Howto Slack: topic in the channel, details in the thread
McGrinsey Slack rule: post a new topic, keep details and discussion in the thread. Onboarding screenshot, a few base rules for chat culture.
Howto Slack at McGrinsey: new topic in the channel, details and discussion in the thread. The channel stays the overview. The thread keeps the topic together.
This approach has worked for us
Howto Slack?
- Post a new topic in the channel.
- Comment sections are called threads in Slack.
- Write topic details in a new comment / thread.
- Discuss the topic in the comments / in the thread.
That is how Slack stays usable with many topics running. Without threads, every channel becomes a timeline where answers to topic A sit between answers to topic B. With threads, the first line in the channel stays short and the rest hangs underneath.
In practice: you may post “Budget Q2” in the channel and drop the spreadsheet, the three options, and the decision in the thread. Scanners see the title. People in the talk open the thread. Late joiners find the context in one place instead of three days of channel scroll.
What belongs in the channel, what does not
- In: new status, new question, new blocker, new decision with a one-line result.
- Into the thread: screenshots, long explanations, “+1”, side questions, file dumps.
- Own channel or new post: when the topic needs its own name and will run for weeks.
The boundary is intent, not police. If two people settle a side question in the channel, little harm. If twenty people do the same, the overview dies. Then the thread rule snaps back hard.
Tip: sharpen onboarding
Copy the image and share it in every onboarding in your Slack.
One image beats a wiki page nobody opens. New people see the rule once and can find it again when the channel gets loud.
Chat culture
In decentralised digital work, a good chat culture is gold. On a few simple base rules, your chat culture can grow its own shape.
- One topic, one thread. New question, new top-level post. The answer belongs under the post, not beside it.
- Channel for overview. Scrollers should see which topics are open, not every side remark.
- Details below. Links, screenshots, long explanations go in the thread. The first line stays scannable.
Got chat-culture hacks? Share them via john@mcgrinsey.com.
Increase your ROC. Your Return On Culture.
Fact table
| Claim | Basket | From where |
|---|---|---|
| Original Howto Slack post on 10 January 2024, id 234 | Fact | Magazine archive, slug howto-slack. |
| Rule: new topic in the channel, details and discussion in the thread | Fact | Original stub, kept as the core rule. |
| Both stub images stay embedded | Fact | Paths Howto_Slack_Mc_Grinsey_cdd725d3b6.png and Howto_Slack_300x250_386c1e90cb.png. |
| Threads keep the channel overview scannable when many topics run in parallel | Thesis | McGrinsey practice in the stub; stance, not Slack telemetry. |
