Work From Home 101: 6 Tools for Handling Team Projects Remotely

Working from home is quickly becoming a widely accepted business practice. Remote workers can perform their jobs from anywhere in the world as long as they have an internet connection. 

Home-based workers have more flexibility in establishing their work schedules than their desktop-based colleagues. They can choose to work any time of the day, for as many hours as they want although this depends on the company’s policy. 

The majority of work-at-home employees are usually self-employed, so they set their schedules and make the most of their spare time. 

While all these are great advantages, there are also downsides.  If you’re the boss or a team leader, carrying your team members along can be a hassle, to help with that, we would look at 5 applications that are specifically designed for team collaboration.

1. GogoPDF

GogoPDF can be used for document sharing which is essential when working in a team. With this tool, you can easily share your document through emails and other available means. 

The interface of the site is simple and easy to use, simply upload or drag and drop the document you want to share, click on the file share button then email the download link to your recipient. You also have the option of downloading and saving the file on your personal computer or sharing it on social media. 

1. FlowDock 

Flowdock is a software application that enables businesses and individuals to connect and exchange information. Its most distinctive feature is the team inbox that enables all team members to receive notifications from other platforms like Twitter. With Flowdock, all the conversations, ideas, and suggestions from team members could be viewed from one point. 

1. GoToMeeting

GoToMeeting is a powerful business collaboration tool that allows users from across the world to connect and communicate through a single, central platform. GoToMeeting offers a cost-effective way for companies to hold meetings within their company without having to worry about travel expenses, meeting space rental, and infrastructure costs. 

GoToMeeting provides a desktop sharing feature, video conferencing features, and participants can share their desktop screen contents during meetings. 

GoToMeeting’s video-conferencing capabilities people in different locations to video conference together. With GoToMeeting, businesses can easily set up meetings with clients. It also supports secure video conferencing and allows you to schedule meetings ahead of time.  

1. Google Applications

Google Docs, Google Calendar, and Google Sheets are great examples of project management tools that allow users to organize their information in a way that makes sense. They help users to manage their tasks by categorizing them into different types, create sub-categories, and tag them with appropriate keywords. All this makes it easier for sharing info, documenting, and organizing files into folders. 

1. DropBox

Dropbox is a modern tool that enables all your content to be accessible from one area. With dropbox, you can optimize your workflow. The new online Project Management tool makes it possible to communicate with groups from all over the globe. 

The tool enables groups to share files, documents, calendars, and other information. This highly efficient online collaboration tool is an ideal choice for those companies that share large files among teammates daily. There are different plans available that you can avail of monthly or yearly. 

1. Microsoft Teams 

Microsoft Teams is a chat-based collaborative platform complete with document sharing, online meetings, and several other very helpful advanced features for multi-user business communication. Teams channel is a good example of a powerful feature of Teams. It allows the exchange of ideas, memos, tasks, calendars, files, and much more.

With simple and reliable technology support like Teams, you and your teammates enjoy a trouble-free workstation. The Teams workstation comes with a complete set of office tools like word processors, spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, etc., and it also comes with a full-featured user interface. 

Several advanced features make this tool even more popular among corporate users. The password-protection features on the Team’s workstation, ensure that all your important data remains safe.

Pointers to Take Note

Before choosing a team collaboration program for your employees or groupmates, don’t forget to check its relevance to the kind of work you do. Some teams might need more video conferencing tools than they’ll need editing or file-sharing programs etc. Cost is also another factor to consider, thankfully most of the programs offer a free trial so you’ll determine if what they offer is suitable for your company. 

Conclusion 

With the ever-increasing trend of home-based jobs, many organizations today are discovering that the use of online tools can make work easier and more cost-effective. 

Project management tools that don’t require the presence of all employees, can lead to more efficient and productive teamwork. Some project management software, for instance, allows managers to hold online meetings with people all over the company without having to leave the office or board planes.