The 14 Best Tools to Manage Remote Employees in 2023
2020 saw the increasing popularity of remote working. With a global pandemic at our doors, companies had to adapt to this new reality, and remote work was the solution.
Nowadays remote work still remains a reality for many companies.
If you are looking for the best tools to manage remote employees, keep reading this article!
We’ll give an overview of several tools you can use within your company’s environment. The tools will help you to optimize processes and make the work days super smooth.
The best 14 tools to manage remote employees
Asana
Are you looking for a visual list of every task you have, who’s working on it, and its stage? Then, you need Asana!
One of the top productivity planners, with Asana you’ll be able to create teams, projects, and tasks within the set teams and projects.
Users in Asana can assign and pass tasks to each other. In this manner, they’ll respect the flow of the work.
Once it’s finished, you just need to mark it as such and everyone on the task will be able to see it.
Why you should use Asana:
- gives you a visual representation of a task or project workflow;
- allows document attachment and comments;
- includes Kanban boards to prioritize and manage tasks and projects;
- intuitive and easy to use;
- allows task sharing via email or link;
- constant connection with email notifications.
Trello
Trello is considered one of the best free digital planners you can use.
With Trello, you’re able to create digital Kanban boards with several tasks, which are displayed as cards. You can organize the tasks according to your priorities, in several columns.
Each task can be attributed to a person or group of people, who then are able to comment on it and move the card from column to column if needed.
Why you should use Trello:
- it’s free!
- allows for comments and document attachments;
- intuitive and easy to use
- gives you a clear visualization of all the current tasks, priorities, and who is working on each task;
- allows task and project sharing via email or link;
- constant connection with email notifications.
Todoist
Like the name indicates, Todoist works as a virtual to-do list, for team members to keep track of their tasks.
This remote team management tool allows you to create to-do lists by day, week or month. In Todoist, you can prioritize and delegate tasks as well.
Why you should use Todoist:
- it helps you get a visual representation of your, and your team’s, to-do list for the day, week, and month;
- allows for comments and document attachments;
- allows you to quickly add tasks via email;
- tracks your productivity and completed tasks.
Timeular
This is the best time tracking tool to manage remote employees, and Timeular is one of the easiest time tracking tools you can use.
Timeular allows you to track time-based on activities and tags shared by the whole team and create reports from your team’s time records.
It’s the easiest way to keep track of your team’s productivity without invading their personal working space.
If you or your team don’t know what time tracking is and its benefits, our guide is what you need.
Why Timeular is one of the best tools to manage remote employees
- intuitive and very easy to use;
- automatic report creation with insightful data on working hours and productivity levels;
- allows you to set goals and reminders, to increase your time awareness;
- integrates with more than 3000 apps;
- time tracking app focused on increasing productivity levels instead of hour control.
Slack
Used by many companies around the world, Slack allows communication within teams of any size.
The tool allows you to create different channels, according to the number and type of participants, and different group conversations. It also has some fun features, like the ability to create personalized stickers, which you can send to your teammates.
Why you should use Slack:
- intuitive and easy to use;
- allows document attachment and real time editing;
- allows you to invite external people to join internal conversations;
- allows both audio and video calls;
- it comes with don’t disturb features, for keeping distractions to a minimum.
Get to know the best team communication apps to use in your work.
Microsoft Teams
An all-around complete tool, which allows you to communicate with your team, via messages or video-call, but also manages documents, tasks, and much more.
It belongs to the Microsoft 365 universe, so it can be easily connected to Outlook, One Drive, Microsoft Calendar, among others.
Inside Microsoft Teams, you can schedule calls, create personalized conversations and even share documents.
Why you should use Microsoft Teams:
- allows easy communication between team members, through messages and video-calls;
- allows document attachment and real time editing;
- allows you to invite external people to join internal conversations;
- don’t disturb and busy features, for keeping distractions to a minimum;
- email notifications about messages you received.
Breezy
Recruitment can be a difficult task for HR departments working in remote companies. But, there are tools that can help companies find and manage the best talents from the comfort of their homes.
One of those best tools to manage remote teams, especially on recruitment process is Breezy.
This Applicant Tracking System allows you to create job postings, attract the best talent, manage all the recruitment workflow in just one place.
All the team can have access to the recruitment processes and participate in them, even if they are working from home.
Why you should use Breezy:
- you will be able to streamline your recruitment processes;
- allow your colleagues to have input on the candidates;
- give the candidates a great remote hiring experience.
Zoom
We needed to list Zoom as our top tool to manage remote employees. Why? It’s a free app dedicated only to video calls that are excellent, for example, to lead meetings.
It includes options such as meeting rooms, chats, webinars, and conferencing. Zoom is one of the best ways to keep your employees connected and allow for live conversations, even if they are working from home.
Why you should use Zoom:
- allows you to record sessions and download them to your computer;
- mute and unmute options;
- screen sharing option;
- different video background options, for a more corporate appearance;
- increases the communication among teams;
- great for external meetings or interviews.
Skype
Everyone knows Skype, and we’re sure you do too! This is a video tool that allows you to make voice and video calls to anyone in the world. Oh, and did we mention they are free?
That’s right, you can call anyone in the world for free! The perfect feature for international remote teams.
Why you should use Skype:
- free video and voice call;
- you can have it on your smartphone screen sharing option;
- great for communication among international teams.
Google Drive
This is one of the best tools to manage remote employees and it’s one of the most popular file-sharing tools in the world! With Google Drive, you will be able to store all your files in a secure and intuitive platform.
These documents can then be accessed by anyone on your team, regardless of their location. As it is a cloud-based app, you can easily share the files by adding people as collaborators or by providing links.
With Google Drive, you can also use other apps, such as Google Docs and Google Sheets, to create documents online and allow for cooperative work among your team members.
Why you should use Google Drive:
- intuitive and easy to use;
- accessible storage for all your documents;
- easy sharing mechanism for all the files;
- it keeps track of changes you make on files for 30 days.
One Drive
Similar to Google Drive, One Drive allows you to store your documents and share them with your coworkers.
It belongs to the Microsoft 365 Universe, so it can be easily synced with Microsoft Teams and Outlook.
Why you should use Google Drive:
- intuitive and easy to use;
- accessible storage for all your documents;
- easy sharing mechanism for all the files;
- it can be synced with Microsoft Teams.
Dropbox
This is a great file-sharing app to keep on your desktop. It allows you to share files with all your team members, whether it be documents, videos, or images. Dropbox can be used on computers or mobile devices.
Why you should use Dropbox:
- synchronization ability for all the files on your computer’s Dropbox;
- accessible storage for all your documents;
- it keeps track of a file’s history, so you can keep track of all the changes made to a document.
TeamViewer
Have you ever found yourself wanting to demonstrate or explain something to your coworker, but not being able to do so because you are working from home? If yes, TeamViewer is the tool for you.
This is one of the best tools to manage remote employees, as it allows you to control another person’s computer from the comfort of your home.
You can ask for permission to control another person’s computer or allow another person to control your computer – as simple as that.
Why you should use TeamViewer:
- it makes remote communication and collaboration easier;
- easy to use;
- allows you to explain or demonstrate something on someone’s computer more easily, regardless of your location;
- drag and drop feature from one computer to another;
- it works across multiple systems (Windows, Linux, and Mac devices).
Evernote Business
Evernote Teams works as a virtual white board for team members to share ideas. It’s a more advanced version of Evernote, which only allows personal notes on your computer.
This app is a great way to take notes during virtual meetings or to keep track of ideas during a brainstorming session. It also comes with a task planner, calendar and a web clipper, to instantly save important information you may have found on the internet.
Why you should use Evernote Teams:
- it offers additional features, such as a task planner and calendar;
- intuitive and easy to use;
- encourages cooperation between team members.
Going remote is easier than ever!
These are the best tools to manage remote teams and employees. With this stack, you’ll have everything you need to be succeeded.
Managing a remote team can be challenging. However, if you use the right tools, it can become as easy as having your team members right by your side every day!
Choose the ones that fit your company culture and embrace the remote life with the right tools to help you in your everyday work.
You might be interested in: