Anyone who uses his or her own tablet for work knows that a mobile device means a constant, almost intravenous hookup to the office. Try a few of these tips to increase your productivity on a tablet.
Staying in Touch
A face-to-face meeting is often the best way to guarantee clear communication. With mobile VoIP apps like Skype, available for iPad or Android, you can make voice and video calls over a Wi-Fi connection, saving precious data plan gigabytes for personal use. Of course, you can also use these apps on the 3G or 4G network depending on the capabilities of your tablet.
GoToMeeting, available for both iPad and Android tablets, enables you to start and join online meetings as well as to view reports and presentations on your tablet.
If you’re managing multiple social media accounts from an app like HootSuite while toggling back and forth to your email, try a web-based service like Alternion.
While Alternion hasn’t developed tablet apps yet, you’ll be hard-pressed to find another management tool that integrates with Alternion’s sheer quantity of social media platforms while also giving you instant access to e-mail.
Delivering Presentations
Whether you’re presenting to a roomful of colleagues or to an individual client, you can unleash the presentation power of the tablet with Keynote for iPad and ThinkFree Mobile for Android.
Apple’s Keynote app allows you to edit Keynote or PowerPoint presentations by importing files through iTunes file sharing.
3D charts and animations as well as easy navigation between slides create sophisticated presentations when you’re on the go.
ThinkFree Mobile features a PowerTool that allows you to design presentations or to deliver PowerPoint presentations. The program also features top-notch document editing which allows you to bring your entire office with you.
Managing Document Workflow
Build a collaborative office by using Google Apps or Office Web Apps.
Google Apps is pre-installed on most Android devices and simply requires your login information to access your e-mail, documents, spreadsheets and presentations from your Android tablet. On the iPad, you can use Google Sync to sync between your Google Apps and your Mail, Calendar and Contacts apps.
Microsoft’s Office Web Apps are available to anyone with a SkyDrive account. They have also recently been touch-enabled to make them easy to use on a tablet. While Microsoft will use Office 365 to drive sales of Windows 8 and the Surface tablet, the company has recognized the need to make its Office Web Apps available without plug-ins on any browser.
Generating Ideas
Evernote, for iPad and Android, syncs notes across your tablet, computer and smartphone to allow for quick access to your ideas.
In addition to writing down text in Evernote, you can photograph items, clip web pages or record audio to augment your text. You can also share your notes with colleagues, and all text—including photographed text—becomes searchable.
Some Final Notes
- Your workplace may offer enterprise apps to integrate features like video conferencing, call forwarding and presence to your tablet. Use your company’s apps to make collaboration easier if those resources are already available.
- Always consult your employer’s security policy related to what you can and can’t access or download to your tablet.
- If you’re a salesperson who collects money from clients on the go, don’t forget your tablet’s ability to capture mobile payments. Use a reader like PayPal Here, Square, or Intuit GoPayment to process credit card payments using your tablet.
What apps do you use to increase your mobile productivity? What other tips do you have to offer for making work easier on a tablet?
By the way, if any of these tips help you save time, please use those precious minutes for leisure. Don’t use them to do more work.
