Dear Microsoft

An Essay
Image from slack.com on 2020-12-22 at 2.26.45 PM.jpeg

We realized a few years ago that the value of switching to Slack was so obvious and the advantages so overwhelming that every business would be using Slack, or “something just like it,” within the decade. It’s validating to see you’ve come around to the same way of thinking. And even though — being honest here — it’s a little scary, we know it will bring a better future forward faster.

However, all this is harder than it looks. So, as you set out to build “something just like it,” we want to give you some friendly advice.

  1. ​It's not the features that matter​
  2. ​An open platform is essential​
  3. ​You've got to do this with love​
  1. ​How Microsoft crushed Slack​
  2. ​What's love got to do with it?​

Dear Microsoft is an open letter from Slack on the occasion of Microsoft's launch of their business communication platform, Teams. It was originally published as an advertisement in the November 2, 2016 edition of the New York Times.

  1. It's not the features that matter

    First, and most importantly, it’s not the features that matter. You’re not going to create something people really love by making a big list of Slack’s features and simply checking those boxes. The revolution that has led to millions of people flocking to Slack has been, and continues to be, driven by something much deeper.

    Building a product that allows for significant improvements in how people communicate requires a degree of thoughtfulness and craftsmanship that is not common in the development of enterprise software. How far you go in helping companies truly transform to take advantage of this shift in working is even more important than the individual software features you are duplicating.

  2. An open platform is essential

    Second, an open platform is essential. Communication is just one part of what humans do on the job. The modern knowledge worker relies on dozens of different products for their daily work, and that number is constantly expanding. These critical business processes and workflows demand the best tools, regardless of vendor.

  3. You've got to do this with love

    Third, you’ve got to do this with love. You’ll need to take a radically different approach to supporting and partnering with customers to help them adjust to new and better ways of working.