11 Best Software Tools for Remote Teams (for All Use Cases)

11 Best Software Tools for Remote Teams

(for All Use Cases)

In this article, we take a look at the best remote team software tools available. We cover several different types, from software that helps your remote team conduct meetings to tools designed to increase productivity.

If you want to jump around, you can choose the category you’re most interested in learning about:

Remote Team Meeting Software

1. Geekbot

Daily standup questions.

When attempting to hold synchronous meetings via video call (e.g. Zoom or Google Meet), remote teams encounter several problems:

  • Synchronous meetings are annoying. Everyone on your team has to stop working when it’s time to attend a synchronous meeting. These interruptions can add up. Studies show that it takes an average of 25 minutes to get back on task once interrupted.
  • They are difficult to schedule. Remote teams often work on different schedules and communicate from different time zones, making it difficult to find a time that is convenient for everyone.
  • They are time-consuming (and can get off track). Synchronous meetings are notorious for going off track. What is supposed to be a 30-minute meeting can easily turn into an hour-plus event due to unpunctuality, off-topic discussions, etc.

These issues, and more, are why we created Geekbot.

Geekbot is a free tool that integrates with Slack and Microsoft Teams, and allows you to conduct asynchronous meetings quickly and without interruptions.

There are no scheduling issues because team members fill in their answers when it’s convenient for them. Plus, meetings are fast because you can quickly review text-based updates instead of sitting through a lengthy video call.

Brief Description of Geekbot Operation

First, you must schedule your meeting with Geekbot. You can schedule a one-time or recurring meeting.

Set any recurring pattern.

Then introduce the relevant questions from the meeting:

Add, delete, and otherwise customize questions.

When the time comes, meeting questions are sent to participants via direct message in Slack or Microsoft Teams.

Direct messages from Geekbot.

Once someone has completed their questions, their answers are shared on a public or private channel of their choice.

See all answers in one place.

Your team can view the responses of others and, if necessary, respond to an update by creating a thread:

Solve blockers in a separate thread.

To recap, remote teams benefit from using Geekbot to conduct their meetings because:

  • They do not interrupt anyone’s workday.
  • They are easy to program.
  • They are quick to perform.

Geekbot is completely free for teams with 10 or fewer users.

You can click here for a more detailed breakdown of how you can use Geekbot as remote team meeting software or you can start your free trial today.

Project Management Software for Remote Teams

2. Trello

Trello

Trello helps remote teams collaborate and manage ongoing projects.

When you sign up, you can create a Trello board. On your kanban board, you can add cards that correspond to specific tasks. You can add documents to the card, as well as add specific team members, due dates and more.

Trello is very intuitive and simple, making it ideal for remote teams who don’t want to spend a lot of time learning new software.

Here’s a demo video on how to get started with Trello. FYI: This is a slightly older video, so the visuals may look different in your Trello account, but the information is still relevant.

3. Jira

Jira

Jira is a project management tool. Compared to Trello, Jira was specifically designed more as a Scrum tool, as it helps development teams improve sprint execution.

Here is a 10+ minute demo on how to use Jira.

Jira is free for up to 10 users (although you don’t get all its features). And plans can go up to $14.50 per user.

Click here for more info on Jira’s pricing structure.

Software for Remote Teams to Improve Team Communication

4. Slack

Slack

Slack is ubiquitous in remote teams. It’s a free and easy way to communicate with your team, no matter where they are. (We use Slack to help us manage our distributed agile team).

With Slack, you can:

  • Create public or private channels
  • Send direct messages
  • Set up integrations with apps like Geekbot

Here’s a quick 2-minute demo on how to use Slack.

Slack has a free plan where you can search through the previous 10k messages, integrate up to 10 apps, and do 1-to-1 video calls. But there are paid plans with advanced functionality (and more storage) starting at $6.67 per user. Click here for more pricing details.

5. Zoom

Zoom

Zoom lets you have face-to-face online meetings with your remote team over its video conferencing platform. 

There’s an easy-to-use Zoom app, plus Zoom can integrate with platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams. That means you can send Zoom meeting invites within those channels. 

There are quite a few features to Zoom (from large webinars to screen sharing to private groups to direct messaging), so there’s no quick demo but Zoom has uploaded video tutorials to YouTube for you to reference

If you’re joining Zoom for meetings, there is a free plan. But the free plan limits how many people you can have on a call and how long your conferencing calls can last. For information on paid plans, click here.

Note: Are you using video calls to run daily standups? Learn more about the downsides of running synchronous video standups

Remote Team Tools for Cloud Storage

6. Google Drive

Google Drive

Google Drive is a cloud-based file sharing system. It’s ideal for companies/teams that use G suite. (If you’re an Outlook user, head down below to learn about OneDrive.)

Here’s a third-party demo on how to get started with Google Drive.

7. OneDrive

OneDrive

OneDrive is a file-sharing platform like Google Drive, but it’s made for Outlook/Microsoft users. 

Here’s a third-party guide on how to get started with OneDrive.

Remote Tools for Helping with Time Management

8. Focus Mode by Geekbot

Focus Mode by Geekbot

Focus Mode is a free pomodoro app that we made to integrate with your Slack account.

By breaking your workday into pomos — timed sessions with breaks between each session — you can stay focused when it counts and get more done in less time.

Plus when you use Focus Mode, you’re silencing notifications (like a message from Slack) that would otherwise interrupt your workflow and get you off track.

Here’s a quick video on how Focus Mode works.

9. Todoist

Todoist

Todoist is an app that lets you make detailed and customizable to-do lists. It has a wide range of integrations, so you can keep track of your to-do list while you tackle your work week.

There is a free plan made for individuals or small teams. On the free plan, you can have 5 active projects, 5 collaborators on a project, and get 1-week of activity history.

For more projects, collaborators, and storage you can choose one of Todoist’s paid plans.

Here’s a quick overview of how Todoist works.

Remote Tools for Building Team Culture

10. Nectar

Nectar

Nectar is a great way to remotely reward behaviors from your team. This means you can publicly reward a remote worker for reaching a milestone or coming up with a solution. But Nectar is also a “360” recognition platform, which means anyone on the team can recognize and call out anyone else’s positive behaviors/accomplishments.  

You can also set it up so point balances can be redeemed for rewards — like digital gift cards and company merch.

Nectar has a free pricing plan with unlimited users. But on the free plan, you can’t integrate with popular tools like Slack. Click here for more pricing details.

11. Fond

Fond

Fond is another way to recognize your team and build a positive team culture with remote workers.

Pricing is based on custom quotes, which you can get here.

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