Speaker 1: Do you want to create a collaborative workspace at your organization, but aren't sure where to start? Collaborative workspaces are essential for boosting team productivity and efficiency. Creating a collaborative environment at your company can be a breeze with the right mindset and a few of the best tools. In today's video, we're going to discuss how to create a collaborative workspace and what tools you should use to optimize your team's work environment. I'm Alex from JotForm. Let's get started. Collaborating with your team to work towards a shared goal is essential when it comes to successful teamwork. Collaboration enables teams of all sizes to present ideas and create innovative solutions to problems. Every team needs a space to collaborate. A collaborative workspace is designed to encourage sharing and development. Though we often see this as a physical workspace, both physical and virtual workspaces are important for teams to achieve their goals. Today, let's look at how to create a collaborative environment to improve your team's productivity and efficiency. But first, what are the benefits of collaborative workspaces? One benefit is increased productivity. Collaboration leads people to perform five times better than working alone, and a collaborative workspace supports your team's ability to work together seamlessly. Another benefit is faster problem solving. When employees from different backgrounds work together in a collaborative space, they are likely to reach solutions faster by drawing from their varying skill sets and experiences. One additional benefit to consider is how collaborative workplaces can improve company culture. Collaborative workspaces enable employees to develop relationships with each other and with the company as these spaces evoke a sense of inclusiveness and support. Now that we know why you should have a collaborative work environment, let's talk about how to make one. Whether working remotely or in an office, here's a few steps to follow to create an environment that encourages collaboration. First, you'll want to establish a central communication channel. Creating a collaborative environment begins with communication, as teams need a centralized communication channel to encourage feedback and keep everyone in the loop. Then, you'll need to build a company culture that encourages collaboration. In collaborative work environments, it's essential for employees to feel that they are heard by your company. This means prioritizing internal communication and promoting your company's core values. Next, you should extend collaboration to physical spaces. For offices, it's equally as important to have an environment that's conducive to fostering communication, information sharing, and camaraderie. This looks like stepping away from the individualized cubicles and moving towards a more inclusive, think tank-style environment. The best physical workspaces for collaboration are the ones that feel relaxed, offer a variety of seating options, and limit capacity. Lastly, you'll want to invest in tools that facilitate collaboration. Without the right tools, it can be difficult to create a collaborative workspace. You'll need to find the right hardware and software tools for your team, train your team on how to use them, and utilize the right security that makes it safe to use them. The tools you choose will depend upon the specific needs of your team, but in general, a mix of communication, project management, document creation, and file sharing tools should be enough to support your team. There are many solutions out there to assist in developing a collaborative workspace, but it's important to find the right combination for your team. Let's look at some of the most popular tools to power your workspace. First, there's Slack. Slack is a great communication and collaboration tool for teams of all sizes, and it's one of the most popular tools out there. Slack makes it a breeze to create a virtual hub for your team to discuss their work matters. To get Slack, there's a free plan that supports an unlimited number of collaborators. The second tool we recommend is Zoom. Nowadays, Zoom is a household name as it is the ideal tool for online meetings for as many as 1,000 people. If you're working with remote staff or clients, Zoom will be a crucial tool to have. Then there's Google Workspace. Google offers many free tools to help facilitate the perfect workspace, like Google Drive for files, Google Docs for documents, and Google Meet for meetings. And though Google's free offerings are enough for most users, its paid Google Workspace feature provides businesses with even more features, like expanded storage, business emails, and more. Another great tool to have in your toolbox is JotForm. JotForm is a versatile form builder that makes collecting and sharing data a breeze with its visually appealing online forms. It comes in handy for creating surveys and can accommodate audiences of all sizes. JotForm integrates with many project management and collaboration tools like Slack and Trello, making it easy to collect and track cross-platform data. Fifth on our list of tools is Trello. A card-based software that is one of the most popular and easy-to-use project management tools. Trello can do anything from maintaining a personal to-do list to powering an entire engineering team. Even better, Trello's free plan supports an unlimited number of users with a maximum of 10 boards. Next up, there's Asana, a mature project management tool with a bit more functionality than Trello. Asana is perfect for keeping track of multiple interconnected projects across teams. Every project has its own conversation view where team members can discuss ideas for that specific project. Last but not least, we have Basecamp, another project management favorite. Beyond core project management functionality, Basecamp offers a built-in chat function, meaning that you may not need any additional chat software. A collaborative workspace can benefit your organization in many ways, and by using the right group of tools, you can form an environment that propels your team to their highest potential. Let's take a moment to review what we've covered today. Collaborative work environments are key when it comes to increasing your team's productivity, solving problems faster, and improving company culture. To create a collaborative workspace, you'll need to establish a central communication channel, build a company culture that encourages collaboration, extend collaboration to physical spaces, and invest in tools that facilitate collaboration. While there are many great collaboration tools out there, the most popular ones that we recommend are Slack, Zoom, Google Workspace, JotForm, Trello, Asana, and Basecamp. Thanks for watching. Again, I'm Alex from JotForm, signing off.