Flock: An app to make team communication easy and keep personal chats private

Are you looking to getting rid of long and confusing email threads with multiple people and replacing it with a chat service that speeds up and simplifies communication within the team members or different groups of an organisation? Then 'Flock', a free chat service could be the platform for you.

Flock, an application started by Riva.co is an easy to use application, which allows unlimited free usage and is available for iOS and Android mobiles and tablets as well as Windows PC, Mac and Linux operating systems. Interestingly, this application does not require an admin to set it up. You can just sign in, and start your discussion.

The app allows employees to sign in using their work email, and automatically syncs the entire office directory to every employee’s device. According to the Flock.co, this eliminates any chance of accidentally mixing your work or personal messages. 

Bhavin Turakhia, CEO and founder sees it as tool to increase productivity. "We are passionate about increasing productivity through efficient workplace communications, and are building a set of tools that enable rapid interaction and decision making," he said.

“Flock gives employees the opportunity to chat in real time in a single place without mixing their personal and work messages,” said Ninad Rawal, Product Manager. “Public instant messengers were never meant for workplace communication. Flock eliminates any chance of accidentally mixing your work or personal messages, or sending your personal ID to clients," he added.

More about Flock app

- How does it work?
In order to set up Flock, just download the app from flock.co for all the devices you need it on. You can set it up using your work email ID and the contact list auto populates with all your colleagues that are within your organisation. All you need to do is select a contact and start chatting!

For mobile users, the application is available to download via the Apple App Store or Google Play.

- Who can use Flock?
Flock can be used by small to large enterprises, which employees 10 to 1000 employees.

- Flock is available on what devices?
Flock app is available on Windows PC, Mac, Chrome, Android and iPhone.

-How to add or Invite someone?
Simply click the "Add/Invite Contact" option on the top right corner in the app, select the option to "Add/Invite Clients", enter the email IDs you want to add and click the Add button. 

-How to manage the team?
1) On your desktop app, go to 'Settings' on the top-right corner. In the menu, select 'Domain Admin Panel'. It will open a page on your browser. 
2) ​​Admins can add/remove users and add/remove other admins.
3) If there are no admins, you can claim to be the admin by clicking 'Become an admin'.

Features of the application

- Free
No charges whatsoever for any number of users

- Scalable
Can be used by small organizations with 10 employees and large organizations with 1000s of employees

- Setup
1) No IT admin required
2) No admin access required
3) Anyone in the company can set it up for themselves, and invite their team or the entire company

Group chat
1) You can create temporary or permanent groups for teams or projects
2) Can Invite participants from within your company or outside

Conversations
1) You can synchronise conversations across multiple devices.
2) Can start a conversation on one device and seamlessly continue it on any other device
3) Chat with folks from within your company or outside
4) Know when your messages are delivered and read by colleagues

Other Features
1) You can customize your notifications
2) You can turn Flock off when you leave work so you are not bothered during off
3) Easy file sharing option
4) Unlimited Chat history
5) Company IT admin can delete accounts of employees that have left the organization