This is the time when many businesses prefer functioning remotely which means that they hire people around the world to work for them and the team works remotely. This enables the businesses to hire the best talent irrespective of the location. Working remotely not just helps the businesses to establish an excellent team but it also helps in cutting down the operational costs to a great extent. However, if you think of working remotely, you need the best online collaboration tools to put your work together and to stay connected with your team members.
Some of the best online collaboration tools are mentioned below for you to get going:
#1 Dropbox
Dropbox is a popular online tool that is used for collaboration worldwide. Dropbox provides secure access to all the documents, files, articles and everything else. Dropbox enables you to access your files through any gadget like laptops, tablets, smart phones etc. This software is compatible with all the popular computer and mobile platforms. Dropbox also has customized native apps created for Windows, Ubuntu, Mac, Android, iOS and Blackberry. Dropbox can be accessed through an internet browser as well. Dropbox also provides you access to the ‘shared folders’ that appear in every team member’s computer, thus simplifying the collaboration process.
#2 Google Docs
At times, you need several people to work on one document at the same time; this can be easily done through Google Docs. This tool enables you to create online documents, presentations and spreadsheets. It is easy to use and you don’t need to install any other office software to work with Google Docs. You can create and edit files right in your browser or through the mobile app for Android or iOS. All you have to do is create a document and share the link with other people and everyone can edit the document in real time in the ‘live mode’. The best thing about working with Google Docs is that it not just automatically saves the data for remote access from any device but it also provides a history of the changes made to the documents.
#3 Google Hangouts
Google Hangouts is one of the widely used collaboration platforms. With Google Hangouts, you can have a video conference with around 100 people for free. This platform is launched by Google and it is great in terms of storing all your communication in one place. Google Hangouts is still widely used as a platform to chat mainly because of the fact that it is integrated with Gmail, you can view the chat history and import the contacts, but you can use the video conferencing feature with ease to collaborate with your team. With the latest update made to Google Hangouts improved quality of video conferencing is ensured and it also provides a simpler and user-friendly interface to the users.
#4 SlimWiki
If you have a team that is based all over the world, synchronization of all the data and documents is really important. Documents like company policies, procedure guides and other critical files should be available for accessing through one convenient location. With the SlimWiki platform, you can create a private Wiki that comprises of all your information and all the documents in an organized format. The drag-and-drop feature provided by SlimWiki is easy to use for organizing the documents. As per your discretion, you can assign an editor and ‘read-only’ privileges to the team members.
#5 Zapier
Automation is an important aspect in terms of increasing the productivity of any business. Zapier automates the entire workflow by connecting and integrating all the tools and apps that you are using currently. This platform is especially useful if your team utilizes multiple tools for a single task. All you have to do is select the apps and tools that are used by your team members and Zapier will connect them all. Zapier is considered one of the great online collaboration platforms as it is more than just a communication or file sharing software.
#6 Trello
Trello works on a card-based system form simplifying your complete project overview. Trello enables you to create custom columns like ‘To Do’ or ‘In Progress’ for organizing all the individual tasks. Your organized tasks are then added as a small card to the column. For each card, you can define a due date, post comments, assign team members to work on it and much more. Moreover Trello offers a great user experience and this platform is really simple to use. Trello also has the best app for mobile and tab synchronization.
#7 Groove
When you have a remote team working from several locations, it is important to ensure that everyone is on the same page when it comes to customer support and technical support queries. Groove is a collaboration tool that also extends as a help desk software that is easy to use and consists of all the features that will help your team members to stay up to date with all the customer issue updates. Groove enables the team members to create notes on every support ticket that can be viewed by the customer and it also enables you to assign the tickets to specific team members. Groove ensures that no customer query is left unanswered or unattended.
#8 Office Online
Office Online is Microsoft’s free version of the original office suite of tools. With this platform, you get the core aspects of Microsoft Office : PowerPoint, Excel, Word and OneNote. When Office Online is incorporated with Outlook.com, you get a great collaboration platform that is easy to work with. If you opt for a professional email hosting service that is compatible with Outlook, you can have a great team collaboration irrespective of the location of your team members. You can easily share documents, emails, appointment details, contacts, task lists and much more.
Conclusion
Use of reliable and effective online collaboration tools is extremely important for managing remote teams. You can select an appropriate collaboration tools on the basis of your business requirements. With an efficient online collaboration platform, you will be in a better position to synchronize your work and documents in a centralized location that can be viewed and accessed by all the team members.
