In the coming weeks, UVM ETS and LCOM will be connecting our respective, separate Microsoft 365 environments through a Microsoft feature called a Multi-Tenant Organization (MTO). The goal is simple: make it easier for colleagues across both organizations to find, message, and work with one another.

 

No Action Required 

This is a collaboration bridge between our two environments, not a merger or migration. Your mailbox, files, Teams, channels, and existing conversations all stay exactly where they are today. Nothing is being moved, deleted, or rewritten, and you don't need to take any action to prepare. 

 

Key Improvements 

This change is being made to enhance collaboration capabilities for UVM and LCOM colleagues using Microsoft tools. 

  • Finding colleagues in the other organization will be easier in Teams, Outlook, and people searches in other applications. 

  • Colleagues in the partner organization will have a clear label ([LCOM] or [UVM]) for greater transparency. 

  • You’ll easily be able to share files and content with colleagues in both organizations and access content shared with you without extra steps or changing accounts. 

  • Sharing content with “people in my organization” will include all people from both UVM and LCOM.  

  • You'll be able to chat, call, and join meetings or channels across both organizations more smoothly without switching organizations in the Teams client. 

  • Teams notifications from both organizations will appear in one place. 

  • Calendar free/busy and profile details may become visible across the two organizations, depending on configuration. 

Keep in mind 

  • If you've previously chatted with someone in the other organization as an external guest, that older chat thread may become read-only. Simply start a new message and your conversations will stay together going forward. 

  • Links shared with “people in my organization” will now reach the wider connected organization; please continue to share intentionally and use specific-people links for anything sensitive.  

Timeline 

We plan to implement changes to the syncing of identities across our organizations during the week of July 6th. There may be a brief settling-in period as everything syncs up, and the display names of some people may change. However, there should be no disruption to normal services, including email, calendar, and Teams collaboration. 

We expect this to implement the Multi-Tenant Organization functionality during the week of July 20th.  

If you have any questions about this change, please reach out to the UVM Tech Team or LCOM Help Desk: 

Thanks for your understanding as we work together to make collaboration across our organizations easier.