What is Microsoft Yammer?

Yammer is a Microsoft platform that facilitates social networking, as well as collaboration and communication between those working within an organization. Part of the Microsoft 365 family of applications, Yammer is a closed platform, which means that only those within a corporate domain can use this app for correspondence. Yammer is sometimes referred to as Facebook for business because it has many of the same features as popular social networks, such as:

• A news feed that displays the most recent posts from coworkers in various departments
• An instant messenger that employees can use to chat directly with one another
• Groups pertaining to various company topics in which employees can post questions or comments if they need quick feedback

Because of its many helpful professional features, Yammer is currently being used by 200,000 companies around the globe.

Key Features of Microsoft Yammer

Yammer provides a variety of helpful features that enable them to stay connected with one another. Here are just a few of this app’s most useful features:

• The Home feed helps Yammer users stay current on what others within the organization are working on, their questions, and their updates.
• Yammer’s search function helps users find colleagues, files, groups, and conversations. 
• Using @mentions provides Yammer users with a way to loop other coworkers into a conversation.
• Posts in Yammer can be made more personalized by incorporating photos, videos, or gifs. 
• Yammer provides an option for users to create virtual events in which employees in various locations can come together to participate or ask questions. These events can be recorded for later reference.
• Polls can be created using Yammer as a way to quickly gather feedback from those within an organization.
• Yammer’s pinboard uses algorithms to ensure that relevant posts are kept visible on the platform.

Why Use Microsoft Yammer?

Microsoft Yammer has a variety of professional uses for employees at all levels of an organization:

• It is a great tool for informal training. When Yammer users interact with one another via chats or post updates, oftentimes they are acquiring industry knowledge or information about their company or organization without even realizing it. 

• This platform facilitates collaborations of all kinds. There are many ways to collaborate with colleagues when working on a project. Thanks to Yammer, it’s now possible to exchange ideas with others who work in different departments and even in different physical locations. Yammer users can share files as well as media with one another. They can also brainstorm on current projects, come together to finalize presentations, and make plans for future endeavors.

• Yammer provides a way to have quick answers to questions. When an employee has a question about a work-related issue, it can take time to get an answer. In certain instances, the employee may not even know whom to ask. Thanks to Yammer, employees can collaborate with one another across departments, and even across locations, by posting their questions in a Yammer group. Most department heads monitor these groups and can quickly post responses. This ensures that work can be completed without delays and that potential problems can be addressed before they escalate.

• It provides a platform that can be used to showcase employee achievements. Oftentimes within an organization, a team member makes an impressive contribution to sales numbers, product development, or another noteworthy accomplishment that deserves to be recognized. Yammer offers organizations a way to celebrate these successes and share them with the other employees. This in turn helps one department build on the innovations of those within another department while at the same time letting employees know that their value is being recognized and celebrated.

• Yammer provides a form of productive entertainment. Because Yammer is relatively informal, this platform is designed to help employees feel comfortable and enjoy connecting with one another. Users can posts gifs, jokes, and other good-natured exchanges, all the while getting to know one another a bit better.

• This application promotes transparency. By drawing attention to employee achievements, as well as departmental updates, department heads can ensure that all team members are kept on the same page about what their coworkers are currently working on, their initiatives and achievements, and what they can expect in the coming weeks or months at work.

• Yammer provides a safe platform for exchanging ideas. Yammer users can rest assured that this platform is private and that the data exchanged on it will be treated as such. Permission-based rules are used in Yammer to prevent unauthorized access by internal and external parties.

• It facilitates external collaboration. In addition to being used internally for those within an organization to communicate with one another, Yammer is also a helpful tool that enables employees to communicate with external stakeholders like vendors, contractors, or clients as well. 

• Yammer integrates well with other Microsoft 365 apps. Because Yammer integrates with Office 365 Groups (which integrates with Outlook), this means that it can also integrate with a host of other Microsoft 365 apps as well. For example, Yammer can be used in SharePoint and Teams as well. 

• It integrates with third-party platforms as well. In addition to integrating with other Microsoft 365 applications, Yammer also integrates with Hootsuite, Slack, Hype, Zendesk, and Open API, among others.

As this article illustrates, Microsoft Yammer provides organizations with a helpful platform with which employees at all levels can stay connected about company policies and updates, receive answers to questions, and get to know one another in a safe, informal environment.

Learn More About Microsoft Office with Hands-On Classes

The more you know about Microsoft Office, the more professional opportunities you will have across industries. A great way to begin learning about Microsoft Office is to sign up for one of Noble Desktop’s Microsoft Office courses. These small group classes are offered in-person in Manhattan, as well as in the live online format. For students and professionals on the go, there are also in-person and live online Microsoft Office courses available through Noble Desktop or one of its affiliate schools. A variety of course options are offered, ranging in length from three hours to three days and costing from $229-$1,785. Those who are interested in finding Office classes near home can also browse in-person Microsoft Office classes to locate those taking place close to home.