Best Collaboration Software

What does Collaboration Software Do?

Collaboration software is specially designed to enhance the productivity of a group of individuals and within organizations. Coordination is achieved through task processing and management capabilities provided by collaboration tools.

Users can create a workspace and add data and workflows using collaboration software. The created workspace can be accessed by all users regardless of their physical location. Data and files are synchronized across all users by collaboration software. This ensures that everyone on the team has the most updated version of the ongoing project.

How can Your Team Benefit From Collaboration Software?

The marketing industry is always changing and growing. Channels, technologies, prospects, stakeholders, and goals constantly change. So, it is very important for you to manage the operations, workflow, knowledgebase, campaigns, sales, promotions, and communication methods properly. Collaboration software can help you do all this. Here's how:

How Teams Can Benefit From Collaboration Tools for Business

1. Connect teams

 If you are a marketer, you are never collaborating in isolation. You are working with teams across continents, getting sales on the same page, and even coordinating with IT teams to purchase new technology. This is where an online collaboration tool can help you do all this quickly and face-to-face so that every interaction is personal, no matter where you are.

2. You can do more from a distance

Enterprise collaboration software provides online screen sharing, file sharing, note-taking, and a lot more to host more interactive meetings and presentations, resulting in more productive and creative conversations.

3. Do more with less budget

Using the best collaboration software, you can record webinars and webcasts, which can cast a bigger net for lead generation and provide more customized experiences.

4. Mobile friendly

A collaboration tool for business can empower you to maintain speed when you have a huge work from multiple places. Get each and every update on your mobile device and call for an impromptu meeting while you are still on the road.

5. Get better at creativity

Collaboration software for your marketing team lets you melt away the office walls. It gives you the freedom to have the best creative agency from one part of the world, a marketing genius from somewhere else, and yet vendors from a completely different place. And you can still have the most engaging and lasting relationships, thanks to collaboration software. Use virtual meetings to stay in touch and get the best out of the situation.

6. Enhances speed

When you have a marketing team from the best of different corners of the world, empowered by collaboration software and ready in every sense of the word, there is no stopping you —literally! Not only do you get the best from all the team members who are well-versed with all the parameters of a trending project, but you also get things executed much faster.

But when you are making such a massive investment and putting so much at stake, ensure that the online collaboration software you use is smart, innovative, intuitive, and robust.

What are The Features of Collaboration Software?

Modern businesses depend on teamwork for their productivity. Collaboration software is a necessary component of their automation. It facilitates secure and private communication between various team members. A specific group of people in an organization can collaborate and do focused work. They rely on various tools, features, and functionalities of the team collaboration software.

1. Messaging

Team members use instant messaging to send and receive important information. They can have one-to-one communication or group collaboration.

2. File Sharing

The software has an in-built file-sharing feature to assist the team members. It can also be integrated with a content management system for superior resource-sharing.

3. Searching

Content in files, conversations, and project data is stored. Group members have access rights to this storage facility. They can also locate the required content using a sophisticated, accurate, and reliable search feature.

4. Documents

The team members create, edit, and save documents in real time. They can even access this feature using a smartphone app too.

5. Integration

Collaboration software integrates with CRM, ERP, content, and accounting tools. So, the team can use the best collaboration techniques to improve inter-department productivity and ensure business continuity.

6. VoIP

The internet telephone system facilitates voice calls anytime, anywhere. The conversations can also be recorded and archived.

7. Video Chats

Video talk is an essential part of any collaborative work. The face-to-face meetings are more authentic and ensure unambiguous sharing of ideas, opinions, decisions, etc.

8. Calendar

Calendars auto-fill the team activities and project-related tasks. It also integrates well with third-party email solutions. It acts as a basic time management tool.

9. Task Management

To-do lists and tasks can be created and managed effectively. They can be organized based on status, priority, and department. One can choose charts, workflows, and other forms of representation.

10. Versioning

It helps keep track of the latest version of files and documents. The modifications, edits, and changes are monitored to eliminate redundancy and inaccuracies. This feature is essential when multiple teams work with the same resource.

What are The Functionalities of The Collaboration Tool?

The use of collaboration tools in a business is a great way to reach its goals since it allows the team members to strengthen their relations, improve their workflow and subsequently increase productivity.

Following are some of the functions of the Collaboration tool:

1. It helps to communicate more easily

One of the most important functions of the best collaboration software applications is that it aids easy communication among team members, even if they are scattered across the globe. Where there is better communication, there is better decision-making.

2. It increases productivity

Since all the data and content are centralized, the team members can easily access it. This saves a lot of time and increases productivity in the business.

3. It aids in coordinating with remote workers

If there are workers in an organization who are working remotely, they will not feel left out or will not miss out on the important details. They can easily coordinate with their team members in the office and make important decisions without any delays.

4. It facilitates teamwork

Enterprise collaboration software brings all the team members on a single platform and helps in better teamwork.

5. It saves time

There is no scope for wasting time when there is better communication, easy access to data, and centralized information. Using team collaboration tools saves a lot of time in business processes.

6. It increases transparency

There is no surprise in the fact that if there is transparency in an organization, there is more productivity. And that is what the collaboration tool does—it centralizes communication, automates it, and increases transparency.

7. It cuts down travel costs

The use of collaboration software marginally cuts down travel costs. The employees do not have to travel far distances for their training sessions or important meetings. All of it can be done virtually with collaboration tools for business.

How to Find the Right Collaboration Tools?

Step1: Identify the problem

The first and foremost thing is to identify the pain points, which can be a lot sometimes. So it is important to prioritize them to match your needs with the vendor’s strength.

And if these things are running smoothly, find a collaboration tool that matches your current dynamic and workflow. If there is room for improvement, look for collaboration software that will get you closer to the work you would like to see your team doing.

Step 2: Create a Collaboration Vision

Once you have defined the problem, it is time to paint a picture of what the future of collaboration will look like.

What would be different?

What decisions will they be empowered to take?

What difference will all this make to your clients and customers?

Instead of doing it in isolation, involve as many people as possible to create a vision. Collaborative vision will bring a sense of excitement and ownership for a better future.

Step3: Involve users in defining the requirement

First of all, determine who will use the tool because it is important to get buy-in from people who will use it. This helps to avoid complaints later on, and it also sets the deployment process in place. 

The quickest and easiest way to do this is with a survey. To do this, you can grab an online tool and ask each member a few key questions. This way, you will know the commonalities between the team member’s answers.

Sometimes organizations hire external companies to conduct interviews and surveys with end-users. Standardized questionnaires can also be used to get feedback from users.

It is a good practice to document all this information as these can also be useful for other implementation projects.

Step4: Evaluate the teamwork software

At this step, you will be very well aware of what your users need, and therefore it is absolutely the right time to start looking out for products that will be the best fit for your requirement.

Shortlist only the online collaboration tools that match your needs and then compare similar products on the set measurable criteria. Else you will end up with team members favoring low-end and easy-to-use task collaboration tools. 

Also, it is extremely important to choose a tool that works for your team now and can adapt when it scales. This gives time for the team to iterate on processes without any pressure.

Consider factors like:

• The delivery options: buying v.s leasing and SaaS vs on-premise
• Industry Expertise
• The type of support needed.

Step 5: Change management through an effective training program

Change is difficult, and if you are looking for a successful implementation, you will require a comprehensive change adoption strategy. The first step to this change strategy is a training plan. However, don't just teach them the tool; teach them the outcomes you are trying to achieve: better communication, faster product deployment, higher quality, etc.

Users of the product must be well aware of the online collaboration tools fundamentals such as setting expectations and understanding roles and responsibilities, decision-making process, prioritization, and accountability.

Why is Project Collaboration Software Important?

Project Collaboration software is designed so that team members can communicate all updates that help them to reach their project goals within the designated timeline. Earlier, this collaborative project management software was defined as” Group processes which were accompanied by software to support them.”

The collaboration system is available in two forms:

1. Real-time Collaborative Editing
2. Version Control

Real-time Collaborative Editing is known for allowing several users to work on the same platform to engage with each other life and make reversible edits to a single file. 

On the other hand, version control allows different users to conduct parallel edits to the file and then save each edit creating multiple files.

Both types of enterprise collaboration systems will endorse a collaborative environment at an organization.

Importance of Project Collaboration Software

As we are now aware of what collaborative project management software does, it's time to check how useful it can be for your organization.

1. Boosts Team Productivity

A McKinsey and Company study stated that networking tools like collaborative project management software could boost productivity by 20-30% for global software development teams.

• This teamwork software will help an organization.
• Improve communication across teams and other stakeholders
• Increase employee engagement
• Reduces multiple team meetings to a very few 
• It helps external collaboration evolve to another level.

2. Better brainstorming

Finding a solution to a problem is a common scenario for every business, and project management is no different. When employees work together on a project using the best collaboration software, they have the added benefit of sharing inputs, brainstorming and bouncing ideas off each other. The social aspect of collaborative project management software not only improves the quality of ideas but also helps us solve problems that may get in the way of reaching the end goal.

3. Better employee Relationships

Improving employee relationships can be challenging, and team software can help immensely. As employees collaborate with each other, they not only get to know each other better but also get a better understanding of each other style of work, which saves time as well as energy in the long run.

Why do Collaboration Tools Fail?

1. Lack of value

One of the major reasons for the lack of enthusiasm for this type of team software is that they do not demonstrate true value, and thus, employees are reluctant to use them to carry out their processes. Most employees prefer using spreadsheets and word documents to carry out their day-to-day work. Hence they don't feel it is required to use a collaboration tool for businesses to get their job done.    

Even though the millennials have grown up with technology and are open to newer tools, they still need a compelling reason to take up the new tool. So no matter how amazing a tool's features, learning and development must demonstrate the teamwork software's true value to ensure enterprise-wide adoption and utilization.

2. A poor user Interface

The user interface of enterprise collaboration software is one of the factors influencing user adoption. The importance given to appearance may sound a little frivolous, but if the online collaboration tool doesn't look good, it will fail to impact the user and persuade them to change their behavior.

Collaboration systems have many features. Still, persuading users to change their behavior and move on to a new tool is difficult. This is where visual appearance can help.

But also, it is important that the user interface is simple and logical in structure. Simple collaboration software with an easy-to-use interface has a high chance of adoption.

3. Too Many Features, Too much confusion

Developers are over-enthusiastic while trying to create the best collaboration software; they integrate multiple features. The question here is how many of these features do employees actually need? If they will not utilize the video chat feature, there is no need to include it. Some employees may not have cameras, while some may not have a robust internet connection. Simple tools with clean and Utilitarian features have a huge advantage over other enterprise collaboration systems and are better adapted by employees irrespective of their educational or professional background.

The Role of Collaboration Software in Digital Transformation

Team collaboration software offers integrated voice, video, and chat services to many mobile and remote workers, office workers, and customers. It can be undoubtedly said that unified communication is an entry point to digital transformation. In fact, the collaboration system is the backbone of modern infrastructure.

Enterprise collaboration software is the real game-changer. As soon as the technology is installed, the employee who was once designing processes alone now has access to others through email, instant chat, and videos. Employees can now get instant feedback from anyone. This teamwork software is at the heart of digital transformation because it affects how people work and relate to each other. Here it is easier to collaborate and get things done.

Market Trends to Understand Collaboration Solution

The future of business collaboration lies in the solutions that will make the process seamless for the user and help them save money extensively on travel and hardware costs.

For collaboration solutions to be innovative and improve the productivity of a business, it is important to understand the current market trends.

Here are a few to look out for:

1. Use of virtual and augmented reality

Using virtual and augmented reality in collaboration tools improves collaboration and communication between the business and its clients.

2. Use of artificial intelligence bots

The use of artificial intelligence bots is another trend to look out for. More and more businesses are investing in this technology, so their customers do not have to wait to get answers to their queries.  

Missed a meeting?

Ask your bot to summarize it rather than disturbing a co-worker for the details.

3. Invest in modern visual collaboration tools

Businesses today are investing in the modern-day visual enterprise collaboration system that simplifies the process and makes communication seamless. Use them to make meetings more meaningful, the content more accessible, and make collaborations simpler.

4. Data Collaboration

The recording and analysis of massive data in any business is a challenge. Data collaboration is a rescue to modern-day businesses since it allows them to bring together data from different sources and make meaningful decisions.

The future of collaboration tools is clearly bright. It is projected that in the coming times, more and more employees will choose to work virtually and save on office space and other related expenses.

What Challenges can Face while implementing Collaboration Software?

1. Employee Resistance

Employees put up stiff opposition due to doubts and uncertainty. They fear long work hours, change routines, and lack confidence due to past experiences.

2. Data Migration

Data and system migration challenges crop up and increases the workload. Patience and supervision are needed to install, configure, transfer files, and set up user profiles.

3. Training And Learning

Users take time to understand new workflows, customization features, templates, etc. They also struggle with dashboards, reports, and advanced functionality. Remote collaboration is a cultural shift that demands self-discipline. Calendars, deadlines, and task assignments have to be accurate.

4. Budget

Finally, budget is a big problem as company requirements change frequently. Start with a basic or professional pricing plan and then upgrade to a full set of features.

What are The Types of Collaboration Software?

Collaboration software strengthens teamwork and enforces clear communication. It also helps in decision-making and management processes. These tools' main objective is to assist project managers with their day-to-day operations during in-house and remote situations.

Let us look at various collaboration tools that carry out the most important activities :

1. Data Storage Software

Data storage software can store, organize, and enable easy access to data. Without files and storage space, teamwork is not possible. One good example of this software is a cloud storage service. The company's confidential data is uploaded to the cloud for convenience and safety. Only authorized team members are given remote access to it using password verification.

2. Communication Tools

Team members have to talk to each other to get any work done. They can do so remotely using PCs, laptops, and smartphones. Basic communication software will offer these features.

• File sharing: The team shares videos, files, documents, and reports with ease. They can transfer and distribute all the important information.
• Calendar sharing: Managers can plan appointments and meetings. They can check for the availability of conference rooms and employees and send invitations on time.
• Instant Messaging: Text messages and files can be quickly shared online. Team members can also interact in real time.
• Emails:  The traditional way of relaying important messages and business data. It is becoming less useful due to instant communications.

3. Coordination Software

Coordination software allows managers to delegate and overlook the entire workflow. Good coordination software would include the basic tools of communication software and the following niche features.

• Whiteboards: An online dashboard is used to share important data. The team members can meet online and collaborate using graphs, text, and drawings.
• Syncing Tools: Shared files and documents are made up-to-date and accurate. All modifications to a document or file are reliably synced. Everyone can access identical information at all times without any dissimilarities.

4. Team Management Software

This software allows the top management to keep an authoritative eye on the overall functioning of the team. The main features of such software are.

• Video Conferencing: The authorized team members share the screen. They log in to a virtual meeting room and interact on work-related matters. They talk to each other face-to-face about project progress and updates.
• Project Assignments: Specialized tools for sharing and allocating tasks. The managers can also monitor daily work and give advice. These collaboration tools ensure productivity by managing and tracking deadlines.

Related Articles:

• The Evolution of Project Management Collaboration Tools