Slack Connect DMs, first announced in October, are now generally available. The feature lets employees collaborate with trusted external partners on Slack.
Previously, Slack direct messaging was limited to communication between employees within the same organization.
The tool should help simplify communications but also ensure that communications with outside parties stay secure and compliant, Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield said during a virtual event on Wednesday. Connect DMs, he said, “give you a lot more control, a lot more insight, into how that communication is happening.”
Slack is also integrating new apps into Slack Connect — a secure environment that lets businesses bring up to 20 organizations into a shared space for real-time collaboration. Users can now share a Calendly link in Slack Connect, get DocuSign notifications and map accounts with Crossbeam.
Later this year, Slack plans to let two companies create a private business network using Slack Connect. This will allow them to leverage unified directories, direct messaging, channel discovery and shared applications.
Butterfield on Wednesday stressed that, in the post-pandemic world, organizations will not only have to rethink where their employees are physically located but what tools they’re using.
“Once you let go o the ability to lean over to someone next to you or to hold a meeting in person, you’re going to figure out ways to accomplish the same ends,” he said, “new ways to leverage technology to get the same or even better results.”
