Top Team Collaboration Tools to Boost Productivity
Cloud-based team collaboration tools and integrations were trending in 2016, and have continued to do so in the new year. From instant messaging to file sharing, voice and/or video calling, and more, team collaboration tools offer a plethora of features that have enabled distributed teams to work together more efficiently, both in and outside of the office. This year, the demand for team collaboration tools is expected to grow even more as additional businesses come to realize the value of the cloud. Here’s a roundup of the top team collaboration platforms that enhance communication and boost productivity:
RingCentral Glip
Marketed as the “easiest way for teams to communicate and collaborate real-time,” Glip by RingCentral is an all-in-one team messaging, collaboration, and productivity tool that seeks to empower today’s modern workforce. With Glip, everything is built in. It features real-time chat interface, video chat support, task management, file sharing, link sharing, notes, and shared calendars. It also integrates with popular services such as Google Drive, Box, Dropbox, JIRA, GitHub, and more, taking away the hassle and confusion of switching tabs to stay on top of everything. Aside from these features, RingCentral Glip also gives users more flexibility with its mobile apps for iOS and Android.
For more information, please visit their website.
| Plan Options | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Free | 500 included video chat minutes per month |
| Basic | $5.00 per person per month |
| Pro | $10.00 per person per month |
BroadSoft Team One
Workers today use a wide variety of standalone business applications to manage projects, tasks, and other related business information. Using multiple tools at once, however, can increase the risk of information overload and lead to low productivity in the workplace. BroadSoft’s team collaboration app, Team One, addresses this challenge by combining all of the team’s work and apps in one place. Team One integrates unified communication features, team messaging, and contextual intelligence so that all the things workers need and use can be accessed on a single platform. Some of its notable features include click-to-call, live meetings, file sharing, business chat, task management, integration with business apps, and more. Team One is part of BroadSoft Business, BroadSoft’s comprehensive suite of enterprise-ready cloud PBX, collaboration, unified communications, and contact center applications.
For more information, please visit their website.
| Plan Options | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Trial | Free for 30 days |
| Premium | $5.99 per user per month |
| Enterprise | Contact Broadsoft for details |
Mitel MiTeam
Leading cloud business communications provider Mitel has also jumped onto the team collaboration bandwagon with its collaboration software, Mitel MiTeam. MiTeam seeks to promote better teamwork and further success by breaking the cycle of endless email strings, cluttered messages and documents, and switching back and forth between applications. A mobile-first on-demand collaboration tool, MiTeam lets teams connect real-time. Aside from video conferencing, online meetings, and group chat, MiTeam also lets users store and archive data, search and retrieve information, and sync with other business apps.
Pricing: Pricing isn’t available online. For more information, please visit their website to talk to their collaboration specialists.
Slack
One of the most popular team communication and collaboration tools on the market today is Slack. With its simple interface and relatively straightforward functionalities, Slack offers a solid platform for teams that wish to kill email by keeping all information including messages, files, comments, and videos from an array of sources, organized. It also offers numerous integration with other tools, such as Zendesk, MailChimp, GitHub, Google Drive, and more. In order to compete with the more robust and feature-rich team collaboration tools from other providers, Slack recently added voice and video calls to its features.
For more information, please visit their website.
| Plan Options | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Free | Available for teams that want to try out Slack |
| Standard | $6.67 per user per month |
| Plus | $12.50 per user per month |
HipChat
Developed by collaboration giant Atlassian, HipChat offers a simple and easy-to-use chat platform for teams. It’s also loaded with group chat, video, chat, screen sharing, file sharing, searchable chat history, and integrations with leading business services. While HipChat may appear to pale in comparison with the other team collaboration tools on the list, many industry experts are expecting a boost to HipChat’s platform soon. This is because Atlassian, the developer of HipChat, has recently acquired Trello, a leading project management app. In a statement, Atlassian wrote that Trello will become a key part of their portfolio “offering a fun new way for teams to organize the often messy range of information that feeds into great teamwork.” The addition of Trello to Atlassian could help expand HipChat’s platform even further.
For more information, please visit their website.
| Plan Options | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Basic | Free |
| Plus | $2.00 per user per month |
Final Thoughts
As teams become increasingly mobile, the rise of team collaboration tools is inevitable. With so many robust features and functions, these tools will surely become the lifeline of distributed teams and workforce. In order for teams to maximize the potential of a team collaboration tool, though, it's important to ensure that the tool they choose matches their needs and requirements.
