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Lydon Solutions is Keeping You in the “Loop” for Construction: Microsoft Loop Part II

Reviews |

I've been trying out the latest updates to Microsoft Loop, and I thought it might be a good time to update the post I provided last year.

Microsoft Loop is a very interesting app that has a bit of an identity problem.

So, what is Microsoft Loop?

For those who are not familiar with Microsoft Loop, "it is a collaborative app that enables teams to think, plan, and create together across various apps and devices." Translated: Loop is If OneNote and Planner had a baby, but it gained mutant powers that allow it to work across Microsoft 365 apps.

Microsoft made Loop generally available in November of 2023. The word on the street is that Microsoft created Loop to compete with Notion, which is a productivity and note-taking application that has over 20 million users and is worth over $10B.

There are three main elements of Loop:

Loop workspaces

Workspaces "are shared spaces that allow you and your team to see and group everything important to your project, making it easy for you to catch up on what everyone is working on and track progress toward shared goals."

Workspaces are like OneNote sections where you can organize your work by project or client. Within workspaces, you create pages for each day or possibly a meeting minute.

Loop pages

Pages "are flexible canvases in the Loop app where you can bring together people and all your components, links, tasks, and data. Loop pages can start small and continue to grow to match the size of your ideas. Loop pages can be shared across M365 apps as a link or as an embedded Loop component."

Think of Loop pages like OneNote pages where you add notes, create meeting information, and so on.

Loop Components

Components are "portable pieces of content that stay in sync across all the places they are shared. Components allow you to collaborate in the flow of work — on a Loop page or in a chat, email, meeting, or document. They can be lists, tables, notes, and more — you're always working with the latest information in your preferred app, like Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Word, Whiteboard, and the Loop app."

Think of components as stand-alone widgets that perform one or more functions like capturing notes, status tasks, creating a checklist, or all the above. If a component is created in Loop on a page, it can be shared with other apps to collect data from users and/or report progress. If you create a component outside of Loop in another application, it can still be shared and embedded into other apps, but it does not reside in the Loop application.

Takeaway. If you want to manage all your Loop components from one location, create them in Loop and then share them with users or other applications. Further, if you need specific functions (checklist, table, etc.) to be able to be updated across multiple applications, create them as components within a Loop page instead of just inserting them in a Loop page.

New Microsoft Loop Features

Microsoft has added a host of new features to Loop since 2023. Those include:

  • Create Loop page templates so you can reuse them in workspaces.
  • Create rules on tables to send workflows to Teams and Outlook.
  • Page inserts new features:
    • Now, you can insert dates, callouts, code, table of contents, and a divider.
    • New headers, including collapsible headers.
    • New templates, including a voting table, progress tracker, Kanban board, and Teams retrospective.
    • New Media: Add images and record a video. Even draw and add text to your media.
    • New app intergrations: GitHub, Microsoft Planner, Jira, and Trello.
  • New locations to embed components: Add components to Outlook desktop, Word, and Whiteboard.
  • Print pages: Although it seems to be hit or miss when this menu item appears.
  • Copilot for Microsoft 365 in Loop can help you get started with brainstorming, content drafting, and more.
  • The Loop app is available for Android and IOS. It's a very clean and intuitive modern app.

Advantages of Microsoft Loop

So why use Microsoft Loop over something like OneNote?

Extensibility and sharing

Loop workspaces and pages can be shared and updated in real-time by multiple users. If you create Loop components, you can add them to applications such as Teams chat, email (even Outlook desktop), or a document to collect or report data.

Create page templates

You can create page templates that can be reused in your workspaces.

Rules

You can easily add rules on pages or component tables to send off emails or Team chats. Users can then provide updates from those applications in real-time. For construction folks who might not be tech-savvy and do not want to go into a system, bringing Loop to them in their day-to-day applications is a huge plus for adoption.

Embed other applications

Applications can be inserted into Loop. For example, you don't have to go to Planner to create tasks; you can insert Planner into a Loop page or component.

Other factors to consider

Price

  • Loop is included in Microsoft 365 Business Standard, Premium, E3, E5, A3, and A5.
  • Loop workspaces and pages take up storage. Check with Microsoft for the latest pricing on additional storage if needed.

Storage

  • As of 25 June 2024, Loop workspaces and pages will now count towards an individual's Microsoft storage quota. Loop workspaces no longer have a 5GB maximum size.
  • Loop components created in Teams and Outlook are just .loop files (earlier versions of Loop-created .fluid files) stored in the creator's OneDrive. A file being in OneDrive means that users can create, discover, and manage Loop components (.loop files) as easily as any Office document.

Availability

  • To create Loop components, chat or email creators must have a OneDrive account.
  • Integration of Loop into other Microsoft 365 apps only includes Teams, Word, Outlook, OneNote, and Whiteboard at the moment.

Access

  • Microsoft 365 Guests can't view or collaborate on a Loop component.
  • External recipients of emails can't view or collaborate on a Loop component.
  • Workspaces can be shared with Guest Users.

In Summary, Microsoft Loop is a unique application. It's a little of this and a little of that. It shines with Loop components that can be created in Loop and then added to chats, documents, and emails to collect feedback.

While Loop doesn't seem to have received the reception Microsoft has probably expected, I have seen it used to collect meeting minutes on some projects. Time will tell regarding the future of Loop. I can see a day when OneNote absorbs the features of Loop or the other way around, and I think that will jumpstart adoption.

If you are looking to implement a Microsoft 365 application such as Loop to supplement your construction projects and need some help, you can request a free one-hour consultation with Lydon Solutions below. If you need a turnkey construction management solution for Microsoft 365, check out Construction Viz and click to request a demo.

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The New Microsoft Planner: One Plan to Rule All Your Construction Projects!

Microsoft News |

The latest Microsoft Planner now includes Planner, To Do, and Project. The new version does not just bring these apps together into one task management solution. It allows you to see all of your tasks across every Team, which I think has been long overdue. Check out this post to find out more.

Microsoft Planner is the app that most people use, but oftentimes, they don’t know its name. Outside of Teams, rarely does anyone actually use the stand-alone Planner app. Most likely, the reason for that is that tasks can be created in many different applications, so which one do you go to in order to see all of your tasks?

Task Management in Microsoft 365

Tasks in Microsoft 365 is a pretty broad term and touches many different applications. If you think about all of the locations where tasks can get created in Microsoft 365, it’s a spaghetti network of related but independent applications.

For example, before this update, you could choose to create tasks in any of the following applications:

  • Excel – ☑Pro: Ultimate flexibility. ☒Con: Source/version management of tasks.
  • Planner – ☑Pro: Easy to use, assign, and schedule tasks. ☒Con: Planner specific. No tracking by project or ability to add custom fields.
  • To Do – ☑Pro: Easy to use. ☒Con: Person specific. No tracking by project and no ability to add custom fields.
  • Outlook Tasks – ☑Pro: Create tasks right inside Outlook. ☒Con: Tasks are localized to Outlook. No tracking by project or adding custom fields.
  • Lists – ☑Pro: Flexibility to create custom columns. ☒Con: Resides in a single SharePoint site (although you can also access with the Lists app).
  • MS Project – ☑Pro: Project-specific tracking and scheduling. ☒Con: Additional licensing and increased complexity.

The good news is that Microsoft has been hard at work trying to integrate these applications together and even changing the new Planner logo. They recently replaced Outlook tasks with To Do, and now they have consolidated Planner, To-do, and Project into one solution.

New Microsoft Planner Plans

New Microsoft Planner Features

The new Microsoft Planner comes in two flavors:

  • Planner Basic for Microsoft 365 is included in most Microsoft 365 subscriptions at no additional cost.
  • Premium Planner is a different license, which is essentially a Project Plan 1 or 3 license with Plan 3 including a future Copilot feature.
Microsoft Planner Features by License

So, what else can this new Planner do?

New Planner templates – Microsoft is providing new templates to help you create the perfect plan. The plans indicate Basic vs. Premium, so you know which ones will require additional licensing. I tried the new Premium Commercial Construction template, and it automatically built out a Plan and a schedule with durations and logic in MS Project as well.

Planner Commercial Construction Project
Microsoft Project Commercial Construction Project

Pin a plan – You can pin a plan, so you don’t have to hunt and peck to try and find amongst all of your other plans.

Source of task – You can see where the task was created (e.g., To Do). Also, if a high-priority task is assigned to an Outlook email, a task will automatically be created and will be filtered in the Flagged Emails view.

My Day – Displays all of the tasks that are assigned to you and due today across all plans. Also includes new filters for finding tasks by keyword, due date, and priority.

Manage Your Project Tasks Your Way

Construction Viz Task Managers lets you manage your project tasks the way you want with scheduling, labor tracking, links to other construction applications, and more. Learn More >

My Tasks – Displays all of the tasks that are assigned to you across all plans. You can also filter by Private Tasks that you created, Assigned to Me tasks, and Flagged Emails. Also included are new filters for finding tasks by keyword, due dates, and priority.

Planner_5

The new Planner app brings together several task management applications in a single location and offers many new features. Microsoft is rolling out the updated Planner in early 2024. What are your thoughts on the new Planner app? What features are you looking for?

If you are looking for help implementing Planner, Microsoft Project, or any Microsoft 365 features, you can request a free one-hour consultation using the contact form below.

If you need a turnkey construction management solution for your Microsoft 365 that is customizable to your unique needs, you can request a demo of Construction Viz.

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Keep Your Construction Data Safe with Microsoft 365 Permissions – Part 2 

Tips from the Field |

In part 1 of this three-part series on Microsoft 365 permissions, we discussed Microsoft 365 admin roles and application-specific permissions. Part 2 of this series will focus on Microsoft SharePoint Online permissions management. SharePoint brings another level of permissions management to Microsoft 365 applications, which is why we are keeping this topic separate.  

Think of SharePoint as the database for Microsoft 365 applications. Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Planner, and Microsoft Lists store data in SharePoint lists and libraries. You can thus extend the default permissions from the app level through the underlying SharePoint site permissions.  

This article will discuss SharePoint permission levels and groups and how you can modify them to help manage overall project permissions. 

Structure of SharePoint Permissions

Picture1

To understand permission controls within SharePoint, you must first understand SharePoint permissions levels.  

SharePoint Permission Levels

Permission levels navigation link from the advanced permissions settings
Permission levels navigation link from the advanced permissions settings

Permission levels enable users to perform specific tasks. Permission levels are assigned to permission groups or can be assigned to a user directly (not recommended). The permission levels that we typically see on construction projects are the following:

  • Full control - Enables users to view, add, update, delete, approve, and customize items or pages on the website. This level is typically reserved for just the SharePoint admins since this level could delete entire pages and libraries. 
  • Read – Enables users to view pages, list items, and download documents. This level is suitable for managers and external stakeholders viewing but not modifying data. 
  • Contribute - Enables users to manage personal views, edit items and user information, delete versions in existing lists and document libraries, and add, remove, and update personal Web Parts. You typically assign this level to users who add and upload data. This level is most common for construction team members sharing files and forms. 

You can create and modify permission levels from the advanced permissions settings menu if you are a site owner or have full-control permission.  

Default Permission Levels 
Default Permission Levels 

Lydon Solutions typically adds a custom permission level to projects, and we name it “Contribute No Delete” to accommodate external contractors. This custom level allows users to upload but not delete records, which is handy when sharing files between internal and external stakeholders.  

Uncheck "delete items” in the permission level settings to create a new “Contribute No Delete” level. 
Uncheck "delete items” in the permission level settings to create a new “Contribute No Delete” level. 

SharePoint Permission Groups

Permission groups are containers where you can assign a permission level and users. You can add a permission group to an entire SharePoint site, and its permission level would be inherited across every artifact (list, library, folder, and record) in the site. Alternatively, you can break inheritance and assign a different permission level to a group or user for individual SharePoint artifacts.  

As with any other Microsoft 365 application, there are default permission groups available: 

  • Site owners – Site Owners can manage site permissions, add and delete artifacts, edit site settings, and change site themes. This group has the Full Control permission level assigned in SharePoint.  
  • Site members – Site Members can add and delete records in lists and libraries. This group has the Contribute permission level assigned in SharePoint. 
  • Site visitors – Site visitors can see site content but not edit it. This group has the Read permission level assigned in SharePoint. 
SharePoint Default Permission Groups 
SharePoint Default Permission Groups 

These default permission groups are automatically assigned to every artifact on the site and will be added to every new artifact you create. This means that while site visitors cannot edit content, they can still see everything in the site, which might not be ideal if you share the site with external users and have sensitive documents on your site.  

For sites with external contractors, you will want to create new named permission groups and possibly a new permission level to control project permissions. You can add new permission groups from the advanced permission settings. 

Advanced permission settings – Create a Permission Group 
Advanced permission settings – Create a Permission Group 

Also, instead of every user having access to all of the content on the site, you will most likely want to break inheritance (permissions) for specific artifacts. To change the permissions for each artifact, go to the library settings menu, select permissions, and click Stop Inheriting Permissions. 

Library Permission settings – Stop Inheriting Permissions 
Library Permission settings – Stop Inheriting Permissions 

At this point, you should have a general idea of permission levels and groups. Please be aware that most projects have different permission levels and group needs, but here are a couple of examples of what you might have on a construction project for owner-project managers and external contractors: 

Owner-Project Managers: 

  • Permission group name: Owner Project Manager. 
  • Permission level: Contribute. 
  • Assigned: Site level. 
  • Scope: Project Managers can add and delete list items and documents across the entire site. 

External Contractors: 

  • Permission group name: Contractor. 
  • Permission level: Contribute No Delete. 
  • Assigned: Contractor Document Library. 
  • Scope: Access to only the Contractor Document Library to upload files but not delete anything. 

This article is just the tip of the iceberg regarding SharePoint permissions. SharePoint permissions can get pretty complex, and you might end up with a spiderweb of assigned permissions. If you need help with permissions or just setting up your projects in Microsoft 365, you can reach out for a free one-hour consultation here. 

For Part 3 of this series, we will be covering file sharing. While this is the easiest way to assign permissions at a folder or file level on a case-by-case basis, we wanted to get the concepts of permissions management in Microsoft 365 out of the way first. Stay tuned. 

Microsoft 365 Loop will change your work day. Are you ready?

Microsoft News |

You might be wondering what Microsoft 365 Loop is. Microsoft Loop is a little difficult to define, so let’s use a typical office work scenario. You start your work day by opening Outlook to check your email and Teams so that you can chat with your coworkers. Next, you select a file to work on, such as updating your cost report in Excel, finishing a PowerPoint presentation for senior management, or maybe creating a status report in Word.

All of the above files reside in separate applications with their own file extensions. Wouldn’t it be easier if you started your day in a freeform workspace where you could include all of those applications, and more, without needing to go anywhere else?

Microsoft Loop is the one ring to rule them all. Loop organizes your work into workspaces like books. A workspace could be a project or re-occurring meeting like a monthly status update. The app further divides Workspaces into pages (like pages within the book).

Where Loop gets interesting is the ability to turn parts of the pages into shareable components, letting you share your workspaces, pages, and components with others to get their real-time feedback. Suddenly your work day is organized like a diary with real-time interactions without the need to switch applications.

How is Microsoft Loop different than One Note?

In theory, Loop could be the next evolution of One Note. Loop adds live integrations with Office and the ability to create shareable components.

Is there something similar to Microsoft Loop on the market?

Yes, there is a software product called Notion:

"Notion is a single space where you can think, write, and plan. Capture thoughts, manage projects, or even run an entire company — and do it exactly the way you want."

The difference between Notion and Loop is the ability to integrate with the rest of the Microsoft 365 suite.

Where does Microsoft Loop save data?

You would think Loop would save data in the Dataverse, but it actually saves to SharePoint. Here’s an article explaining the details - The SharePoint storage platform supports the Loop app - Components, pages, and workspaces (microsoft.com). This is great news for our Construction Viz product which deploys to SharePoint Lists and Libraries. I can see a day where we embed Loop components into Construction Viz, potentially even bi-directionally.😊

Microsoft Loop sounds great. When can I use it?

As of March 2023, Loop is still in preview and a little underwhelming since it only integrates with Outlook for the web and Teams. Still, Microsoft has done the heavy lifting, and you can see the potential of this cross-application tool.

We’ll monitor Microsoft Loop and provide updates on how construction project teams can use it in their daily workflows. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter in the footer below not to miss future updates about Loop and other technologies essential for the construction industry.

You can also schedule a no-obligation consultation to learn more about using Microsoft 365 to manage your construction projects.

What Microsoft 365 @mentions Mean for Construction Communications

How-To |

@Mentions are frequently used on social media platforms to share content. You can type @ and select a username from a list of available users to notify them of your post. Mentions provide an efficient way to identify a user while writing so that you don't have to jump into another application, such as email, to notify them. Mentions are heavily used in most social media platforms, and rightly so, for their ease of use.

As with many social media innovations, @mentions have made their way to Microsoft 365. Read on to find out what mentions can do in Microsoft 365 for construction projects and where Microsoft might take this feature.

How @mentions work in Microsoft 365

Microsoft has added @mentions across Teams and Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, and Word. You can even add mentions to SharePoint lists and libraries. While this is great news for Microsoft 365 users, there are some differences and disconnects with mentions between Teams and the rest of the Microsoft 365 applications.

How mentions work in Teams

Teams is a modern application in Microsoft 365, so Microsoft seamlessly integrated @mentions across the application. You can mention a team member in a chat, and a notification will show in their activity feed. In the same chat, you can even use a mention to call on a bot which could add in an application or a workflow if needed.

Mentions_1

You can mention a channel member, team, or channel in a channel post, which is handy if you want to notify everyone in a team or channel.

Mentions_2

Unfortunately, mentions in Teams do not integrate with mentions in Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and even SharePoint. Mentions are their own communication island in Teams unless you incorporate a custom Power Automate workflow or the Graph API to send mentions into Teams from the office apps.

How mentions work in Excel, Word, PowerPoint,Outlook, and SharePoint

To add a mention to Outlook just type @ and select the team member.

Mentions_3

To add a mention to Excel, Word, or PowerPoint files online, click the comments button to insert an @mention into the document.

Mentions_4

You can add mentions to SharePoint list and document library records by editing a record and scrolling down to the More Details section of the fly out panel:

Mentions_5

Mentions made in  Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and SharePoint will show in the notifications bell of the person assigned for both the online and desktop versions of Outlook.

Mentions_6
Mentions_7

Once again, these mentions do not link to the mentions in Teams.

For more information, refer to these Microsoft support articles:

What could be Microsoft's plan for mentions?

Email is still the preferred method of communication. With Teams, users can minimize emails by using chat with mentions. At some point, Microsoft could bridge the gap across all its Microsoft 365 applications so they can use a universal @mentions feature to notify users. An integrated @mentions approach could centralize the communication stream so that if I create a Teams chat, Microsoft 365 automatically sends off email notifications from Outlook. Or, if I was in Outlook, I could mention a person in an email, and that email would then show in a chat, team, or channel. No more bouncing around between mentions in Teams and the rest of Microsoft 365. No more trying to decide if I should use Teams or Outlook.

So how can mentions help me with construction communication?

As discussed above, mentions are still a fragmented solution across Microsoft 365, but @mentions can still be part of your communications strategy, depending on the stakeholders. For internal correspondence, you could use Teams chats and posts. For external communications, you could continue to use Outlook email. Also, until Microsoft delivers a mentions solution across Microsoft 365, you can leverage a Power Automate workflow to capture project-specific external emails and store them into teams and channel chats by referencing the mentions in the workflow.

Finally, if your team actively collaborates in Excel, Word,  PowerPoint, and SharePoint online, you might find it valuable to take advantage of @mentions to alert users when they are assigned to review an entry or a file. Check out this article for more information:  New Notifications pane in Outlook helps you stay on task (office.com).

Learn how to use Microsoft 365 to manage your construction projects

If you need help implementing Microsoft 365 for your construction organization or you are just looking to implement a communication solution, you can request a free one-hour consultation with our Microsoft 365 specialists here.

If a turnkey Microsoft 365 construction PMIS solution might be a better fit, you can request a demo of Construction Viz here. Also, you can subscribe to our monthly newsletter to keep up with the latest Microsoft 365 news, tips and tricks, and Construction Viz; you can do so in the footer below.

How to use Microsoft Teams Updates for Construction

Microsoft News |

Microsoft has released a new Teams app called Updates. The Updates app allows you to create update requests for your teams or individuals and allow recipients to submit their response for review.

The Updates app is an interesting approach to issuing and receiving status requests for your team members from within Teams. If you want quick status updates in a questionnaire-type format, the Updates app might be a great tool to consider. Read on to find out more.

Setting up the Updates app for Microsoft Teams

Here is a quick walkthrough on setting up the Updates app.

Requirements to get started
Before you begin, you will need to have the following in place:

  • A Microsoft Dataverse If you don't have permission to create one yourself, you will need to request this from your IT team or tenant admin.
  • A Power Automate, Microsoft 365 E/M, or Dynamics license.
  • A license for Microsoft Forms.
  • An administration role in the environment.

Adding the Updates app
To add the Updates app, click on the three dots in the lefthand navigation area of Teams (it says "More added apps" when you hover) and search for Updates. You can then pin the app so you can quickly get to it in the future.

You can also create or assign an Update from within a chat by clicking the three dots (Messaging Extensions) and then searching for and selecting the Updates app.

Configuring the app
When creating an Update, you have several options. You can use an existing template, such as a weekly update or a facility inspection, or select "Start from Blank" to create a template.

If you "Start from Blank," there are three settings you can adjust:

  • Basic settings – This is where you can name the template and enable it.
  • Form design – This is where you create the questionnaire. If you are familiar with Microsoft Forms, you will see that it's pretty much the same interface with the same options.
  • Workflow settings – This is where you create the workflow of who will respond to the Update (submitters), who will be able to review responses (viewers), and what frequency the flow will run.

Submitting an update
Once an Updates template is created and saved, based on the due date of your flow, team members will receive a notification under their activity feed in Teams. Submitters can then respond in mobile and desktop versions of Teams which is handy for front-line workers.

Reviewing responses
If someone assigns you as a viewer in the update, you will have access to an Updates dashboard that provides the status of any updates you have scheduled, issued, or received. You can review all of the responses from the viewers as they arrive and view the entire series of responses in one view.

Where is this data being saved?
The Updates app stores all its data in Microsoft's Dataverse in Microsoft 365. The Dataverse has many benefits, such as deep integration with Microsoft's cloud services (Azure, Dynamics 365, and Microsoft 365) and access to many connectors in Power Automate and Azure Logic Apps. Also, since Updates uses Forms to build questionnaires, all your Updates forms will show in Microsoft Forms in a read-only view.

Our overall takeaway on using the Updates app for construction

The Updates app has potential as a one-off status update solution for Microsoft Teams.

The questionnaire or survey will need to be simple and only require a one-step workflow for it to be viable for something like a construction daily progress report. If you are not collecting a lot of data from your submitters and are heavily ingrained in using Teams to manage projects, I recommend checking it out.

For more complex scenarios, you may be better off looking at a combination of Power Apps and Power Automate to give you flexibility for your form and workflow logic.

The Good

  • Prebuilt templates are available, and you can create your own.
  • You can add the Updates app to Teams chats.
  • The Updates app has a simple but effective workflow to collect responses and even schedule reoccurring requests.
  • The app's dashboard provides an easy way to manage responses.

The Bad

  • It's an app specifically for status updates which makes it a one-off tool in Teams.
  • It uses Microsoft Forms which is somewhat limited in functionality; if it were possible to connect to Power Apps, you would have much more options to build out forms.
  • The Updates app offers limited configuration options, such as creating custom views, exporting to Excel, and printing to Power BI.
  • Users cannot edit their responses after submission.
  • No customization capability.

Learn how to use Microsoft 365 to manage your construction projects

If you need help setting up Microsoft 365 to manage your construction projects, you can check out this three-part blog article series or contact us directly for a free consultation.