Most managers assume that remote working causes a decline in an employee’s productivity and disruption of workflow. However, the situation nowadays proves that remote team management can be successful if you use the right strategy. An essential aspect of this strategy is using the proper tools for managing a remote team. Now you may wonder what tools are the best for managing remote teams? To answer your question, we will provide a comprehensive list of the top 10 tools for managing a remote team in select categories.
1 Video conferencing — Zoom
Zoom is a cloud-based video conferencing platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars. This software is the foremost tool for managing a remote team because of its video & audio conference capabilities. Zoom allows users to have online meetings, video webinars, conferences, business instant messaging, and so on. Other exceptional features of this tool include:
- On-Demand Webcasting
- Instant Messaging
- Live-streaming
- Video & Web Conferencing
Zoom offers four user plans: Basic, Pro, Business, and Enterprise. The Basic plan is free for hosting up to one hundred users. It supports unlimited 1-on-1 meetings, forty minutes limit on group meetings and most Video Conferencing and Web Conferencing features are available. The Pro, Business and Enterprise plans cost $14.99, $19.99, $19.99 for small teams, SMBs, and large enterprises, respectively.
2 Time Management—actiTIME
actiTIME is a professional time-tracking software with features like team management, Work-scope management, Leave Time Management, and Report & Data Analysis. actiTIME helps corporations — including Intel and PayPal — to manage their remote teams by efficiently tracking both time and productivity. actiTIME features a user-friendly UI design and additional add-ons, enabling integration with browsers, APIs, and actiPLANS. We will list the noteworthy features of this tool below.
- Time Tracking
- Work Scope Management
- Flexible Product Configuration
- Reports and Data Analysis
- Data for Accounting
actiTIME provides a free version for teams of up to three users, making it an excellent choice for managing small remote teams. actiTIME is available as a cloud-based solution, a web browser add-on, a mobile timesheet app, and a self-hosted package.
3 Project Management – Meistertask
MeisterTask is a cloud-based project management application for organizing, tracking, and managing various projects. Meistertask contains a wide variety of workflows – ranging from simple project boards to Scrums, Kanban systems, and so on. This virtual team management tool features flexible project boards to suit your remote team’s workflow. Meistertask is perfect for programmers in agile product development, a remote team of marketers using the Kanban system. Some other features of this application include:
- Agile Project Management
- Kanban Tools
- Product Management
- Productivity
- Task Management
MeisterTask allows for integrations with other tools such as GitHub, Zendesk, and Slack. Users can subscribe to four different plans: Basic, Pro, Business, and Enterprise. The Basic plan is free for simple task management. The Pro plan — at $8.25 per month — is for powerful integrations and workflow automation. The Business plan — at $20.75 per month — is for group sharing and sophisticated permissions. The Enterprise plan suits large businesses, and the cost is negotiable with MeisterTask. This tool is available on Mac OS, Cloud, Web, Windows OS, iOS, and Android OS.
4 File Management – MEGA
- Unlimited Storage and Fast File Transfers
- End-to-End File Encryption
- Secure Communication
- File Versioning
- Automated synchronization
MEGA is available on Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS, Web extensions, Cloud. MEGA’s basic version is free for everyone with up to 50GB in storage space. MEGA for Business provides additional functionalities such as User Management and a 400GB storage for $10.93 per user/month. You can purchase extra storage space on the MEGA Cloud by either subscribing to the Pro plan.
5 Email Management – SMTP2GO
SMTP2GO is a scalable email service provider for sending transactional and marketing emails and viewing reports on email delivery. When your remote team operates from different parts of the world, SMTP2GO is the email-hosting service you need. SMTP2GO has servers all over the world in different countries, which means you will get faster connection speeds and no network redundancy. Key features of this email management tool:
- Email Management
- Transactional Email
- Queue Management
- Response Management
- Signature Management
SMTP2GO is available only on Cloud, SaaS, and Web browsers. SMTP2GO is free for less than 1000 emails per month.
6 Security – 1Password for Teams
1Password is a password manager that stores all your passwords, helping you keep your account information safe. 1password doubles down as a digital vault, form filler, and secure digital wallet. This tool makes it easy for your remote team to operate their accounts safely regardless of their geo-location. 1Password significantly minimizes the risk of security breaches or human error. Core Features:
- Password Management
- Computer Security
- Endpoint Protection
- Identity Management
1Password is available on Mac OS, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS, Web extensions, Cloud. Pricing starts from $3.99 per user monthly. The Business plan costs $7.99 per user monthly with extra features.
7 Product Management – Jira by Atlassian
- Scrum boards & Kanban Boards
- Backlogs
- Roadmaps
- Agile Reporting
- Single Project Automation
- Global and Multi-Project Automation
- Storage
Jira is a freemium software, and its free edition allows for up to 10 users. Jira’s standard and premium plan cost $7/ user/month and $14/ user/month, respectively.
8 Remote Employment – Distant Job
Distant Job is a beneficial tool for building up your remote team or adding an extra member. The recruitment platform helps you recruit full-time remote employees without outsourcing. The perks of this tool are that the platform offers you recruitment, HR, and payroll capabilities in dozens of countries.
Key Features:
- Recruitment
- Payroll
- Vacation & Holidays
- Contracts & Legal
The pricing plans are flexible and may depend on your business or industry.
9 Collaboration – Canva
Canva is a freemium web-based platform for creating customizable graphs, prints and presentation slides in collaboration with your remote team. Canva is the right platform for building cohesion between your remote team members.
Key features of this tool:
- Graphic Design
- Charts
- Customizable Templates
- Media Library
- Collaboration Tools
Canva’s free plan comes with limitations on some features. The Pro plan — which costs $9.95 per month — has all its features and a free trial for 30 days.
10 Signature Management – SignEasy
SignEasy is a cloud-based solution for signing documents or getting documents signed from smartphones, tablets, and computers. SignEasy’s compliance with the E-Sign Act, the eIDAS Regulation, and the European Directive makes it popular amongst individuals and businesses across various industries. With SignEasy, you can quickly get valid signatures from your remote team members, eliminating the need for their physical presence.
Core features include:
- Digital Audit Trail
- Support for 24 file formats
- Passcode and fingerprint authentication
- Multi-Party Signing
SignEasy pricing for individuals starts at $10/month per user and $60 per month for businesses. SignEasy also offers a free trial at the start of each plan.
Summary
Managing a remote team of workers can prove very challenging if managers cannot take the proper approach. With the right tools in place, your remote team management strategy will prove more effective than you expect.
