Collaboration Tools for Startups

Starting a company today doesn't require the massive funding, staffing and resources it used to. It doesn't have to follow the traditional formula of creating a business plan, pitching to investors, introducing a product and pushing sales and marketing.

Harvard Business Review reports that instead of an all-out hard launch after full development, new startup methodologies are more about experimentation, customer feedback, designing, testing, refining and retesting products and services.

Making this new startup model possible is new technology and collaboration tools. Everyone that needs to harness the power of a team, group or network to make something happen is using collaboration tools, especially if everyone is not in the same room or even the same country together.

Clinked reports that 75 percent of companies surveyed in 2013 said online collaboration tools will be important to their businesses.

For instance, the latest tablets like the Samsung Galaxy Note come with larger screens, stylus pens and a multitude of apps that inspire team work, creativity and collaboration. So what kind of collaboration apps will help your company?

Young Entrepreneur Council reviews and recommends the following collaboration tools:

Google Drive

This is an online, collaborative document creation platform that allows multiple users to work on the same document, spreadsheet or presentation in real time. Users can chat, comment and add or change content simultaneously.

You can see who is working on the document and what changes they made. Also, because it is in the cloud, you can access these documents from anywhere and on any device. This is the perfect tool for remote or traveling employees.

Join.Me

This is a simple, collaborative tool for screen-sharing during online meetings for up to 250 people.

Found of Saber Blast, Matthew Ackerson states that he started using Join.Me over Skype because of its superior screen-sharing capabilities, and because you can give or take away control from your collaborator.

It also has scheduling, recording and mobile app features so it is great for sales work and presentations.

Yammer

This tool is a private social network to connect coworkers, departments and business units to information and conversations to facilitate work and decision-making. You can use this tool anytime and anywhere because it can be accessed through a web browser.

Bhavin Parikh of Magoosh Test Prep states that they use Yammer as a collaborative safe zone where employees can think outside-of-the-box. He states that it "has facilitated cross-departmental collaboration and made [his] company more innovative."

NuovoTeam

NuovoTeam is an all-in-one employee app & Secure Push-to-Talk, Business Messaging and Collaboration Software that helps organizations track and monitor their non-desk workers. NuovoTeam facilitates employee productivity tracking, communication and collaboration across your workforce. Monitor employee location, work hours with clock-in, clock-out, track work status and assign tasks, enable organization-wide unified contact management, communicate with a walkie talkie, VoIP calling, instant messaging, video calling and group chats.

Asana

This is a teamwork and project collaboration tool to reduce emails, meetings and status reports. Instead of sending emails, you can create, assign and comment on tasks. This way you know who is doing what and how they are doing it.

Because you are communicating in the task assignment rather than through a string of emails, you also can see where the project is in production instead of relaying status updates at every checkpoint.

And, again because everything is in one place, you don't have to worry about losing or deleting emails, notes, documents or reports. You also can see everyone’s tasks and priorities, visualize goals and track time with Asana time tracking integration.

LEAD

LEAD helps your workforce build trust and friendships whether they are in the same office or working remotely. LEAD makes it easy to launch virtual coffee or group lunches, encourage peer to peer meetups for learning opportunities, and helps build internal networks for new hires and existing employees.

Between new technology hardware such as smartphones and tablets and increasingly powerful laptops and desktops, your business is sure to find helpful tools and services.

Remember, collaboration is important in fostering innovation, creativity, teamwork and good morale, so find what collaboration apps and tools will help you.