How to use Team Messages
Detailed instructions for using Team Messages for group collaboration
Group collaboration is critical to the success of any complex mission, project or task. With Team Messages, you are able to collaborate amongst your own team or department, across departments, and even with external clients, all within the same seamless, secure platform.
Keep client work and documents confidential and contained within a Team conversation. Get your internal team aligned and regularly updating each other on ongoing projects, deadlines and priorities, without filling up each other’s inboxes. Coordinate project members across multiple departments or geographies, keeping everyone updated on progress, needs and next steps to keep the project moving forward.
These are just some of the ways Workstorm members are using Teams to get work done seamlessly and securely. Ready to give it a try?
Sending Team Messages
Send and receive messages or files within a group by selecting Messages in the left menu, then Teams. If you are already a member of one or more teams, you will see them listed here. Click on the team name to open the conversation and send a message or file to the group, just as you would in a Private Message. All members of the group will receive your message or file.
Join a Team
You may join a team by clicking on Messages and then Add. Click on Join Team to see a list of existing teams within your company or organization. To join, simply click the . It will change to to show that you have joined the team. See below for Teams that have the lock icon next to their toggles.
Public and Private Teams
Teams can either be publicly listed, meaning they appear in the Join Team list, or they can be private, meaning they do not appear in the list. Private teams are often used for confidential projects or client-related work. To join a private team, you must be invited by the Team Administrator (i.e. the person who created the team).
Open and Approval-Required Memberships
Publicly listed teams appear in the Join Team list and will either allow open or approval-required membership. Any member can instantly join an open membership team by simply clicking the . Teams that require membership approval have a icon beside the .
To request to join a team that requires membership approval, click the and a membership request notification will be sent to the Team Administrator.
If the Team Administrator approves your request to join, you will receive a toast, or notice, of your admission and the toggle will change to , designating that your membership has been approved. A toast will also appear if your request for access has been denied.
Create a Team
To create a new team, click the Blue Plus icon or Add in the Messages menu and select Team. This will open a Create a Team window where you can name your team to get started.
Adding and Removing Team Members
Next, add members to your team by clicking on the icon and select members from the alphabetical list. To filter the list, type the first few letters of a member’s name into the search bar above.
To add a team member, simply click the . It will change to to show that the member has been added to your team. To remove a member from your team, simply click the so that it returns to .
You may also choose to Add by Email using the tab next to Add Members. Enter the person’s email address, first name and last name and click Send Invite to send an email invitation for the member to join your team.
When a person successfully joins your team on Workstorm, you will receive a notification and an alert. As the Team Administrator, you may add or remove team members at any time by clicking on the Current Members tab and selecting Remove next to the right of their name.
Adding External Team Members
Sometimes it’s necessary to collaborate with members that are outside your company, such as a contractor, client, or agency. If a member is external, a icon will appear next to his or her name so that all members are aware that the person is external. If a Team contains external members, an orange globe icon will also appear next to the Team’s name.
If you wish to add a new external member to your Team, invite them by clicking on the Add by Email tab and then enter their contact information. You will receive a confirmation that you are inviting an external member to the team after you click on Send Invite.
The ability to invite external members is set by your company policy and your Site Administrator. Read our article on inviting external members, or check with your Site Administrator if you have any questions.
Assigning Team Member Roles
You may also designate additional Team Administrators to help you manage team memberships and settings. To add a Team Administrator, click on the icon and then Current Members to see the Team roster. Click the dropdown arrow where it says Member below a member’s name. In the dropdown, you have the option to change the member’s role from Member to Administrator.
Members of a team have general user functionality, including the ability to send and receive messages and share files within the group. Administrators can add or remove members and other administrators, approve or deny membership requests (if team membership requires approval), and change the team settings or name.
Settings and Notifications
To designate your team as Private or Public (i.e. whether or not it will appear in a team search), click on the in the right toolbar. When you create a Team, the default setting is Private. Click on the toggle next to Private to update the Team to Public and Requires Approval. A prompt will pop up to confirm this change.
A Team that is Public, but Requires Approval means any member of your company or organization’s Workstorm account may submit a request to the Team Administrator for approval to join this team.
If you want the Team to be Public and not to require any approval to join, click the toggle next to Require Approval. A Public Open Team means any member of your company or organization’s Workstorm account may search for and join this team without any approval process needed.
The icon in the right toolbar enables each team member to turn on/off Notifications of new messages and activity within the team. Click the icon to bring up a toggle to turn off Notifications for this team.
To delete the team, click the icon. Only the Team Administrator(s) can delete the team.
To leave a team, click the icon. Team members can leave a team at any time.
From access parameters to membership requirements, member roles to notifications, Team Messages can be customized to suit the collaboration needs of any group project, mission, topic, or task. Tap into Teams and see how the right kind of group collaboration can mean the difference between working hard and getting things done.