Utilizing the wonderful minds and varying perspectives that you have to hand can be crucial to creation, innovation, and problem-solving across all industries. But how can we ensure our collaboration is efficient and effective? Here are 6 technologies that can help.
- Unified communications tools
Typically, all communications tools exist in separate applications or software, even on different devices. This can create a barrier to collaboration, as it is extremely inefficient (and in some cases impossible) to sift through everything to find the information you need – without the extra hassle of trying to share it with a colleague!
Therefore, introducing unified communications tools will make communication and collaboration easier than ever before. Everything you require can be found on one, simple to use portal, allowing you to switch between mediums and collaborate productively even if your co-worker is located at the other side of the world!
One such example is Microsoft’s SharePoint. Luckily, you can easily find SharePoint training online so your employees can get the most out of the platform.
- Video and audio conferencing
Meetings and conferencing are particularly useful spaces for collaboration in a business. Getting everyone together in the same room for the same purpose can be highly productive. However, in today’s day and age, synchronising schedules like this can be difficult – especially if you aren’t all based in the same office! Thus, opting for video and audio-conferencing technology can allow you to more effectively hold meetings on collaborative projects.
- Interactive whiteboards
Interactive whiteboards allow you to produce more engaging presentations that are less one-way, instead encouraging the audience to collaborate on, and interact with, the topic at hand.
- Co-working spaces
Let’s be honest – no one likes being cooped up in small cubicles all day! That’s why many businesses are turning instead to tailored co-working spaces. Whether you have one area dedicated to collaboration, or make the whole office open plan, this can all encourage workers to help each other out when they need it.
Fit your collaborative space with innovative co-working tools, such as a computer, projector, and access to applications such as Google Docs which can be shared and edited by everyone in the team.
- Social networking
Internal communications are essential for fuelling collaborations in any organisation. However, in the modern era, it is no longer good enough to simply offer an office building where employees can chat amongst themselves. Instead, consider using a messaging platform that incorporates aspects of social media.
In other words, opt for an internal communication tool that utilises emojis, personalised reactions, status updates, profile pictures, and GIFs. These tools are particularly engaging for the younger generations, encouraging them to effectively communicate and collaborate with other members of the team instantly, with emotion, and through humour.
- Artificial intelligence
There are many benefits to implementing AI in your organisation, the most widely cited of which is that it can give you a competitive advantage. AI can improve competitiveness as, amongst other things, it can improve your business’ efficiency by automating some of the repetitive processes.
Due to this, AI can free up employees’ time to do more of the stuff they were hired to do – innovate! Thus, using AI in your business can boost collaboration, as it provides employees with the valuable time that they need to work alongside their peers.
And there you have it – 6 technologies that can improve collaboration in the workplace.
