The New Company Communication Channel

Chat and messaging platforms have revolutionized the way people communicate in the workforce. With the rise of remote work and virtual collaboration, these tools have become an integral part of modern work culture. Two of the most popular chat platforms used in the workplace are Microsoft Teams and Slack. Let’s examine all the ways that chat and messaging have changed the workforce, the positive and negative effects, and how Teams and Slack can be used for people analytics.

The Positives of Chat in the Workplace

One of the most significant impacts of chat and messaging in the workplace has been on productivity. These platforms allow for real-time communication and quick decision-making, making it easier for teams to collaborate and work together. Instead of sending emails or scheduling meetings, employees can quickly message each other to ask a question or get clarification on a project. This helps reduce the time it takes to complete tasks, leading to increased productivity.

Another positive effect of chat and messaging platforms is the improved employee experience. With these tools, employees have more flexibility in how they communicate and work. Remote workers can easily stay connected with their team members, and office workers can quickly communicate with their colleagues without leaving their desk. This helps to create a more inclusive work environment and can lead to increased job satisfaction.

In addition to improving productivity and the employee experience, chat and messaging platforms have also changed employee engagement. These tools make it easier for employees to communicate with their managers and team members, which can lead to more frequent check-ins and feedback. This is especially important for remote workers who may feel disconnected from their team. Regular communication can help build stronger relationships and lead to a more engaged workforce. And these communications are not just formal business discussions. Just like when having verbal communications, employees use chat for informal conversations together about what they are thinking, how they are feeling and what’s going on in their lives. On the spectrum of “official email” on the one side, to “casual verbal conversation” on the other side, chat and messaging seem to be used much more like casual verbal conversations.

The Downside…

However, there are also some negative effects of chat and messaging platforms in the workplace. One potential downside is the impact on cultural health. With these tools, it's easy to quickly send messages or comments without fully considering their impact. This can lead to miscommunications or misunderstandings that can harm team dynamics. Additionally, chat and messaging platforms can make it harder to establish a clear company culture. When communication is informal and happens primarily through text, it can be challenging to establish and maintain a shared vision and values.

Another potential negative impact of chat and messaging platforms is toxicity. While these tools can be useful for collaboration, they can also provide a space for negative behaviors such as bullying, rudeness, insensitive comments or outright harassment. When employees feel like they can communicate casually, they may be more likely to engage in these behaviors. This can lead to a toxic work environment that harms the overall culture and employee experience.

A New Analytics Platform!

Chat and messaging platforms have also become a new and unexpected source to improve people analytics. Teams and Slack provide a wealth of data that can be used to measure employee engagement and productivity. By analyzing chat and messaging data, organizations can gain insights into how their employees are communicating and working together. This can help identify areas for improvement and highlight patterns of behavior that may be impacting productivity or cultural health.

Additionally, these platforms can be used to measure employee sentiment. By analyzing the language used in chat and messaging, organizations can gain insights into how their employees feel about their work and their colleagues. This can help identify areas where employees may be struggling and highlight potential issues with team dynamics or culture. 

A culture of recognition can be a powerful tool for companies looking to improve the employee experience and increase retention rates. New AI-based platforms like TruPulse software analyze chat data to measure employee morale, corporate cultural health and what’s on employees' minds to help organizations improve the employee experience by understanding their employees in a continuous and real-time way. These platforms de-identify conversations before any data is analyzed ensuring that employee privacy is protected and only group-level insights are uncovered. By proving these insights to HR teams automatically, HR teams can become agile and quickly adapt to the needs of the workforce.

Chat is Here to Stay

Chat and messaging platforms have had a significant impact on the way we work. They have improved productivity, employee experience, and employee engagement. However, they can also have negative effects on cultural health and toxicity. When using platforms such as Microsoft Teams and Slack, organizations now have a whole new set of data for their people analytics efforts which they can use to gain insights into their workforce and identify areas for improvement. What started off as communications platforms have now become major people analytics platforms as well.