Simple and Effective Team Collaboration with Trello

Simple and Effective Team Collaboration with Trello

Over the years, I’ve been involved in a number of engineering projects and the one common determinant between a smooth and successful project execution vs failure, is communication and collaboration. And – to be honest – it doesn’t matter how large or how small your project is, if you don’t have your team working from a common playbook, you’re simply going to encounter problems.

Projects involve people and in order for a project to succeed those people must work from a common roadmap. Assumptions are bad things. So, we need to mitigate them.

There are a number of strategies and tools for keeping project teams informed and in sync. From calendarized schedules to Gantt charts and online file rooms, each strategy or combination of tools has distinct advantages and varying levels of complexity. Sometimes the more complex tools can take on a life of their own – they can be onerous to update and for simpler projects may end up becoming as difficult to manage as the project itself.

For this reason, we’re big proponents of old school methodologies. Lists, whiteboards and post-it notes. Yup. That’s right. Keeping it simple is more-often-than-not the preferred route. Of course, practically speaking, whiteboards and cork-boards are not going to be effective for distributed teams or teams on the go – they just don’t cut it. Luckily, there’s a digital alternative – enter Trello – a cloud-based application that catapults the concept of boards, lists and cards into the digital realm.

Trello’s boards, lists, and cards enable you to organize and prioritize your projects in a fun, flexible and rewarding way.

Trello workspaces allow teams to create boards (for specific projects) and pin task lists and virtual work cards to the various lists. Cards can be assigned, deadlines can be set, checklists created and each card allows for links and comments – make updates to a card and other team members working on that card are immediately informed.

When the status of a task changes, you simply move a card from one status list to another by selecting, dragging and dropping. Easy and intuitive! And – boards can be private or public.

We use Trello to collaborate internally and with clients on all our projects. Feedback from clients has been very positive. The tool is easy to understand with minimal time invested and clients like the ability to see current project status at a glance.

The best way to get a feeling for the power of Trello is to sign up for a free Trello account and create your own project (link to sign-up below in resources). Check out these sample boards for a bit of inspiration.

Trello - Sign Up for Free

Yes. Yes, it’s free. Trello basic is a fantastic way to get started. You’ll get unlimited boards, lists, cards and members – plus you can integrate it with Google Drive, Dropbox and Box. Start your free account here.

Get Trello for Your Mobile Device

Trello is completely mobile. Versions are available for iOS and Android.

For iOS

For Android

Using and Managing Strong Passwords

Using and Managing Strong Passwords

Twenty years ago, it was only necessary to use passwords if you were involved in the world of espionage. Well, that’s all changed – today, passwords have become a part of everyday life. We all have to deal with them and it’s no fun.
Virtually every online application requires a password – and, if you’re like me, you probably have hundreds or, at least, dozens of logins to manage.

For some people, the approach is simple. They use a single moderately secure password across all the sites and applications they visit. Needless to say, this is a really poor idea. Or, taking this strategy to the next level, they use a simple memorable password for certain (non-important) sites and a more complex variation of the same password for the sites they perceive to be more sensitive. This too, is a very badapproach.

Most people would be surprised to learn that their WordPress installations are likely the victim of numerous break-in attempts daily. A 2014 Global Security Report by Trustwave.com indicated that 31% of website breaches were a consequence of weak passwords. According to Wordfence Security (one of the premium WordPress plugins that we use to protect our clients) there are typically 20,000 attacks every minute against the 3 million sites they currently protect. If your username and password combination is compromised, your online identity could be hijacked, your web content could be maliciously adjusted, or worse, other online sites and systems you use might also be infiltrated.

So, how do hackers get your password? Simple – they guess (the guessing is done with algorithms/scripts, but it’s still guessing). If your password isn’t both strong and unique, you make their job easier. Bottom line – it all comes down to having a secure password for each site.

Great. It’s settled. We need to use complex passwords. The problem is how do we manage them?

In the early days of online, if you wanted to keep track of complex passwords, you’d need to create and manage a notebook or spreadsheet with a vast list of your passwords. It wasn’t particularly secure, nor was it convenient.

Luckily, today there are some excellent solutions that can be used to manage all your complex passwords. These applications can create secure passwords, associate them with each site you visit and encrypt them into a safe storage location. My favourite and the one we recommend to our clients is 1Password from AgileBits. The best way to learn what 1Password can do, is to watch the following short video.

1Password is available for Mac OS, iOS, Windows and Android. The application syncs across multiple devices, so your passwords are always available.

A similar alternative is Lastpass which offers both free and premium versions. The premium version adds cross device syncing (which is a must-have for most of us.)

Both of these solutions install an extension in your browser that automatically accesses your secure password when you attempt to login to a secure site. No more typing, no more remembering, no more fussing to find your password.

Now your passwords can be as complex as, “LeDN4w;sDgQX(3Hr7gxhqy“, instead of “qwerty“. You’ll sleep better knowing your passwords are unique, secure and always at your fingertips.

The solution is simple. Use complex passwords.

Great. It’s settled. We need to use complex passwords. The problem is how do we manage them?

In the early days of online, if you wanted to keep track of complex passwords, you’d need to create and manage a notebook or spreadsheet with a vast list of your passwords. It wasn’t particularly secure, nor was it convenient.

Luckily, today there are some excellent solutions that can be used to manage all your complex passwords. These applications can create secure passwords, associate them with each site you visit and encrypt them into a safe storage location. My favourite and the one we recommend to our clients is 1Password from AgileBits. The best way to learn what 1Password can do, is to watch the following short video.

1Password is available for Mac OS, iOS, Windows and Android. The application syncs across multiple devices, so your passwords are always available.

A similar alternative is Lastpass which offers both free and premium versions. The premium version adds cross device syncing (which is a must-have for most of us.)

Both of these solutions install an extension in your browser that automatically accesses your secure password when you attempt to login to a secure site. No more typing, no more remembering, no more fussing to find your password.

Now your passwords can be as complex as, “LeDN4w;sDgQX(3Hr7gxhqy“, instead of “qwerty“. You’ll sleep better knowing your passwords are unique, secure and always at your fingertips.