As remote work becomes increasingly common, effective online collaboration tools are more important than ever to help teams work together seamlessly.

Everything from project management software and video conferencing apps to a digital mailbox is available. This article will explore six top-rated online collaboration tools that can help streamline communication and collaboration within your team.

Cloud storage and file-sharing tools

Cloud storage and file-sharing tools allow teams to access and collaborate on files from anywhere. Some popular options include Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive. Dropbox is a cloud storage tool that allows teams to store, share, and collaborate on files, with features like automatic syncing and file recovery. Google Drive, on the other hand, is a popular choice for teams that use Google’s suite of productivity tools, like Google Docs and Sheets.

Video conferencing tools

Video conferencing has become vital to remote work, allowing teams to communicate face-to-face from different locations. With so many video conferencing tools available, it can be challenging to choose the right one. Some popular options include Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams. Zoom, in particular, has become one of the most popular video conferencing tools due to its ease of use and reliability. Its features, including screen sharing and virtual backgrounds, make it an excellent option for small and large meetings.

Project management tools

Project management tools help teams stay organized and on track, whether working in the same office or remotely. Some popular project management tools include Asana, Trello, and Basecamp. Asana is a powerful project management tool that allows teams to create and assign tasks, set deadlines, and communicate with each other in real time. Trello, on the other hand, is a visual tool that uses boards, lists, and cards to organize tasks and projects.

Instant messaging tools

Instant messaging tools allow teams to communicate quickly and easily without the need for email or phone calls. Some popular instant messaging tools include Slack, Microsoft Teams, and WhatsApp. Slack is a team communication tool that allows teams to organize their conversations into channels and direct messages, share files, and integrate with other tools.

Online whiteboards and diagramming tools

Online whiteboards and diagramming tools are helpful for teams that need to brainstorm and collaborate visually. Some popular options include Miro, Lucidchart, and Canva. Miro is a whiteboard tool that allows teams to collaborate on diagrams, wireframes, and mind maps. Lucidchart, on the other hand, is a diagramming tool that allows teams to create and share flowcharts, org charts, and other visual representations.

Time tracking and productivity tools

Time tracking and productivity tools help teams stay on track and meet deadlines. Some popular options include RescueTime, Toggl, and Harvest. RescueTime is a time-tracking tool that helps teams understand how they spend their time and identify areas where they can be more productive. Toggl, on the other hand, is a simple time-tracking tool that allows teams to track time for specific tasks and projects.

Parting words

Effective teamwork requires the right tools for collaboration. Whether it’s video conferencing, project management, cloud storage, instant messaging, online whiteboards, or time tracking, many tools are available to help teams work together more efficiently and effectively. By using these six online collaboration tools, teams can break down barriers and work together, no matter where they are.

LinkedIn profiles can be divided into multiple categories – those who are actively seeking a job, those who have already found great jobs, and third, entrepreneurs and thought leaders. The catch is recruiters might be looking at all these professionals in order to find the right candidate. 

This means that your LinkedIn profile needs to stand out from the crowd. That being said, it is not a hard task. This is because many people fail to optimize their LinkedIn profiles based on their goals. 

So, today, we will explain what you need to do with your LinkedIn profile to catch the attention of recruiters. 

Add a Website Link 

Gone are the days when resumes used to be multi-page PDFs. Today, individuals are getting creative with their resumes and portfolios. So, our first suggestion for job seekers is to set up a website that can serve as a portfolio and a resume. 

The layout will ultimately depend on the profession. For instance, software developers might have a resume and details of the projects they have handled. On the other hand, paper writer and designer will also have a portfolio section that showcases their best works. Similarly, some professionals might also prefer using their social media links. 

No matter the choice, LinkedIn allows users to include links to their websites, resumes, profiles in the introduction section. This can be a great tool for job seekers to redirect recruiters to their websites. 

Don’t Sell Yourself Short

When you are looking to get the attention of recruiters or employers, LinkedIn will serve as a window to your professional experience. As such, make sure that your previous internship or part-time student job titles reflect your experience. 

For instance, you might have done an internship in a company that required you to do the job of a junior analyst. In this case, you can include ‘Junior analyst’ in the title and mention that this was an internship position. That being said, make it a point not to exaggerate your skillset because if the recruiter calls the company for reference, it shouldn’t appear as if you have lied on your profile. 

Make Sure to Include a Comprehensive Description 

It is not only the title of the roles that matter. You should also pay attention to how you present yourself in your profile. It is crucial to include keywords that resonate with the specific role you are looking for. 

In the description, you can add responsibilities and the projects you work on with bullet points without making it look too overwhelming. 

LinkedIn Featured Section 

LinkedIn’s featured section is mostly used by those who have a portfolio to showcase. However, the space is not exclusively for sharing your work samples. You can also use the tool to feature the posts you have shared or any articles you java published on LinkedIn. If you haven’t shared any, you can also include posts that you have been tagged in. 

LinkedIn also allows users to attach external media like images, documents, and links in the featured section. In other words, there is room to get creative. 

Leverage Recommendations 

In today’s professional world, recommendations play a crucial role. The same applies to LinkedIn too. If you have glorious recommendations from your college mates, colleagues, or even your professors, then your profile is going to stand out. 

However, naturally, you might find it awkward to randomly ask someone for a LinkedIn recommendation. But, if you already have feedback from them – such as from a reference letter – then you can take the initiative to check with them if you can post this on your LinkedIn profile. 

This way, your contact doesn’t have to do any extra work, but you will also be able to boost the credibility of your LinkedIn profile with authentic recommendations. This approach can also be a great tool for students with no prior experience to score a job. 

Stay Active 

Well, this might not strike us as a ‘non-obvious’ way of getting noticed on LinkedIn; however, it’s a tip that most of us often tend to ignore. It is important for job seekers to be active on LinkedIn and interact with others. It is only a matter of liking, commenting, and sharing other people’s content. 

It might also work in your favor if you produce and publish your own content. You can pick a topic that interests you, and it need not be related to your profession. LinkedIn supports multiple formats of content, including articles, videos, and images. This can get your profile more exposure and help you get noticed through searches. 

Avoid Making Your LinkedIn Profile Look like a Resume 

While LinkedIn indeed can be a great way to exhibit your professional skills, you should not simply copy-paste your resume. LinkedIn is designed to be a professional networking platform. In other words, you need to use this site to put up your ‘best professional front.’ 

This means that you will also need to bring on a bit more personality to the profile, offering insight to other users into what kind of a person you are. This is why it is important for you to engage on LinkedIn. By creating and sharing content, you will be able to create a profile that best represents your professional aspirations as well as personality. 

Check your LinkedIn Social Selling Score

LinkedIn has also set up a unique feature called the Social Selling Index, which assesses the strength of a profile based on four factors. This includes the professional brand, connections, engagement, and relationships. 

This feature mainly targets thought leaders and entrepreneurs. However, individual job seekers can also refer to this score to find out how your profile comes across to others. According to LinkedIn, those with a higher SSI score generate more opportunities. So, it wouldn’t hurt job seekers to find their SSI score and adjust accordingly to improve their visibility on LinkedIn. 

Cracking LinkedIn’s secrets is not a tough task. By using the tips we discussed above, you can polish your LinkedIn profile to make it look more attractive to potential employers and grow your network.

It’s not always easy to choose the right degree subject, and now, with so many options compared to any time in the past, this is even more true. The lucky ones are those who have a definite leaning towards one thing or another and who know exactly what they want to do in terms of their career. For others, it can be much more challenging to understand which degree is the best one for them.

One thing to consider when trying to make this choice is what degrees will be needed in the future. Which ones are linked to careers and sectors that are expanding and becoming more important? If the main reason for choosing a degree is to get a stable job afterward, this can certainly point you in the right direction. With that in mind, here are some of the degrees that will likely become more useful as time goes on.

Data Science

If you look at data science trends, you’ll see more data is used today than ever before – around one quintillion bytes every day. This data is used by businesses to help them make decisions, create marketing campaigns, predict trends, and even grow their businesses using data-driven strategies. This niche is crucial, and it needs experts who can determine what the given data all means and provide business owners, organizations, and even governments the information they need to derive from said data to then be able to take the next steps – and succeed.

This is where having a degree in data science may be useful. Since the amount of data in use across all kinds of niches is growing – as are the uses of said data – the need for people who can extract meaning from it and use it to great advantage is also increasing. As a data science expert, you can also expect good job stability and plenty of chances for progression in your career.

Human Resources

There have always been human resource departments within businesses, even if they weren’t known as that initially. These are the people who take care of employees; they oversee perks and benefits, allocate vacation days, help those who are sick, and deal with disputes between workers.

You might think that this is not such an important element of business or that it is effectively dying out since so many people are choosing to become self-employed or work freelance. However, this is far from the truth. There is still a need for people to be employed, and as long as people are working for others, human resource professionals will be required.

If you also add to this the fact that the way people work is changing, and remote teams are now prevalent, you’ll see how having HR experts in a business can help with a wide range of issues that were never problems before, including burnout, isolation, and productivity.

Nursing

So far, we’ve discussed technical and business-based ideas, but what about nursing? It’s certainly a degree that will always be needed because no matter what technology comes in and how we use it, the hands-on approach to medicine will never be replaced.

There is also a nursing shortage, meaning that if you study for a nursing degree, you will likely find work at the end of it. Although nursing is not something everyone can do, it could be the perfect sector for you if you want to help people and you want a job for life.