Recently, we started using Slack due to someone waxing lyrical about how all the cool tech companies are using it. Here are my top things I hate about how my colleagues use Slack:

1. Inconsistent use of threads

When we used Microsoft Teams, people were mocked when they posted a brand new message instead of replying to the previous one. However, even though it’s the same people using it, replying to a message seems to be uncool in Slack, and it seems encouraged to post a brand new message even though you are referring to a previous post. This causes people to act all irrationally, because then they get confused if they should either simply post, @ the person, reply and repost etc.

When you get two questions in a short space of time, people have no choice but to “create a thread”. This gets confusing because part of the conversation then appears as replies, but the start of the conversation were separate messages. Sometimes people still won’t start a thread, then just keep @’ing them instead.

When you want to find previous conversations, you end up having to scroll through all that crap which may have been a conversation between 2 people and no one else cared. If it was a thread, it would just be collapsed into one message.

There is also a Thread section which shows you threads you are involved in, but then they are incomplete because people’s inconsistent use of threads, so that feature is frustratingly useless.

2. Going off on a tangent of memes

People seem to see Slack as a casual way of communicating. Maybe because it has the name “Slack” which doesn’t sound as corporate as Teams or Skype. The level of professionalism dips to the point that people are just replying with a GIF, then someone else replies with another GIF. Maybe the GIF had some relevance, but the reply would probably just be a GIF that the person liked. Maybe they didn’t understand why the first GIF was chosen and thought it was a great opportunity to reply with a cute cat. Sometimes you have gone so far off on a tangent, you don’t even know what triggered a response

3. Replying to yourself multiple times like its some kind of instant messenger client and you think you need a second by second update about what you are doing

People seem to view Slack as an Instant Messaging client, whereas with Teams they viewed it as a Message Board. People tended to write longer messages on Teams, and if they needed to post some additional information, they tended to edit the original post.

Since Slack is perceived as Instant Messaging, people often post quick messages one after another, so it’s like:

Tim: “Can you give me access to this repository”

Mark: “Hang on”

Mark: “You should have access now”

Mark: <thumbs up emoji>

Tim: I have access now

Tim: thanks mate

4. replying to a thread but also posting it to the channel even though no one cares

This is very much like point 1, but I think it deserves a special mention. Sometimes a thread has formed and may have several replies in it. I am happy, several people are using the software as it is designed. Then boom! Someone comes in with a basic comment like “I agree with this” and then they tick the box to repost it to the channel. It’s like they think their opinion is so important, they have to make sure everyone sees it.

5. Too many channels.

We have so many channels, many teams have a private channel just for them, and a separaate channel for outsiders to ask questions. Some teams even have a third channel where only bots post the main content. They link it up with GitHub so that any Pull Request or Issues are just reposted to the channel. I guess they have disabled their email alerts and prefer to get the messages in Slack. Often, people go into the channel then say “@here ^” to cause an alert to everyone to check it. Surely the Slack channel was created to avoid the email alerts, then people are replacing them with a Slack alert.

6. people using @channel @here as it if it is important

That brings me onto the next point, people using @channel and @here tags. Normal messages give you an unread notification, @ tags give you a desktop alert like it’s important.

@everyone notifies every person in the #general channel

@here notifies only the active members of a channel

@channel notifies all members of a channel, active or not

If you look at Slack’s official documentation https://get.slack.help/hc/en-us/articles/202009646-Notify-a-channel-or-workspace, they say “We suggest using @here, @channel, and @everyone sparingly.”

An example when to use them:

@everyone – Alert everyone in the company about the emergency evacuation drill.

@here – You’re locked out of the office and need help from someone already at work.

@channel – Update a project team’s channel about a last-minute change in deadlines.

But people use them daily. It’s like “@channel can you tell me where I can find the specification”, “@here can you tell me who knows most about automated testing?”. I end up “muting” most channels to prevent these alerts from showing. It is never that important.

7. You can only have 15 participants on a conference call.

Most teams only contain several members, so team calls are usually fine. Recently, teams have been doing demos, or individuals have been attempting to share their knowledge via a live tutorial; and we have hit the limit. Even when people know there’s gonna be more than 15 participants, they will still host the call on Slack. Why? Because Slack is what the cool kids use. What you gonna do? Post messages in Slack asking the presenter to record it? Slack doesn’t have that feature. Here’s a GIF of a child crying.