Story map
Follow the problem, early work, people reached and the moments that changed the outcome.
The problem they noticed
What should a team do when its main product fails but a tool it built along the way proves useful?
From first version to product
Butterfield, Cal Henderson, Eric Costello and Serguei Mourachov ended the game Glitch in 2013 and developed their internal chat system for wider use.
Reaching people
The team treated its own communication experience as a clue, then deliberately rebuilt and released the tool as Slack.
Key moments
Experiments, pivots, and surprises. Look for what changed their thinking.
- 1Pivot
What happened: The game closed, but the co-founders retained and developed its internal communication tool.
Lesson: A failed project can contain a useful insight, but the next concept still has to be tested.
Impact
Work can create value and still involve limits or trade-offs. Look at both sides of the impact.
Positive
- +Slack helped popularise channel-based communication for organisations.
Trade-offs
- ±More workplace messages can also create distraction and information overload if teams use the tool poorly.
- ±A pivot is not automatic. An internal tool still needs outside research, product work and evidence that other teams need it.
What to remember
If you had to explain this story to a friend, what would you want them to remember?
- Look for tools or behaviours users value even when the original concept fails.
- Credit the team that created and developed the insight.
- Turn an observation into a testable concept rather than calling the outcome accidental.
Featured in these lessons
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Sources & further reading
- Slack, What is Slack and how does it work? - https://slack.com/resources/why-use-slack/what-is-slack-and-how-does-it-work
- Slack, The rise of openness - https://slack.com/blog/transformation/disruption-of-work-openness