Microsoft Teams update will help you focus during meetings

Microsoft Teams
(Image credit: Shutterstock / monticello)

Getting notified about upcoming meetings while you're currently in a meeting can certainly be distracting but thankfully Microsoft is working on a fix for this in an upcoming Microsoft Teams update.

According to a new post in the Microsoft 365 Roadmap, the software giant will soon add the ability to mute notifications while in a meeting when using its video conferencing software.

Teams users will be able to mute notifications during meetings to help them focus on their current meeting when this new feature rolls out in December of this year. However, they'll also be able to choose to mute notifications for all meetings or on a per meeting basis.

Focus time in Teams

In addition to allowing users to turn off notifications during meetings, Microsoft is also working on a new experience for the Viva Insights app in Teams that will expand on its focus time feature.

For those unfamiliar, Microsoft's Viva Insights app provides Teams users with personalized recommendations that help them do their best work. These insights are derived by summarizing data about your emails, meetings, calls and chats from Microsoft 365.

With focus mode enabled in Viva Insights, Teams users can make progress on important work with focus music from Headspace playing in the background. As part of this new immersive experience, there will also be a notification as well as a new focus mode page in the Viva Insights Teams app.

Microsoft 365 users can enroll or modify their focus plan settings or even book ad-hoc focus time in the Viva Insights Teams app.

While the ability to turn off notifications during Teams Meetings will roll out next month, Microsoft's new immersive experience for the Viva Insights app in Teams won't arrive until January of next year.

Looking to improve your video calls? Check out our roundups of the best video conferencing softwarebest business webcams and best headsets for conference calls

Anthony Spadafora

After working with the TechRadar Pro team for the last several years, Anthony is now the security and networking editor at Tom’s Guide where he covers everything from data breaches and ransomware gangs to the best way to cover your whole home or business with Wi-Fi. When not writing, you can find him tinkering with PCs and game consoles, managing cables and upgrading his smart home.