The right tool for the job
July 31, 2019
The right tool for the job
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Slack
We use Slack throughout the company as well as a communication tool within the incubator program our company is in. It has been an excellent way for everyone to communicate, share ideas and to stay on top of tasks and projects that are ongoing. I also use Slack as part of another organization that I collaborate with and it has been instrumental in everyone staying informed on the day to day activities that are taking place.
- Being able to create channels is a great strength. It allows team members to be grouped and in-the-know where necessary, while not needing to be notified when it's not applicable.
- The "Do not disturb" feature is a simple, but important one to have. It's a great way to be able to turn off and tune out of work during personal time.
- Sharing files and links is super simple. Being able to go back and reference them and easily find them makes it instrumental as a communication and collaboration tool.
- When it comes to direct messaging, I wish that the most recent messages would automatically be listed in the section below the Channels section. If you want to see your most recent direct messages you have to swipe sideways when looking at the channels screen (on mobile) and then see your most recent messages. Just seems like an unnecessary extra step.
- While I love the "do not disturb" feature, I think Slack should make it clear that by default it turns on after a certain time. When downloading and using the app for the first time I couldn't figure out why I wasn't receiving notifications. It wasn't until I learned about Do Not Disturb that I realized I had to change my settings. It should be something that a new user is made aware of when first downloading and using the app.
- I don't know if everyone experiences this or not but it seems to me that the desktop app does not update as instantly as the mobile app (I use a Mac). It's not an issue of my internet speed as we have a perfectly fast connection, and besides, my iPhone is connected to the same network. The desktop app just seems to lag a little.
- Better communication = time efficiency. Simple.
- The ability to separate groups into channels makes applicable work easier to handle and discuss. This also increases efficiency among those involved.
- Being able to collaborate with others in our incubator has provided us with other ideas and tools that we weren't aware of. In turn, we have made purchasing decisions that have benefited our company greatly.
WhatsApp is good as a personal chat and communication tool. While its easy to create groups and have different chats, it's really more geared towards personal use. I also don't see it as a collaboration tool. Slack adds what WhatsApp seems to be missing when it comes to segmenting groups into channels and allowing people to collaborate in a business environment. WhatsApp is too clunky for that.