It wasn’t long ago that the idea of regularly working from home was seen as unsustainable. But after the COVID-19 pandemic forced many people to move to a remote workplace, it’s clear that working from home is only going to become more common in the years ahead.
According to a PwC survey, 41% of remote workers don’t want to go back to the office, and 33% of companies are planning to use a mixed model that includes a hybrid of in-person and remote work.
For all of the benefits you may get from working remotely, it can also be difficult to stay connected as a team when people no longer see each other every day. But since more employees are making the transition to home-based work, there have been many new innovations in the world of remote work software.
The needs for specific remote software depend on what your company hopes to accomplish. Perhaps you’re looking for a tool to facilitate team communication, maybe you want something to improve project management, or you could be seeking digital software to streamline your organization’s finances — regardless of what you want, the options are endless!
The recent surge in software tools has helped countless people make the shift to working away from the office, and we’ll outline 20 of the best platforms for you to implement from the comfort of your own home.
One of the hardest parts of remote work is not being able to use the same communication style as a traditional office, so Slack is a great tool to help with some of these challenges. It lets you send messages or files to your co-workers, and you can have real-time conversations with them in either a 1-on-1 exchange or in a group chat. Bringing all of your team’s communication into a place like Slack not only means it can be organized easily — it also means your work email will become less cluttered.
By now, it’s basically impossible not to know about Zoom. All of us have had a video chat on the app at some point, and its success is largely due to the practicality of the product. Not only is it remarkably easy to use, it also has amazing video quality. Zoom has evolved into the go-to software companies use to schedule meetings or webinars for remote workers, and its usage will likely continue to skyrocket as more people begin to work from home.
How many times have you been interrupted in a virtual meeting? Whether it’s a dog barking, one of your family members talking, or some unfortunately loud construction happening in your neighborhood — no one likes causing a distraction during an online video call. Krisp is a unique tool that actually mutes background noise during meetings, using AI technology to filter out any sound that isn’t your own voice. The beauty of Krisp is that once you install the app, it will work with any type of microphone or headphones you use.
Cloud-based storage systems are paramount to an organized workflow, which makes Google Drive a perfect tool for any company with remote workers. It allows people to work together on a variety of projects — whether that's sharing documents, collaborating on slideshows, or working on spreadsheets — and it keeps all files in one centralized location. The best part of Google Drive is how easily accessible it is, which allows your team to make changes in a safe and secure manner.
Another great choice for online file-sharing software is Dropbox. It specializes in storing and sending large files, providing an easy way for remote workers to collaborate on documents. But one of the interesting features that Dropbox provides is its ability to help with project management by using a shared document that allows people to take meeting notes in real-time — making it an enticing option for anyone working from home.
Speaking of note-taking, one of the biggest drawbacks for remote workers is the difficulty in getting concise notes from meetings. Evernote is a tremendous tool that lets you take and send notes in an organized fashion, allowing your team to share ideas in collaborative spaces. One of the best elements of Evernote is that it gives teams the ability to communicate visually to ensure that everyone understands the notes or ideas presented, which means you can avoid unnecessary clarifications that delay virtual meetings.
Collecting notes and pitching ideas during meetings are often kept on a whiteboard at the office, which makes it tough for remote workers who don’t get an in-person look at that brainstorming — and this is what makes Miro so valuable. It’s an app that takes those office drawing-boards digital, giving people the ability to contribute as a group to an online whiteboard. Miro is an easy way to bounce ideas off your co-workers while making everyone involved feel as if they’re all in the same room.
Another massive challenge for anyone working remotely is keeping track of your daily duties. It’s easy to snap out of your work headspace when you’re in the comfort of your own home. Todoist is a valuable tool that helps you stay focused. Through its online to-do note reminder system, it helps you with task management when unexpected requests come up and interrupt your original workday plans. Todoist also shows your productivity trends, which can help you retain a positive work schedule.
Being productive and having good time management skills are essential components of any job, and Trello is a great way to help those working from home maintain a good schedule. It allows people to organize tasks for their team and comment on progress. Arguably the best feature of Trello is how customizable it is for users, making it one of the simplest project management tools available for remote workers.
Anyone who has ever had a job knows that sometimes words aren’t enough — you often need a visual representation of how to do something. Loom is an app that lets you create walkthrough videos and easily share them with anyone who needs to see the instructions or visuals provided. Loom can also be used for explainers sent to multiple teammates who can access the video recording at any time, which eliminates the hassle of coordinating a meeting time for everyone.
Working away from the office makes it physically impossible to sign paper documents. DocuSign is a popular tool that allows employees to electronically sign documents in a secure and timely fashion, as well as request signatures from people all over the world. With the meteoric rise of remote work, DocuSign has become a go-to resource for companies requiring signatures — and its usage will only grow as we continue toward a more global society.
If you’re a company that requires shift work, it can be incredibly difficult keeping track of shift swaps. ShiftNote is a scheduling software with an interactive calendar that keeps an updated tracker of shift trades, and its best quality is how well it communicates with users. ShiftNote sends text message alerts whenever someone needs a shift swap, and an available person can agree to it right away. With all of these trades tracked electronically, it saves everyone a lot of time.
Many people work best when they have music playing in the background. Spotify has evolved into a popular platform for anyone interested in listening to music, and this is a great tool to have if you’re working remotely. As opposed to listening to the radio without any control over the upcoming songs, Spotify allows users to customize a music playlist to their own preferences — allowing each person to optimize their productivity while working from home.
There are also plenty of people who enjoy working with ambient noise in the background. We’ve all seen people working away on their laptops in coffee shops before, and the Coffitivity app is perfect for remote workers who don’t want to physically travel to a coffee shop for that experience. Coffitivity provides various types of background noise from different café settings, which can give you the ambience you need to increase your creativity and productivity from the comfort of your own home.
And if you’re looking to round out the virtual coffee shop experience by getting actual coffee or snacks, there’s no better way to do that than by using Hoppier to send your team a coffee budget.
Mentoring is a vital part of any well-run organization, but it can be hard to make those connections while working remotely. Qooper is an online matching platform that enables employees to connect and create lasting bonds with others in the company. The app allows people to interact with like-minded team members, and it's a great tool for both mentors and mentees. Qooper gives remote workers a way to build their network and develop strong friendships with people they wouldn’t otherwise meet.
One of the hardest things for an organization to do is keep track of spending, and this challenge often becomes greater when everyone is working from home. Xero is a financial reporting app that lets people track and pay bills, approve and reimburse expense claims, and keep an eye on your overall spending — all in one convenient place. Another tool Xero provides is its ability to create various reports on your company’s financial performance, which is very helpful when analyzing how to improve the organization.
When it comes to small businesses, there aren’t many better options for online accounting software than QuickBooks. It allows companies to track expenses, customize invoices, send estimates, manage cash flow, and run financial reports — all of which are important for growing organizations with employees who work remotely. QuickBooks also makes it easy to organize receipts through its digital platform, which is a major help during tax season.
Getting to know your co-workers and understanding how they work best is a necessary element of any job. For those working from home, it can be difficult to learn the individual preferences of teammates you’ve never met face-to-face. Crystal does online personality tests that provide you a look at the work style preferences of your remote team members. By allowing people to learn about their co-workers, Crystal provides insight that can help groups efficiently communicate and work together.
Not only is it hard learning how people work best when you aren’t interacting with them in-person, it’s also extremely tough getting a read on their overall happiness. Officevibe offers a solution to this issue by sending out short surveys for team members, which helps deliver accurate insights into how people are feeling. Officevibe also has an option to make the survey responses anonymous, which can lead to even more honest feedback so you can optimize your team’s projects and relationships.
Building a good workplace culture is an important component of any successful business, but it’s easy for people to feel disconnected when they aren’t hearing appreciation in-person. Kudos is a software tool that encourages employee engagement through mutual recognition. The app allows remote teams to send positive vibes by thanking co-workers with virtual Kudos points in a peer-to-peer system — helping to build a strong workplace camaraderie, as well as giving companies a chance to dish out rewards and prizes to their most helpful employees.
One of the traditional ways for workers to build camaraderie is by going on coffee or lunch runs for the office, but working from home doesn’t allow for these friendly gestures. Hoppier is a unique tool for your company to maintain that feeling of togetherness virtually while working apart, and can also act as a way to provide employee recognition through gifts or prizes.
Hoppier allows users to customize a virtual card that can be used with a wide variety of available vendors. It’s easy to set up, incredibly customizable, and provides people with the ability to enjoy meals or snacks together with their teammates despite working from home.
Instead of going on an office-wide coffee and snack run, use Hoppier to deliver them for you and boost your team’s morale. And rather than hosting a company pizza lunch, use Hoppier to let guests choose from their favorite lunch options at a virtual event. Hoppier is a great tool to maintain that workplace camaraderie of enjoying food together as a team — so allow us to bring the party to you!
It has become increasingly clear that working from home is going to remain a fixture going forward. Whether your company is going to continue operating fully remotely or create a hybrid model of office days combined with remote days, a great way to stay ahead of the curve is by becoming familiar with the best remote work software.
For more information on how to help your company thrive with your employees working from home, check out our webinar on how to overcome the challenges of running successful virtual events.
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
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