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Cloud Tech Stack for Remote Working Part 1

By: Bruce G. Kreeger

With the right business software and apps in your cloud tech stack, remotely working staff can be as productive as in the office or even more. 

A “tech stack“ usually refers to a list of all cloud software, programming languages, and other computing technologies that a business uses as the foundation of its service or to power its product offerings. 

For this blog, we‘re going to apply the tech stack idea to remote working. Which cloud apps and technology services should your business be using to support a remotely working staff? After all, with the right cloud tech stack in place at your organization, a work-from-home day will be just another day at the office.

Communication Apps 

Communication is key to keeping dispersed employees informed about what each person is doing. You must provide your staff with a virtual replacement for in-person check-ins and meetings with everyone working from their homes. 

Business communication applications provide a centralized dashboard for staff members to connect in various ways: in-app chat messages, group chat rooms/channels, and even voice and video calls. When staff needs to collaborate on presentation decks, compile quarterly reports, or work together to troubleshoot a customer‘s support issue, they can seamlessly send document links and chat messages to each other within the app. They can also use these apps to talk about last night‘s sports scores or catch up on a coworker‘s recent vacation, which is a necessary replacement for watercooler chat to keep team camaraderie high. 

These communication apps typically come in the web browser, desktop, and mobile versions, so your staff members can use the option that best fits their working habits.  

Apps to Consider: 

1. 3CX Chat 
2. Microsoft Teams 
3. Chanty 
4. Google Hangouts 
5. Slack

Video Conferencing Apps

While chat apps have begun to include video calls and conferences as part of their products, a different solution may be needed if your business has frequent video conferences with a big group of participants. 

Dedicated video conferencing applications have many features. Some examples include: HD video and audio streams, call recording and call transcription abilities, screen share, integrations with calendar apps and email clients, and a hosting control panel that manages the video conference call. These conferencing apps can host hundreds, and even thousands, of video callers on one conference call. 

Video conferencing providers commonly offer their applications as web browser clients, desktop clients, and even mobile apps, meeting various business conditions.

Apps to Consider: 

1. 3CX Webmeeting 
2. GoToMeeting 
3. join.me 
4. Zoom

Hosted VoIP Phone System 

If you‘re not already using it at your business, a hosted VoIP phone system will round out the communication channels for your remote staff. Organizations that use VoIP don’t have to maintain telecom equipment in their offices, and individual employees connect to the VoIP service over their Internet connections. 

Hosted VoIP system features, including voicemail to email, call queue dashboards, and integrations with popular business apps, help working-from-home employees remain productive. VoIP providers also offer video calling and video conferencing as part of their service platforms, so be sure to try them out. If the conferencing feature meets your business‘s needs, you won‘t need a separate video conferencing app. 

VoIP services also equip users with softphones, which are telephone applications accessed on a computer, laptop, or smartphone. Each employee at your company gets access to his softphone, where he can make and receive calls (both audio and video), listen to voicemails, and see his remote working colleagues’ contact availability statuses. 

Clarity‘s 3CX softphone and the 3CX WebClient app is free for all users on ClarityCloudtm, and it is available in a browser, as a desktop application, and as a mobile app. Remote workers who use Clarity‘s 3CX app can keep in touch with colleagues and stay responsive to customers on any device they choose. 

Services to Consider: 

1. ClarityCloud^tm 3CX  
2. 8×8 
3. Vonage 

Read “Remote Work Cloud Tech Stack- Part 2“ to get more on this topic. 

We are proud to have been providing the 3CX Phone System to North and South America since 2006. Clarity is the oldest 3CX Partner in North America, with clients worldwide. Clarity offers this unified communications platform, and ultimately earning the level of Titanium Partner Clarity Technologies Group, LLC surpasses expectations.  

Call Clarity at 800-354-4160 today or email us at [email protected] . We are partnered worldwide, and we are open seven days a week for support, 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM EST/EDT. http://45.33.92.219/and https://dotmantech.com .