Every client with a flexible remote offshore team sometimes struggles with the question of how to keep remote teams productive and involved in the business objective. Nothing gives more peace of mind than having clear what you want to achieve in a day.
You can do a job most efficiently with the right tools. And that also applies to working from home. Choose the right tools that suit your company and what you want to achieve. And what your team members pick up.
Have a daily stand-up with your offshore development team to discuss what's on that day and who is doing what. Use a planning tool to distribute all activities and focus on results you want to achieve today.
With these tools, remote collaboration becomes easier and more effective.
Business chat software
Mutual contact is essential for effective cooperation. Employees who work flexibly will therefore (have to) regularly return to the office to contact colleagues and to remain involved in the ins and outs of the organization.
However, that is sometimes not possible. Or unnecessary, because you only need to consult briefly. Coordinating matters or throwing a question into the group is also fine with business chat software.
A well-known and user-friendly option is Slack, although companies in the Windows ecosystem should go for Skype for Business or Microsoft Teams.
Teams is part of Office 365 and lets you not only have (group) conversations and meetings, but also work together, share apps and exchange files. You can also schedule a Skype call from Teams or dial in yourself.
Skype for Business works similarly and also gives you the option to chat, schedule meetings and share files. That saves a lot of email back and forth. The business versions of Skype and Microsoft Teams are still separate, but will be merged soon.
Virtual whiteboard
During a meeting or brainstorming session, it is enlightening to put ideas on flipchart paper or a whiteboard. People are visually oriented and by drawing something you can quickly clarify what you mean. How if the participants in a meeting are not in the same room? A digital, interactive whiteboard offers a solution.
Most business chat software has such a whiteboard built in. During a video conference you have the option to open a screen where each participant can make sketches or annotations.
It is also possible to insert graphs or tables and ask colleagues for input. After the meeting, the whiteboard can be saved and shared, so that someone who was not at the meeting can still look at it in peace.
Project management tool
When you hire remote developers, remote collaboration becomes easier if everyone has insight into the status of the work.
Without a clear planning and division of tasks, it is difficult to manage expectations and ensure that deadlines are met. With a project management tool you create order out of chaos.
A good, well-known example of an online project management tool is Trello. With this you create an overview on a page (board) of lists (for example To Do, Doing and Done) containing cards that you can drag to indicate the priority or status of a task.
Each card describes a task and can be expanded with a checklist, deadline, comment or attachment. By assigning cards to specific people, it becomes clear what everyone has to do.
Trello lets team members collaborate on the same project simultaneously, regardless of location. Because all changes are immediately visible, everyone is always informed.
Another advantage is that you can use multiple boards side by side if you coordinate multiple projects at the same time. The online project management tool is ideally suited for teams that are not constantly physically together. You can also use it as a personal weekly planner.
Webcam with cover
Webcams are often seen as a necessary evil, but they do offer added value when collaborating and meeting remotely. Sending an email or chat message to your colleague is fine, but sometimes you just want to look each other in the eye.
However, webcams are also seen as a risk , because in the past it has often been found that the (built-in) cameras are vulnerable to hacking.
Many users therefore choose to cover their webcam with a plaster or sticker. A more elegant option is the webcam cover, a slide in front of the lens that you easily open and close.
This way your privacy is guaranteed while using your device and you can record in an instant when you receive a call via Skype. More and more laptops have a built-in cover, but you can also buy them separately and stick them over your webcam.
Wireless Headsets
Many laptops and webcams come with an integrated microphone, but the quality of that is often not something to write home about. In addition, you have to stay close to the microphone during a call or meeting to be heard. A good headset is therefore indispensable for teleworkers who make frequent calls, such as customer service employees.
Headsets come in all shapes and sizes, both wired and fully wireless. The advantage of a wireless headset with DECT technology is a range of up to 150 meters, so you can walk away from your desk without the connection being interrupted.
In addition, you can connect most headsets via Bluetooth with multiple devices, from softphone to laptop and smartphone. They are usually equipped with noise suppression , with which annoying background noise is filtered out.
Lastly, choose Microsoft Teams or Hosted VoIP to be able to see each other and view the same presentation or Excel sheet together. Microsoft Teams is also the tool to work on the same document remotely and to stay informed of progress.
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