🏘️ Making the Most of the Slate Community

Slate Community Overview

One of the best parts of using Slate is having access to the community of Slate users. Institutions that would be seen as competitors gladly share solutions, swap ideas, and make each other's workdays brighter. 

Super Slate Technolutions Friends | Facebook Group (🔐 requires login)

• This private Facebook group requires a Facebook account and you must request access and have it approved by the group administrators before you can participate. The group is active and is a great place for new and functional Slate users. The discussion tends to focus on admissions with a lot of questions about queries, events, and reporting. 

Slate Users Slack Group (🔐 requires login)

• If you aren't already a member, join using the first-time user link to gain access to this group. This group is active, though using a free Slack workspace, so all posts are archived behind a paywall after 90 days. Users of all levels and types are welcome, though this tends to be the best place to bring more technical questions, especially those involving data integrations and custom coding. 

Slate Community Forums (🔐 requires login)

• The official Slate Community Forums have active participation by Technolutions staff and volunteer community moderators. This venue is the perfect place for questions about how to build a process in Slate or how other institutions handle something in Slate. 

Slate Feedback Forums (🔐 requires login)

• The official Feedback Forums are a great place to make requests for changes to Slate itself, especially if the feature you want to change is in active development or you have been directed to make the request as follow-up from a Service Desk Request. In addition, by reading requests here you can develop a sense of what is possible in Slate and what pain points other institutions are experiencing. 

Slate User Groups (🔐 requires login)

• User groups are the best place to connect with users with something in common with you, either in location or function. Many user groups host webinars, discussions and annual in-person meetings. Often the deepest relationships Slate users have started in a user group.

Best Practices

If you’re just joining one or more of these communities, some of the norms and expectations may be unclear. Here are some guidelines to keep in mind.

1.    Value People’s Time

•  Be empathetic when someone responds to say that what you want is possible, but they’re unable to walk you through it at this time. They have professional commitments just like you do.
• Avoid asking for suitcase ids, especially for portals. The Slate community is known for collaboration and generosity, but that only works when people properly value each other’s time. Unless you’re paying for it, we recommend not asking for suitcase ids.
• Don’t dm or mention specific people in your posts unless they have invited you to do so. Unless you are paying someone to help you, it’s unfair and unprofessional to presume they should be available to assist you. This is even true for consultants that frequently post in the community. 
• Make sure you’ve done your own research and completed some basic troubleshooting on your own before you post. Check for other posts on the same topic and provide all relevant details you know so others don’t need to unnecessarily go back and forth with you to determine what you’re asking.

2.    Reset Your Expectations

• Recognize that people share solutions and ideas voluntarily, so any engagement with your post should be viewed positively. Just knowing that someone else experiences the same issue and you’re not alone is helpful. Hearing that someone built a workaround can give you a sense of how you should approach an issue. If no one engages with your post, it may mean that your question is already addressed elsewhere or that the issue is unique to you. You may not get the solution you were originally looking for, but you will learn from your post.

3.    Give Back

• As you receive assistance from the community, commit to helping others when possible. If you are new to Slate, no one is expecting you to answer complex questions on day one. But someone may ask for help finding the Knowledge Base article you just referenced earlier today. You can provide that link and look, now you’ve helped someone!
• Whenever relevant, acknowledge and credit those who've shared knowledge or resources with you. Not only does this inform others of the originator, but it also fosters a sense of gratitude within the community. It turns out basic human kindness is a powerful tool for networking.