We’re living in an era of remote work, where it’s increasingly important for teams to be able to collaborate effectively. And a big part of that effective collaboration? Having the right collaborative tools.
Collaborative tools have become a must-have for successful organizations. In fact, a whopping 80 percent of workers used collaboration tools in 2021—a 44 percent increase from 2019.
But not all collaborative tools are created equal.And if you want to empower your team’s best work, you need to create a tech stack with the right collaborative tools for them.
But what types of tools do you need to help your team better collaborate? Let’s take a look at some of the best collaborative tools to improve employee productivity:
Communication tools
How are ideas shared, issues brought to light, and projects completed? Communication. Interaction between employees is vital to collaboration, but that’s not all. Employee engagement depends on communication. The more engaged an employee, the more productive and loyal they are.
Collaborative tools that enable better communication between team members let employees hold themselves—and one another—accountable to deadlines, data accuracy, and a high quality of work. Chatting between employees lets them ask for and provide context about tasks or projects, offer feedback about each other’s work, and build the rapport necessary for nurturing a cohesive and efficient team.
Collaborative tools to improve employee productivity enhance communication through a variety of channels, including:
- Instant messaging (IM) and group messaging between employees and teams,
- Video conferencing and team meetings,
- Integrating and syncing with other collaboration tools to add or enhance feedback and discussion capabilities,
- Task boards and project management tools.
Some communication tools you may want to consider include:
- Talkspirit: a collaborative work tool that includes a variety of communications features, including chat, video conferencing, and a project management board.
- Flowdock: a tool that brings together chat, email, and notifications into a central hub, giving teams easier access to communications.
- GoTo Meeting: a web conferencing software that connects teams through video.
- Zoom: another popular video conferencing software.
Feedback tools
In addition to communication tools, which let employees share and discuss thoughts between themselves, organizations need feedback tools for getting the insights they need to improve their organizations and drive performance. A strong feedback culture enables employees to raise concerns, suggest process and product changes, and collaborate to enhance productivity across the board.
This requires a collaboration tool that makes it convenient for employees to analyze feedback from all sources, including customers—and glean insights from that feedback before developing a plan and taking action. These tools also enable managers and team leads to evaluate the performance of employees and share guidance on ways to improve and increase productivity.
Collaborative feedback tools help employees improve productivity by:
- Collecting and analyzing feedback and suggestions from internal and external sources
- Responding to surveys that improve team cohesion and the quality of management
- Earning recognition for personal achievements, hard work, and meeting goals
- Creating opportunities for open, honest feedback with coworkers and colleagues, which can strengthen relationships and drive better collaboration
- Increasing employee engagement and creating a more positive employee experience
Popular feedback tools that support collaboration include:
Also read: How Can Managers Instill a Feedback Culture in your Team ?
File-sharing tools
In order for employees to effectively collaborate, they need to be able to easily, quickly, and efficiently share information with other teams, departments, and any external stakeholders—which is why collaborative tools to improve employee productivity through more effective file sharing and collaboration are an absolute must.
In order to effectively get work done, particularly when working in different locations, employees need to have constant access to files, the ability to collaborate on documents and projects in real-time, as well as the capability to transfer files of different types and sizes across departments, teams, and locations.
Collaborative data and file-sharing tools improve productivity by:
- Fostering real-time (or near real-time) collaboration
- Accessing previous revisions of work to provide feedback or compare changes
- Transferring data to different teams for ongoing iteration and development
- Ensuring everyone has access to the same files and information
Some collaborative file-sharing tools you may want to consider adding to your organization’s tech stack include:
Planning and project management tools
Even the simplest of projects benefit from careful planning, ideation, and ongoing feedback. Project management tools are especially important when multiple employees and teams are collaborating to see a project through to completion.
Coordination suffers without effective collaborative tools to improve employee productivity, like project planning and management tools. These tools are a win-win for all involved; managers and team leads rely on these tools to track progress, share updates, and organize project-related communications and files. On the flip side, employees need these tools for knowledge management and to remain focused on their shared tasks and goals.
Project management tools improve employee productivity by:
- Establishing shared goals and guidelines for assigned projects
- Helping employees track a project from ideation to completion
- Allowing employees to provide ongoing feedback about a project as it evolves
- Centralizing information about a project in a single, easily accessible location
Popular planning and project management collaboration tools include:
Also read: Collaborative tools: a new way of working
Employee management tools
If you want employees to be more productive, you need to manage them in a way that fosters that productivity—and that’s where employee management tools come in. Employee management tools offer a variety of ways to support your employees—including tracking assignments and tasks, scheduling meetings, and working toward goals and key metrics, which can help employees meet deadlines, fulfill responsibilities, and continually work toward increased productivity.
These solutions also let managers and human resources representatives provide assistance and guidance to employees, helping them improve their performance and morale. In turn, organizations can demonstrate a commitment to employee health and well-being while providing the necessary framework for employees to achieve increased productivity.
Employee management tools facilitate productivity through collaboration by:
- Providing organizations with data about employees that the organization can use to streamline or improve processes
- Centralizing workforce data to give better insight into employee performance and other metrics
- Improving employee morale and reducing work anxiety
- Tracking expectations and other performance metrics to reduce mistakes and turnaround times
- Allowing employees and managers to collaborate on plans to improve performance and drive productivity
Popular employee management collaborative tools include:
The best collaborative tool to improve employee productivity is an all-in-one solution
For some organizations, the right collaborative tool to improve employee productivity is an all-in-one solution like Talkspirit. Talkspirit combines all the features you need to enhance employee productivity, including communication tools like chat and video conferencing, project management, knowledge management, and shared agendas. Talkspirit also improves employee productivity by supporting checklists and assignments, shared secured drives, and easily accessed member directories.
Want to learn more about why Talkspirit is the collaborative tool you need to improve employee productivity? Schedule a demo or sign up for your free trial today!
