How to Manage Online Document Collaboration Effectively.

The ability to be able to collaborate on documents online has changed the way we work and share information with colleagues, business partners, fellow students, friends, and family. The need to wait for emails to be sent and attachments received and be confident that you’ve got the latest version of a document to review, or edit, is mostly eliminated.

Online document collaboration can be done in real-time, with everyone able to see the changes others are making within the same document as it is done. To make the process seamless, consider the platform you use, and how you can best work with others on your documents shared online, including when you edit PDF documents. Read on to learn more.

What you’ll learn

• What online document collaboration is
• Choosing cloud collaboration apps and tools to suit your content
• Tips for working collaboratively with documents in the cloud
• How to share PDF files within Adobe Acrobat

What is online document collaboration?

The term online document collaboration describes the process of multiple people working together on a single document, file, or project in real-time using internet-based tools or software. Users can create, edit, review, and share documents online simultaneously, regardless of their geographical locations.

The key features of online document collaboration include —

• Real-time editing.
  Multiple users can edit the same document simultaneously. Updates and changes are instantly visible to all people with access to the file.

• Version history and tracking.
  Many collaboration tools maintain a history of revisions, and the ability for users to track changes, revert to previous versions, and see who made specific edits.

• Comments and feedback.
  Users can add comments, suggestions, or annotations within the document. This helps with communicating and providing feedback to other people contributing to the contents or format of a document.

• Access control and permissions.
  Document collaboration platforms often offer different levels of access control. Users can set permissions for viewing, editing, and online document sharing.

• Cloud storage.
  Documents are stored online in the cloud. This makes them easily accessible from various devices and locations so collaborators can work on documents at any time from anywhere.

Use cloud collaboration tools to suit your content.

There are many cloud-based online collaboration platforms to choose from. Use secure online platforms and apps that suit the type of content on which you are all working. For example —

• Adobe Acrobat Online.
  You can use the cloud storage within your Adobe Acrobat online account to share and send your PDF files to others for viewing, commenting, editing, and signing.
  When you share a PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Online, you’ve got options to allow or not allow anyone with the link to view and comment on your file. You can add email addresses of collaborators and set deadlines for a response.
  
  Upload an existing PDF file or convert your Word to PDF online, Excel to PDF online, PowerPoint to PDF online, edit PDF documents online, and more.

• Adobe Document Cloud.
  With Adobe Document Cloud you can not only easily share and store your large files online, but you can also view and edit files directly in your browser with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and, of course, Adobe Acrobat.

• Adobe Creative Cloud.
  When you’re working on a creative and collaborative design project, and need to work on files with apps like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and others, the Adobe Creative Cloud is the place to be to work collaboratively. Adobe Acrobat is in there too to save your files and get them ready for printing and/or publishing online.

• Add a cloud storage account within Adobe Acrobat.
  You can easily set up Adobe Acrobat to save your files directly to a variety of online cloud storage accounts. Just open your Adobe Acrobat Standard or Pro app or Adobe Acrobat Reader, and from the Home menu, click on “Add file storage” at the bottom.
  

• Microsoft Office 365 Add-in.
  Get the Adobe Add-in for Office 365 to work seamlessly in the cloud with all your Microsoft products. You, and others, can integrate your work on PDFs by using Adobe Acrobat tools and features within Microsoft applications such as Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more.

• Google Drive.
  Inside Google Drive or Google Workspace, look for the Adobe Acrobat Add-on to collaborate on PDF documents with others. You can use Adobe Acrobat tools and features within Google Drive to comment, annotate, merge, split, compress, and sign PDFs, and more.

Share PDF files within Adobe Acrobat.

You also have three options for sharing PDF files from within an Adobe Acrobat application and tracking the changes. Within Adobe Acrobat, you can —

• Send personalized invitations to others to comment and view a file.
• Share anonymous or public links to your PDF file.
• Share the document as an email attachment.

Online document collaboration tips.

Just like many people and organizations have protocols around video calls or holding group meetings online (such as remembering to mute yourself when you’re not the one speaking!), there are also a few guidelines for online document collaboration.

Some strategies to manage online document collaboration effectively include to —

• Set clear expectations.
  Be clear about how, when, and why others are expected to contribute and collaborate on shared documents. This helps prevent confusion and miscommunication about who is expected to do what.

• Define roles and responsibilities.
  This might include who is expected to revise a certain section or chapter based on their expertise, who is responsible for formatting, and so forth. You might also need to be clear about who has ownership or the final decision-making authority for the final version of the document.

• Agree on timeframes.
  Establish timeframes for working on collaborative documents, including deadlines. Encourage everyone to be prompt with responses to comments or questions about the documents you’re collaborating on. Have check-ins, if you need to, to track progress.

• Establish how you will communicate.
  Be clear about how you will communicate with each other about the document within the document and any other messaging or communication channels you use.

• Use markup tools — annotations, sticky notes, and comments.
  Make comments, provide feedback, and add suggestions for your collaborators using the markup tools in the applications you use, including when you edit PDF documents. This helps you all search and find a person’s feedback, and keep the document organized.
  

• Be respectful with editing and feedback.
  Use and encourage constructive and respectful feedback with your document collaborators. This is particularly important when collaborating in an online environment to prevent misunderstandings.

• Decide on a naming convention.
  Ensure everyone understands the naming convention you are using so people know immediately what version of a document they are working on. Make sure everyone knows how to access and work on the latest version of the document in whatever cloud-based platform you are working in.

• Use accessibility tools and features.
  When you’re collaborating with others with various abilities, review your accessibly settings. For example, enabling a document to be read out load.

• Support, training, and guidance.
  Most apps aim to have intuitive interfaces nowadays but always make sure those who will be working on your shared files are comfortable with the online apps you’re using. Give training and offer support. Make sure they know how to access resources or help for the collaboration tools you use, if they need it, particularly any specific features to be used and applied in your document collaboration.

• Consider password protection and setting permissions.
  With any type of online document sharing, if you have shared files that contain sensitive information, consider using password protection. This ensures that only authorized users with the password can open the document. You can password-protect a PDF online.
  
  You can also set permissions in Adobe Acrobat to restrict the types of changes others can make to your PDFs. This too is password-protected to prevent unauthorized or unintentional changes. Manage access levels appropriately. In a work environment, ensure that team members have the necessary permissions to view, edit, or comment on documents as required for their role.

• Use secure document collaboration platforms and processes.
  Choose document collaboration platforms that offer robust security features. This includes features such as two-factor authentication, end-to-end encryption, and strong password creation. If you’re collaborating with people outside of your usual network, let them know how to recognize that any links you may send to them are not malicious or phishing attempts.

• Compress your files.
  If you’re worried about storage space, compress your files. It’s quick and easy to compress a PDF online.

Related content

Are you ready to keep collaborating? Some of our other articles to help people work collaboratively with PDF files include —

• Document Reviews and Collaborations — Make It Efficient and Effective with PDFs
• How to Use Remote Collaboration Tools and Features in PDFs
• Collaborate on PDFs and Connect Your Team