Should Google buy Slack to bridge messaging gap?
A lot changed in the enterprise messaging and collaboration market during the final months of 2016. Facebook formally entered the space with Workplace and the accompanying Work Chat app, for example. Microsoft released Teams. Google rebranded its portfolio of apps for business as G Suite.
Google does not, however, appear to have a clear strategy or blockbuster app for messaging or group chat in the enterprise. Google is likely capable of overcoming this challenge on its own, but experts suggest Slack is a viable acquisition target that would instantly boost G Suite's performance and influence in enterprise communications.
'G' in G Suite stands for 'gap' in team messaging
Google needs enterprise collaboration tools "beyond just nice-to-have capabilities," and that missing link is all the more pronounced following the release of Microsoft Teams and Facebook Workplace, according to Craig Le Clair, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research. Microsoft has an awkward abundance of chat-powered apps in Office 365, but its suite is complete, Le Clair says, while G Suite still has a big "gap" in its offering for team messaging.
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