What is document collaboration?
Document collaboration is the process of using software to collaborate on projects, records, and tasks in real-time. Team members can work together from the same office or from anywhere in the world, making these tools vital to the success of distributed or remote teams.
Document collaboration occurs within a file that multiple users can edit simultaneously. This teamwork will lead to one final document instead of multiple versions. The file can be a word document, spreadsheet, presentation, PDF, report, video, or graphic design. Document creation software is often used when teams and departments are looking to customize, edit, and share their work.
Benefits of document collaboration
Document collaboration streamlines project workflows. Instead of piecing together different elements at the end, users work simultaneously to reach the finished product without any lag. Teams can expect the following benefits:
- Activity-based working environment: When users collaborate, the focus is no longer on individual effort. Instead, it prioritizes shared ownership of an assignment and working as a team.
- Increased engagement: When teams are consistently communicating and solving problems together they become more engaged.
- Better productivity: Collaborative tools streamline everyday processes. Employees can communicate and get their work done all in one cohesive place. Resources are centralized, saving time and improving productivity.
- Instant communication: Immediate, in-document communication methods allow employees to work together more effectively. Brainstorming is easier, and questions can be asked and answered faster, all within the file to enhance collaborative project planning.
Basic elements of document collaboration
With so many collaboration tools available, some companies may struggle to find software that effectively fits their team’s needs. When searching for the right collaboration tool or project collaboration software, some features to look for are:
- Automatic save: For seamless workflows, documents must save data automatically. When this occurs, all team members are working with the most updated version of the assignment.
- Real-time comments: Documents should have a feature where collaborators can discuss the project as they work. Commenting features are especially useful because they allow users to pinpoint specific areas of the document that require attention with a personalized note.
- Version review: When multiple people work on the same file, version review allows users to go back and look at previous versions. This can come in handy if a user deleted a portion that needs to be added back. Team members can revisit the previous version and copy the deleted portion.
- User permission controls: Permission controls are important security measures, especially for teams working with freelancers, clients, and vendors. These controls give specific permissions and access to their work.
- Mobile capabilities: Mobile capabilities are essential to document collaboration, especially for remote working. This allows users to access and edit projects from mobile devices, like phones and tablets. Offline access is also helpful for teams that work on the go so that users can update the assignment when offline, saving their changes to the original document as soon as an internet connection is online.
- Change history: Teams collaborating might want to track who edited what part of the document. Change history creates a historical audit trail, showing who made the changes and when.
Document collaboration best practices
Document collaboration is most effective when all users are on the same page. Here are some best practices companies can use to streamline collaboration and safeguard sensitive information:
- Clear separation of roles: Identity which users will be owning the document, editing, viewing, and commenting to set permissions accordingly. Specific user roles and access management prevent unexpected edits made by those who were only meant to review the tasks.
- Defining timeframes: Clear timelines should be set, differentiating between drafting and editing periods. No edits should be made until users are finished drafting the content.
- Comment before deleting: Instead of overwriting content, users should make comments and suggestions for seamless collaboration with no data loss.
- Restrict sensitive documents: Some documents should be restricted to prevent users from copying or saving them to personal devices.
Martha Kendall Custard
Martha Kendall Custard is a former freelance writer for G2. She creates specialized, industry specific content for SaaS and software companies. When she isn't freelance writing for various organizations, she is working on her middle grade WIP or playing with her two kitties, Verbena and Baby Cat.
