Remote work is here to stay for the foreseeable future, but collaboration is key to driving your business forward whether your employees are in-office or working from home. Here’s how you can start leveraging technology to build a culture of collaboration in your organization.

What is a collaborative culture? How does it benefit your business?

Collaboration happens in most, if not all companies, but not all companies have built a collaborative company culture. A collaborative culture means collaboration is an integral part of the company’s everyday work environment. Rather than occurring when initiated, like during meetings, collaboration actively happens daily.

Centered on the idea that collaboration maximizes employees’ unique skill sets, a collaborative work culture encourages inclusion and free-thinking to help boost creativity, productivity, and innovation.

How can technology help?

Whether a company’s workforce is remote or in-office, technology has become an integral part of how people connect and communicate, and now, there are specific solutions made to help businesses build a completely collaborative culture.

VIDEO CONFERENCING

As the opportunity for remote work becomes a permanent feature in many organizations, companies need effective communication strategies. Luckily, state-of-the-art video conferencing apps are available today that facilitate the open flow of ideas among team members—whether they’re down the street or across the globe.

COMMUNICATION APPS

Email systems may be digital, but they don’t necessarily break down the barriers that prevent successful collaboration. To stay connected in real-time on day-to-day issues and progress updates, businesses with remote workers should be taking advantage of innovative instant-messaging tools.

COORDINATION TOOLS

Communication barriers aren’t the only barrier. Often, poor planning and inefficient workflows can inhibit effective collaboration. As a solution, workflow software, such as Microsoft Teams, simplifies end-to-end project management and enables cross-functional collaboration.

CREATION TOOLS

Many tasks are best executed with collaborative teams instead of one employee working independently. Creation tools create opportunities for collaboration by letting teams work live on different file types and, in many cases, communicate through built-in chatting features.

Tips for choosing the right collaboration technology for your business

OPT FOR THE CLOUD

Ideally, your communication software and applications should be cloud-based. In addition to modernizing IT processes, switching to the cloud keeps productivity higher by letting employees tune in from anywhere without sacrificing collaboration.

CONSIDER SECURITY

Effective collaboration doesn’t mean sacrificing security. All collaboration software needs to be hosted somewhere, so make sure to look into each vendor’s security capabilities, as well as the privacy options of the tool itself.

IS IT CROSS-FUNCTIONAL?

A collaboration tool might be an amazing service, but it might not be the most efficient if it’s focused on a single collaboration feature. To avoid having to manage a handful of disparate software, opt for collaboration technology that has multiple different functions and uses.

INTEGRATION POSSIBILITIES

Sometimes, a highly-focused collaboration tool might be perfect for your business. In these cases, you want to be able to smoothly integrate it with your other applications.

HOW IS THE USER SUPPORT?

Technology can have the opposite effect on your business’s collaboration and efficiency if it’s set up or used incorrectly. The vendor you choose should have the capabilities to provide outstanding technical support to ensure you’re always getting the full value out of their tool.

Get the Tools and Support You Need with AccountabilIT

Microsoft Modern Workplace has the collaboration tools you need to seamlessly communicate, coordinate, and connect—and as a Microsoft Gold Partner, we have the expertise to make sure you experience their full value.

Contact us today to learn how Microsoft Workplace solutions can help you meet your objectives while keeping your data protected.