The News Chair

“Slacking” on the Job

When the team members at Coles Marketing mention “slacking,” we’re not talking about shirking our responsibilities. “Slacking” is actually improving our workflow. 

Launched in 2013, Slack is a messaging service that’s proving to be a highly helpful tool for interoffice communication. The co-founder and CEO Stewart Butterfield recently landed on Advertising Age‘s list of the 50 most creative people of 2015.

“Slack has exploded in popularity,” writes Advertising Age’s Tim Peterson. “It hit one million simultaneous users in October and has been praised for its utility, smart design and user-friendliness — something you don’t expect from an office tool.”

Slack essentially replaces email and makes communication a bit…cleaner. It allows you to create separate channels for certain topics. So, rather than frantically digging through your inbox for a conversation you had days or weeks ago, you can quickly go to the channel in which you had that specific conversation on Slack.

Most importantly, this tool makes the workplace more fun. For example, it allows you to respond to messages with amusing emojis. (It always brings a smile to my face when our web designer —and resident comic-book nerd — replies to certain messages with a Batman face.) This kind of communication may seem silly, but it goes a long way in brightening up an office.

If you’re looking for a way to clean up your communication, improve workflow and have a little fun along the way, “slacking” is the way to go.

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