With many businesses forced to halt traditional work hours in offices due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most non-essential employees are now working from home. A lot of workers may have never had this opportunity before, and are unfamiliar with how to stay on task, communicate with coworkers, and share information from their new home office environment. Thankfully we live in a digital age, where technology allows us the freedom to truly work collaboratively from almost anywhere--and there are many apps available to help workers stay connected.

Because many people might be wondering how they can be productive while working at home, we put together a list of the most helpful apps you and your team can use to stay connected and work efficiently.

Communication and Collaboration

You’ll never feel out of touch with your coworkers with these apps

Slack

Slack is one of the most popular team communication tools for remote working. Instead of all your daily emails from coworkers going into the same inbox, Slack employs channels, which allows users to choose which conversations are important, and which can wait for another time. It’s a great way for teams to stay on target and finish tasks according to its level of urgency.

Slack also offers options for users to follow conversations, speak to each other in chat rooms, and make video calls as well, ensuring that this is an easy way for your team to stay connected. If you need to search for information in a past conversation or channel, you can do that as well in the archives.

Available on Android, iOS, Windows, Web

Basecamp

This is another app that allows teams to hit the ground running while working in separate spaces. It offers a message board, chat room, as well as a to-do list that everyone involved in your project can see and use. It also has a schedule where team members can add upcoming deadlines, as well as a check-in space where you can update your coworkers on how you’re faring on your assignments for the week. Additionally, there is also space for documents and other files to be uploaded for communal use, making for easy file sharing among members.

Available on Android and iOS

Spark

It’s very easy to have emails clutter up an inbox--whether work or personal-- especially when you’re transitioning into a work from home model with your team. You can fight back against disorganization with the Spark app, that allows you to draft and edit emails as a team. Everyone is involved in this process and can leave comments, assign emails to members, and set deadlines for responses. That way no email goes unanswered and you don’t have to worry about forgetting to copy a team member on an important email.

Available on Android and iOS

Trello

This may be the first time your team has had to manage a project remotely, and one of the most useful apps for keeping it running smoothly is Trello. This app allows you to create and assign tasks to each member of the group, and track their progress along the way. You can add comments and attachments directly to each user’s task card to facilitate completion too.  It also utilizes workflow automation with helpful ways to create calendar and due date commands, rule-based triggers, and custom card buttons for each task and member of your team.

Available on Android, iOS, and Windows

Meetings and Video Conferencing

If you can’t meet in person, video and chat are the next best things!

Zoom

Communicating with your team via email, chat rooms, message boards, and texts are one thing, but sometimes you just need to get the whole group together face to face to ensure everyone is on the same page. Since we can no longer all meet up in the conference room, the next best thing is a video call. Zoom makes this very easy to do, and team members can log in from their devices and feel like they’re back in the office. Zoom at home users can also take advantage of their webinar and chat programs to keep up to date on training, which are all securely encrypted.

Available on Android, iOS, and Windows

Google Hangouts

Many users are familiar with the G-Suite, but might not be aware of how useful Google Hangouts can be to their team. You can choose to use either the chat function or the video conferencing function, both of which just require a link that is sent out to all members of the meeting. Users then just log in via the personalized link to participate. If your team already uses Slack, this is easily integrated into Google Hangouts as well.

Available on Android, iOS, Chrome, and Windows

Skype

One tool that you may have already encountered is Skype, which many companies use for conferencing between offices or for interoffice chat. This app allows users to participate in video and voice calls, as well as providing a chat function. It now offers the ability for users to make calls to cell phones as well as landlines, can field international calls, and has a subtitles function so you can read every word of a phone call.

Available on Android, iOS, and Windows

Join.me

If you need the functionality of making video or audio conference calls, but would also appreciate the ability to see your coworkers’ screens, then Join.me could be a very useful app for your team. You can easily make video calls from your cell phone or tablet, and when you choose to broadcast your screen, you can seamlessly engage team members in a presentation, a demonstration, or other instructional program.

Available on Android and iOS.

Document and File Sharing

Make file transfers and updates a breeze with these helpful apps

G-Suite

Google has been leading the way when it comes to cloud-based storage, and one of the most useful ways for remote employees to collaborate is by getting full use out of the Google Drive. It may seem a little different at first, especially if you have never encountered a way to use and store documents in the cloud before. But once you get the hang out it, Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Forms can make file sharing much easier. Because it’s cloud based, updates to files are made and saved immediately, so there is no longer the need to email documents between groups.

Edits are instantly integrated and tracked, and comments and suggestions are also easy to incorporate. When you’re ready to share a file, simply choose your team email addresses to send it to and they’ll have access to make any necessary adjustments.

Available on Android, iOS, and Windows

Dropbox

Many people might know this app as a way to share large files with other team members, but Dropbox also offers an easy way to keep your team’s files all in one place-- no matter if they’re Google docs, Microsoft Excel sheets, or Dropbox Paper files. With business plans, there is a large amount of space for storage, and all of Dropbox’s collaborative tools are available on phones, tablets, and computers for seamless updates and integration. Files are available for all team members to view and edit, and can be sent to others--such as clients-- outside of the team organization as well.

Available on Android, iOS, Windows, and the Web

Scheduling and Task Tracking

Keep yourself and your team on track while working remotely

Toggl

If you would like the ability to keep track of time spent on assignments in order to increase productivity, then a time tracking app like Toggl is a great tool. Just enter in the tasks that each member needs to complete and allow the automatic timer to see how long it takes to finish the task. With built in reminders to start the timer and stop it, you’ll only keep track of the time spent working on the project. If you prefer, you can also manually enter time entries, or use your calendar to populate time in your schedule as well. The reporting function allows you to see how much time you’ve spent on assignments, and breaks down how many hours are spent on specific projects.

Available on Android, iOS, Windows, and the Web

Hours

This is another time tracking app that teams might find helpful to not only coordinate tasks between members, but to keep track of the amount of time spent on assignments. Each member has their own timeline of hours and tasks, which makes it easy to see where progress is being made, and where there might be a potential problem. You can manage your own time, or see where the entire group stands. This can definitely help supervisors with workload management. If someone happens to make a mistake with their hours reported, this is easily fixed and total hours are adjusted too.

Available on Android and iOS

Breaktime

Because everyone needs breaks throughout their day

Break Timer

The apps previously mentioned in this article are designed to help remote workers stay productive and connected to their coworkers. But with social distancing in full effect, and no way to stop by another cube for a quick chat, how are employees working from home supposed to spend their breaks? The first step is to make sure you’re taking them, and Break Timer is a great app to ensure you take adequate time away from your screen to prevent eye strain and promote movement throughout your day. It’s easy to get lost in your screen and when you no longer have team members stopping by your desk, you can forget that you still need to take breaks.

This app will remind you to take a break, and allow you to customize the amount of time spent on that break. You can configure a schedule of when breaks should happen throughout your day, as well as a notification alert that works for you. Break Time also includes ways to delay or postpone your break, so you can finish up an assignment or conference call.

Available on Windows, macOS, and the Web

Headspace

So now that you have a way to remind yourself to take breaks, what should you do on them? Before you might have gone over to your favorite cafe and picked up a coffee drink, or took a short stroll outside for some fresh air. Now, you might still want to take a short walk outside, or play with your kids or pet for a little while, but why not try out the Headspace app as well? It’s easier than you think to include a couple of minutes of mindful meditation.  Many people may not think they have time for this restful practice, but Headspace makes it easy with their guided and timed meditation catalog that’s perfect for short breaks.

By just allowing some time each day to meditate, many businesses have seen their teams’ stress levels decrease, and their productivity grow. When members of your team are more focused while they’re at home, they can be more efficient and get their tasks done in a more timely manner. This would be a great app just to do on your own, or suggest the whole team try.

Available on Android, iOS, and the Web

Audible

Another great way to decrease stress and allow your mind to have a break is to start listening to your favorite books or podcasts on Audible. When you want to step away from the desk for a break, all you need to do is grab your phone or tablet and you can pick up where you left off in your audio book. These are ideal for when you need to stretch your legs, or just need to get a chance of scenery. If you don’t have time for a walk on your break, simply stream the book through your speaker and close your eyes. This is an easy way to step away from work, de-stress, and come back to the desk revitalized.

Available on Android, Windows, Amazon devices, and iOS

There are many apps out there that can help you and your team work efficiency while you’re in your home offices, and these are just a few we thought might prove most helpful at this time. What are your favorite apps that you use while working from home? Let us know in the comments!