• by Ray Schultz , June 26, 2020

Slack claims it is closer to meeting its goal of replacing email and consigning it to the scrap heap of communications history. 

The firm has announced a product called Slack Connect, designed to help firms build relationships with external partners and overcome the challenges of collaborating with multiple organizations, it says.

There does not seem to be a marketing component. But wary email service providers may take note of this development.   

Among other things, Slack Connect allows companies to “bring conversations out of inboxes and into channels to increase visibility and maintain alignment,” the firm says in a blog item posted on Wednesday. 

Slack Connect may or may not succeed in replacing email, but there is “some substance to the sentiment,” TechCrunch writes. “Email is regularly an avenue for phishing scams and other forms of cybercrime. By using Slack Connect, businesses can set up secure communication channels with vendors, clients and business partners.”

One happy user is seed investor Boldstart Ventures. It was difficult for this firm to make introductions with numerous individuals via email, according to the Slack blog. 

“We have a portfolio of incredibly experienced founders and serial founders, and I wanted to create a more symbiotic relationship by connecting them in Slack channels,” states Natalie Ledbetter, head of people and platform for Boldstart.