Staying in touch with employees is becoming a bigger challenge every year. Companies must deal with employees who work remotely, employees who travel out-of-state, vendors who work in other locations and businesses that have multiple offices. With all of these diverse workforces the need to collaborate is more important than ever. Thankfully, there are a host of collaboration software tools that have sprung up to help these workers communicate, collaborate, and get things done.
So then what are the best tools to share documents, schedule meetings, organize the workload, and video conference? Some of the software is free, others are paid. Some are elaborate and come with a steep learning curve, others are so intuitive that the average user can be productive in minutes. Whatever you choose should be structured in a way that not only meets the demands of your business but also matches the style of your office personality.
Here are a few things to look for when choosing collaboration tools for your small to medium-sized business.
- A Range of Communication Styles – Look for a tool that allows you to be formal and structured, such as emails to respected clients or proposals to a new business lead but also allows for communication that is less formal. Chit chat about less important questions and things that need no formal logo or letterhead should be considered. We communicate in many different ways with clients and employees – make sure this tool allows you to do that.
- A Range of When a Communication Needs to be Dealt with – Look for a collaboration tool that both allows you to schedule out communications such as PR releases, emails, and reminders that may be due in weeks or months. But also look for a tool that allows for immediate communication such as instant messenger or a chat feature to get answers quickly. Real-time communication is a must especially when businesses are dealing with employees in multiple locations.
- Is the Tool Cloud Based? While it would be great to rely on everything from your main base of operation, it is also not realistic. The right cloud-based tool can be used to securely communicate and collaborate with those outside the organization, even if they do not have the same software or compatible software.
We have compiled a list of resources that can help get you started in choosing the right collaboration tool for your business.
- Finances Online – Tools for Collaboration for Beginners
- PC Magazine’s The Best Online Collaboration Software of 2017
Categorised in: Computer Support