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Staying organized at work brings many benefits such as:
  • Reduced stress
  • Increased productivity
  • Lower stress levels
  • More manageable due dates
Some conventional methods still work, but as more and more people transition to a work-from-home environment or are hiring remote staff, new methods of staying organized must be found in order to keep productivity up. There are several types of tools to help keep your remote staff organized and productive, with more and more being made available as time goes on. 

Project Management Tools

The most commonly used organizational tools would include project management tools. Ignoring all of the subtle nuances that different apps have, project management tools are essentially to-do lists that are online and have features that make it easy for multiple people to collaborate. Without getting into specific applications and swaying your opinion on what’s best for your team, certain tools cater more to different needs. Some software already has built-in chat capabilities so the number of tools needed can be cut down. In addition to different features on different apps, you can also have different organizational charts, such as kanban style boards or Gantt charts. In some cases, you can find apps with a mix of both. A task list can be created in any style of project management tool. Tasks can be assigned to people and with everyone on the same page, work can go smoothly. People can indicate when their part is done and if the workflow passes to another person, all parties involved will be notified. Managers can use the tool to check on project progress and send help to those who need it.

Productivity Trackers

Productivity trackers give employers the ability to check on employees. Depending on the software chosen, some allow for real-time screen monitoring which can aid in the training process. For more security, certain software allows you to keep recordings for quality assurance teams to go through and review. With charts and timestamps, you can see which tasks are taking the longest and need to be modified as well as what your employees excel at. Metrics can be built around the time it takes to finish tasks and productivity trackers give valuable information regarding these statistics. More in-depth productivity or time management tools will help staff become more productive as opposed to most other tools which only help management determine who’s doing what. This means that alerts also go out to the staff as opposed to only management. This helps staff realign their priorities and alert them to when a task has been going on for an extended amount of time.

Collaboration Tools

Any and all chat applications that your team is comfortable or enjoys using would be the best tools for this. There are many other tools that have a chat system but some aren’t as complete as others. With popular chat applications gaining popularity, most chat apps also have a desktop equivalent that connects to the mobile version, so chatting with your remote teams has never been easier. With the ability to communicate at all times through mobile devices, any questions or urgent updates can be made and discussed in real-time. For meetings, video conferencing is available through a number of applications. Most, if not all of them have mobile integration, meaning those without a dedicated webcam can join video calls through their phones allowing for a more inclusive team environment.

Email Tools

Email marketing tools are more important for teams that rely on emails to communicate with customers or other businesses, such as sales teams. But they can also be used for any team that needs metrics for emails. Statistics such as the number of sent and received emails, response time, and more. Certain tools offer daily, weekly, and monthly reports in order to track progress which helps lead to team improvements.

Cloud Storage

While not an organizational tool, with proper management, files can be stored and shared in a safe and convenient manner. There are many different cloud storage options available, finding the one that allows for enough space for your team to comfortably use would help everyone. Everyone in the team should be briefed on how to properly add and organize the files within your storage. A communication tool such as a chat application that allows for screen sharing would be instrumental in a tutorial as showing a team exactly where certain files belong is easier when done visually as opposed to written or purely audible instructions.

The Wrap Up

Keeping your team organized and on the same page may seem like a struggle without the proper tools, but with technology constantly evolving and more and more people shifting to remote work, these tools are readily available for anyone to avail. Selecting a combination of any of the tools mentioned above will keep your team organized and will allow them to collaborate in an effective manner. For any customized tools that you need or want, there is also an option of having a developer create them specifically for your company.