Slack wouldn’t be possible anywhere without the unflagging support of Slack administrators (and for this, we thank you!). This award honors the dedication and commitment of a Slack admin who unlocked Slack’s success for their organization.
Rocket Software’s director of global end user experience, Andy Woodnutt, is receiving the Slack Admin of the Year Award for his relentless dedication to bringing innovative Slack programs to life at the global software company.
Empowering organizations around the world to improve on their legacy technology, Rocket Software is focused on building and delivering software solutions for more than 10,000 customers and partners. To help facilitate such an ambitious undertaking, Woodnutt championed five Slack innovations that changed how more than 2,000 employees, or “Rocketeers,” better serve the company’s 5 million end users.
When Rocket’s annual hackathon was temporarily sidelined due to the pandemic, Woodnutt was part of an initiative to digitally build and run the entire event in Slack. “Rocket.Build” included more than 450 employees and 150 Slack channels, with each team working together remotely to “#BeLegendary.”
On the IT team, Woodnutt encouraged the use of Workflow Builder to streamline processes, including one that standardizes IT announcements. The innovation reduces the number of employees needed to communicate important updates from 20 to five, and saves approximately 6,240 hours annually.
To improve the customer experience during a critical incident, Woodnutt helped spearhead the IT team’s “Big Red Button” Slack app. When “pushed,” it automatically spins up a channel, adds corresponding Salesforce data and invites relevant stakeholders, to restore service as quickly as possible.
On the HR team, an annual employee engagement survey often had the opposite of its intended effect: Employees did not feel heard. Together with Woodnutt and his team, HR designed a digital suggestion box and moved everything into Slack. Now the process is centralized and employees can seamlessly submit feedback anonymously. A live feedback loop invites honesty and ensures clarity of intent.
At Rocket Software, anyone involved in closing a sales deal gets an allocation of the total commission. Before Slack, the appropriate amount was discussed in Salesforce Chatter, but the process was challenging and time-consuming. With Woodnutt’s help, a new Slack workflow handles and tracks requests from submission through to approval, allowing teams to sidestep administrative tasks and focus on closing deals.
Thinking creatively to customize Slack to Rocket Software’s needs, Woodnutt improved processes across the company, not only saving his colleagues time and alleviating frustration but helping everyone work together to deliver “legendary” outcomes.
