Summary: Following a reply-all conversation throughout the entire day fills your inbox with unnecessary emails, but a group chat platform can let you see what is going on without it taking over your day.
Will email ever become a thing of the past? Not likely anytime soon but there are a few “team collaboration platforms” popping up that are making emails less important at work. Daily communication between coworkers and yourself make up a large part of your inbox so being able to turn those emails into a chat where files can be easily shared.
Slack – After logging in, an inspirational quote pops up. Just like other chats forums, you will see who else from your team is also online. If you send a message to your team and someone is offline, they will receive either a mobile notification or email. You can make “channels” for specific members to chat and share their work between. If you need to focus on your work, you can change the settings so you are only notified when a direct message is sent to you.
HipChat – This program gained a lot of popularity soon after it was started in 2009. The chat clears up the mass of reply-all messages so that everyone is on the same page in the company or team. A “plus” version allows for screen sharing, file sharing, and video chats.
Pie – This program allows teams to create chat rooms based on topics where additional people can be added as their opinion is needed. There are also one-on-one chats and group chats but it promotes more focused chats instead of broad all-company ones. The gallery feature shows shared links, GIFs, files, music, and photos.
Skype – Skype is not only useful for the weekly chat with our mothers or for companies to conduct interviews. Skype allows one-on-one chats, group chats, or calls and video conferences (which will really cut back on the number of daily emails). Plus if you are the one trying to sell your company on the idea of group chat platforms, Skype is a known name that may make the transition easier for your boss and coworkers.
Photo: liventerprise.comReplace Work Emails with Group Chats by Amanda Griffin