Ultimate Guide to Slack App Integrations

December 5, 2023

Be awesome in Slack with this in-depth guide to maximizing the use of Slack for effective team communication and collaboration. It covers various tools that can be integrated into Slack for HR processes, staff engagement, work tracking, as well as integrations from major companies. It also discusses how to use Zapier for task automation, integration with other apps, email notifications, social media monitoring, and data backup. We conclude with practical tips on mastering Slack shortcuts, customizing notifications, using threads, starring important items, utilizing Slack Bot, setting status, creating user groups, using emojis for quick responses, and keeping channels organized.

HR Tools Integrated into Slack

Recognize: Send and receive employee recognition in Slack based on your company values. Staff earn points that can be converted into company rewards, such as gift cards, swag, or Amazon business. Recognize posts work anniversaries automatically to Slack with reward options as well. Recognize also acts as a survey tool to gather feedback. Integrations into Microsoft 365, Workday, and UKG. Learn more about employee recognition and Slack here.
BambooHR: This tool integrates with Slack to streamline your HR processes. It allows you to track employee time-off requests, benefits, and performance reviews, all from within your Slack workspace.
Zenefits: Zenefits on Slack provides an easy way to manage your HR tasks. You can track time and attendance, manage benefits, and even handle payroll, making it a comprehensive solution for HR management.
Simple Poll: Simple Poll allows you to create quick polls in Slack. This can be useful for HR teams to collect feedback on various topics, helping to make informed decisions.
WorkTango: WorkTango’s integration with Slack allows for real-time employee feedback and pulse surveys. This can be a powerful tool for measuring and improving employee engagement. It also allows for sending recognition.
Lattice: Lattice is a performance management tool that integrates with Slack. It allows HR teams to conduct performance reviews, set and track goals, and gather feedback, all within the Slack interface. Admins can ask surveys in Lattice.

Tools to Engage Staff in Slack

Polly: Polly is a great tool that can be used for creating instant polls and surveys in Slack. It is a quick and easy way to engage with your team, gather opinions, and make decisions.
Donut: Donut is an engagement tool that randomly pairs team members for virtual coffee chats. It’s a great way to foster connections and build a strong company culture remotely.
Recognize: Also listed in the HR tools, survey staff, gather feedback, give recognition, reward points, gift cards, and Amazon.
BirthdayBot: BirthdayBot will ensure that no team member’s birthday goes unnoticed. It’s a simple way to make each team member feel special and valued.
Giphy: Giphy allows team members to express themselves in a fun and informal way by sharing GIFs. It can be a great icebreaker and is sure to bring some laughter into the workday.

Gen Z sitting at a cafe.

Tools to Track Work in Slack

Slack Analytics: Slack’s built-in analytics tool provides insights into your team’s use of Slack. It shows data on the number of messages sent, channels used, and active members, helping you monitor overall activity and engagement levels.
Statbot: Statbot is an analytics tool that integrates with Slack to provide detailed statistics. It can help you monitor active users, message counts, and response times, among other things.
WorkPatterns: WorkPatterns is a Slack integration that helps managers monitor and improve team productivity. It provides insights into communication patterns and helps identify areas of improvement.
Time Doctor: Time Doctor is a time tracking tool that integrates with Slack. It can give you insights into how much time your team is spending on Slack versus other tasks, helping you monitor productivity.
Clara: Clara is a meeting scheduler tool that integrates with Slack. It can help you track how much time your team is spending in meetings, providing another indicator of productivity.

Major Companies with Slack Integrations

Google: Google’s suite of productivity tools are all integrated with Slack. This includes Google Calendar for scheduling, Google Drive for file sharing and collaboration, and Gmail for easy access to email within the Slack interface.
Microsoft: Microsoft’s Office 365 tools are also integrated with Slack. This means you can use tools like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint directly within Slack. Additionally, OneDrive is integrated for file sharing and Teams for video meetings.
Salesforce: Salesforce is a leading customer relationship management tool that’s integrated with Slack. This allows sales teams to monitor leads, manage customer information, and discuss deals without leaving the Slack platform.
GitHub: GitHub is a popular platform for software development that can be integrated with Slack. This allows developers to get notifications about commits, pull requests, and other activities within their Slack channels.
Zoom: Zoom, the video conferencing tool, also has a Slack integration. This allows team members to quickly start Zoom meetings directly from their Slack channels.

Ways to Use Zapier and Slack

Task Automation: You can automate repetitive tasks such as sending reminders for deadlines or meetings. For example, you can set up a Zap to send a message in Slack whenever a new meeting is scheduled in your calendar.
Integration with Other Apps: With Zapier, you can integrate Slack with other apps like Trello, Asana, or Google Sheets. For instance, you could create a Zap that sends a Slack message whenever a new card is added in Trello.
Email Notifications: You can set up a Zap to send Slack notifications whenever you receive important emails. This can help you stay on top of your inbox without having to leave Slack.
Social Media Monitoring: You can monitor your company’s social media accounts by creating a Zap that sends Slack notifications whenever your brand is mentioned on platforms like Twitter or Facebook.
Data Backup: You can use Zapier to automatically backup data from Slack to other platforms. For example, you could create a Zap that saves all Slack messages to a Google Sheet for record-keeping.