Remote work has become the new trend in the modern workforce. It is the saviour that has helped many achieve work-life balance and is a game changer for those who once had to spend hours on the road commuting to their jobs daily. Here, I outline the five tools every remote worker should be savvy in.
COMMUNICATION - SLACK
Unlike the traditional work lifestyle where communication is as easy as walking into a colleague’s office to speak with them or having meetings physically, remote work requires a different approach. One of the tools made to help remote workers interact without any problems is Slack. Slack is a simple-to-use platform that allows companies to create workspaces with their employees as members. It allows users to send messages directly to one another or in organized spaces called channels. Users can also share files (up to 1GB) and carry out huddles (voice calls) and video calls. It is a platform that has helped many top companies such as Netflix enhance how their teams collaborate without meeting in person.
FILE SHARING & STORAGE – GOOGLE DRIVE
Imagine this: You have a meeting in 5 minutes with potential investors for your company, but there is an emergency you need to attend to. Your colleague has decided to help handle the presentation, but he needs the file containing the slides. You realize that you only have the file on your laptop and need a way to get it to him. Option 1: Use a flash drive. The file is quite large, so sending it might take some time. How would you even get it to him? The investors are going to join the online meeting anytime soon! Option 2: Use Google Drive. Problem solved. In minutes, you upload the file and send the link to him so he can access it. With technologies like Google Drive that allow you to store files that are easily accessible on the internet, file sharing now takes less time than it used to.
VIDEO CONFERENCING – ZOOM
With this, team members do not need to be in the same room to see what each of them is doing anymore. With Zoom, remote teams can seamlessly hold virtual meetings where they discuss company matters and make decisions from wherever they are. Zoom offers a host of incredible features like screen sharing, meeting recording and transcription, a live chat box, and breakout rooms which make remote workers experience conferencing as good as it would be if they were all in the same room.
DOCUMENT COLLABORATION – GOOGLE DOCS
Google Docs eliminates the need for members of remote teams to keep sending messages and document versions back and forth after updating. It allows users to edit and make changes to documents simultaneously and makes these documents easily accessible online. Using this, teams greatly boost their productivity and workflow speed.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT – NOTION
Using Notion for project management has a positive impact on work, especially remote work. It offers templates for users to organize workflows, set deadlines for tasks, and track the progress of each member of the team. Responsibilities are assigned to each member which ensures transparency and accountability. Workspaces in Notion allow remote workers to collaborate on documents, manage projects, and keep track of goals easily.