Following the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work has become the new norm for millions of employees around the globe. While some governments have begun loosening quarantine measures, thanks in part to successful social distancing campaigns, many companies still have several weeks or months of stay-at-home orders to contend with.
According to a recent survey of remote working conditions, many are having trouble adjusting to the social isolation caused by staying at home and working alone. Office interactions, especially the more spontaneous ones, are difficult to emulate in a digital environment.
To help remote workers better cope with the experience, Zoho, a global leader in remote desktop and communications software, is introducing new social features to its popular Cliq messaging service, including check-ins and live video feeds.
Cliq check-ins and live video feeds
Cliq is Zoho’s response to Slack and Microsoft Teams: a full-featured business-oriented messaging and collaboration app, to centralize workflows, facilitate communication between team-members, and organize files.
The recent update has added a host of new features aimed at making remote working a more comfortable experience.
The check-in feature enables users to connect and set a status when they “arrive” at the home-office, so others can easily see that they’re ready to collaborate, while a dashboard also lets you easily see who else is already checked in and what they’re up to.
The Live Feed feature is designed to make it easier to see who’s at their desk and available to collaborate.
“Live video feed helps you mark your telepresence,” writes Masana M, a product manager at Zoho. “Imagine how you’d look at your co-worker’s desk to see if they’re free before heading over for a quick discussion? Cliq’s Live Feed is just the virtual equivalent!”
Both features are available now for Zoho Cliq.
