What Is Remote Collaboration? How to Do It Right in 2023

Zoom, Slack and other remote collaboration tools have become indispensable for businesses looking to stay connected. Hybrid and remote models are now a business benchmark, collaboration tools are more commonplace than water coolers, and they're only going to become more ubiquitous going forwards.

Gartner research found that 80% of workers used collaboration tools in 2021 and, as businesses continue to invest in new solutions, the market is expected to reach $20.8 billion by 2026. However, getting your team to download software isn't always a silver bullet for success, especially if meaningful collaboration isn’t baked into your company's culture.

If you're looking to improve remote collaboration in your business, we explore what the concept really means, which tools can help you achieve it, and why they're so necessary in 2023. We also discuss how you can use VoIP securely, to offer you that extra peace of mind.

On this page:

• What is Remote Collaboration?
• Benefits of Remote Collaboration
• Effective Remote Collaboration Tools
• Team Collaboration Best Practices For Remote Employee Engagement 
• How to Achieve Secure Online Collaboration
• Remote Collaboration FAQs

What Is Remote Collaboration?

Remote collaboration is what takes place when team members work together on common projects or goals, despite not sharing the same geographical location. 

Aided by digital collaboration tools like instant-messaging platforms and video conferencing apps, remote collaboration helps companies that offer remote work stay connected, and is becoming a vital tool for businesses in a globalized world.

When employees can collaborate effectively from remote destinations, it can benefit them and their company in numerous ways. With 86% of executives citing ineffective collaboration and communication as a major factor for workplace failures, it's also a challenge that business leaders can't afford to leave unaddressed. 

We explore a few major upshots of remote collaboration below.

Benefits of Remote Collaboration

Productivity – Despite fears over the pandemic's impact on global productivity, research suggests that working from home part- or full-time can actually increase output. Our survey reveals that 47% of businesses noticed increased productivity levels among employees who work remotely.

Job satisfaction – Working in silos doesn't benefit your company or its workers. Aside from boosting performance, cultures of collaboration contribute to better team morale, increased confidence and, as a result, higher levels of job satisfaction. Survey data from Zippia reveals that employees are, on average, 17% more satisfied with their job when they engage in collaboration at work.

Reduced costs – Remote collaboration tools require initial investments. But by downsizing office spaces or doing without in-person working altogether, hybrid or fully remote companies can make massive savings on rent and utilities. Therefore, for businesses looking to shave costs without sacrificing performance, leaning on smart communication software is one of the best options out there.

Healthier work-life balance – By stamping out lengthy commutes and giving workers greater control over their schedules, flexible working has the power to significantly improve work-life balance. With healthier distinctions between work and personal life being empirically proven to improve employee mental health and productivity, its benefits can't be understated.

Effective Remote Collaboration Tools

Despite a recent push by many companies to end remote work, some employers – such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Airbnb – continue to support hybrid working or even offer fully remote jobs. Moreover, even companies issuing return-to-office mandates aren’t ordering workers to return for a full five-day week, making collaborative software vital to almost every business.

As remote collaboration tools facilitate flexible forms of working and open up greater opportunities for Gen Z and minority workers, which types of software should businesses be considering?

Instant messaging platforms

As companies move away from emails as their primary form of internal communication, chat-based platforms like Slack have seen explosive growth. Instant messaging tools let teams collaborate in real-time by sharing messages, documents, and voice notes to their colleagues. If you’re after an all-purpose solution, lots of project management software offers live chat capabilities, allowing businesses to stay connected and track vital workflows from one place. 

Our research found that ClickUp is the best project management software solution to choose from, with an excellent management system called ‘Work OS,’ which has over 15 ways to track project progress, and a generous free plan for smaller ventures, while monday.com is a highly customizable alternative.  

Video calling platforms

As we've hinted at, conference call services are a must for hybrid or remote teams. While chat-based tools offer valuable ways to connect and relay information, online meetings allow for enhanced levels of collaboration and engagement, helping to break down any barriers caused by geographical distance. 

Video conferencing platforms are upping their offering every month. From Microsoft Teams' new virtual avatars and AI-generated closed caption features, to Zoom’s recent “Intelligent Director” service, the use cases go far beyond the standard video call. Unsurprisingly, Teams performed well in our video conferencing app research because of its ever-evolving functionality, but RingCentral took our top spot in the app rankings because of its excellent integrations and its stellar value for money.

VoIP software

Relying on the internet instead of copper phone lines, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) software is an affordable, reliable, and flexible alternative to the traditional phone system, that supersedes the need to be in the office, at your desk, with a specific, wired handset.

VoIP goes beyond web conferencing tools to ensure effective remote collaboration and centralized data collection across many devices and locations, for those who make and receive external calls as well as needing to comminicate internally.

In addition to making calls, VoIP systems can offer a range of impressive capabilities including automatic call forwarding, customizable video conferencing, and even instant messaging, for completely unified communications. It can run off your business's existing laptops as well, preventing the need to fork out on new devices to expand your connectivity. 

After researching the leading VoIP providers, we found that RingCentral provides the best softphone app, with unlimited audio conferencing, smart AI features, and excellent security safeguards to boot. If cost reduction is your top priority, Google Voice offers a solid VoIP service too for just $10 per user, per month.

Looking for a physical IP phone? Our guide to the best VoIP phones reviews the top options out there, for when you are at your regular desk, whether that be at home or in the office.

Team Collaboration Best Practices For Remote Employee Engagement

While smart software makes it exponentially easier for teams to connect and collaborate from afar, they aren’t a magic wand. Remote and hybrid working can still pose challenges for effective teamwork, so if you’re serious about using tools to foster a culture of collaboration, you need to know how to tap into their full potential.

We discuss remote workforce management tips next, to help you get the most out of your business software.

1. Schedule regular catch-up meetings 

When teams work in remote locations, it's easy for important information to get lost in the fold. So, if your team isn’t able to hold in-person meetings, video conferencing apps offer a streamlined way to set up weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly check-ins. 

In addition to catching up on professional matters, regular check-ins will also help build the rapport that’s necessary for teams to function effectively, which is why they remain a staple for most companies. 

2. Make time to socialize

Working remotely can be isolating, so to keep morale high it's also important to schedule opportunities to connect and socialize outside of work hours. Online socials don’t have to be limited to awkward Teams calls. Some creative ideas include themed quizzes, virtual escape rooms, and even 10-minute online coffee breaks.

3. Celebrate wins through online chat channels

While it can be harder to recognize successes virtually, platforms like ClickUp and Slack offer excellent ways to celebrate individual or team wins.

Whether you set up distinct channels focused on spotlighting achievements or harness pre-existing channels, celebrating wins publicly helps encourage workers to meet their full potential, and it will make them feel like valued members of the team.

4. Create team-building rituals

According to Harvard Business Review, focusing on ‘affinity distance’ – which refers to the values, trust, and independency levels between teams – is one of the most effective ways to tackle team performance. One way to shorten affinity distances is by creating and maintaining virtual team-building rituals.

These rituals can take many forms, from sharing a personal update, piece of news, or pop culture gossip at the start of every check-in, or asking workers to hold a unique or personal prop when it's their time to talk. There really is no right or wrong idea but, generally speaking, the more creative, the better.

5. Make collaboration one of your company's top values

Successful online collaboration can't be achieved overnight. To create a remote workforce management strategy that sticks, we'd recommend making collaboration one of your core company values.

In addition to following the practical steps outlined above and investing in the right technology, this means business leaders should focus on rewarding collaborative behavior and fostering a mindset where workers win, lose, and learn together.

How to Achieve Secure Online Collaboration

While the remote working revolution has heralded countless benefits to companies and employees, it's also created a unique set of challenges for businesses looking to keep their information secure.

According to relevant research, these are the most important security protocols businesses should be aware of in 2023. Scroll down to learn more about what they mean for your business.

• Firewalls – Firewalls are the first line of defense between your business's server and external threats. They keep you secure by monitoring incoming and outgoing traffic and blocking sources that are deemed unsafe. When looking for remote tools like project management platforms, considering options with built-in firewall protection, like ClickUp. These providers will help you block malicious content before they pose a threat.
• Data loss prevention – Data loss prevention (DPL) is a set of practices and tools that help businesses prevent the misuse or loss of sensitive information. Most remote collaboration solutions offer some type of DPL features, from limiting guest access to securing messages with end-to-end encryption (E2EE), but we'd also recommend implementing your own DLP strategies — like regularly backing data up and identifying sensitive data — to keep potential fallout to a minimum.
• Security compliance management – Security compliance management is the process of routinely monitoring devices, systems, and networks to make sure they comply with regulatory requirements and cybersecurity standards. When you're managing remote workers with multiple platforms, staying on top of compliance management is a must.
• Penetration testing – Also referred to as ethical hacking, penetration tests involve simulated cyberattacks on computer systems. Penetration testing helps to identify and address any vulnerabilities in remote working software, to ensure there are barriers in place that can adequately protect against real threats.

• Patch management – Patch management is the process of applying provider-issued updates to close vulnerabilities in software and devices. Whether your team is staying connected through video calling apps or VoIP systems, to keep them secure it's important to keep an eye out for emerging security patches.
• Provider security assessment – Before getting started with a new collaboration tool, we recommend conducting a provider security assessment to ensure they follow the correct security protocols. This is as simple as measuring the vendor's security practices and identifying its potential risk factors.

Remote Collaboration FAQs