Bringing remote teams together for stronger collaboration

Collaboration lies at the heart of building exceptional products. But today's business landscape is increasingly challenging. Small business owners are constantly being squeezed in all directions, as customers, armed with tighter budgets, still expect the same level of excellence.

Businesses must walk a delicate tightrope as they aim to deliver the best customer service, while balancing fair pay for employees with staying profitable.

The need to adapt

At the same time, the working environment is also evolving, forcing small businesses to adapt. Today, teams are more scattered than ever, although this has unlocked some new benefits.

Businesses can hire the very best talent and attract new clients from anywhere. People get to work where they feel most productive and are more able to offer their varied points of view. But with every opportunity comes its own set of challenges.

When working remotely, real hurdles can start to emerge when it comes to managing time zones, navigating cultural differences, and making sure teamwork across countries is seamless. Add to this the pressure to keep work moving at speed, and suddenly you've got a team that can't keep up the pace.

But for small businesses, keeping up with demand is not just an option – it's vital. That's why small businesses need to re-evaluate how they collaborate in today's world of work – and the tools that they use to break down geographical barriers.

Introducing the right technology for international collaboration

A great example of this comes from Myth Studio, a London-based animation powerhouse. Launched during the pandemic, Myth Studio was born in the perfect storm. Lockdown orders made shooting video with people extremely difficult, and this increased the need for animation and motion graphics.

Despite worldwide restrictions, using Dropbox made building and growing a small business possible with fully remote teams. So much so that in June 2022, one of the biggest global names in the beer industry came knocking.

"It was quite a turning point for us," says Jimmy Gordon, Myth Studio's business development director. Once one multinational company comes calling, more follow.

But to tackle working with such big and international brands, Myth Studio had to rethink its resources. It needed to grow a collaborative team fast, and so it decided to support the work of its nine full-time staffers with its wide network of highly skilled freelancers.

This flexible approach allows Myth Studio to quickly respond to rising demand by ramping up its creative power. And it's been a key strategy in their rise to success.

Frankie Evans, senior producer at Myth Studio explains:

"When you've got a big project that comes on and maybe the scope is a bit bigger than you thought it would be, you have to double the team size."

But this new way of working requires the right tools to support it, as Frankie says:

"In order for this to work, people need to be integrated amongst the team, and everybody needs to be singing from the same hymn sheet."

How Dropbox Replay can help

That's why Myth Studio turned to Dropbox Replay, to provide its in-house teams and freelancers with one central review process. Frankie explains:

"When working across multiple locations in Dropbox Replay, the live viewing feature creates a virtual space for synchronized playback.

"So whether we're reviewing something as a team internally, or setting up a live-feedback watch party for clients – instead of sharing a screen, talking through a film that then lags, and trying to pinpoint edits that can create confusion – whoever needs to jump on jumps on and you're all watching at exactly the same time."

With organised version control and integrations with other popular editing tools, Replay lets the team to turn around content and sign off final versions faster. Jimmy comments:

"By having the right tools in their hands, our people are able to execute business-defining work, without having to be in the same room, or on the same time zone."

Today, Myth Studio's set of tools also includes Dropbox Dash, whose Stacks feature the team uses to organise business development files and client inquiries. Meanwhile, Dropbox Capture allows Myth Studio's teams to create a video archive of their processes for onboarding remote freelancers and new team members.

Conclusion

By using the right tools, small businesses like Myth Studio are removing the barriers that get in the way of remote collaboration, and using the benefits of distributed work to their advantage.

Setting your sights on growth in 2024 and beyond, creating an environment in which creative minds can collaborate across borders is crucial. It's the small businesses that use the right tools in today's world of work that will be well positioned to deliver the speed and excellence that customers demand.

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Relevant resources

• Managing remote teams: Why communication and leadership are key

• Managing remote teams: Useful tools for keeping staff organised and motivated

• Making a success of remote working