During the pandemic, the collaboration tool video conferencing has turned into a pop culture phenomenon. Social media and TV advertisers use funny web conferencing mishaps to attract “likes” and customers and maybe even go viral.
The practical reality is that unified communications (UC) tools have enabled most organizations to make a successful switch to a remote workplace, whether employees are working in sweatpants and pajama bottoms or not.
An essential part of a successful business collaboration strategy is using a cloud-based collaboration platform. Cloud-based collaboration provides a way for companies to maximize and unify their business collaboration tools, making the most of their employees and better serving customers.
Optimizing the Remote Workplace
Collaboration tools are essential now that most companies have transitioned to remote workplaces. While working from home, employees want to recreate the interpersonal interactions they had in the office. UC grants immediacy of communication through instant messaging and video conferencing. These tools allow co-workers to exchange information face-to-face in real time.
Collaboration tools make it easier for project teams to work together no matter where the members are located. Project teams can use web conferencing to conduct brainstorming sessions and file sharing to ensure that team members have version control for documents related to the project.
UC helps employees serve customers and clients more effectively as well. VoIP helps customers and clients to reach the right person they need to answer questions and deliver personalized service.
Promoting Innovation Through Business Collaboration
Business collaboration has proven to be a great way to encourage employees to innovate. Giving employees access to key documents along with the ability to work with them gives them a sense of empowerment that encourages their participation and productivity.
During web conferences, employees feel their voices are being heard and their perspectives are being taken into account. Working together on projects through group chats can get the creative juices flowing and allows employees to contribute ideas and get immediate feedback from co-workers and supervisors.
Los Angeles Business Journal reported that texting or instant messaging is a collaborative tool that encourages productive conversations among co-workers, as well as between employees and supervisors, because of its brief format. Unlike longer communications, IMs and texts don’t shut employees down. Instead, IMs create a “culture of listening,” which encourages employees to participate and contribute.
Cloud-Based Collaboration – Why Collaborate in the Cloud?
Cloud-based collaboration enables companies to host and deliver their UC tools in and through the cloud. Cloud-based UC, otherwise known as UCaaS, makes it easier for companies to manage and maintain their phone systems, as well as other communications tools, such as video conferencing and instant messaging.
Hosting collaboration tools in the cloud allows anyone in the organization to access, work on, and edit documents in real time. Any changes can be viewed immediately, so if other team members are working on the document, they won’t be duplicating or missing changes or working with the wrong version.
When all the tools are hosted on a single platform in the cloud, they can be managed and maintained efficiently so your company and its employees derive the most value from them.
Cloud-Based Collaboration Tools
A wide variety of collaboration tools can be hosted in the cloud, including:
- Unified Communications through Hosted Communications Services (HCS) such as network infrastructure and management, hosted PBX, conferencing and collaboration tools, hosted contact center, and workstream collaboration tools
- Cloud PBX to access your phone services from anywhere you choose, migrate your existing phone numbers and users, and enable VoIP phones, desktop software, and cell phones to connect and receive VoIP calls
- Integrated Voicemail, which ties your voicemail platform to your phone and your email, unifying all messaging in one platform
- Centralized Faxing, which unifies the faxing process, delivering to an account structure you specify, including delivering faxes out to individual email addresses
- Instant Messaging, which works alongside VoIP and voicemail access
Clear Technologies offers Cloud-based collaboration tools, such as Cisco Spark and Webex, which allow teams to work together as though they were in the same place even when they are separated. We can put together a suite of cloud-based collaboration tools that makes sense for your organization.
Take advantage of cloud-based collaboration at your business. Get started by requesting a cloud consultation with an expert from Clear Tech.
