The last thirty or so years have witnessed a startling digital transformation in the workplace as firms began integrating more with IT, computers, and technology. Indeed, today it's almost impossible to think of a company that doesn't – at least at some level – rely on its computers and tech to operate.
From one-man-band entrepreneurs using email and mobile reminders right up to the global multinationals crunching Big Data, IT has become the backbone of most firms.
The rise of collaborative software
While this reliance on computers made individuals more productive until very recently, it posed one significant problem for firms – namely how to share files and allow colleagues to work together effectively. With individual staff commonly performing their jobs separately at their own computer terminal, there was a tendency to transfer files by email, floppy disk (remember them?), or other external storage.
However, as networks, connection speeds, and devices have improved over the years, software developers began to realize they could develop new cloud-based apps to allow remote staff to work collaboratively.
Modern cloud-based team software
These days there is a huge range of online, collaborative software available – much of it developed bespoke to specific markets and industries. Apps like Microsoft Teams allow employees to set project deadlines and milestones, arrange meetings, conduct video conferences and share marked-up files with one another – all provided in real-time and from any location in the world with an internet connection.
Moreover, cloud-based software can also take advantage of the significant processing power afforded by remote servers and capacious storage and integrated third-party apps. By leveraging the power of the cloud, employees can become truly mobile, using even the lowest-grade devices to perform processor-intensive functions by tapping into far-flung servers.
Other advantages of collaborative software and working in the cloud
By connecting departments and individuals under a common virtual workspace, companies can improve productivity levels in any number of ways, including:
Reducing the potential for producing redundant work: In the past, it wasn't uncommon for separate departments to work on files that another team had already produced. Through sharing information in real-time with one another, teams can monitor project progress and eliminate the chance of producing redundant work.
Foster a greater sense of teamwork: Teamwork is an essential part of most companies but working at a computer, by its very nature, is a solitary pursuit. By assembling virtual teams in a collaborative software-based workplace, you can assign roles and responsibilities to your workers – even if they're on the other side of the world. Also, as your employees are working collaboratively on files, they will automatically feel a greater sense of working as a team – which can be emboldened yet further with in-app video conferencing or messaging.
Isolating problems to improve productivity: Collaborative software lets you see which departments are performing best and identify potential bottlenecks in your processes – information that you can share between teams to help develop best practices.
Augment your ROI: Your company has already invested in computers and tech but, if you don't provide the facility for your teams to work collaboratively through the right software, you won't be realizing your full Return on Investment (ROI). Buying cloud-based collaborative working apps will take advantage of your existing tech and improve your company's productivity and efficiency.
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