Many businesses are upgrading their older versions of Microsoft Office to Office 2007. Microsoft has made some fundamental changes to the interface and functionality of the software suite and some users may have trouble with the transition.

Revised interface
The most obvious change in Office 2007 is the new ribbon interface. Menus are gone, replaced with toolbar-like "ribbons" that group command icons in categories such as "Insert" or "Review." Many have found these new ribbons to be more intuitive by putting any command just a couple of clicks away. Many of the commands have keyboard shortcuts displayed putting them even closer to the user.

Whether or not the ribbon interface is more efficient than the old menu interface, it still takes time for new users to find all of their commands. For example, an Excel user might be frustrated when not finding "Insert Cells" on the Insert menu, not realizing it's on the Home menu where the most common commands are stored.

Office 2007 supports keystrokes from older versions of windows. Using the previous example, a user might reflexively type Alt-I (to call up the old Insert menu) followed by R (for Insert Row). Excel 2007 will dutifully insert the row. This can make the transition easier, but it also leaves users depending on outdated commands.

Training in such a program helps your employees learn to navigate the new interface quickly. This not only improves their productivity, but also reduces their frustration and their resistance to using the new version of MS Office. Training gives them confidence and makes the transition to the new interface a snap.

New features
New users often overlook features of applications because if they don't realize a feature exists, they don't know to look for it. They may not realize that the "Document Inspector" allows them to remove hidden metadata such as personal information that they may not want shared with the document's recipient. They may not know they can mark a document a final, automatically preventing anyone from making any future changes to it. They may not know about the countless other new features that make their jobs easier.

An MS Office course can educate your employees about all the new features in Office 2007. Employees will find new ways to use Office applications that were impossible before, such as the use of digital signatures to create paperless and secure contracts with Microsoft Word.

Microsoft Office training is cost effective
Each day of training can replace dozens of hours of lost productivity. Employees will be confident in their use of the new applications, navigating the revised interface with ease. They will discover features that make them more accurate and more productive. A small investment today will provide huge returns in the future. The best solution would be to get your employees started on some sort of MS training program. There are many online and offline classroom courses available.