Everyday Office: Recent Episodes
Neil Malek
Everyday Office is a podcast about making tedious work less tedious, and interesting work more interesting. Set at the intersection of software and people, we use tools, shortcuts, best practices, and productivity hacks to make you amazing at what you do.
Everyone with a Microsoft 365 license has access to a web-based AI called Copilot Chat. Even without a paid license to Copilot, you can get loads of value from this tool. In this episode, Neil Malek and Denise Tsamouris talk about the different ways they use the 'free' version of Copilot.
Microsoft has several different AI products named "Copilot," and they keep putting pop-ups and buttons into every spot they can. In this episode, Denise Tsamouris and Neil Malek make sense of the different options, and which ones are worth your time. (spoiler: it's not all of them!)
As part of our Modern Office series, we're discussing how Microsoft 365 shifts our modes of communication in the modern workplace. Neil and Denise discuss concepts like when to use chat vs. when to use email in this broad conversation.
Microsoft 365 is the collaboration hub for corporations and organizations all over the globe. Beyond standard file management, there is the need to organize and control information - notes, tables, and other useful content. In this episode, Denise Tsamouris and Neil Malek of Knack Training discuss several tools for information management within Microsoft 365, including Microsoft Lists, OneNote, and Loop.
OneDrive, SharePoint, and Teams team up to help us collaborate on files with our teams. In this episode, Neil Malek and Denise Tsamouris from Knack Training explore the best practices for storing and sharing files across Microsoft 365.
Join productivity experts Neil Malek and Denise Tsamouris from Knack Training as they unpack powerful features of Microsoft Teams that you're probably not using - at least not effectively!
In 2025, people all over your business should be experimenting with multiple AI tools. There are a wide range of artificial intelligence tools that solve specific and generic problems, to varied results. At the end of the day, the most immediately practical generative AI for most businesses is Microsoft 365 Copilot. This is because of the ease and simplicity that Copilot integrates with your everyday working world. Neil Malek, President of Knack Training, discusses the rebranding of Microsoft 365 to Microsoft 365 Copilot, plus the easy, practical ways that Copilot can boost productivity for your team.
Microsoft Loop is one of the newest programs in Microsoft 365, and it's being updated all the time. Its approach to helping people create content, organize ideas, and schedule tasks is unique and creative, and Denise Tsamouris from our team is connecting to talk about how this program changes everything!
When organizations first get Microsoft Teams, most people focus on the Chat tool, and sharing files through conversation. However, for long-term collaboration, the success of a department or project often depends on the use of Teams Channels. In this episode, Neil Malek of Knack Training illustrates the difference between sharing files through Chat and Channels, and the power of using a Microsoft 365 Group to connect conversation, files, tasks, and more.
Are you rolling out shoddy, boring presentations? Sometimes the secret isn't to push forward and work harder - it's backing up and hitting the Reset button. In this episode, Neil Malek, President of Knack Training, talks about three ways to reset before your next presentation. Also, some interesting new tools have been announced in Copilot Wave 2 - learn more by downloading!
Alan Murray is a trainer, consultant, and community leader in Excel and Power BI. His resource site, https://www.computergaga.com/, and YouTube channel, https://www.youtube.com/computergaga, are some of the most valuable and respected on the Internet. In this conversation, we explore the benefits and possible use cases for a new suite of Excel functions - the Dynamic Array Functions. These functions - UNIQUE, SORT, SORTBY, FILTER, SEQUENCE, and RANDARRAY - work differently than any other function you've used before, and they represent a HUGE leap forward.
To see Alan in action as a trainer, check his playlist of tutorial videos about Dynamic Array Functions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2ybRZbvR5k&list=PLxv7tqbNjU9WP3oMeRKwNXwDYQilKjF-s
Enroll in Computergaga's excellent online courses at: https://www.computergaga.com/online-courses/
Contact Alan directly at: admin@computergaga.com
For questions about the show, contact Neil at help@knacktraining.com
Melissa Esquibel is a Microsoft Certified Trainer, consultant, and author. She has a unique ability to make learning programs enjoyable AND valuable. She offers classroom, conference, and online presentations, as well as content development, team and individual coaching, and project consulting for most office productivity platforms.
She recently wrote an Excel-focused data guide called Dirty Data: https://www.melissaesquibel.com/dirty-data/ - that is focused on 'cleaning up' data before analyzing it. If you'd like to talk with her about customized training or consulting, visit https://www.melissaesquibel.com/
For questions, please email help@knacktraining.com
While the software trainer's mantra is typically "Work Smarter, Not Harder," in this episode, Neil Malek of Knack Training explores the idea that we should work smarter and harder. By automating what we can - through rules, quick steps, etc. - and working harder on those things that can't be automated, we can create more impactful and human work.
In this episode, Neil recommends the book Linchpin by Seth Godin.
Email help@knacktraining.com with questions and follow-up.
David Ringstrom is an Excel trainer, consultant, and author, and a CPA. Over 25 years, he's developed a suite of tools and best practices that save him from crashes, collaboration issues, and other disastrous situations with his spreadsheets. In this conversation, we talk about setting up files properly, customizing settings in Excel, and using tools like Power Query to prevent issues in the first place.
David’s calendar is online at www.davidringstrom.com if you’d like to talk to him about customized Excel training or spreadsheet consulting work for any organization. Or, if you’re an accounting educator, please visit www.studentsexcel.com to learn about Excel training exercises customized to match the material you're teaching in class.
Email questions to help@knacktraining.com
An effective presentation is one that engages the audience, aligns them, and motivates them to create a positive change. In this podcast, Neil Malek discusses the simple design principles that make your message clear and focused, as well as the PowerPoint technique that helps create a story thread in your audience's head.
Morph Transition tutorial can be found on YouTube.
Melissa Peoples is a productivity and organization expert who coaches and trains executive assistants. By building a framework of communication, organization, and automation, she helps executive teams become stunningly productive and effective. In this episode, we discuss creating productivity road maps, time boxing your calendar, and Outlook tools and techniques for finding your personal best practices.
Find Gamestorming on Amazon.
Listen to 2Bobs on your favorite podcasting app.
Watch Melissa's timeboxing video on YouTube.
Find Melissa at her website, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.
Melissa's tour dates and locations can be found on her website. The EA Revolution Summit includes speakers Bryan Rose, Sheena Hubbard, La Donna Finnels-Neal, and of course Melissa Peoples.
Neil Malek, a software instructor and consultant, introduces the Everyday Office podcast, and recommends that listeners use OneNote for business and personal note-taking. OneNote integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Office, SharePoint, and Teams, and is accessible through the desktop app, online service, or mobile apps.
Install OneNote 2016 using the Microsoft website. Watch the YouTube tutorials from Everyday Office about using OneNote for various purposes.
Get a new email address from Microsoft to get OneDrive Personal.
Install the OneNote Clipper plug-in for your browser.
Q&A: help@knacktraining.com