What are the benefits and challenges of using collaborative writing tools like Google Docs or Dropbox Paper?

Collaborative writing tools are a double-edged sword; they can drastically improve efficiency but also come with their own challenges. Tools like Google Docs make team projects easier but have their problems, like safety risks and not always working with other software. Before diving in, talk with your team about how you'll use these tools and keep your work safe. Tip: Always set up a quick team meeting to go over ground rules when starting a new project on a collaborative tool. This helps everyone know their role and how to use the tool effectively.

Establishing a communication protocol that ensures effective collaboration is a must. Among these protocols include a definition of roles and division of responsibilities. For some groups, the use of a version to control and track the document's revisions is essential; for others, simply using track changes works well. For me, neither method works because I only move forward, and I don't like clutter. I like the document to be living, and I don't need to see who contributed what because I feel the final project belongs to all.

I will go out on a limb here and say, "Don't". Just don't. I have been a full-time computer savvy individual in the writing and HR side of things for 25+ years now and I can say that both Google Docs and DropBox are simply not universal or user friendly enough to recommend. No one wants to log into their Google account at work to open your Google document. Most of us can not even remember our login credentials, etc. Rule of thumb for me; if the individual will need to "login" to open your document, you have sent it in the least user friendly means possible. Unless this is a legal document that needs to be signed, stick with universally accessible formats that do not require login credentials.

1) Useful for real time collaboration but can be confusing with multiple people editing concurrently. Also need a single person, e.g. Team Lead, to look through the whole document at the end to format the presentation and synchronise the writing style. 2) One final copy in the cloud where anyone in the team can access and edit. Also able to have view-only access for those who need to know and want to see the most up-to-date version at their own timing. 3) Members need to be in almost constant communication via chat. This is useful if it is at the final editing stage, but can be distracting in the early drafting stage. Ideally a single person can come up with the draft/template, and the rest make edits to their relevant section(s).

If you are the main point of contact for a piece, always remind your collaborators to turn on "suggesting mode" before they start making changes. I also recommend keeping a "clean copy" of the original document that you don't share with anyone in the case that you want to easily go back to your source material/original work without undoing or tampering too much with the final product.