Unify Slack to Secure Collaboration and Boost Efficiency
Learn how consolidating and migrating workspaces in Enterprise Grid encourages collaboration while also enhancing security.
Several people are creating workspaces
Do you know the origin story of Slack for your organization? How did it get there? Who had it first?
In some cases, new tools like Slack are introduced to your organization through informal channels, often referred to as shadow IT. Teams or individual employees may discover the value of utilizing Slack for improved communication and collaboration, leading them to initiate its use without seeking formal involvement from their IT departments. In other cases, Slack is introduced companywide — as was the case with H-E-B (in 72 hours!). While we all can’t have epic origin stories like H-E-B, or Sandwich (definitely worth the watch), or Jared Leto’s very public endorsement of Slack for his company, we’re each thankful to that person who first brought it to our company.
It’s not unheard of to see organizations with multiple (or hundreds) of stand-alone workspaces that were spun up by different teams at different times. As the use of Slack becomes more widespread within an organization, IT will become aware of these workspaces. At that point, IT may choose to officially adopt and support Slack, integrating it into their IT infrastructure.
IT then needs to determine what to do with all the workspaces that are out there. Keeping them stand-alone is counterintuitive since people and teams will remain siloed. After all, Slack is supposed to bring teams together and make working lives simpler, more pleasant, and more productive. The only way to do this is to consolidate them into one Slack instance or upgrade to Enterprise Grid. The former is possible, but we recommend the latter.
Unifying with Enterprise Grid
Enterprise Grid is the only Slack plan that allows for multiple workspaces. Teams can keep their autonomy yet have the benefit of being able to collaborate with anyone in their organization. In an era where digital collaboration is the lifeblood of modern enterprises, ensuring the security of our virtual workplaces is also paramount. For those of us committed to safeguarding sensitive information and maintaining the integrity of our data, the domain-claiming feature available only with Slack’s Enterprise Grid plan cannot be overstated. This feature serves as a powerful deterrent against the proliferation of unsanctioned workspaces — a potential breeding ground for security risks and data loss.
Secure collaboration
If you’ve made the leap to Enterprise Grid, below are your immediate next steps:
- Claim your domains: Put an immediate stop to the creation of rogue workspaces compromising your security posture.
- Conduct a thorough audit of existing workspaces: Get the full list of workspace URLs, members, usage details, and current admin details.
- Determine what action to take with these workspaces: Do you migrate them into Enterprise Grid? Do you migrate them and then archive? Do you migrate and move channels into other workspaces? What are other factors you should consider to make these decisions? Active users? Last used?
Boost efficiency
Consolidating and migrating workspaces into Enterprise Grid will unify your Slack collaboration experience, but there’s still more work to do. Establishing a solid governance structure for Slack is not merely a best practice; it’s a necessity. We implore security-conscious customers to dedicate time and resources to craft policies that extend beyond internal use. Whether through Slack Connect or guest access, implementing external collaboration policies is crucial. This will ensure that collaboration remains secure and controlled in your new unified Slack workspace.
Ready to get started?
For those already on Enterprise Grid, take a moment to evaluate your current grid design. Seize the opportunity to capitalize on features like domain claiming that can further strengthen your security posture. Consider implementing measures to secure external collaboration too, such as blocking file downloads in a specified workspace and/or restricting who has the authority to add new members to Slack Connect channels. These seemingly small adjustments can make a world of difference in protecting your organization from potential security threats and data leaks.
Slalom is a next-generation professional services company creating value at the intersection of business, technology, and humanity. Ready to start unifying Slack? Get in touch with a Slalom Slack expert.
