot allowed to see or reuse?


Are purchases logged somewhere central, or do they disappear into the noise?

And then there’s behaviour.

When buying becomes frictionless, people buy more. Microsoft openly says journeys involving Copilot are far more likely to end in a purchase. That’s great for sellers, but it can quietly inflate costs if nobody’s watching.

None of this means Copilot Checkout is “bad”. But it does mean it’s something you should decide on deliberately, rather than discovering it accidentally after the fact.

If you do want your team to use it, there are a few sensible considerations:

• Clear rules around who can buy
• What they can buy
• Which accounts or payment methods are allowed 
• Visibility into purchases made through AI tools
• Guidance for staff so they understand that convenience doesn’t remove responsibility

If you don’t want it used, that decision also needs to be clear. Because if it’s not written down, explained, and enforced, people will assume it’s fine.

This is a recurring theme with AI features.

They don’t arrive with a big announcement saying, “You should update your policies now.”
They just… appear.

The real question isn’t whether your team can use it. It’s whether you’ve decided if they should.

My team and I can help you decide what’s best for your business. Get in touch.

The post Do you really want your team to use this? appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Microsoft 365 Is Powerful — If It’s Set Up Properly

Microsoft 365 has become the most popular IT platform for small businesses. From email and calendars to file sharing, Teams meetings and cloud security, it touches almost every part of daily operations.

And yet, across Sussex — from Haywards Heath and Crawley to Brighton and the surrounding areas — we regularly see businesses using only a fraction of what Microsoft 365 can offer.

In many cases, Microsoft 365 was:

• Set up quickly when the business first started
• Migrated from another provider years ago
• Configured by someone who has since moved on

The result? A system that works, but isn’t necessarily secure, efficient, or easy to manage.

Microsoft 365 Is Not “Just Email”

Many small businesses think of Microsoft 365 purely as:

• Outlook email
• Word, Excel and PowerPoint

But Microsoft 365 Business plans include far more:

What Microsoft 365 Can Do for Your Business

• Microsoft Teams – chat, calls, meetings and collaboration
• SharePoint & OneDrive – secure file storage and sharing
• Built‑in security tools – protecting users and data
• Device management – for laptops, mobiles and tablets
• Compliance and data protection features

When correctly configured, Microsoft 365 becomes the central platform for how your business operates — whether you’re a professional services firm in Brighton, Burgess Hill or a growing SME in West Sussex.

The Problem: Default Setups Are Rarely Best Practice

Microsoft makes it easy to get started, but the default settings are not designed for real‑world small businesses.

We frequently review Microsoft 365 tenants for Sussex businesses and find problems such as:

• Security features never enabled
• Shared accounts are still active
• No clear file structure
• Excessive user permissions
• Teams created with no planning or governance

This isn’t negligence — it’s simply what happens when Microsoft 365 isn’t actively managed.

Security: Microsoft 365 Doesn’t Secure Itself

One of the biggest misunderstandings we encounter with local businesses is around security.

Microsoft provides excellent security tools — but many are optional and require proper configuration.

Common Microsoft 365 Security Gaps We See in Sussex SMEs

• Multi‑Factor Authentication (MFA) is not enforced for all users
• No conditional access rules
• Lack of alerts for suspicious logins
• No third‑party backups in place

For businesses in Sussex handling sensitive data — client details, financial information, employee records — these gaps represent real risk.

Proper Microsoft 365 management means:

• Proactively managing security settings
• Monitoring for threats
• Adapting protection as the business changes

Microsoft Teams & SharePoint: Brilliant or Chaotic?

Microsoft Teams can transform the way teams work — but without planning, it quickly becomes confusing.

We often hear comments like:

“We can’t find files anymore”
“Teams feels out of control”
“SharePoint is confusing”

This usually comes down to a lack of structure and governance, not a problem with Teams itself.

When Teams Is Set Up Properly:

• Teams reflect real departments or workflows
• Files are easy to find
• Access is properly controlled
• SharePoint works quietly in the background

A well‑configured Teams and SharePoint setup saves time, reduces frustration, and improves collaboration — especially for businesses with hybrid or remote staff across Sussex.

Why Local Microsoft 365 Expertise Matters

Microsoft 365 is a global platform — but small businesses’ needs are local.

Working with a Sussex‑based IT support provider means:

• Someone who understands how local businesses operate
• On‑hand support when you need it
• Advice tailored to your size, industry and growth plans

Whether you’re a small business in Mid Sussex or a growing company near Gatwick, having Microsoft 365 managed by local experts ensures it evolves alongside your business.

Microsoft 365 Isn’t “Set and Forget”

Microsoft 365 is constantly changing.

New features, evolving security threats, licensing updates — it all requires regular oversight.

That’s why more Sussex businesses are shifting from:

“We set it up once and left it”

To:

“We have it professionally managed”

Ongoing Microsoft 365 Management Typically Includes:

• User onboarding and offboarding
• Security monitoring and improvements
• Backup and data protection
• Best‑practice configuration reviews
• Ongoing support and advice

This ensures Microsoft 365 continues to support your business, rather than becoming a hidden risk.

Getting More Value From Microsoft 365

If your business already pays for Microsoft 365 licences, it makes sense to ensure:

• You’re using the right plan
• Features are configured correctly
• Security is appropriate for your risk level
• Staff actually understand how to use it properly

For most small businesses in Sussex, the biggest gains don’t come from buying more software, but from using Microsoft 365 better.

Microsoft 365 Support for Sussex Small Businesses

As a Sussex‑based Managed IT Support provider, we work closely with local businesses to ensure Microsoft 365 is:

• Secure
• Well‑structured
• Easy to use
• Properly managed

If you’re unsure whether your Microsoft 365 setup is working for your business — or quietly creating risk — a review by local experts can provide clarity.

The post Microsoft 365 for Small Businesses in Sussex – More Than Just Email appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

If there’s one thing guaranteed to test your patience during a busy workday, it’s a messaging app that doesn’t behave the way you expect it to. 

For a tool that millions of us rely on every day, Microsoft Teams does an impressive job of keeping businesses connected and conversations flowing.

But for many fans, a couple of small-but-maddening quirks have been causing frustration for a little too long.

Microsoft has finally heard our cries of despair.

It’s continuing to refine and improve Teams based on real user feedback, and some long-awaited fixes are finally on the way.

One of the biggest updates is a simple but powerful change. You’ll soon be able to choose what the Enter key does. 

We’ve all sent a half-formed message by hitting Enter to start a new paragraph. It’s a reflex.

But now instead of automatically sending your message, you’ll have the option to use Enter for a new line. 

Another welcome improvement is arriving too. Forwarding multiple messages at once. 

Teams traditionally only lets you forward one message at a time, which makes sharing context clunky and time-consuming. 

But now you’ll be able to select up to five messages from a chat or channel and forward them together in one go.

Both features are rolling out now. 

For businesses that rely on Teams every day, these may sound like small fixes, but they remove friction from hundreds of tiny moments. 

And when messaging is a core part of how your team communicates, those small moments matter.

If you want help getting more from Teams, or making sure your Microsoft 365 setup works the way you want it to, we can help. Get in touch.

The post Microsoft finally fixes these Teams issues appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Have you noticed that some changes don’t feel like improvements?

Microsoft has announced that it’s retiring PowerPoint’s much loved Reuse Slides feature. 

For anyone who builds presentations regularly, that’s a real blow.

If you’ve never used it, Reuse Slides was one of those quiet, behind-the-scenes features that made life a lot easier. 

It let you open a small panel within PowerPoint, browse through another presentation, and pick out the exact slides you wanted to reuse. You could even choose whether to keep the original formatting. 

It was perfect for keeping your company’s logo, colours, and layout looking consistent. And it was a huge time saver. 

Instead of rebuilding every deck from scratch, teams could pull in existing slides from previous proposals, reports, or training materials. It kept things looking professional and saved hours of fiddling with design templates.

But earlier this year, that convenience disappeared. 

Microsoft says it removed Reuse Slides because there are duplicate ways to do the same thing. It no longer makes sense to maintain overlapping features. 

While that might be technically true, it’s not much comfort for people who liked the simplicity of clicking one button and getting straight to work.

You can still reuse slides. It just takes an extra step or two. 

One simple method is to open both PowerPoint files at once and drag and drop slides between them. This usually keeps most of your formatting, animations, and media in place. 

Another option is to go to View > New Window, which opens a duplicate of your current deck. That’s helpful if you want to work on a new version while keeping the original untouched.

These alternatives do the job, but they don’t feel quite as seamless. 

Reuse Slides gave you more control, especially when you only needed a few slides from a larger deck. 

The drag and drop method can work, but it’s less precise and can sometimes cause small formatting quirks that need tidying up afterwards.

Still, change is inevitable. Microsoft wants fewer overlapping features and a more streamlined experience, even if that means saying goodbye to a few long-standing favourites.

If your business relies on PowerPoint for client presentations, sales decks, or internal training, make sure your team knows about this change. Get them comfortable with the drag and drop method or the “New Window” trick to save time and confusion later.

And if you need help getting to grips with this, or any other change in Microsoft, get in touch.

The post PowerPoint drops its “Reuse Slides” feature appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Be honest, when was the last time you forgot a password and ended up in that endless loop of “reset your password” emails?

It’s one of the biggest frustrations of modern working life. 

But it might finally be coming to an end.

Microsoft has announced that passkeys can now be synced across your devices using your Microsoft Account in Edge.

If you’re not familiar with passkeys yet, they’re a clever, password-free way to log in. 

Think of them as a more secure and much simpler replacement for passwords. Instead of typing a string of letters, numbers, and symbols, you use your device’s built-in security, like Face ID, fingerprint recognition, or a PIN, to prove it’s really you. 

The system uses something called the FIDO2 standard, which ties your login information directly to your device. 

No passwords to steal, no phishing links to fall for.

Until now, though, there’s been one big problem: Passkeys were usually stored locally on your device. 

That meant if your laptop died or you upgraded to a new PC without backing them up, you could lose access to your accounts completely. 

Not ideal.

Now, with Microsoft’s latest update to Edge, that headache is over. 

Your passkeys can be securely stored and synced in the cloud, protected by your Microsoft Account and an extra PIN via Microsoft Password Manager. 

That means you can sign in to any Windows 11 PC with your account and your passkeys come with you. No fuss, no lockouts, no panic.

And before you worry, this doesn’t mean your data is suddenly up for grabs. 

Microsoft has made it clear that synced passkeys are encrypted in the cloud. They’ll have multiple layers of protection. 

In fact, it’s just as secure as storing them locally, but much more convenient.

This is another small but important step toward better productivity and security. 

Fewer passwords mean fewer resets, fewer support tickets, and far less risk of someone reusing weak passwords or falling for phishing scams. 

And for your employees, it’s one less thing to remember.

Passkeys are already rolling out to Windows 11, with support for Mac and mobile on the way. So next time you’re prompted to “Save as passkey” in Edge, say yes.

The post At last: Sync passkeys across your devices appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Have you ever wished your computer just understood what you were trying to do, instead of making you dig through menus and search results to get there?

Microsoft’s working on it.

In the latest Windows 11 preview, there’s a new feature being tested called Ask Copilot. It’s taking centre stage right on your taskbar. 

Traditionally, when you search from the Windows taskbar, you’re using a basic search box that looks for files, apps, and settings. 

With Ask Copilot, that same box is getting a big upgrade. 

It now uses AI to understand what you’re looking for, and to guide you directly to the right place. Or help you achieve what you’re trying to do.

For example, you might type “open the invoice template I used last month”, or “connect to the projector”, or “how do I split this PDF?” 

Instead of just showing you a list of results, Copilot can act. It can open the file, adjust the setting, or generate a quick answer. 

It’s the same idea as the search you’re used to, but far smarter and more helpful.

You’ll also see helpful icons beside the new Ask Copilot box. These give one-click access to Copilot Vision (for understanding on-screen content) and voice commands (so you can talk instead of typing).

Now, if that sounds a bit too AI-heavy for your liking, it’s ok, it’s opt-in. 

You’ll only see Ask Copilot if you turn it on in your Settings (under Personalisation > Taskbar > Ask Copilot). 

For everyone else, the normal search stays exactly as it is.

Microsoft is quick to point out that this doesn’t give Copilot any extra access to your data. It only uses the same tools as regular Windows Search. It’s not secretly scanning your files or peeking at private content.

The benefit for your business? 

Time and focus. 

Instead of your team getting sidetracked hunting for documents, adjusting settings, or Googling how to do something simple, Copilot helps them get it done instantly. 

It’s another small step toward a more streamlined, productive workday. The kind where technology quietly helps rather than hinders.

Right now, Ask Copilot is just being tested in preview builds. But I think we’ll see a rollout soon.

Would you switch on Ask Copilot when it arrives? Or stick with classic search for now? Either way, the choice (for the moment, at least) is yours.

The post “Ask Copilot” is coming to your Taskbar (but only if you want it to) appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

How do you really know if your people are making the most of AI at work?

You’ve rolled out Microsoft Copilot. 

You’ve talked about how it can save time. How it can boost productivity. And how it can make day-to-day tasks easier. 

But how can you tell if your team is actually using it? Or if it’s quietly gathering dust on their desktops?

That’s exactly what Microsoft’s new Copilot Dashboard feature, called Benchmarks, is designed to reveal. 

It lives inside Viva Insights (part of Microsoft 365) and gives you a clear picture of how your employees are using Copilot. And how that compares to others.

Benchmarks can show how many people in your organisation actively use Copilot, which apps they’re using it in, and how often they come back to it. 

But it doesn’t stop there. 

It can also compare your company’s usage with other similar businesses. Those of the same size, in the same industry, or even in the same region. 

In other words, you’ll be able to see whether your team is leading the AI charge… or falling behind it.

Now, that may sound like a privacy concern. The idea of your company data being compared against others might raise an eyebrow or two. But Microsoft insists it’s handled safely. All the external data is anonymised, aggregated, and run through mathematical models to protect privacy.

From a business point of view, it’s a clever move. 

Many companies have been slow to fully adopt AI tools, even though the benefits are clear. A recent study found that only about 5% of AI pilot programs ever make it beyond the testing stage. Mostly because businesses struggle to adapt their processes and culture. 

Microsoft’s Benchmarks tool could change that by showing you exactly where adoption is stalling.

Of course, this new visibility might make some employees uneasy. No one wants to feel like their AI habits are being watched. But this is about progress, not punishment. If you can see which teams are using Copilot effectively (and which aren’t), you can identify where extra support or training is needed.

So, is your team using AI well? Soon you won’t have to guess. Copilot will tell you.

The post Is your team using AI well? Copilot can tell you appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Be honest, how many times have you lost a Word document because you forgot to hit “Save”? 

We’ve all been there. 

The power cuts out, your laptop crashes, or you just close the window too fast… and hours of work vanish in an instant.

Well, Microsoft’s decided that enough is enough. From now on, new Word documents will automatically save straight to your OneDrive cloud storage. Autosave will be turned on by default.

That means your work is backed up instantly. And you can pick up where you left off from any device. 

Accidentally close the file? No problem, it’s sitting safely in the cloud. 

For anyone who’s ever lost an important report, proposal, or invoice, that sounds like a dream come true. Right?

But not everyone’s cheering just yet.

Some people aren’t comfortable with every new document automatically being uploaded to the cloud. They’d rather decide for themselves where a file should live. Especially if it contains sensitive information. 

There’s also the question of privacy. 

While Microsoft says your files are secure and only accessible to you, some people simply prefer keeping their work stored locally, where they feel more in control.

In fairness, Microsoft isn’t locking you in. You can turn this feature off and go back to saving files manually if you prefer. 

But for many, this change could slip by unnoticed. Word will just quietly back everything up for you without asking.

It’s a big shift, and it says a lot about where Microsoft’s heading. The company wants to make OneDrive the central hub for your files, and with new Copilot AI features coming to it, that makes sense. 

Soon you’ll be able to ask Copilot to find, summarise, or even edit your documents directly from OneDrive. There will be no need to dig through folders or filenames.

So, is this update a terrible idea or a great one? 

It depends on how you like to work. 

If you value simplicity, peace of mind, and automatic backups, it’s a fantastic move. But if you prefer a little more control and privacy, it might feel like Word’s making decisions for you.

Either way, one thing’s certain: The days of losing your unsaved masterpiece are numbered.

The post Never lose a Word document again appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.

Language barriers have always limited what we can get out of online content.

Training videos, webinars, or product launches are only useful if you understand the language they’re in.

But that could soon change.

Microsoft is testing a new AI-powered audio translation feature in its Edge browser.

It can translate the spoken words in a video into another language in real time, swapping the original audio for a translated version.

Now, it’s limited to just a few languages. English, Spanish, and Korean. But it gives us a glimpse of how AI could make global content much more accessible.

Here’s how it works…

Once enabled in Edge’s settings, a small floating bar appears on supported sites (YouTube is one example).

When you start a video in another language, Edge automatically generates a translated audio track, muting the original.

The result is that you hear the video in your chosen language almost instantly.

There are some limitations right now though.

The feature requires a powerful computer. At least 12 GB of memory and a modern processor. It’s not going to run well on low-spec devices.

Accuracy can also vary, with occasional hiccups like extra voices or imperfect phrasing.

But given that this is still a preview, it’s impressive progress.

The potential here is huge.

International training materials, partner presentations, or even industry insights in other languages could become immediately useful without waiting for subtitles or professional translations.

It opens doors to faster learning, wider collaboration, and easier access to knowledge from around the world.

Real-time translation could help businesses think and work more globally than ever before.

If you’d like to learn more about the other productivity tools Microsoft offers, get in touch.

The post AI audio translation previews in Microsoft Edge appeared first on Sussex Tech Support.