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Whether you’re a high-profile executive managing global teams, or an entrepreneur steering a fast-growing start-up, chances are you’re spending a great deal of time communicating and working from your mobile phone. Unsurprisingly, there is a whole new universe of productivity tools and work applications designed to cater for the nomadic professional, and to keep teams and departments ticking around the clock (and around the world).
While the cynics (and yes, luddites) often warn that quirky apps and slick platforms can sometimes prove to be more of a distraction than anything else, the right ones – when used with discipline, energy and focus – can really streamline work processes and make life easier (particularly when you are trying to execute strategies and close deals in an airport or hotel lobby).
Here are three apps that we believe should be part of any business leader’s mobile toolkit…
Expense management: Expensify
Keeping track of expenses – from Uber receipts to dry cleaning bills, can be an absolute nightmare for the stressed out exec. Meet Expensify.
This service was designed to remove the headache, by simplifying the whole process and making it, well, actually kind of fun. You can take pictures of all your receipts (using the mobile app) to save time, and even track your mileage and record it for reimbursements ?and reports.
Expensify generates those monthly reports for you, using tags to ensure that expenses are correctly filed and categorised.
It also allows users to convert global currencies, so – whether you are on a business trip overseas, or buying from an online store that only deals in dollars – filing the transactions for reports is simple and straightforward.
The app has also recently integrated with travel-related services (such as Uber) so instead of forwarding travel receipts to receipts@expensify.com, users can just make their bookings with the partner service and the information will automatically be sent to Expensify for reporting.
You can start with the basic Team option ($5 per active user per month), which syncs with QuickBooks and Xero, or go for the more sophisticated Corporate or Enterprise options.
Collaboration: Slack
Slack is an increasingly popular platform for team communication, and is especially handy for companies that rely on input from people sitting in different locations.
It enables real-time messaging and file-sharing, as well as allowing managers and team leaders to create various channels according to specific topics, issues, projects or departments.
According to Slack, users have reported a 48% reduction in internal email thanks to the platform, and a 25% reduction ?in meeting time. We particularly like the search function – which allows users to go back and find key information or review chats. It’s also flexible, allowing you to create private groups or send private/direct messages to ?one person.
Slack integrates with other great work tools such as Dropbox, Trello and Zendesk, and these integrations can be set up to post notifications to Slack as events occur.
The app is free to use (with an unlimited number of people), with options to upgrade and pay a monthly fee for more features.
In 2016, Slack will introduce an Enterprise option, which will include organisation-wide reporting, metrics and analysis as well as consolidated billing and administration across teams.
This is an excerpt from an article that originally appeared in the 19 November 2015 edition of finweek. Buy and download the magazine here.
