Posted by Dana Larson on June 30, 2010
When it comes to implementing team collaboration in your business, there is no one way to help your business team collaborate better. There are many techniques that you can, and should, implement in your business. From learning how to work together to create a great product, team collaboration can impact every part of your business.
In order for team collaboration to be successful in your business, here are a few techniques that can get your business team started off on the right foot.
Posted by Dana Larson on June 10, 2010
We all know that once you fully integrate effective team collaboration processes and solutions into your business, your team will be working together more effectively. The quality of their work will increase, and so will your bottom line. There is, of course, a learning curve with integrating collaboration into your business, but overcoming that will only strengthen the connections made between your teammates and the tools you are using.
But there comes a time in any collaborator's life - usually at the beginning of the heavy collaboration efforts - when they think “Can’t I just send this one file over quickly via email?”
Posted by Dana Larson on June 01, 2010
Okay, I know it’s not really Monday today (Happy Memorial Day yesterday!), but since we were all out enjoying sunshine and barbecues yesterday afternoon, today we can get back into the swing of things by catching up on the latest business collaboration news together!
Lately, I’ve been reading a lot about how effective team and online collaboration can lead to improved organization and increased innovation when it comes to a successful business. I have to agree with this, of course, as I - as well as my colleagues at OnePlace - believe that collaboration can bring a great number of benefits to the business.
Posted by Dana Larson on May 27, 2010
If you’re like many of us and working in a client or customer service business, you tend to do a lot of work for your customers and clients. There is a lot of communication going back and forth, and products and projects are being updated for the benefit of the client.
When you’ve already taken the necessary steps to improve internal team collaboration within your business and are using a solution like OnePlace, you see an increase in the quality of work and communications happening among your team. But then - horror of horrors - you need to take a file out of your collaboration solution (thus rendering it outdated) and email it to your client.
If you just said “Wow, this sounds very inefficient and ineffective,” you are spot on.
Posted by Dana Larson on May 24, 2010
Improving the amount and quality of team collaboration in the workplace can significantly increase the effectiveness of business communication and the overall success of the business. There is no place that this is more true than in today’s enterprise business.
With more and more team members working hard to drive the product and the company forward, you need to make sure teams are working together. You need to give them the tools to stay connected and increase that collaboration for the improvement of your enterprise.
These posts agreed as well. Here are 4 recent blog posts on enterprise collaboration and how to experience the benefits collaboration can offer.
Posted by Dana Larson on May 20, 2010
If you’re a part of the increasing trend of running a virtual office, you are aware of the great benefits of them. Team members in a virtual office have shown increased productivity, increased positivity toward their job and even a decreased environmental impact because of the lack of commuting.
One of the main challenges, however, of a virtual office is trying to keep everyone connected. There aren’t easy options of holding impromptu face-to-face meetings, and phone calls need to be thought twice about because of differing time zones.
So, in order to increase the effectiveness of your virtual office, and encourage increased productivity, here are a few tips for keeping your virtual workforce connected.
Posted by Dana Larson on May 13, 2010
So you’ve heard about how great business collaboration can be - fantastic! You’re right, too, because collaboration between teammates, clients and customers can have a great impact on the success of your business. But you need to take the necessary steps in order to make that collaboration successful.
What you need to make sure you do first and foremost is successfully implement the collaboration process into your business. Your team - from the business leaders down to the interns - need to accept collaboration and have these processes ingrained into their very core.
Posted by Dana Larson on May 11, 2010
It’s hard to deny that collaboration can significantly impact your business for the better. Effective team collaboration can improve the quality of communication, the quality of attitude and the quality of the work being completed.
There are some business cultures, however, that are opposed to this collaboration, or at least unaware of the benefits this collaboration can offer. In order to effectively integrate successful collaboration in your business culture, you need to make the necessary steps.
Posted by Dana Larson on May 03, 2010
Last week, there was some blog chatter about the benefits of small business and enterprise collaboration solutions, and whether or not they can be effective in today’s business world. Now, I am of the opinion that they can be, but there is a lot to be said about the implementation of such solutions to make them useful.
(Ahem - Stay tuned for a blog post from me about that subject.)
Here are some posts speaking to the effectiveness of business collaboration solutions.
Posted by Dana Larson on April 29, 2010
The topic of collaboration - whether it be small business team collaboration or enterprise collaboration - has been a popular one lately. We’ve seen people write on the advancements in collaboration, what factors lead to successful collaboration, and how collaboration via social media is the wave of the future.
What I haven’t seen recently is a discussion about the benefits that a collaboration software system can provide. So, here it is!
Posted by Dana Larson on April 26, 2010
With the increased popularity of social media tools, and the State of Collaboration report released recently, the topic of team collaboration has been a hot one. More and more businesses are feeling the need for this type of business collaboration solution to increase communication between team members.
The blogosphere has been chattering about team collaboration recently. Here are some recent blog posts to bring you up to speed on team collaboration.
Posted by Dana Larson on April 22, 2010
In case you weren’t aware, today is Earth Day! Designed as a day to increase awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment, Earth Day was founded in 1970 and has inspired countless people across all countries to better the world we live in.
At OnePlace, we care deeply about helping others and helping our great planet. One of the greatest actions we are taking toward helping the environment is having an all virtual office.
Posted by Dana Larson on April 20, 2010
In many business settings, especially small businesses, every single person on the team matters. There is not one person without whom the business could succeed. This type of dependence comes from hiring the right people - the lynch pins - to bring your business successfully into the future.
Unfortunately there are instances when the people you hire in your business aren’t doing their best. And just like the saying goes, a business is only as strong as its weakest link. They may not be doing their best for a multitude of reasons, and before it can affect your business, try to figure out why there is a downturn in their efficiency and productivity.
Here are a few reasons why a team member may not be performing at the high standards you need in your business.
Posted by Dana Larson on April 19, 2010
I know, I know, it’s been a while since we posted a Monday Blog Post Round-Up. Sorry guys! But don’t worry, we’ve still been reading our favorite blogs, and have been quite busy posting ourselves.
We hope to make up for our absence the last couple of weeks by showcasing some fantastic blog posts about improving business productivity and energizing your team for success.
Posted by Dana Larson on March 23, 2010
As we’ve mentioned before, workplace communication is one of the most important factors to the success of the business. By having an open communication system in your office, team members will feel free to work together, and employees will be able to talk with managers when necessary.
Better communication also increases trust and collaboration between teams. By getting the basics of good professional communication down, all the people in your business will feel more connected, and increase success on all business projects.
Posted by Dana Larson on March 17, 2010
It’s time to share another OnePlace case study, and what better way to honor St. Patrick’s Day than to share the success story of a local brewery?
Lift Bridge Beer Company, based in Stillwater, MN, started as a hobby business, and needed some help organizing their distributed workforce. Because most people still had day jobs, the tasks associated with getting the brewery up and running were sent via email. This process led to lost tasks and forgotten notes.
Posted by Dana Larson on March 11, 2010
We’ve discussed how staying connected to your teammates is an important step toward overall business success. We like to make sure everyone on our team can communicate with each other and stay up to date on other’s activity, as this allows us to build on projects, tasks and ideas together.
One main way we at OnePlace stay connected is through Team Pulse. Team Pulse allows us to know what the others are currently working on, and ask questions directly to one person, the members of one workplace or the entire company.
Posted by Steve Kickert on February 24, 2010
When it comes to running a business, there are some great managers, and also some not-so-great managers. We’ve all had experiences with both, and after a while, we can pick out what traits we like in our managers.
One trait that is becoming more and more important for managers and supervisors are strong communication skills. Gone are the days of the manager barking out orders and hiding away in his office. Now managers are encouraged to meet face-to-face with their team on a very frequent basis and use communication to empower them to increase their success.
So how can you improve your management communication? Here are a few tips to improve your communication skills: