Why Learn Microsoft Outlook?

Microsoft Outlook is an email and app management software that helps people get projects done at work or at home. Many businesses use Outlook for email communication in the workplace, along with its calendar features for creating and keeping track of appointments and meetings. Outlook also helps with integrating Microsoft Office applications used for composing documents, maintaining spreadsheets, or creating presentations, as well as being able to chat in real-time by connecting to Skype. This all adds up to Outlook being an excellent workplace collaboration tool.

What is Microsoft Outlook?

Microsoft Outlookis among the most used email servers on the planet. However, Outlook provides more than email access. Outlook facilitates email communication, setting up contact lists for your organization, and using the calendar to organize business meetings and other events. It also serves as a web app manager that allows coordinating and integrating Microsoft Office applications like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel for the workplace or personal use. Also, Microsoft Outlook does not share data collected for integrating Office applications within Microsoft 365.

Microsoft Outlook began as Hotmail in 1996 without any connection to Microsoft before the company purchased the email site and renamed it MSN Hotmail and eventually Windows Live Hotmail. The product became Outlook.com in 2012. As stated, Microsoft provides Outlook as the center for managing its software applications for mainly work settings and personal use. Outlook allows users to conveniently access the software needed for establishing an efficient working environment, allowing an organization to communicate through email or share content using the Web or the cloud through Microsoft 365. This includes sharing content from the Office software bundle that offers a variety of functions for word processing, building databases, organizing spreadsheets, or designing promotional material.

Read more about what Microsoft Outlook isand why you should learn it.

What Can You Do with Microsoft Outlook?

Microsoft Outlook is mainly considered an email facilitator but also functions as an application manager for Office software programs provided through Microsoft 365. Outlook allows users to control emails using filters and folders, locate names in the address book, or schedule emails to respond automatically when the user is unavailable. Outlook also provides a calendar for organizing meetings, events, or project deadlines.

With being able to interface with other Microsoft Office applications, Outlook functions for tasks as wide-ranging as accounting, data entry, word processing, or presentations through access to software like Excel, Access, Word, or PowerPoint. Outlook provides an efficient tool for any workplace, academic institution, or home.

In addition to many using Outlook for their personal email, business corporations, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations use Microsoft Outlook for getting projects done in addition to email communication and organizing schedules. Outlook provides an assortment of features and functions for getting work done efficiently:

• Outlook offers a variety of options for sending, receiving, and forwarding emails, as well as navigating the inbox and folders.
• Outlook interacts with other Microsoft Office applications such as Excel, PowerPoint, and Word.
• Microsoft Outlook users can collaborate with coworkers by exchanging Microsoft Office content easily.
• Companies and organizations can share Outlook calendars among staff members to optimize collaboration in the workplace.
• Users can sync personal data using Microsoft Outlook on computers, smartphones, or tablets.
• Outlook allows entering information into the calendar that syncs with a variety of devices.
• Personal data can be integrated into Outlook, including virtual sticky notes, calendars, address books, and to-do lists.
• Microsoft Outlook can integrate with other online services and apps, including Uber, Google Play, Facebook, Yelp, Skype, Boomerang, and Evernote.
• Microsoft Outlook has font options for professional-looking formatting and various color themes.
• Users can set the Microsoft Outlook calendar for daily, weekly, or monthly schedules to keep track of important appointments and meetings.
• Users can send out meeting requests to people listed in their contact list through the calendar feature.
• Outlook also provides security features, including data encryption for a user's mailbox after sending an email.
• Premium Microsoft Outlook automatically deactivates unsafe links containing viruses, malware, or phishing scams and can recover important files from Microsoft OneDrive.
• Users can run Skype directly through Microsoft Outlook for online chatting in real-time.

Common Professional Uses for Microsoft Outlook

While skills with Microsoft Outlook alone might not be enough to establish a career, knowledge of how to use the email server and app management software can help coordinate Office applications available through Microsoft 365, which Outlook anchors.

Training for Microsoft Outlook can help operate essential workplace functions more efficiently for businesses, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, and countless other industries. Skills with Outlook are a vital element for many computer-related jobs. Microsoft Outlook is more than simply an email server and not only facilitates how workplaces communicate but integrates Office applications like Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and Excel to help individuals and organizations get work done everywhere. Improving skills with Microsoft Outlook can provide valuable skills for anyone working in any office or corporate setting by providing an essential element to computer literacy.

As stated, while possessing skills for Microsoft Outlook by itself cannot lead to any specific occupation, the email and software manager can help with supporting other skills for many work settings. Outlook is necessary for any work that requires email communication, organizing calendars and contact lists, or managing projects and deadlines. While knowledge of how to effectively use Microsoft Outlook may not be enough to nail down a career, skill for using the software can get you set for more efficiently working any job. 

Microsoft Outlook Helps Make Work More Efficient

Outlook provides the key for integrating Microsoft Office applications that are available with Microsoft 365. Microsoft Outlook provides email communication and a reliable tool for scheduling meetings or events using the calendar feature and facilitates collaboration as the anchor for Office applications. Simply put, Outlook can help improve efficiency and productivity in any working environment.

Using Outlook with Microsoft 365 as a Collaboration Tool

Microsoft Outlook is available with a subscription to Microsoft 365, which facilitates the use of various Office applications online or through the cloud. With Microsoft 365, a user can work in the office, from home, or anywhere in the world and still be able to access their Microsoft Office applications. This means that whether individuals are using laptops or smartphones, they can still receive or send important email messages using Outlook, attend a can’t-miss meeting using Teams, compose an urgent document with Word, or simply collaborate with coworkers in real-time.

Microsoft 365 facilitates file sharing, which includes being able to edit along with managers and coworkers without missing a beat. Microsoft 365 allows users to integrate Office applications through Outlook, which enables collaboration by sharing documents seamlessly within 365 without needing to email anything, create multiple versions of those documents, or deal with access restrictions due to being outside the office. Microsoft 365 can also be used for virtual meetings, providing a central location for sharing work or special projects.

Common Uses for Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Outlook provides a variety of functions and features for use in the workplace or at home:

• Outlook serves mainly as an email provider for use at work or at home, with built-in security tools that keep information protected against threats from viruses, malware, or phishing scams.
• Microsoft Outlook provides a calendar for creating schedules or setting meetings at work, school, or home.
• Outlook serves as the anchor for Microsoft 365 and allows users to integrate Office applications that include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams for businesses, schools, or home.

How to Start Learning Microsoft Outlook

Training to improve skills for using Microsoft Outlook can help you with being able to integrate Microsoft Office applications to increase efficiency in the workplace. Because many people use Outlook as their email server, they may take the software application for granted due to their familiarity with day-to-day use. They may not feel that further training is necessary. However, Noble Desktop offers a variety of Microsoft Outlook courses that can fit your needs, whether workplace duties or personal projects. These courses provide expert instructors who teach in real-time for students eager to improve on skills with Outlook for organizing calendars or to-do lists, interfacing with Office applications like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint, or managing contact lists along with other advanced functions. These courses include in-person classroom training that allows participants to interact with teachers or classmates, which is a benefit that can extend beyond the classroom. There are also live online Microsoft Outlook classes that provide essentially the same level of education you would get from sitting in a classroom without having to leave the comforts of home.

Noble Desktop provides other ways to improve skills with Microsoft Outlook, including options for on-demand training. Unlike live online courses, on-demand classes allow students to learn at their own pace and on their own time, avoiding the stress of conflict with work or other commitments. There are options for on-demand Microsoft Outlook training that provides beginners or advanced students with courses from various education providers. For example, Udemy’s Get Started with Microsoft Outlook provides step-by-step instructions for people with little to no experience with Microsoft Outlook or how it integrates with other Office applications. At the same time, ONLC Training Centers offers Outlook 2019 On-Demand: Comprehensive (Part 1 & Part 2) Course Outline, an on-demand self-study course that provides comprehensive training for Microsoft Outlook.

While many people would love the opportunity to understand using Microsoft Outlook to help get work done, they might need more time to enroll in a course. However, there are options for improving skills with Outlook or using email more efficiently. While Noble Desktop does not offer free tutorials specifically focused on training for Microsoft Outlook, the Noble Desktop YouTube channel, and other video outlets provide information and tips related to using email. Noble Desktop also offers free seminars that give students options for improving skills with email communication that can fit the time of their choosing, including the free Intro to Email Marketing seminar or the free Designing Responsive Email seminar. You can also find more options for training related to Microsoft Outlook by checking out Noble Desktop’s Learning Resources for Microsoft Office.

Read more about the full guide for how to learn Microsoft Office.

Learn Microsoft Outlook with Hands-on Training at Noble Desktop

If you’re looking to improve on knowledge of using Microsoft Outlook, Noble Desktop has courses that provide training for a better understanding of the software application. This includes in-person classes available in New York City, along with live online courses offered at varying times and costs.

Noble Desktop offers in-person and live online Microsoft Office Courses that provide hands-on training from expert instructors. These courses train students with lessons in Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook–which serves as the anchor for Microsoft 365 that integrates with the other Office applications. These classes can be taken inside a classroom or live online.

Students can also enroll in Microsoft Level I for lessons on the fundamentals of the application. This single-day course focuses on teaching participants about using Outlook efficiently with lessons for setting up email folders, automating email, managing calendars and to-do lists, or organizing schedules and contact lists that all contribute to improving workflow.

People may elect to take the Microsoft Outlook Level II class. This follow-up course builds on the training established in the Level I course. Level II emphasizes lessons for configuring email accounts, performing advanced searches, filtering spam, learning about working with advanced calendars, and handling contact lists.

Key Insights

• Microsoft Outlook is an email and app manager used by businesses and organizations worldwide.
• Outlook provides more than just email services as it also functions as an app manager for Office applications available with Microsoft 365.
• While possessing skills in Microsoft Outlook alone cannot lead to a career, the email and software manager can help with supporting other skills that can benefit any work environment.
• Outlook provides a reliable tool for scheduling meetings and events using the calendar.
• Outlook provides a variety of functions, including email, scheduling, or integrating Microsoft Office applications to provide efficiency in the workplace.
• Noble Desktop provides training for a better understanding of Microsoft Outlook.