How Slack Built its Culture: Part 3

In this episode, James Sherrett shares the inside story of how Slack’s culture was built and lived, focusing on the daily practices, values, and rituals that shaped the company.

Timestamps & Topics:

[0:00] Introduction

Overview of Slack’s culture journey, the four attributes, and six core values.

[1:37] What is Culture, Really?

Exploring the meaning of culture, referencing The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle.

[3:16] Slack’s Mission: SPP

The origin and impact of “Simpler, more Pleasant, and more Productive” on Slack’s daily work.

[4:39] Never Waste a Crisis

[4:39] The 2015 security breach, how Slack responded, and the values that guided the team.

[7:53] The Power of Affirmations

[7:53] The story behind the “What good shall I do this day?” sign and how small rituals reinforced culture.

[9:56] Rethinking Sales Compensation

[9:56] The debate over how to pay salespeople, insights from Drive by Dan Pink, and the evolution of Slack’s approach.

[13:07] Calle-oween: A Unique Ritual

[13:07] The tradition of dressing as CTO Cal Henderson and celebrating consistency and dedication.

[15:13] Closing Thoughts

[15:13] Reflections on culture, rituals, and the journey.

Notable Quotes & References:

• “Culture is a set of living relationships working toward a shared goal. It’s not something you are, it’s something you do.” — Daniel Coyle, The Culture Code

• “What good shall I do this day?” — Benjamin Franklin

• Insights on motivation and autonomy, mastery and purpose from Drive by Dan Pink.

Takeaways:

• Culture is more than words on a wall—it’s how values show up in everyday decisions, crises, and celebrations.

• Rituals, stories, and even small signs can reinforce shared values and purpose.

• Adapting to challenges and being willing to question industry norms are key to building a resilient, authentic culture.

How Slack Built Its Culture: Part Two - Eating the Goat

This episode, 'Eating the Goat,' explores how Slack recognized and addressed rapid hiring issues and built a strong organizational culture. Slack's CEO Stewart Butterfield used the analogy of a snake eating a goat to describe the current state Slack found itself in. To solve it's problem, Slack developed its Six Slack Values — craftsmanship, empathy, thriving, courtesy, playfulness, solidarity — and created stories and onboarding processes to embed these values in daily work. Then Slack made onboarding into a force multiplier for everyone who joined in Slack's growth.

00:00 Introduction: A Slack Story by James Sheret

00:24 The Goat Analogy: Digesting Growth Challenges

04:51 Codifying Slack's Culture: The Four Attributes

05:26 Introducing the Six Slack Values

08:40 Craftsmanship: Painting the Back of the Drawer

10:09 Empathy and Courtesy: Understanding and Helping Customers

14:11 Onboarding as a Force Multiplier

17:30 Conclusion: Reflecting on Slack's Cultural Evolution

Inside Slack: Defining Culture with Four Attributes

In this episode, James Sherrett shares how Slack began to define its company culture by establishing Four Slack Attributes. Learn about the challenges faced due to rapid growth and how founding personalities like Stewart Butterfield impacted the evolving culture. Sherrett recounts the creation of the four Slack attributes — smart, humble, hardworking, and collaborative — and reflects on their role in guiding (or not guiding) team behaviour. Despite being a solid step ahead, the Four Slack Attributes faced limitations and required interpretation for new members.

00:00 Introduction: The Slack Story Begins

00:07 Defining Slack's Culture: The Four Attributes

01:14 Unveiling the Four Slack Attributes

02:14 Smart: The First Attribute

03:11 Humble: The Second Attribute

04:14 Hardworking: The Third Attribute

05:08 Collaborative: The Fourth Attribute

06:18 Reflecting on the Four Attributes

07:28 The Need for Evolution

Building a High-Performance Culture at Slack

How did we start to establish a high-performance work culture at Slack? It starts by examining the company's hiring philosophy, rooted in the high expectation of doing the best work of one's life. This expectation acted as a filtering mechanism to identify optimistic and proactive candidates who embraced challenges. Dig into the internal processes and principles of the accounts team, such as decision-making using a 'trinity' of questions and the 'search first' mentality, to maintain efficiency and autonomous problem-solving. These cultural norms fostered trust, transparency, and a commitment to excellence within the team. The episode concludes with a preview of an upcoming discussion on the foundational values that underpin Slack's culture.

00:00 Introduction: A Slack Story by James Sherrett

00:20 The Slack Interview Experience

01:01 Setting High Expectations at Slack

01:46 The Challenge of Doing Your Best Work

04:39 Empowering Decision Making with the Trinity

07:21 The Power of 'Search First'

10:58 What might a Slack culture look like?

Slack's Rise: From Coffee Shops to Celebrity Endorsements

James Sherrett recounts the thrilling journey of Slack's growth and wider adoption, from everyday encounters at coffee shops to attracting celebrity investors like Jared Leto and Snoop Dogg. He discusses the company's transition into larger office spaces in San Francisco and Vancouver and touches on the cultural evolution within Slack. The episode provides a glimpse into the remarkable milestones and the increasing recognition that marked Slack's journey to becoming a billion-dollar unicorn.

00:00 Introduction: Slack's Rise to Fame

00:32 Slack in the Wild: Real-World Encounters

01:43 Celebrity Endorsements and Investments

02:41 New Office Spaces: Growth and Expansion

03:59 Defining Slack's Culture and Future

04:26 Conclusion: Building the Future of Slack

Slack's Billion Dollar Journey: Inside the Fundraising Milestone

In this narrative by James Sherrett, the story unfolds about Slack achieving a billion-dollar valuation. It covers the inner workings of living through a significant fundraising announcement and the emotions and routines within the Slack team during this period.

Sherrett reflects on the sudden shift in their valuation and what it represented, accompanied by media coverage and internal reactions. The script delves into the dynamics of Slack’s growth, highlighting the importance of their PR strategy, their compelling story, and the contributions of their leadership and teams. How does it feel to become a unicorn?

00:00 Introduction: A Day in the Life at Slack

01:01 The Big News: Fundraising Announcement

02:23 Reflecting on the Billion Dollar Valuation

04:29 Understanding the Impact of Fundraising

08:26 The Role of PR in Slack's Success

11:38 Conclusion: Slack's Journey to Fame

Meet the New New Boss: A.J.

This episode, narrated by James Sherrett, focuses on the challenges of adapting to new leadership. James recounts receiving an unexpected call from his boss, Allen Shim, Slack's CFO, informing him of his new boss, AJ. He shares his initial apprehensions, the strategic decision-making process, and the dynamics of working closely with AJ. Through detailed notes and reflections, James highlights the complexities of balancing immediate tasks with future planning in a rapidly growing startup. The narrative underscores the importance of adaptability, trust, and forward-thinking in thriving within a transformative company environment, and how these attributes did not come quickly or easily to James.

00:00 Introduction: A Slack Story by James Sherrett

00:21 The Unexpected Call

01:25 Meeting the New New Boss, AJ

02:05 Navigating Uncertainty

03:31 Reflecting on the Changes

05:10 Allen's Strategy and AJ's Role

07:10 Building the Team

07:53 AJ's Visit to Vancouver

09:08 Adapting to Change

12:34 Future Vision and Strategy

15:12 Conclusion: Lessons Maybe Learned

The First Five: How Slack Hired Its Initial Sales Team

In this episode, James Sherrett narrates the story of how Slack hired its first five salespeople. He outlines the challenges of hiring salespeople without prior experience, the development of a candidate evaluation process inspired by Daniel Kahneman's work, and the creation of effective job descriptions. He also details a 5-step hiring process including writing assignments, presentations, interviews, and reference checks. Sherrett shares insights into the traits they looked for in candidates and the success of the hires, emphasizing their impact on Slack's growth. Finally, he reflects on the achievements and career advancements of these 5 foundational team members.

00:00 Introduction: The Slack Hiring Journey

00:21 Facing the Challenge: Hiring Salespeople

00:53 Creating an Evaluation Process

01:46 Inspired by Kahneman: Faceted Evaluation

03:28 Crafting the Perfect Job Description

06:19 The Application Process: Writing Assignments

10:48 Evaluating Written Assignments

13:54 Sales Presentations: Zoom Demos

15:46 In-Person Interviews: The Final Step

22:46 The First Five Hires

26:34 Conclusion: Reflecting on the Journey

27:19 Next Up: Selling to Enterprises

Navigating Rapid Growth at Slack: Customer Segmentation and the Path to Scaling up

In this episode, James Sherrett covers the whirlwind journey of Slack's growth from its inception to hitting $10-million in annual recurring revenue in 8 months. He highlights the overwhelming yet exhilarating experience of managing the rapidly increasing customer base. Then how Slack identified three key customer segments—self-service users, small and medium-sized businesses, and enterprise. James previews his third role as Slack’s first Sales Manager and the key question he faced: who to hire to drive the company's explosive growth from $10-million to $100-million?

00:00 Introduction: A Slack Story by James Sherrett

00:24 The Overwhelming Growth of Slack

01:38 Hiring Help and Customer Segments

03:02 Understanding Our Customers

03:59 Identifying Customer Types

06:42 The Barbell Distribution

08:06 Preparing for Future Growth

08:35 Transition to Sales Manager

10:00 Up next: Hiring Good Hybrids

Unveiling Easter Eggs in Slack: A Journey of Playfulness and Productivity

In this episode, James Sherrett shares the playful and intricate details behind the design of Slack, highlighting how the software incorporates game-like features known as Easter eggs. The narrative explores various hidden gems like custom loading messages, the self-loathing web socket error message, the story behind the introduction of the Shruggy emoticon, and the inventive use of slash commands.

Additional touches include the reordering of emojis for a positive user experience, the surprise animations hidden in the preferences section, and the user-friendly Slack bot. The episode emphasizes how these playful elements make the work communication platform engaging and delightful for users.

00:00 Introduction: The Game of Work

01:31 Easter Eggs in Slack: An Overview

01:44 Custom Loading Messages: Making Waiting Fun

03:10 Web Socket Woes: Connection Troubles

04:50 Slash Commands: Hidden Treasures

06:58 Emoji Decisions: Injecting Fun into Work

08:45 Preferences Menu: Hidden Features

10:08 Slack Bot: Your Friendly Guide

11:04 Conclusion: Share Your Favorite Easter Eggs