Collaboration Software

Collaboration Software, also known as group collaboration software or groupware, is software which allows cooperation on a business document between multiple parties on multiple computers. Collaboration software also allows the integration and merging of document changes and versions on a business document.

There are two types of collaboration software: IT centered and low IT involvement. IT-centered collaboration software, like many document and content management platforms, requires new IT infrastructure, training, maintenance and support. Low IT involved collaboration software communicates collaborative information to all parties involved using the existing IT infrastructure and with little or no training and maintenance, making open collaborative software more diverse and less expensive. This type of collaboration software also manages the ad hoc processes of business collaboration, assisting businesses even when the workload and deadlines create a hectic and disorganized schedule.

This article presents an index of collaboration software technologies to assist businesses in finding collaboration software that works for them. Any given internet search on "groupware" or "collaboration software" will yield millions of results. Knowing what technologies to look for will help whittle down the results to a groupware that works the way businesses work.