Although uniting remote teams has challenges, effective collaboration methods result in increased trust, higher engagement and improved productivity. To foster a strong collaborative environment, it is vital to implement tools which make workflows simpler, more transparent and more efficient.
Pete Ryan, Head of Product at Drawboard, has led large teams for over twenty years and is passionate about building and leading high performing teams with a strong collaborative focus. His extensive leadership experience has shown him the value of utilizing effective collaboration tools to build high performing teams.
“My two big motivations are my team and our customers; seeing what we get to build together and the problems we solve for our customers. Good collaboration is the ability to effectively communicate and get everyone on the same page so we can succeed together.”
Pete shared his tips to help companies improve remote collaboration and choose the best software solutions to support this.
Open and honest communication is top of the list for Pete, along with the importance of two way conversations. By having everyone on the same page and fully aware of their expectations, problems can be solved more cohesively.
“Leading teams is about making sure that you’re clear about directions and what is expected, but also listening to what is required from the people working for you. The biggest thing for me is making sure we help each other when needed, because everyone is going to have different challenges at different times. Accountability isn’t just on one, it’s on us as a group.”
Pete and his team have recently rolled out a new feature on Drawboard PDF, Store+Share, which allows users to upload and annotate PDFs in the Drawboard PDF cloud in real-time. This makes it easier for teams to share their work, keep each other updated, and collaborate more effectively.
“It helps teams to easily share information while also providing a platform for two way communication. Within my team it’s encouraging to see the improved collaboration and real time interaction, and working this way drives a better culture for us overall.”
Pete began his role at Drawboard while working remotely, so he has a first hand understanding of the difficulties when leading distributed teams. Many popular collaboration tools have their limitations, and it was important to him to discover how team members could better connect on a human level.
“A big driver for us is providing ways to help improve how we connect. The tools you have available can make collaboration a lot easier, and help you better understand another person's point of view.”
Everyone prefers to communicate differently, whether verbally, visually or in writing.
Store+Share provides a range of ways for users to annotate and markup PDF documents across multiple devices, enabling increased real-time interaction within teams.
“With Store+Share you’re able to access a PDF document and freehand write your annotations. This makes it easy to quickly mark up your documents and easily communicate feedback that colleagues can see immediately. From project management to task management and note taking, a whole team can markup a PDF together regardless of location.”
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Pete emphasizes the importance of ensuring all team members are educated about and feel comfortable using new tools, in order to gain maximum benefit from them when collaborating.
“Good collaboration is about ensuring everyone is able to share their thoughts, but also unanimously agree on the team’s next steps. It’s about the inclusivity of the group, ensuring everyone feels part of the process and has the right avenues to show their input and work.”
Store+Share helps drive productivity by providing an easy way for teams to access and share their documents. Markups can be completed without gathering an entire team together, and it’s also possible to securely share information with non Drawboard users via a weblink.
“We’re making sure you can get at whatever you need to, from any device available. A big thing for us is how you can access your own information from anywhere, easily share it with others, and successfully collaborate regardless of location.”
Pete is confident the new Store+Share feature on Drawboard PDF will benefit companies across the architecture, engineering and construction industries, where design flows go through multiple people. However, the feature has applications across a wider range of industries.
“A big benefit will be in things like legal and financial documentation that people need to markup or sign. Store+Share enables you to keep all your files securely stored, up to date and accessible in class, on the road or in the office. It means you spend less time on finding, uploading and sending PDFs – and more time on getting your best work done.”
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Get started with Drawboard PDF today and your first 10 documents on Store+Share are free. For more storage and advanced tools, check out Drawboard PDF Pro.
Although uniting remote teams has challenges, effective collaboration methods result in increased trust, higher engagement and improved productivity. To foster a strong collaborative environment, it is vital to implement tools which make workflows simpler, more transparent and more efficient.
Pete Ryan, Head of Product at Drawboard, has led large teams for over twenty years and is passionate about building and leading high performing teams with a strong collaborative focus. His extensive leadership experience has shown him the value of utilizing effective collaboration tools to build high performing teams.
“My two big motivations are my team and our customers; seeing what we get to build together and the problems we solve for our customers. Good collaboration is the ability to effectively communicate and get everyone on the same page so we can succeed together.”
Pete shared his tips to help companies improve remote collaboration and choose the best software solutions to support this.
Open and honest communication is top of the list for Pete, along with the importance of two way conversations. By having everyone on the same page and fully aware of their expectations, problems can be solved more cohesively.
“Leading teams is about making sure that you’re clear about directions and what is expected, but also listening to what is required from the people working for you. The biggest thing for me is making sure we help each other when needed, because everyone is going to have different challenges at different times. Accountability isn’t just on one, it’s on us as a group.”
Pete and his team have recently rolled out a new feature on Drawboard PDF, Store+Share, which allows users to upload and annotate PDFs in the Drawboard PDF cloud in real-time. This makes it easier for teams to share their work, keep each other updated, and collaborate more effectively.
“It helps teams to easily share information while also providing a platform for two way communication. Within my team it’s encouraging to see the improved collaboration and real time interaction, and working this way drives a better culture for us overall.”
Pete began his role at Drawboard while working remotely, so he has a first hand understanding of the difficulties when leading distributed teams. Many popular collaboration tools have their limitations, and it was important to him to discover how team members could better connect on a human level.
“A big driver for us is providing ways to help improve how we connect. The tools you have available can make collaboration a lot easier, and help you better understand another person's point of view.”
Everyone prefers to communicate differently, whether verbally, visually or in writing.
Store+Share provides a range of ways for users to annotate and markup PDF documents across multiple devices, enabling increased real-time interaction within teams.
“With Store+Share you’re able to access a PDF document and freehand write your annotations. This makes it easy to quickly mark up your documents and easily communicate feedback that colleagues can see immediately. From project management to task management and note taking, a whole team can markup a PDF together regardless of location.”
Pete emphasizes the importance of ensuring all team members are educated about and feel comfortable using new tools, in order to gain maximum benefit from them when collaborating.
“Good collaboration is about ensuring everyone is able to share their thoughts, but also unanimously agree on the team’s next steps. It’s about the inclusivity of the group, ensuring everyone feels part of the process and has the right avenues to show their input and work.”
Store+Share helps drive productivity by providing an easy way for teams to access and share their documents. Markups can be completed without gathering an entire team together, and it’s also possible to securely share information with non Drawboard users via a weblink.
“We’re making sure you can get at whatever you need to, from any device available. A big thing for us is how you can access your own information from anywhere, easily share it with others, and successfully collaborate regardless of location.”
Pete is confident the new Store+Share feature on Drawboard PDF will benefit companies across the architecture, engineering and construction industries, where design flows go through multiple people. However, the feature has applications across a wider range of industries.
“A big benefit will be in things like legal and financial documentation that people need to markup or sign. Store+Share enables you to keep all your files securely stored, up to date and accessible in class, on the road or in the office. It means you spend less time on finding, uploading and sending PDFs – and more time on getting your best work done.”
---
Get started with Drawboard PDF today and your first 10 documents on Store+Share are free. For more storage and advanced tools, check out Drawboard PDF Pro.
We are a PDF and collaboration company. We believe that creating more effective connections between people reduces waste.
Our best work has been overtaken by busywork. That’s why we’ve created ways to help people get back to working wonders without any paper in sight.
Drawboard PDF lets you mark up and share with ease, and Drawboard Projects brings collaborative design review to architecture and engineering teams.
At Drawboard, we work our magic so our customers can get back to working theirs.
We are a PDF and collaboration company. We believe that creating more effective connections between people reduces waste.
Our best work has been overtaken by busywork. That’s why we’ve created ways to help people get back to working wonders without any paper in sight.
Drawboard PDF lets you mark up and share with ease, and Drawboard Projects brings collaborative design review to architecture and engineering teams.
At Drawboard, we work our magic so our customers can get back to working theirs.
