In case you missed it: New tools for announcements, search, calls and more

At Slack, we’re always on the lookout for ways to remove friction from your workday. And good news! We found some. We’re quite jazzed about a few new features that will help you streamline announcements in Slack, quickly find the right person to message or finally let your channel names stretch their legs.

Find the right person with people search

Search already helps you find just about everything—from an important message to a file or a channel. Now, search can help you pinpoint the right colleagues, based on their name, profile information (such as department or role) and what they talk about in public channels.

Looking for someone who knows about that new project you’re working on? Just type the keyword or phrase into the search bar, then tap the “People” tab.

Get specific with longer channel names

If Game of Thrones can have more than 21 characters, then so can our channels. We’re extending the maximum length of channel names—from 21 to a whopping 80 characters. That means acronym-packed channels can finally be written out. It helps channel names become a little more clear—and a lot more human.

Announcement channels: broadcast updates without distraction

When channels grow to hundreds or even thousands of members, sometimes noise can drown out important announcements. To ensure that updates are seen and keep surrounding chatter to a minimum, users on our Plus or Enterprise Grid plans can now set posting permissions for any channel.

Quick tip: Admins can limit who can change channel posting permissions from Everyone to Admins and Owners only.

Slack calls: new ways to participate

We’ve upped the utility of Slack Calls with a variety of enhancements. Now hosts can draw while sharing their screen with others—a perfect way to point out important details on a document or image.

You can also now send a short message during Slack Calls. For instance, you could start a poll with emoji, send a quick FYI that you have to step away from the call or offer congratulations—all without interrupting the discussion.

Sync your status (and more) with the Google Calendar app

The Google Calendar App has a helpful new capability. You can now automatically sync your Slack status with your calendar, allowing teammates to see your availability.

Install

You can also use Google Calendar to:

• Receive and respond to event invites
• Get notified when an event is starting soon or when details change
• Join Hangouts, Meet or Zoom calls with a single click

To keep up with all of Slack’s new features, big and small, check out our changelog. Have ideas for more improvements we can make? Many features just like these come directly from customer feedback. Drop us a note or tweet us at @SlackHQ to share yours.