The 7 types of MUST-HAVE remote work management tools in 2025

Today, it’s hard to imagine running a virtual or hybrid team without an arsenal of remote work management tools. 

The popularity of remote work has pushed people to find solutions to every little digital collaboration problem, issue, and hiccup. More than that, remote work has: 

• Popularized new ways of cooperation, e.g. asynchronous communication,
• Introduced unprecedented flexibility, e.g. flexible hours made possible by time tracking,
• Connected professionals from all over the world, e.g. hiring across borders,
• And more. 

All of this has led to a boom in remote work management tools, each designed to address these specific needs and challenges. Accordingly, choosing the right tools is crucial for maximizing productivity, fostering collaboration, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance for your remote team. 

However, it’s easy to get lost in the bazaar of tools and software. With everyone and everything promising productivity gains and business growth, what are the tools that actually matter? What are the must-haves and what are the nice-to-haves? 

In this article, rather than exploring specific tools, let’s look at the bigger picture—what are the types of tools you need to successfully run a remote team? By and large, there are seven core categories you need to cover, and anything extra is a bonus. These categories are:

1. Time tracking and productivity
2. Project management
3. Internal communication
4. Conferencing
5. File sharing
6. Security
7. Quality-of-life tools

Let’s dive into what each of them are and why they’re crucial for virtual teams. 

1. Time tracking and productivity

Time tracking and productivity tools serve as the digital equivalent of traditional office oversight. These solutions help managers understand work patterns, track billable hours, and identify potential bottlenecks or efficiency gaps, while also providing employees with valuable insights into their own work habits and time allocation. The best tools in this category—like DeskTime—go beyond simple time logging, offering features like automatic tracking, productivity analytics, and integration with project management systems. 

For virtual teams, these remote employee management tools are particularly crucial as they create transparency and accountability without micromanagement. They enable organizations to maintain productivity standards across different time zones and work schedules, while also helping employees maintain a healthy work-life balance by providing clear visibility into their working hours and patterns.

2. Project management

Project management tools serve as the central command center and single source of truth for all work-related activities. These unified platforms enable teams to manage tasks, deadlines, planning, and assignments in one place, while breaking down complex projects into manageable chunks with clear ownership and progress tracking.

Beyond basic task management, these tools provide valuable insights through analytics and reporting capabilities, often integrating seamlessly with other essential functions like file sharing and time tracking. They create a standardized system that ensures everyone is aligned and working from the same information.

Read more about the best project management tools for teams!

3. Internal communication

Internal communication tools are among the most frequently used remote work management tools in day-to-day operations. These platforms must support various communication styles—from Slack for day-to-day messaging and urgent updates, to asynchronous tools like Loom that allow team members to share detailed explanations on their own schedule.

While choosing the right communication tools is important, establishing clear communication guidelines is even more crucial. These guidelines should address response times, communication channels, and best practices to minimize interruptions and create a healthy work environment that respects everyone’s time and focus.

Check out our article on the best remote team communication tools!

4. Conferencing

Video conferencing has become an essential tool for connecting not only with team members but also with clients and partners. While team members should be familiar with various platforms to accommodate external meetings, focusing primarily on one platform internally allows the team to master its features and utilize them to their full potential.

Think capabilities like screen sharing, virtual whiteboards, and recording options that can enhance collaboration and documentation. Having the team deeply familiar with these features ensures more productive meetings and better use of everyone’s time.

5. File sharing

While project management and communication tools often include basic file sharing capabilities, a dedicated file sharing solution serves as the central knowledge repository for your organization. Having a unified platform for storing and organizing all files, documents, and information makes it easier for team members to find what they need when they need it.

Typically, these specialized platforms offer features for file organization, version control, and search capabilities compared to integrated solutions. They become particularly valuable as your team, documentation, and digital baggage grow, helping maintain order and accessibility of information.

6. Security

When it comes to remote work management software, security is often the one that gets forgotten about. Security tools form a critical foundation for remote teams, with password managers and VPNs being the bare minimum requirements. Regular backups of critical data and systems add another essential layer of protection for remote operations. 

For larger teams, implementing Identity Access Management (IAM) becomes crucial for maintaining security as the organization scales. These systems help manage access levels and protect sensitive information while maintaining efficient workflows.

7. Quality-of-life tools

While not mandatory, quality-of-life tools can significantly improve the remote work experience through features like automated scheduling (such as Calendly), remote desktop access, employee engagement platforms, and more. These tools help streamline routine tasks and maintain team cohesion in a virtual environment.

Teams should be encouraged to explore and adopt remote work management tools that enhance their productivity and work satisfaction. While these might seem like nice-to-haves, they often provide substantial benefits in terms of efficiency and employee satisfaction when properly implemented.

Of course, you shouldn’t forget about tools outside the realm of software either. Make sure your employees have the necessary hardware, furniture, and physical tools to tackle the job at hand—be it an ergonomic office chair or a useful laptop pad. 

Remote work management tools aren’t just for remote work

While we’ve been talking primarily about remote teams, a majority of this remote workforce management software is pertinent to in-person ones, too. After all, we’re all increasingly collaborating in the digital space and it makes, for example, no sense to have punch-cards for clocking in and out if you can have software that not only does it automatically, but also does it better. 

Equipping your team with the right tools across these seven essential categories is paramount for success in today’s distributed (or not) work environment. Remember that the specific tools you choose within each category will depend on your team’s unique needs and workflows, as well as on their integrations with other tools. 

One final important thing to keep in mind—while it’s hard to switch once you’ve adopted a tool, it’s still very much doable. So if something isn’t working, find a better solution. Optimizing your team’s effectiveness through remote employee management software isn’t a one-and-done kind of thing, but rather an ongoing evolution.