Tag Archives: Google Workspace

Extend Google Apps Script with your API library to empower users

Posted by Keith Einstein, Product Manager

Banner image that shows the Cloud Task logo

Google is proud to announce the availability of the DocuSign API library for Google Apps Script. This newly created library gives all Apps Script users access to the more than 400 endpoints DocuSign has to offer so they can build digital signatures into their custom solutions and workflows within Google Workspace.

The Google Workspace Ecosystem

Last week at Google Cloud Next ‘21, in the session “How Miro, DocuSign, Adobe and Atlassian are helping organizations centralize their work”, we showcased a few partner integrations called add-ons, found on Google Workspace Marketplace. The Google Workspace Marketplace helps developers connect with the more than 3 billion people who use Google Workspace—with a stunning 4.8 billion apps installed to date. That incredible demand is fueling innovation in the ecosystem, and we now have more than 5,300 public apps available in the Google Workspace Marketplace, plus thousands more private apps that customers have built for themselves. As a developer, one of the benefits of an add-on is that it allows you to surface your application in a user-friendly manner that helps people reclaim their time, work more efficiently, and adds another touchpoint for them to engage with your product. While building an add-on enables users to frictionlessly engage with your product from within Google Workspace, to truly unlock limitless potential innovative companies like DocuSign are beginning to empower users to build the unique solutions they need by providing them with a Google Apps Script Library.

Apps Script enables Google Workspace customization

Many users are currently unlocking the power of Google Apps Script by creating the solutions and automations they need to help them reclaim precious time. Publishing a Google Apps Script Library is another great opportunity to bring a product into Google Workspace and gain access to those creators. It gives your users more choices in how they integrate your product into Google Workspace, which in turn empowers them with the flexibility to solve more business challenges with your product’s unique value.

Apps Script libraries can make the development and maintenance of a script more convenient by enabling users to take advantage of pre-built functionality and focus on the aspects that unlock unique value. This allows innovative companies to make available a variety of functionality that Apps Script users can use to create custom solutions and workflows with the features not found in an off-the-shelf app integration like a Google Workspace Add-on or Google Chat application.

The DocuSign API Library for Apps Script

One of the partners we showcased at Google Cloud Next ‘21 was DocuSign. The DocuSign eSignature for Google Workspace add-on has been installed almost two-million times. The add-on allows you to collect signatures or sign agreements from inside Gmail, Google Drive or Google Docs. While collecting signatures and signing agreements are some of the most common areas in which a user would use DocuSign eSignature inside Google Workspace, there are many more features to DocuSign’s eSignature product. In fact, their eSignature API has over 400 endpoints. Being able to go beyond those top features normally found in an add-on and into the rest of the functionality of DocuSign eSignature is where an Apps Script Library can be leveraged.

And that’s exactly what we’re partnering to do. Recently, DocuSign’s Lead API Product Manager, Jeremy Glassenberg (a Google Developer Expert for Google Workspace) joined us on the Totally Unscripted podcast to talk about DocuSign’s path to creating an Apps Script Library. At the DocuSign Developer Conference, on October 27th, Jeremy will be teaming up with Christian Schalk from our Google Cloud Developer Relations team to launch the DocuSign Apps Script Library and showcase how it can be used.

With the DocuSign Apps Script Library, users around the world who lean on Apps Script to build their workplace automations can create customized DocuSign eSignature processes. Leveraging the Apps Script Library in addition to the DocuSign add-on empowers companies who use both DocuSign and Google Workspace to have a more seamless workflow, increasing efficiency and productivity. The add-on allows customers to integrate the solution instantly into their Google apps, and solve for the most common use cases. The Apps Script Library allows users to go deep and solve for the specialized use cases where a single team (or knowledge worker) may need to tap into a less commonly used feature to create a unique solution.

See us at the DocuSign Developer Conference

The DocuSign Apps Script Library is now available in beta and if you’d like to know more about it drop a message to [email protected]. And be sure to register for the session on "Building a DocuSign Apps Script Library with Google Cloud", Oct 27th @ 10:00 AM. For updates and news like this about the Google Workspace platform, please subscribe to our developer newsletter.

Make the most of hybrid work with Google Workspace

As Google’s Productivity Advisor, I’ve spent a lot of time over the past 18 months advising people on how to be their most productive selves while maintaining their wellbeing and working from home. With hybrid work emerging as a new model for many of us, it’s especially important to get the most out of each place you work.

In our recent Google Workspace Guide to Productivity and Wellbeing, I talked about how you can plan your days, and even create themes for them. For example, maybe Monday is your “ramp-up day” with lots of meetings and collaboration in the office, and Friday is your “consolidation day,” when you work from home and cross things off your to-do list. The guide also gets into the importance of knowing your tools inside and out. With that in mind, here’s a deeper dive on how to make the most of hybrid work with Google Workspace.

Participate from anywhere using Google Meet

Google Meet has a few new features designed especially for hybrid teams, so you can collaborate wherever you’re working from — even if it’s in a different time zone.

Add your location to meeting invites: When you’re responding to a meeting invite, you can let everyone know whether you’ll be attending from the meeting room in the office or if you’re joining virtually. Knowing where people are located helps presenters set up the meeting so everyone can participate equally.

Use companion mode (coming in November): Hybrid meetings often feel like there are two different meetings happening — one in the office and one online. Companion mode lets you join a meeting in the office from your personal device, while using the audio and video systems in the physical meeting room. Companion mode also lets every in-office participant send chat messages, raise their hands for a question and vote on polls.

Start a Google Jamboard: A Jamboard is a virtual whiteboard that lets people brainstorm live with others. It’s a great tool for hybrid collaboration and you can launch it directly in Google Meet.

Animated GIF illustrating Jamboard in Companion Mode.

Streamline collaboration with Spaces

Spaces (formerly Rooms in Google Chat) are a central place for teams to collaborate in Google Workspace. Spaces work with all the Workspace tools like Meet, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides and Tasks.

Spaces allow people to work in real time on a project, or on their own when they have time. All conversations, context and content in Spaces are preserved for future reference, so team members can jump in and out of the project when it works best for them. This is a great way to organize your team’s projects, so you can stay focused on what needs immediate attention while still making progress on group efforts.

Screenshot of Google Spaces.

Let people know your availability and location with Calendar

Google Calendar has been updated to meet the flexibility required for hybrid work. Working from home on Tuesday? Your Calendar now allows you to show where you will be working on specific days. You can also set your availability on specific hours of the day in Calendar, allowing you to block off periods to focus on your own projects or to take care of personal responsibilities.

Animated GIF showing the cursor selecting available hours within Google Calendar.

Remember to take care of yourself

Remote work can sometimes feel like a deluge of meetings and notifications that never stop. And now, as many of us begin navigating hybrid work, here are a few ways to ease any pain points in the transition.

Find your focus: Meeting fatigue can be exacerbated by the fact that you have a little image of yourself on the screen during video meetings. You can turn that setting off in Meet so you can focus on presenters and their presentations.

Schedule speedy meetings: In the Calendar, you can change the default meeting from 30 minutes to 25 minutes. Or schedule meetings to end five to 10 minutes before the top of the hour. It might not seem like a lot of time, but it can often seem like an unexpected gift, letting people mentally reset before their next meeting.

Use Time Insights in Calendar: Time Insights in Calendar lets you analyze how much time you’ve spent in meetings over the last days, weeks or months. Understanding how you’re allocating your time can help you plan ahead.

For more tips on how to optimize for hybrid work environments, visit our Workspace Support pages. And if you want to keep up with all the ways work is changing, our new Future of Work site can help.

App pricing, update details, and Editor’s choice now available on Google Workspace Marketplace.

Posted by Mike Rhemtulla, Product Manager

Banner image that shows the Google Workspace logo

Google Workspace Marketplace is proud to announce the availability for developers to display pricing for their applications published in the Google Workspace Marketplace, and the date their application listing was last updated.

Launched over 11 years ago, Google Workspace Marketplace has been helping developers connect with the more than 3 billion people who use Google Workspace—with a stunning 4.8 billion apps installed to date. That incredible demand is fueling innovation in the ecosystem, and we now have more than 5300 public apps available in the Google Workspace Marketplace, plus thousands more private apps that customers have built for themselves.

App Pricing

For developers, you can now specify the app pricing choosing from Free, Paid with a Free trial, Paid with free features or Paid. The app pricing can be updated in the Google Workspace Marketplace SDK - Store Listing tab. We encourage you to specify this in order to provide more information about your Marketplace application for Workspace administrators and end users to evaluate and install your app.

Screenshot of app pricing drop down menu shows different pricing models to choose from

Developers can select which app pricing model is available to users

Screenshot of additional information section now shows pricing

Pricing will now be shown in the application information in Google Workspace Marketplace

App listing update

When a developer updates the app listing or configuration in the Google Workspace Marketplace SDK, administrators and users are now able to see when the application listing was last updated by the developer.

Screenshot of app listing shows a date when the listing was last updated

When the application listing was last updated will now be shown in the application details in Google Workspace Marketplace

Editor’s choice

We have also added a new Editor’s choice section in the Google Workspace Marketplace. This new section has three curated categories; Work from everywhere, these apps help your organization be more productive, Business essentials, these apps help increase workflow productivity, and Apps to discover, these apps are new and innovative. You can find out more about the eligibility for these categories here.

Screenshot shows new Editor's Choice section in Google Workpace Marketplace

New “Editor’s choice” section contains three curated categories in Google Workspace Marketplace

If you’d like to stay informed about updates like these and others to the Google Workspace platform please subscribe to the developer newsletter. And find us at Next ‘21, where we have sessions, demos, and labs covering the latest updates to the Google Workspace platform.

App pricing, update details, and Editor’s choice now available on Google Workspace Marketplace.

Posted by Mike Rhemtulla, Product Manager

Banner image that shows the Google Workspace logo

Google Workspace Marketplace is proud to announce the availability for developers to display pricing for their applications published in the Google Workspace Marketplace, and the date their application listing was last updated.

Launched over 11 years ago, Google Workspace Marketplace has been helping developers connect with the more than 3 billion people who use Google Workspace—with a stunning 4.8 billion apps installed to date. That incredible demand is fueling innovation in the ecosystem, and we now have more than 5300 public apps available in the Google Workspace Marketplace, plus thousands more private apps that customers have built for themselves.

App Pricing

For developers, you can now specify the app pricing choosing from Free, Paid with a Free trial, Paid with free features or Paid. The app pricing can be updated in the Google Workspace Marketplace SDK - Store Listing tab. We encourage you to specify this in order to provide more information about your Marketplace application for Workspace administrators and end users to evaluate and install your app.

Screenshot of app pricing drop down menu shows different pricing models to choose from

Developers can select which app pricing model is available to users

Screenshot of additional information section now shows pricing

Pricing will now be shown in the application information in Google Workspace Marketplace

App listing update

When a developer updates the app listing or configuration in the Google Workspace Marketplace SDK, administrators and users are now able to see when the application listing was last updated by the developer.

Screenshot of app listing shows a date when the listing was last updated

When the application listing was last updated will now be shown in the application details in Google Workspace Marketplace

Editor’s choice

We have also added a new Editor’s choice section in the Google Workspace Marketplace. This new section has three curated categories; Work from everywhere, these apps help your organization be more productive, Business essentials, these apps help increase workflow productivity, and Apps to discover, these apps are new and innovative. You can find out more about the eligibility for these categories here.

Screenshot shows new Editor's Choice section in Google Workpace Marketplace

New “Editor’s choice” section contains three curated categories in Google Workspace Marketplace

If you’d like to stay informed about updates like these and others to the Google Workspace platform please subscribe to the developer newsletter. And find us at Next ‘21, where we have sessions, demos, and labs covering the latest updates to the Google Workspace platform.

Announcing the Google Forms API

Posted by Christian Schalk, Developer Advocate

Announcing the Google Forms API

Google is proud to announce the Google Forms API! The Forms API is currently available in Restricted Beta, with Open Beta expected to follow in Q4.


Launched in 2008, Google Forms enables easy creation and distribution of forms, surveys, and quizzes. Forms is used for a wide variety of use cases across business operations, customer management, event planning and logistics, education, and more.

Bringing Automation to Google Forms


Image shows two laptops with a phone in the middle

The new Google Forms API provides programmatic access for managing forms and acting on responses, empowering developers to build powerful integrations on top of Forms. The API supports two key use cases:


  • Automating form creation and editing:The API enables developers to automate form creation and editing. This is especially powerful when dealing with large volumes of forms that need to be auto-generated from question banks or other data.


  • Reacting to incoming responses: The API also allows developers to build automations for acting on incoming responses. Examples include developing real-time dashboards or visualizations and triggering business workflows based on response data.

Example Use Cases


Education Automation Integrations

  • Integrations with Learning Management Systems

  • Custom form/quiz generation from question banks

  • Student tracking with real-time dashboards


Customer Management and Support


  • Auto-generate surveys / forms based on customer data

  • Trigger notifications and processes based on responses from customers

Data Analysis and Visualization


  • Create custom visualizations with response data

  • Leverage push notifications to update in realtime


Google Forms API Functionality

The API provides the following specific functionality.

Form Schema and Metadata

Create and Update
  • Create new forms and quizzes
  • Edit existing forms
  • Add questions, point values, correct answers
Read Form Metadata

Read forms content and metadata, including:

  • Questions and answer options
  • Correct answers
  • Point values
  • Feedback

Form Responses

Read Responses
Read responses to forms, including:

  • Answers to each question
  • Response submission time
  • Grades and feedback

    • Push Notifications

    Notifications via Cloud PubSub

    Subscribe to real-time form updates via Cloud Pub/Sub:

    • Receive either push or pull notifications when forms change

    • Get notified when a form is edited or when a form response is submitted


    For the complete Forms API reference documentation visit:

    developers.google.com/forms/api/reference/rest



    Early Forms API Partner Highlights

    Zapier , a leading workflow automation platform, will leverage the new Google Forms API to deliver a better experience for Zapier and Google Workspace users. Today, thousands of businesses use Zapier to connect Google Forms to 4k+ applications to automate tasks and key workflows.


    To date, Zapier has used the Google Drive and Google Sheets API to deliver this integration. Now, a dedicated Forms API will provide a more stable and purpose-driven platform to build from.


    The most common use case for Zapier’s integration with Google Forms is to send Form submission data to an app of the user’s choice within Zapier’s ecosystem whenever one is submitted. For example, a user can automatically create a Google Calendar event for a meeting booked via a Google Form.


    Doing this today requires setting up “watches” via the Google Drive API on the spreadsheet that is tied to the Google Form a user wishes to integrate with Zapier. While this implementation is functional, it puts significant pressure on the Drive endpoint, which carries strict rate limits.


    When a change to the Google Sheet is registered by the Drive API, Zapier then uses the Sheets API to identify the new rows on the spreadsheet that are tied to the Google Form and reads the required data.


    With the new Forms API, Zapier will be able to achieve the same functionality through the Pub/Sub notification system to track new responses and the Forms API to find, read, and send the necessary data to third-party apps via Zapier.


    This new implementation will result in faster and more reliable automations between Google Forms and the 4000+ apps in Zapier’s app directory.



    Zzish, an innovator in the education industry, is leveraging the new Google Forms API in their Quizalize product to empower educators to personalize their teaching for every student.

    Zzish will use the Forms API to help teachers easily convert between Google Forms quizzes and quizzes in Quizalize. This will enable teachers to search Quizalize's database of 500,000 standards-aligned quizzes and use them as Google Forms. Teachers will also be able to easily deploy their Google Forms as a fun classroom game in Quizalize.


    Google Forms API Launch Roadmap

    We anticipate promoting the API to Open Beta in Q4 2021, with GA following in 2022.


    Become a Forms API Early Adopter!

    The Forms API is currently in Restricted Beta. We encourage you to apply here to be an early adopter to get started with the API today! We’ll also send you important updates about Open Beta and improvements to the API. To keep up to date with all the APIs of your favorite Google Apps, please subscribe to the Google Workspace Developer Newsletter.


    Announcing the Google Forms API

    Posted by Christian Schalk, Developer Advocate

    Announcing the Google Forms API

    Google is proud to announce the Google Forms API! The Forms API is currently available in Restricted Beta, with Open Beta expected to follow in Q4.


    Launched in 2008, Google Forms enables easy creation and distribution of forms, surveys, and quizzes. Forms is used for a wide variety of use cases across business operations, customer management, event planning and logistics, education, and more.

    Bringing Automation to Google Forms


    Image shows two laptops with a phone in the middle

    The new Google Forms API provides programmatic access for managing forms and acting on responses, empowering developers to build powerful integrations on top of Forms. The API supports two key use cases:


    • Automating form creation and editing:The API enables developers to automate form creation and editing. This is especially powerful when dealing with large volumes of forms that need to be auto-generated from question banks or other data.


    • Reacting to incoming responses: The API also allows developers to build automations for acting on incoming responses. Examples include developing real-time dashboards or visualizations and triggering business workflows based on response data.

    Example Use Cases


    Education Automation Integrations

    • Integrations with Learning Management Systems

    • Custom form/quiz generation from question banks

    • Student tracking with real-time dashboards


    Customer Management and Support


    • Auto-generate surveys / forms based on customer data

    • Trigger notifications and processes based on responses from customers

    Data Analysis and Visualization


    • Create custom visualizations with response data

    • Leverage push notifications to update in realtime


    Google Forms API Functionality

    The API provides the following specific functionality.

    Form Schema and Metadata

    Create and Update
    • Create new forms and quizzes
    • Edit existing forms
    • Add questions, point values, correct answers
    Read Form Metadata

    Read forms content and metadata, including:

    • Questions and answer options
    • Correct answers
    • Point values
    • Feedback

    Form Responses

    Read Responses
    Read responses to forms, including:

  • Answers to each question
  • Response submission time
  • Grades and feedback

    • Push Notifications

    Notifications via Cloud PubSub

    Subscribe to real-time form updates via Cloud Pub/Sub:

    • Receive either push or pull notifications when forms change

    • Get notified when a form is edited or when a form response is submitted


    For the complete Forms API reference documentation visit:

    developers.google.com/forms/api/reference/rest



    Early Forms API Partner Highlights

    Zapier , a leading workflow automation platform, will leverage the new Google Forms API to deliver a better experience for Zapier and Google Workspace users. Today, thousands of businesses use Zapier to connect Google Forms to 4k+ applications to automate tasks and key workflows.


    To date, Zapier has used the Google Drive and Google Sheets API to deliver this integration. Now, a dedicated Forms API will provide a more stable and purpose-driven platform to build from.


    The most common use case for Zapier’s integration with Google Forms is to send Form submission data to an app of the user’s choice within Zapier’s ecosystem whenever one is submitted. For example, a user can automatically create a Google Calendar event for a meeting booked via a Google Form.


    Doing this today requires setting up “watches” via the Google Drive API on the spreadsheet that is tied to the Google Form a user wishes to integrate with Zapier. While this implementation is functional, it puts significant pressure on the Drive endpoint, which carries strict rate limits.


    When a change to the Google Sheet is registered by the Drive API, Zapier then uses the Sheets API to identify the new rows on the spreadsheet that are tied to the Google Form and reads the required data.


    With the new Forms API, Zapier will be able to achieve the same functionality through the Pub/Sub notification system to track new responses and the Forms API to find, read, and send the necessary data to third-party apps via Zapier.


    This new implementation will result in faster and more reliable automations between Google Forms and the 4000+ apps in Zapier’s app directory.



    Zzish, an innovator in the education industry, is leveraging the new Google Forms API in their Quizalize product to empower educators to personalize their teaching for every student.

    Zzish will use the Forms API to help teachers easily convert between Google Forms quizzes and quizzes in Quizalize. This will enable teachers to search Quizalize's database of 500,000 standards-aligned quizzes and use them as Google Forms. Teachers will also be able to easily deploy their Google Forms as a fun classroom game in Quizalize.


    Google Forms API Launch Roadmap

    We anticipate promoting the API to Open Beta in Q4 2021, with GA following in 2022.


    Become a Forms API Early Adopter!

    The Forms API is currently in Restricted Beta. We encourage you to apply here to be an early adopter to get started with the API today! We’ll also send you important updates about Open Beta and improvements to the API. To keep up to date with all the APIs of your favorite Google Apps, please subscribe to the Google Workspace Developer Newsletter.


    How Google Workspace is helping the RSPCA

    For nearly 200 years, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has worked to ensure that animals of all kinds, from household pets to livestock and animals in sport, have a good life. It is an extraordinary mission that involves 1,400 people, including around 270 inspectors and 100 animal rescue officers across England and Wales. Together they rescue animals in distress, investigate suspected incidents of cruelty, place animals in new homes, train volunteers, and educate the public about suitable animal care.

    Last year, the RSPCA’s dedicated frontline team handled over 1.2 million phone calls, investigated more than 140,000 suspected incidents of cruelty, found homes for over 29,000 animals and secured over 1,400 convictions for abuse. They also coordinated a network of 150 branches in England and Wales, along with 56 regional and branch animal centres, plus animal hospitals, clinics and wildlife centres. It's a mammoth task.

    We're proud that for over nine years the RSPCA has relied on Google Workspace to help coordinate this work. Clear communication and collaboration, wherever it's needed, takes many forms. Workspace helps with everything from email and video calls, to collaborative documents and spreadsheets, slides and other visual tools for education. This is available from wherever it’s needed, whether via desktop, laptop, or mobile device. The RSPCA has even trialled new digital rehoming initiatives, which use video conferencing via Google Meet to virtually visit the new homes of animals that have been rescued. It does what technology does at its best: focus on the human need, and the human connection.

    During the COVID lockdown, Workspace became an even more critical tool for the RSPCA, enabling virtual experiences in place of face-to-face staff interactions, volunteer and staff onboarding and check-ins with people who were caring for rescued animals. That's how tens of thousands of animals could be looked after despite the lockdowns, and how more than 500 RSPCA meetings could take place every day in 2020.

    “Our strategic mantra is ‘Together for animal welfare’. Everyone in every department is all working towards that same goal,” says Alan Moynihan, Head of IT Customer Solutions at the RSPCA. Workspace, he says, is "a system that gives us effective collaboration and communication tools without geographical boundaries.”

    Some of those tools, like Chromeboxes and Chromebooks, complement Workspace while reducing hardware costs, improving team coordination and enabling Alan Moynihan and his IT staff to better control software creation and management. Android and iOS mobile devices give field workers like inspectors and animal rescue officers instant access to files they need in the field.

    We stand in admiration of the dedication of the thousands of people involved with the RSPCA and are proud that solutions like Google Workspace help them continue to do this critical work.

    15 milestones, moments and more for Google Docs’ 15th birthday

    In 2005, an easy-to-use, online word processor called Writely launched. A year later, the collaborative writing tool became part of Google, and over time it evolved into Google Docs. Officially launched to the world in 2006, Google Docs is a core part of Google Workspace. It’s also, as of today, 15 years old. But it wasn’t always so obvious how useful — and loved — Docs would become.

    Jen Mazzon was part of the original Docs team, or the Google Writely Team as it was then called. “Everyone told us it was crazy to try and give people a way to access their documents from anywhere — not to mention share documents instantly, or collaborate online within their browser,” she wrote in a March 2006 blog post. “But that's exactly what we did.”

    As a much-deserved gift to Docs, here are 15 things about Google Docs that we’re celebrating — from important moments to tips and tricks, there’s a lot to love.

    1. In 2010, Docs got its first big update, adding things like the ability to see others editing and writing in shared documents and better importing features.
    2. Internally, the Docs team has breakfast-themed names for the widgets you see when you edit in Docs. For instance, the yellow messages up at the top are called "butter," and the dialogs that pop out from the bottom right corner are called "toasts" because they pop out of a corner just like toast popping out from an upright toaster. The red error message at the top? That's “ketchup.”
    3. When COVID-19 sent students and educators home, we shared ways they could make use of features like offline Docs and real-time commenting to keep learning and collaboration going remotely.
    4. Lizzo and Sad13 used Google Docs to write music together, and they let us in on their creative process.
    5. There was that time when none other than the Reading Rainbow team designed a book report template for Docs, which you can still use today.
    6. Laura Mae Martin, Google’s Chief Productivity Advisor, always knows the best ways to get the most out of Docs. She shares her tips and tricks regularly on her YouTube channel.
    7. In 2018, the Docs team came up with an Easter egg: Typing #blackhistorymonth into a Doc would trigger Explore in your doc, with information about Black history and the Black community.
    Animated GIF of a Google Doc with the words "#blackhistorymonth" on the page. The Explore panel then pops out to surface more information about Black history.

    8. Here’s a tip: If you click the “+” icon on the right-hand side panel of the page, you’ll find add-ons — from there, select the hamburger menu (the three lines) and check out Editor’s Choice or Top charts for helpful recommendations.

    Screenshot of the right side panel of a Google Doc showing the plus sign icon.

    9. Over the years, Docs has became a crucial creative asset for writers of all kinds. Author Viviana Rivero even uses Google Docs to tell stories that people read in real time, as she writes.

    10. The Google Workspace team has thought a lot about how to make the most of its tools for hybrid work, including Docs. Learn more in the Google Workspace Guide to Productivity and Wellbeing, which includes tips about how you can make the best use of your time working from home — while also making time for yourself.

    11. This past May, the Google Workspace team launched smart canvas — which, among other things, lets you @ mention people in Docs, add checklists and use templates. Soon you’ll also start to see Docs suggesting more inclusive language as you write and edit.

    Image showing a screenshot of a Google Doc with an open Doc that says "document review" at the top. A dialog pop up hovers over part of the page with inclusive language suggestions.

    12. Thanks to new features like Smart compose and Smart reply — made possible by machine learning and artificial intelligence — Docs has become a stronger collaboration tool for the more than three billion users who rely on Google Workspace.

    13. Anyone who’s ever worked on a group Doc knows the upper right-hand corner can sometimes populate with Anonymous Animals — so in 2019, we partnered with the World Wildlife Fund to raise awareness about animals we hope don’t become anonymous.

    14. We saw the New York Times share how its staff turned to Google Docs during the pandemic to keep journalists and readers connected. They’ve used Docs to celebrate everyday victories, discover music and recommend movies. As a result of COVID-19 and quarantine, we also saw people use Docs to create virtual escape rooms and organize mutual aid efforts.

    15. Over here on the Keyword team, we’re big Docs users: Everything you read on this very blog starts in a Doc — including our weekly newsletter, which we launched last year. And fittingly, this very post.

    Happy birthday, Google Docs; we literally couldn’t do it without you.

    Next ‘21: Must-see Google Workspace sessions for developers and creators

    Posted by Charles Maxson, Developer Advocate

    Banner image that shows the Google Workspace logo

    Google Workspace offers a broad set of tools and capabilities that empowers creators and developers of all experience levels to build a wide range of custom productivity solutions. For professional developers looking to integrate their own app experiences into Workspace, the platform enables deep integrations with frameworks like Google Workspace Add-ons and Chat apps, as well as deep access to the full suite of Google Workspace apps via numerous REST APIs. And for citizen developers on the business side or developers looking to build solutions quickly and easily, tools like Apps Script and AppSheet make it simple to customize, extend, and automate workflows directly within Google Workspace.

    At Next ‘21 we have 7 sessions you won’t want to miss that cover the breadth of the platform. From no-code and low-code solutions to content for developers looking to publish in the Google Workspace Marketplace and reach the more than 3 billion users in Workspace, Next ‘21 has something for everyone.

    1. See what’s new in Google Workspace

    Matthew Izatt, Product Manager, Google Cloud

    Erika Trautman, Director Product Management, Google Cloud

    Join us for an interactive demo and see the latest Google Workspace innovations in action. As the needs of our users shifted over the past year, we’ve delivered entirely new experiences to help people connect, create, and collaborate—across Gmail, Drive, Meet, Docs, and the rest of the apps. You’ll see how Google Workspace meets the needs of different types of users with thoughtfully designed experiences that are easy to use and easy to love, Then, we’ll go under the hood to show you the range of ways to build powerful integrations and apps for Google Workspace using tools that span from no-code to professional grade.

    2. Developer Platform State of the Union: Google Workspace

    Charles Maxson, Developer Advocate, Google Cloud

    Steven Bazyl, Developer Relations Engineer, Google Cloud

    Google Workspace offers a comprehensive developer platform to support every developer who’s on a journey to customize and enhance Google Workspace. In this session, take a deeper dive into the new tools, technologies, and advances across the Google Workspace developer platform that can help you create even better integrations, extensions, and workflows. We’ll focus on updates for Google Apps Script, Google Workspace Add-ons, Chat apps, APIs, AppSheet, and Google Workspace Marketplace.

    3. How Miro, Docusign, Adobe and Atlassian are helping organizations centralize their work

    Matt Izatt, Group Product Manager, Google Cloud

    David Grabner, Product Lead, Apps & Integrations, Miro

    Integrations make Google Workspace the hub for your work and give users more value by bringing all their tools into one space. Our ecosystem allows users to connect industry-leading software and custom-built applications with Google Workspace to centralize important information from the tools you use every day. And integrations are not limited to Gmail, Docs, or your favorite Google apps – they’re also available for Chat. With Chat apps, users can seamlessly blend conversations with automation and timely information to accelerate teamwork directly from within a core communication tool.

    In this session, we’ll briefly review the Google Workspace platform and how Miro and Atlassian are helping organizations centralize their work and keep important information a mouse click or a tap away.

    4. Learn how customers are empowering their workforce to customize Google Workspace

    Charles Maxson, Developer Advocate, Google Cloud

    Aspi Havewala, Global Head of Digital Workplace, Verizon

    Organizations small and large are seeing their needs grow increasingly diverse as they pursue digital transformation projects. Many of our customers are empowering their workforces by allowing them to build advanced workflows and customizations using Google Apps Script. It’s a powerful low-code development platform included with Google Workspace that makes it fast and easy to build custom business solutions for your favorite Google Workspace applications – from macro automations to custom functions and menus. In this session, we’ll do a quick overview of the Apps Script platform and hear from customers who are using it to enable their organizations.

    5. Transform your business operations with no-code apps

    Arthur Rallu, Product Manager, Google Cloud

    Paula Bell, Business Process Analyst, Kentucky Power Company, American Electric Power

    Building business apps has become something anyone can do. Don’t believe us? Join this session to learn how Paula Bell, who self describes as a person with “zero coding experience” built a series of mission-critical apps on AppSheet that revolutionized how Kentucky Power, a branch of American Electric Power, runs their field operations.

    6. How AppSheet helps you work smarter with Google Workspace

    Mike Procopio, Senior Staff Software Engineer, Google Cloud

    Millions of Google Workspace users are looking for new ways to reclaim time and work smarter within Google Workspace. AppSheet, Google Workspace’s first-party extensibility platform, will be announcing several new features that will allow people to automate and customize their work within their Google Workspace environment – all without having to write a line of code.

    Join this session to learn how you can use these new features to work smarter in Google Workspace.

    7. How to govern an innovative workforce and reduce Shadow IT

    Kamila Klimek, Product Manager, Google Cloud

    Jacinto Pelayo, Chief Executive Officer, Evenbytes

    For organizations focused on growth, finding new ways that employees can use technology to work smarter and innovate is key to their success. But enabling employees to create their own solutions comes at a cost that IT is keenly aware of. The threats of external hacks, data leaks, and shadow IT make it difficult for IT to find a solution that gives them the control and visibility they need, while still empowering their workforce. AppSheet was built with these challenges in mind.

    Join our session to learn how you can use AppSheet to effectively govern your workforce and reduce security threats, all while giving employees the tools to make robust, enterprise-grade applications.

    To learn more about these sessions and to register, visit the Next ‘21 website and also check out my playlist of Next ‘21 content.

    5 things I learned from Google’s productivity expert

    I’ve primarily worked remotely for the better part of the last decade, but when the pandemic sent everyone else home from the office, I struggled. Even though I was extremely familiar with working from home, I wasn’t used to spending all my free time at home, too. Like people everywhere, staying productive when the home became the office, and the gym, and the dog daycare, and the everything else was challenging. 

    Headshot of Laura Mae Martin looking into the camera and smiling.

    Google’s Executive Productivity Advisor Laura Mae Martin

    Fortunately, I knew there was someone who could help me. Laura Mae Martin is Google’s Executive Productivity Advisor, and over the years, she’s been offering Googlers advice on how to stay productive, even when our surroundings make it difficult. Her guidance has been an incredible resource — and now it’s available for everyone. “The Google Workspace guide to productivity and wellbeing” is a downloadable, free ebook that shares tons of Laura’s best tips and ideas for making the most of your time. As a bit of a preview, here are five things I learned from the guide that I’ve found most helpful: 

    1. Pinpointing my peak times:One tip from Laura is to figure out when you work best. “Make a list of the times throughout the day and week when you feel most energized and focused,” she writes. These are “peak times,” and likely when you’re going to be the most productive. 

    2. Don’t fight that Friday feeling:There’s a reason Friday afternoons can feel like they’re dragging on. In her guide, Laura advises that you don’t try to overplan the end of the week. “Fridays can be a great window for returning emails or planning the next week,” she says.

    3. Check in even if you can’t respond: Getting through email is one of the most daunting tasks of any job, and everyone’s experienced the pile-up problem. One tip from Laura  is to respond to emails that require your input within 24 hours — even if it’s just to say “I can’t get to this right now, but I will by the end of the week.”

    4. Sometimes, less time is more: According to Parkinson’s Law, “work expands to the allotted time,” meaning if you put 30 minutes on the calendar for a meeting, you and your colleagues will feel like you have to use all of that time even if you’re done within 20 minutes. Laura’s advice: Put shorter amounts of time on the calendar. 

    5. Welcome the “whitespace”:We spend a lot of our time at work getting things done, or “closing loops” as Laura puts it. But it’s important to make time to just think and brainstorm, to come up with new ideas. One way you can make that happen is by putting blocks on your calendar for dedicated time to do exactly that. 

    That’s just a tiny sample of everything I learned from Laura. The guide has so many ways you can maximize your time at work (so you can maximize your time not at work) plus how you can use Google Workspace to put these ideas into practice.  You can download it now.  

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