A communication and collaboration system is a device, software platform, and/or associated services that enable near-real-time communication and collaboration within or across organizational boundaries.
Communication and collaboration systems such as telephones, radios, cellphones, walkie-talkies and computers bridge the space between people and make it easier to share ideas, arrange meetings and screen for emergencies. Whether you work in a fixed or mobile setting, these systems allow employees to connect to one another no matter how far apart they are.
Dropbox
Dropbox is one of the most efficient and user-friendly cloud sharing solutions. Teams can use Dropbox to better manage shared files, reducing the need for email and improving the collaboration between employees.
Integrate with your intranet solution so team members can easily insert their content into a team workspace with just one click. Content can then be uploaded into Dropbox and visually displayed. A content search function is also included.
Microsoft 365
Microsoft is a productivity software for organisations and individuals. With Microsoft 365 you have one integrated solution including Teams, OneDrive cloud storage, and Office apps with advanced security options. Connect it with your content management platform to easily browse, edit and save stored documents directly from Microsoft Office.
For example, the OneDrive Connector allows you to easily access files and documents stored in OneDrive within your intranet or portal solution. Open, comment on, adjust and save documents within the browser using Office 365 integration. This platform facilitates much more effective collaboration.
SharePoint is another tool available with 365. It is a web-based collaborative platform or an on-premise software for your employees. Connect this with your intranet to map SharePoint content to folders to allow for manual or automatic synchronisation. You can also centrally publish documents and SharePoint pages as well as images to your intranet.
Basecamp
Basecamp is a collaboration focused project management tool that makes it easy for people to work together and communicate with one another.
Within Basecamp, you break up work into projects. Each project lets you keep track of all the tasks, deadlines, files, conversations and announcements. There are message boards, to-dos, schedules, file storage, real-time group chat, and automatic check-in questions.
Trello
An app for organising all your projects
TODAY’S BEST DEALSVISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Clean, easy-to-use interface+Free version
REASONS TO AVOID
-Not many comms features
If you have ever looked into project management software and online collaboration tools, then no doubt you’ve come across Trello. Available on the web and with mobile apps, it lets you easily organize projects and work on them with colleagues.
The platform allows you to work with boards or lists, which can be organised by teams and different tasks. And within these, you can set up to-do lists and delegate amongst colleagues. There’s also the option to assign comments to cards – a quick way to give feedback to others.
Furthermore, Trello boasts a number of integrations with apps such as Evernote, GitHub, Google Drive and Slack. You can download the app for free, but there are premium options available which give access to more features.
The Premium pricing tier unlocks a number of additional administrative features for better organization. There’s also an Enterprise edition which is priced according to the number of users required, and provides some additional organizational management features.
Flock
A communication-focused Slack alternative
TODAY’S BEST DEALSVISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Easy to use interface+Neat productivity tools+Free to use
Flock is another application very similar to Slack but is arguably a little less daunting to use and offers more comprehensive communication tools.
Flock supports channels for different teams as well as 1:1 or group conversations. Users can search through messages, files and links and Flock will find it no matter who sent it and where.
There are audio and video calls and screen sharing as well as productivity tools such as polls, note sharing and reminders, while users can assign tasks to certain members of the group.
There’s also integrations with third party applications like Google Drive and Twitter, with notifications appearing directly in channels.
Flock has a free tier, but searches are limited to 10,000 messages, there is a 5GB storage limit and only five third party integrations are permitted. A Pro plan adds unlimited search, 10GB of storage per user, and admin controls, while the Enterprise plan ads 20GB of storage per user, more admin controls and dedicated support.
Zoom: The best video conferencing app
If you’ve worked remotely at any point, you likely have the not-so-fond memory of using unreliable video conferencing tools. Frustrating technical glitches, like frozen video and no sound, were commonplace as recently as one year ago.
Thankfully, Zoom is a world away from all that, which explains the company’s rapid growth from 30,000 users in 2014 to 700,000 users in 2017—an increase of 2233% over just 3 years.
“We love using Zoom for our company all-hands meetings,” shared Leah Knobler, who manages people ops at Help Scout.
“It consistently works well for conducting virtual meetings with 65 people.”
“We also use Zoom for our informal ‘hangouts,’ which we call Troop Talks. Each talk has a different theme or question. Everyone who is free shows up, and we take turns sharing stories.”
“One fun feature is gallery view, which allows you to view everyone on the chat at once (like the Brady Bunch intro) and makes it feel, for a moment, like our remote team is close together!”
The Help Scout team isn’t alone. Hotjar uses Zoom to connect with colleagues, too.
“We have a lot of tools (as you can imagine!) but one that absolutely everyone uses is Zoom,” explained Content Marketer and Editor Dr. Fio Dossetto.
“Being a 100% remote company, it’s crucial that we have reliable ways to communicate with each other—and actually see one another as we do that—so ‘jumping on a Zoom call’ is something we do all the time. From quick one-on-one check-ins with a teammate to discuss the details of something we’re working on, to our company-wide Friday demo, where we share the work we’ve shipped throughout the week, Zoom is probably one of the tools we rely on the most.”
As the world’s go-to video conferencing tool, it’s no surprise that Zoom is pulling in top ratings. With a 4.9 out of 5 rating on G2 Crowd, a 4.5 out of 5 rating on Capterra, and an 8.9 out of 10 rating on TrustRadius, the tool is light-years ahead of the competition.
That said, Google Meet’s performance has improved dramatically in the last 12 months, and I’d argue that appear.in deserves an honorable mention for its ease of use.
GitHub: The best software development tool
Designers and developers may be different breeds, but it’s essential that they work together to produce quality digital products.
From hosting and reviewing code to managing projects to building software, GitHub is ideal for remote team collaboration. It’s also the highest rated platform for developers, with a 4.7 out of 5 G2 crowd rating, 5 out of 5 Capterra rating, and 9 out of 10 TrustRadius rating.
Remote team collaboration often requires sharing access to the same tools. It’s no longer safe to manually store your passwords in a spreadsheet on your computer, which is where password managers like Dashlane come in. Not only do they keep you safe, but they also make it easier for team members to log into essential tools.
While LastPass was the most commonly used password manager used by the remote workers we talked to, Dashlane has the best reviews, with 4.7 out of 5 on G2 Crowd, 4.5 out of 5 on Capterra, and 8.7 out of 10 on TrustRadius.
Zapier: Workflow automation for business
Every modern company should have workflow automation software. Remote teams simply have a stronger need for the functionality. They rely heavily on technology and must over-communicate to work effectively. Plus, they’re often geographically dispersed, which increases the importance of having up-to-date documentation about ongoing projects that keeps everyone on the same page.
By connecting your favorite apps together and moving data between them automatically, Zapier helps facilitate a strong remote work culture.
Without this technology, managing a remote team would require a ton of manual effort. Just ask Alex Minchin, Managing Partner at Zest Digital: “Zapier is the extra team member at our agency, linking our systems together and managing the push and pull of data.”
With 1,000 apps to choose from and a user-friendly interface, you can eliminate hours of tedious labor in just a few clicks. Zapier has a 4.5 rating on both G2 Crowd and Capterra, which suggests that the company stays true to its promise: Zapier makes you happier.
Conclusion
Surely, one of your biggest business requirements is a means to communicate and collaborate effectively with your employees—particularly when they are not physically in the same room as you or your colleagues. Here at Polycom, we have been developing and defining the concept of “unified communications” for more than a decade. We have helped companies around the globe create solutions that successfully integrate video conferencing, casual conversations, collaboration spaces, and interaction techniques to create a truly unified experience. At the heart of this experience is our award-winning lineup of voice and video compatible collaboration products , which include HD Voice-enabled UC phones, desktop