Top 12 communication and collaboration tools for businesses

Companies often deploy too many work apps for their day-to-day communication and collaboration needs. Since most businesses use different apps, it is very easy to create silos of information. Searching for information across these silos is tedious, time-consuming and unproductive. For example, there are apps for chatting, emailing, online document storage, and tracking to-dos among others. Using multiple apps requires constant switching between them as information is processed. A Pegasystems Inc study found that an employee on average switches between 35 job-critical applications more than 1,100 times every day. Nearly 31% of respondents said toggling between apps affected their focus and productivity.                  

Using multiple apps makes it hard to find information quickly when needed without having to do multiple searches. IDC data shows that a knowledge worker spends about 2.5 hours per day searching, which is about 30% of their workday. For an organization that employs 50 workers, with an average annual salary of $60,000, the cost of unproductive searches amounts to $3 million per year. Disconnected information also makes it hard to easily see the big picture. 

Internal communication is the cornerstone of any organization. Equipping your team with the right communication tools will help them optimize thier time and resources more efficiently. To create effective workplace communication and ensure that productivity is maintained, it’s important to categorize your workplace communication tools into internal, video conferencing, or project management tools. Take time to try out a range of platforms until you find something that works perfectly for you and your team.

We have identified communication and collaboration tools that will help you to boost your productivity by letting you do your job rather than toggling between apps or searching for information. 

Clariti

Clariti automatically keeps all related communications including emails, chats, calendar events, to-dos, and calls connected as if it is one conversation. There is no need to shift between many apps and there is no need to stress trying to remember all the connected conversations in memory. Clariti eliminates the need to search across many apps looking for information and makes it very easy to see the big picture without any effort. Clariti allows you to put any item such as email, conference chat, social feeds, and To-Do inside TopicFolder. All the subsequent related conversations are automatically stored in that TopicFolder. Few months down the line, when you want to go back and refer to a prior conversation or file, all you have to do is look inside the relevant TopicFolder. In Clariti, no matter what was discussed and when it was discussed, you will be able to see the big picture in one view. This is not possible with other digital communication apps. 

Clariti is ideal for small and medium businesses to boost team collaboration and drive productivity. It is securely hosted on Amazon Web Services, providing total reliability, 100% uptime, and trusted security of all your workday data. Clariti is a free cloud-based tool that can be accessed from anywhere with a browser and internet connection. 

MiCloud  

MiCloud is a business communication tool that helps businesses manage calls, chats, events, audio/video web conferencing, and screen sharing. MiCloud Connect lets you move communications and collaboration to the cloud with confidence. 

Groupe.io   

Groupe.io is a cloud-based employee communications platform that helps organizations connect their entire workforce, from HQ to the frontline, on a single platform. Using Groupe.io you can communicate with your entire workforce in real-time which cuts through organizational silos, time zones, and language barriers.   

Whispir   

Whispir is one of the best business communications tools that uses cutting edge technology to bring all your communications channels like email, SMS, voice and web chatting together in one easily accessible space for rich two-way multi-channel communication.   

Jive  

Jive’s interactive intranet connects all your people, knowledge and content in a secure collaboration and communication hub across mobile and desktop devices. It’s a one-stop shop for corporate communication, employee engagement and high-performance teamwork. Its AI-powered PeopleGraph technology proactively connects employees with people and information they need to know. Jive’s integrated, out-of-the-box solution reduces the cost of ownership and enhances other applications.  

Samepage   

Samepage is a cloud-based collaboration software solution that helps teams eliminate project bottlenecks and communicate seamlessly with team members. Samepage provides a suite of project management tools, communication features and built-in integration with commonly used apps such as Facebook, YouTube, Microsoft Excel, Google Maps, OneDrive and many others. The product has a chat functionality to help teams communicate and engage effectively and allows users to comment on pages and keep an audit trail of project activity.   

Highfive   

Highfive is a cloud-based video conferencing and collaboration solution that provides employees in businesses across various industry verticals a platform to communicate and share information with their colleagues and managers. Highfive allows organizers and presenters to wirelessly start and manage meetings from their laptops, phone or tablet and share screens with the audience in the room or remotely via Mac, Windows, Chrome OS, Linux and Android devices. Attendees can join the meeting via custom Highfive URLs.    

Loom   

Loom is a video recording and screen sharing solution that allows teams to communicate with ease, without wasting hours of productivity from non-productive meetings. Loom includes fast recording, screen sharing, link sharing, video editing, emoji reactions and comments, access controls, and advanced reporting. Loom generates a custom URL for every video session, which allows video owners to share links with other users. Loom’s editing tools allow users to edit, trim, and add CTAs and custom thumbnails.   

Bria   

With Bria, businesses can provide their employees with the means to take business calls on the go and work remotely from both desktop and mobile. Additionally, features such as presence, messaging and video conferencing are available to facilitate day-to-day collaboration. Bria is ideal for businesses who have already invested in a premise-based call server and are looking for mobility, or the ability to migrate to a cloud-hosted solution.     

Lifesize   

Lifesize is a cloud-based collaboration solution designed to help businesses connect with their workforce and external partners. It offers audio, web and video conferencing capabilities to conduct virtual meetings and make online calls. Key features include video and audio conferencing, single sign-on, video streaming and broadcasting. Lifesize offers capabilities to conduct both on-demand and planned video meetings. With desktop, web and mobile apps available, users can initiate meetings, invite participants, share meeting links and join sessions from their desktops and mobile devices.    

Workvivo    

Workvivo is the employee communication platform designed to build natural, meaningful bonds between teams, allowing companies to reach and engage their employees. It’s your intranet, communication tool, and employee app all blended into one familiar social experience that people naturally embrace, offering companies the oversight they need while giving employees the freedom and flexibility they desire.    

Crugo 

Crugo is an all-in-one, secure communication platform that increases team productivity by streamlining communications and organizing them more effectively. Crugo provides businesses with the ability to instant message in real-time, share files, maintain task lists, organize and store files, share calendars and monitor RSS news feeds all in a single tool, available cross-platform. 

The communication and collaboration tools that we have discussed above will definitely make it easier for companies to organize their communication, improve workforce productivity and employee engagement. Sign up for these tools and see the difference.