Microsoft Teams v. Slack
At times, today’s technology can be both a blessing and a curse. Working on projects that span across several departments can quickly flood your inbox, making it difficult to locate pertinent documents or email messages you know you filed away in the corresponding folder. If only there was an easier way to collaborate on teams. Lucky for us, there is!
Microsoft Teams and Slack are both collaboration hubs that serve as an alternative to group emails, which allow for easy messaging and file sharing. Let’s take a deeper look at the similarities and differences between these two, so you can determine which best suits your needs.
Chatting & Calls
Teams and Slack have very similar features when it comes to chatting and messaging. In both, users can create conversation threads and direct messages. Similar to group texting, threads are a feature that allows your team to converse in a “channel” (or folder) together so that each person can respond in a single conversation.
Both Teams and Slack allow video chatting, however there are several features that Teams offers that Slack does not. One feature is that users can record a call that appears in the chat feed so they can go back and refer to it later. From there, videos are automatically uploaded to Azure (Microsoft’s cloud computing software) with timestamps and translation of chat messages.
Integration
One of the major perks of both of these collaboration hubs is the ability to share files with your colleagues. From within Slack, you can effortlessly create or share Google Drive documents. If your company’s main file collaboration source is Google Drive, then this is a great feature.
Using Teams, you can also easily share files; however, these files are from the Office 365 platform. If your company already uses the Office 365 package, then this gives Teams a big edge over Slack. Another key feature of sharing content in Teams is that you can view and collaborate on files directly within Teams. For example, when someone sends you a Word document, you can edit it in Teams without having to leave the platform. However, with Slack, you would need to download the attachment and then edit it externally.
Slack has over 800 available integrations with third-party apps, whereas Teams has around 200, but since Teams is integrated with Office 365, it provides a more seamless user experience as opposed to using the Microsoft apps through Slack.
Security & Compliance
Given the recent data breaches we hear about all too often, keeping customers’ data safe is a top priority for companies with today’s ever-evolving technological advancements.
Microsoft Team’s integration with Office 365 means the Enterprise Mobility and Security Suite is included in the subscription. All of the data stored in the Teams platform is secured with enterprise-class security ensuring users with the peace-of-mind that their data is safe.
Both Teams and Slack have a handful of certifications that keep them compliant, but Slack lacks certain encryption requirements and the CJIS (Criminal Justice Information Systems) certification, meaning they would not be able to work with specific companies like the FBI.
Which do I choose?
Ultimately, the decision between which communication hub will best suit your organization depends on your specific needs. It’s important to assess each tool based on the utilization and preferences of your organization.
Slack’s simple design and user experience are good for first-time users or small teams looking for a quick way to interact easily. On the other hand, Microsoft Teams is a great option for those who are already using Office 365, since Microsoft Teams is already included in the subscription, and tightly integrated with the other Microsoft applications you use every day.
