With the increase in suspected cases of Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Brazil, many companies are adapting to avoid crowding and reduce the chances of contagion.
Depending on the work routine, some companies have canceled in-person external services, others have adopted home office , others are rotating employees between shifts, and many are still maintaining normal standards, but with care in the hygiene of the environment and employees.
In this post, we've compiled 15 tips on tools that will help companies with communication, document access, task management, video conferencing, security, and productivity. These tools are useful for avoiding personal contact, both for those who have chosen remote work and for those who remain in the same environment. Your company can't stop .
Communication
To begin our tips, we've chosen to first establish the foundation for communication between all employees. This tool will serve as a kind of virtual office. Each department can have its own channel to address different issues and exchange important documents.
These tools will prevent you from having to get up and go to a coworker's desk every time you have a question. Furthermore, it improves your focus at work because it allows you to answer colleagues' questions at the most convenient time for you.
Slack
Slack brings all your communication together in one place. In Slack, teams work in channels, a central location for messaging, tools, and files. This saves everyone time and allows for teamwork.
For small teams, Slack is free indefinitely. See pricing .
Microsoft Teams
Work remotely without feeling disconnected. Microsoft Teams lets you fully enjoy the upside of teamwork: the frictionless sharing that makes great ideas exceptional.
Your company can use Microsoft Teams for free, but with limited features. See pricing .
Workplace
Connect your employees to business goals, company values, and each other with the intelligent and familiar features of Workplace.
Created by Facebook, Workplace can be used for free with up to 50 group members. See pricing .
Cloud-based file and document storage
These tools are used for the secure sharing of files and documents among collaborators, regardless of their location.
Google Drive
Google Drive is a file storage and synchronization service that was introduced by Google on April 24, 2012. Google Drive now houses Google Docs, a suite of productivity applications that offers document editing, spreadsheets, presentations, and much more.
Microsoft 365
Office 365 is an online subscription-based version of the Microsoft Office suite of office/productivity applications, focused on simultaneous collaborative work by a large team and on security, launched in June 2011 and developed by Microsoft.
Dropbox
box is a service for storing and sharing files. It is based on the concept of "cloud computing." It belongs tobox Inc., headquartered in San Francisco, California, USA. The company that developed the program provides computer hubs that store its clients' files.
Task management
Due to the Coronavirus, we need to avoid personal contact. Therefore, it is very important that your company implements a tool to track the organization's or department's tasks. With this tool, all employees can monitor the status of tasks, who is responsible, and deadlines.
Trello
Trello is a project management application. With Trello's boards, lists, and cards, you can organize and prioritize your projects in a fun, flexible, and rewarding way. See pricing .
Pipefy
Pipefy is a Process Management Platform that empowers managers to organize and control their work in one place. This allows everyone to automate and streamline any process on their own. See pricing .
Monday.com
monday.com information sharing among team members. See pricing .
Meetings and video conferences
We know that many meetings can/should be avoided during this period. Sometimes, a simple message or email is enough to resolve the issue. But, if it's really necessary, these tools help with the conversation, as they bring everyone involved together in the same online room, allowing communication via audio and/or video.
Zoom Meetings
Zoom Meetings is a video conferencing tool geared towards corporate environments that supports meetings with up to 500 participants and 10,000 viewers in webinar mode. See pricing .
Skype
Skype is the software that lets you talk to the whole world. Millions of people and businesses use Skype to make free two-way video and voice calls, as well as group calls, send chat messages, and share files with others on Skype. You can use Skype on your preferred device: your mobile phone, computer, or tablet.
Skype is free.
Google Meet
Google's tool for video calls on PC and mobile. As a measure to reduce the risk of spreading the coronavirus (Covid-19), Google announced that Hangouts Meet is available to all G Suite users.
Safety and productivity
We know that the Coronavirus is changing the routine of companies. Many are adapting internally and others are allowing employees to work from home. But, to help with the adaptation, all are implementing new online work tools. And it is at this point that we find another danger.
The internet is full of dangers such as malware, ransomware , and phishing that can damage company equipment or steal confidential information. Therefore, it is extremely important for companies to adopt tools to increase security and avoid costs associated with maintenance or data breach payments.
LastPass
LastPass Password Manager is a freemium password manager service. It is available as a plugin for the Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera, and Safari browsers. There is also a LastPass Password Manager bookmarklet for other browsers. See pricing .
DNSFilter
DNSFilter is a cloud-based content filtering and threat protection service that can be deployed and configured without the need for software installation. See pricing .
Lumiun
Lumiun is a cloud-based service that protects your business from internet threats, making your network more secure and your team more productive. See pricing .
Due to COVID-19, Lumiun is bringing forward the availability of the Enterprise VPN for current and new customers, regardless of their plan. Previously, the feature was only available in beta for some Enterprise plan customers.
With Business VPN , employees working from home can access internal company resources, such as documents on the file server, printer, ERP system, and more.
Connected to Lumiun's VPN, the employee's equipment is protected against internet risks . Furthermore, the manager can monitor in real time which websites are being accessed and apply the necessary rules to prevent wasted time on sites outside the scope of work.
The company Lumiun also made available on its website some really cool material about the adoption of home office by companies .
Additional tips
While these tools are useful for improving the safety and productivity of companies' day-to-day operations, the main ways to avoid COVID-19 contagion involve individual attitudes and common sense. According to the Ministry of Health , these are the guidelines for protecting yourself and others:
- Wash your hands with soap and water or use hand sanitizer;
- Cover your nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing;
- Avoid crowds if you are sick;
- Keep the rooms well ventilated;
- Do not share personal items;
- And avoid sharing fake news .
Did you miss any other tools? Share your suggestions in the comments below.
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