Using the appropriate tools is essential to retaining efficiency while growing and managing your business and there are many best-in-class tools out there to suit specific functions. However, these can be costly, they don’t always integrate with your existing systems and are likely to create data silos in your business. Using the Microsoft Technology ecosystem offers a seamless, secure, and integrated experience, assisting you in avoiding the drawbacks of using a myriad of third-party products. Let’s examine the advantages of a few of our favourite essential Microsoft applications:
Microsoft Lists
Microsoft Lists offers a customisable solution for tracking and managing lists of information. With its ability to create and share lists, your team can maintain detailed records of company assets. Ideas, tasks, meeting action points. Lists can contain text, numbers, dates, pictures, status flags and much more.
Connectivity with Microsoft Teams and SharePoint means you can collaborate with team members in real time, ensuring everyone stays updated.
A similar product from Asana costs approx. £10pupm. At Mercury, we use this to manage the actions that arise from our board meetings. It works a dream – the group has visibility, it’s easy to update and it gives a live view of our progress.
Microsoft Bookings
Microsoft Bookings simplifies the scheduling process by allowing people to book calls, meetings or interviews directly from a website or email. Recruiters can set availability, manage appointments, and send automatic reminders, reducing the time spent on administrative tasks. This tool connects seamlessly with Outlook, ensuring schedules are always in sync and preventing double-booking.
Functionality is broadly similar to Calendly, which costs around $10 per user per month – so there’s a worthwhile saving to be made using Bookings.
Microsoft To Do
Microsoft To Do helps recruiters stay organised by managing tasks and to-do lists. This tool allows for the creation of shared lists, setting deadlines, and tracking progress. Its integration with Outlook and Microsoft 365 ensures that tasks are always in sync, helping recruiters manage their workload effectively.
Microsoft Forms
Microsoft Forms enables you to create custom forms for job applications, surveys, questionnaires and feedback. The collected data can be automatically organised and analysed, providing valuable insights. This tool’s simplicity and integration with Excel and Power BI make it easy to visualise and interpret data.
If you’re using something like SurveyMonkey (£20pupm) then this is worth a look.
Microsoft Loop
Microsoft Loop fosters collaboration by allowing teams to create and share interactive content in real time. This tool is ideal for brainstorming sessions, project planning, and keeping everyone aligned. Its connectivity with Microsoft Teams ensures that all communication and updates are centralised, improving transparency and decision-making.
Loop is available through a browser or as a standalone app. Individual Loop Components can also be pasted into emails or Teams chats, allowing people to collaborate there.
At Mercury, Loop has quickly become a hub for the Marketing team, from where we manage all our campaigns, projects, events, and meeting summaries. Assigning actions in Loop ensures that they appear on each person’s respective ToDo list and in Teams and Outlook. The introduction of Kanban boards now means that simple projects can be managed with ease, with nice drag-and-drop actions.
Microsoft Whiteboard
Microsoft Whiteboard offers a digital canvas for teams to collaborate visually. You can use it for planning campaigns, mapping out candidate journeys, and brainstorming new strategies. The ability to share and edit whiteboards in real time enhances team collaboration, making it easier to generate and refine ideas.
If you’re using Miro or something similar, then Whiteboard could save you £8pupm.
Microsoft Clipchamp
Microsoft Clipchamp offers easy-to-use video editing tools, enabling recruiters to create professional-looking videos for job postings, company culture highlights, and candidate testimonials. The intuitive interface and variety of templates make it accessible even for those with no video editing experience.
Microsoft Stream
Described to me once as “your own YouTube”, Microsoft Stream provides a platform for creating and sharing video content. Your team can use it to develop engaging training materials, onboarding videos, and company updates. The secure sharing options and connectivity with Microsoft 365 make sure that sensitive content is protected and easily accessible to the right people.
Microsoft Power Automate
Microsoft Power Automate helps you to automate repetitive tasks and workflows, such as sending follow-up emails, updating information, and generating reports. By automating these processes, recruiters can focus on more strategic tasks, improving overall efficiency and reducing the risk of errors.
Power Automate has hundreds of pre-defined flows that are easy to customise to your own needs. Start with something simple and see how much more efficient people can be.
Microsoft Power BI
Microsoft Power BI provides powerful data visualisation and analytics capabilities. Recruiters can use interactive dashboards to monitor key metrics, track performance, and identify trends. Integrating data from multiple sources ensures comprehensive insights, enabling a greater understanding of the business and more robust (data-driven) decision-making.
Mercury users can take advantage of Mercury Analytics, which has a suite of dashboards and reports specifically designed for recruiters, managers and business leaders.
Using the Microsoft platform provides recruitment agencies with a robust, secure, and embedded suite of tools designed to enhance efficiency and productivity. With these apps, recruiters can streamline processes, improve collaboration, and make data-driven decisions. Please contact Mercury to discuss your Microsoft licencing options.
