Technology makes it possible: Individuals, teams and groups can now work on the same project at different times and in different locations desks. “Social Collaboration” is the umbrella term for Internet-based collaboration; “Social Business Collaboration” in turn stands for shared networked collaboration in a company context. After a first article that broadly examined the topic, the second part now contains a few examples of programs with which private and smaller business projects can be pursued over the global network.
“Social Collaboration”: Software for private users and smaller business tasks
The problem with a list like this right away: There is no ideal solution for all possible needs. It is true that more wishes can be fulfilled with one program and less with the other, as individual projects can ideally be followed via the Internet. However, for true social business collaboration, software developed specifically for the respective company will be essential. Companies that only want to network certain areas should take a closer look at the common solutions from large providers. And private individuals who want to work together on a birthday invitation or volunteers who want to spread certain parts of the club's work across more shoulders should know a few of the most common applications.
A very simple example of how working together on a project over the Internet works: the shared shopping list. Anyone who has to run a household can use this simple example of social collaboration to understand what it is all about: A clear task, namely the procurement of various groceries and household items, should be able to be carried out by several people regardless of time and place. Programs like “Buy Me a Pie” or “Our Groceries” have something significantly ahead of the shopping list analog version, commonly known as shopping lists: they are available in practically all places at the same time and are always up to date thanks to “cloud” integration.
To start: shopping lists
Let's take the following situation: The cat sneaks around the house early in the morning with a reproachful look, while the father's daily outburst of anger from the direction of the kitchen suggests that the daughter has once again put the empty milk carton back in the refrigerator. The son pointedly remarks that the sister has a very similar policy when it comes to toilet paper and the mother - someone has to be pragmatic - takes advantage of the situation to ensure that the vinegar, oil and sugar in the pantry does not end up in the same way as the milk and cat food. She ignores the unpleasant chorus of mutual blame and grumbling and prefers to pick up her smartphone. She creates a family shopping list, shares it with father, daughter and son and one by one adds cat food, milk, toilet paper, vinegar, oil, sugar and bread for dinner.
When the family swarms out to do their daily work at different schools (children), in... office (father) or in the agency (mother), there are several bakeries, supermarkets and drugstores along the individual paths. When the mother turns on her smartphone after work, she sees that her husband has already gotten bread from the bakery during his lunch break and the daughter has brought home cat food and toilet paper from the drugstore: The points in question have already been marked as “done,” so the only thing left for the mother to do is get milk, vinegar, oil and sugar from the nearby supermarket. She will also cross out the completed items from the list at the checkout - and because the list is constantly updated via a server, the son will find an empty list when his soccer training is finished. Of course, only if the family at home doesn't think of something else: They could theoretically put it on the list at short notice and, for example, instruct their son to make a quick stop at the hardware store to replace the light bulb that has just burned out.
This example shows in a very simple but fundamental way where the strengths of social collaboration lie: A group of people who are in different places at different times can successfully pursue a joint project. Most programs work accordingly - according to the basic principle of such shopping list apps. Whether they run on a PC, an Android phone or an iOS-powered tablet computer or are enriched with a few functions that allow users to maintain databases, edit documents or collect media. By the way, digital to-do lists also work according to the shopping list principle. They are often enriched with a few functions.
A little more complex: to-do lists
Anyone who has ever struggled through a long project knows the principle: a list on which a timetable was written down with heart and soul at the beginning helps small miracles to be consistently implemented. The initial planning work has been done, from now on your head is free to work through the points one after the other in a targeted manner. “Wunderlist” is such a useful little helper.
“Todoist”, “Taasky”, “Google Keep” or “Any.do” others. Depending on the situation, in addition to the obligatory option to create lists together or check individual items as “done”, the lists also have helpful gadgets such as location-based reminders. If, for example, the address of the bakery is entered at the point “Get bread”, a reminder alarm goes off as soon as the smartphone owner is located near that bakery. Alternatively, you can specify a specific time, assign special tasks to individual users or add attachments, such as directions or recipes, to individual points.
Please note: The software product names mentioned are actually intended as examples and not as tips. Given the overwhelming number of useful programs, it is almost impossible to make recommendations. It's worth comparing the details and finding out individually which app or program comes closest to your personal needs. Another selection criterion can be the platforms for which the software is offered: If different platforms are used in the household, club or company, it makes sense to find a common denominator - a program that is available for Android, Windows, Mac and iOS, for example. It can also be practical if the program runs not only on the mobile device, but also on the PC or Mac - this is how it works Office chair You can access the social collaboration tool from the company, from your smartphone while traveling by train, or from your tablet in your living room at home.
For experienced users: project management
The same applies even more to the next expansion stage: project management. Programs that can be used to plan and, if necessary, process more complex processes should be able to run in parallel on as many devices as possible. With project management programs like the veteran “Things” for the Mac, you can create many different to-do lists, group them into folders and sort them according to various parameters – however, this software is only available for Apple products. It manages and categorizes a wide variety of lists and keeps them synchronized on the iPhone, iPad, Mac or Macbook. Due dates and current entries are displayed in a daily summary, and individual tasks can be assigned a priority.
Microsoft has also been offering corresponding software for over 30 years: “Microsoft Project”, which nowadays of course also works with a cloud. “Wrike” offers many different functions, including comprehensive document management and integration with common programs. Basecamp is software that focuses on file sharing, task management and discussions - and of course communication. Also worth a look and, above all, available for all possible platforms: The “Wunderlist”, which is successful worldwide for private use, is now also available in a project management version with many business functions.