With the advent of technology like Skype and 4G, remote workers became just as productive as their in-office counterparts. Suddenly it was possible to communicate in real time with coworkers from almost anywhere around the world, and collaborative tools further enhanced productivity for remote workers. There are all kinds of ways to improve the home office, and remote work can now be so successful that some startups are entirely remote, without an office anywhere in the world.
With remote teams however, there are some complications. You can’t just pop by your coworkers to ask a question, things like meetings and paperwork become more of a hassle, and it can generally be more difficult to maintain team productivity and ensure that everyone is working efficiently towards a common goal.
However, there are ways around these obstacles. Here are five remote team tasks your startup should automate to help strengthen your remote team’s performance.
1. Slack
Email chains, phone calls, mail. All of these are inefficient methods of communication for remote teams. Streamline the communication process with Slack. The much-hyped messaging tool earns its buzz by being colorful, fun, and most of all useful. Slack allows users to create channels for specific teams, goals, or announcement types, so everyone on your team can be involved in every part of the startup they need to be and can easily identify incoming messages as priorities or not, based on which channels those messages come in from. Plus, Slack has one-on-one messaging, for those instances where discretion or direct communication is necessary.
2. PandaDoc
Paperwork is a pain when it comes to remote teams. You’re not in the same office, so how are you going to sign that contract? Mail it halfway around the world? Luckily, PandaDoc solves that problem by allowing startups to digitally create, sign, and seal all kinds of important documents, such as contracts, sales proposals, offer letters and more, that are legally binding. Never worry about your paperwork getting lost in the mail again.
3. Trello
One of the most important tools a remote team can use is a project management tool. There are many out there, but one of the best is Trello. The app lets you create cards for different projects and lets project managers track the big-picture progress as well as the completion of minute tasks in real time on this cloud-based tool. Trello keeps individuals accountable for their work, and it lets you update responsibilities and new projects on the go. By bringing much-needed clarity to a team’s progress and what individuals work on, Trello creates a sense of unity while ensuring the whole team stays on task.
4. IFTTT
Short for “If This, Then That,” IFTTT is one of the most customizable options on this list. In essence, IFTTT is a software tool that lets users create relationships between different apps under certain conditions. For example, if you receive an email, the sender could automatically be added to your contact list, or you can set reminders for your team to be sent out at a certain time. With numerous integrations, there are all sorts of creative ways to use IFTTT to your startup’s advantage.
5. Expensify
Eventually, every business needs to purchase something, whether it’s a software tool or digital advertisements. To automate the reimbursement process, Expensify lets users create expense reports with just one-click through uploading a picture of the receipt or by manually entering the expense. With customizable company policy options, Expensify will parse the report and find out which reports need approval from a manager. The rest will be reimbursed automatically. This streamlines the payment process and frees up time for your HR team to focus on more pressing concerns.
What other ways do you automate your remote team? Leave a comment below!
