MAXQDA is a single-user program: only one person can work on a project file at a time. TeamCloud makes collaborative analysis possible by letting each team member work on their own local copy of the project. Work is exchanged through the cloud on a structured, cycle-based schedule.
The team consists of one team lead and up to four team members. The team lead owns the main project file and is responsible for uploading it, importing everyone's contributions, and managing the project. Team members download the project, do their analysis, and upload their results for the team lead for review and merging.
A TeamCloud project is stored in the .mqtc file format. Audio, video, image, and PDF files attached to the project are synchronized automatically through TeamCloud, so no one needs to share these files separately.
A project can run for one or multiple cycles, depending on the scope of the work. Each cycle follows the same pattern: the team lead uploads, members download and work, then upload, and the team lead imports.
Cycle-based team collaboration
The following illustration shows a typical TeamCloud workflow from start to finish. The red boxes represent the steps that may be repeated as often as needed.
See it in action
The following video (51 seconds) shows the TeamCloud workflow at a glance: how the team lead shares a project, how team members download and work on it offline, and how everyone's contributions are brought together at the end of a cycle.
More resources
Quick start: TeamCloud Getting Started Guide
A short step-by-step walkthrough of the complete TeamCloud workflow, including screenshots. Note that some screenshots show an older interface, but the workflow is the same in current versions. The guide uses the term "TeamCloud account," which is now called "MAXQDA account."
Guide: Collaborative Data Analysis using MAXQDA TeamCloud
A practical guide to planning and conducting collaborative qualitative research projects using MAXQDA TeamCloud. Covers organizational, technical, and methodological aspects of teamwork, including a seven-phase workflow model for analysis based on division of labor.
