AI-POWERED COACHING BY KONA | THE BEST AI TOOL EVER?

We employ a 5-star rating system for all the AI tools we review to give you a comprehensive idea of the overall utility of each tool.

• Five stars: Editor’s choice
• Four stars: An excellent choice
• Three stars: Meets some of our standards
• Two stars: Doesn’t meet our standards
• One star: Not recommended

Our team of experts has awarded this AI tool an overall rating of 5 for its user-friendly interface and great features that can help teams thrive in a virtual work environment.

Kona is an AI-powered leadership coach that seamlessly integrates with Slack, one of the most popular team collaboration platforms.

Our experts tested Kona's primary objective: to help managers provide expert advice and guidance for everyday leadership situations without requiring users to leave Slack.

Kona is trained with numerous expert frameworks and is trusted by leaders at top startups such as Masterclass, Canva, Mercury, and Oyster to support their remote teams.

Essentially, Kona is a Slack plugin that contributes to building a vibrant remote team culture.

One of the major challenges faced by remote managers is the inability to gauge team members' emotions and feelings accurately.

Kona addresses this challenge by automating daily check-ins, offering insights on team trends, burnout warnings, and empowering managers to lead with empathy, all within the familiar Slack interface.

Our team examined how Kona functions, breaking down its key components. Kona helps establish relationships, hear out every employee through daily check-ins, improve cross-collaboration, and enhance employee retention by identifying withdrawal signs early.

Our findings confirmed that Kona addresses these crucial challenges faced by remote managers.

Establish Relationships: Kona helps build trust and relationships among team members, even in a remote setting, by fostering open communication.

Hear Out Every Employee: With daily check-ins, managers can better understand their employees' feelings and concerns, promoting natural employee engagement.

Improve Cross-Collaboration: When team members understand each other better, they are more likely to collaborate effectively and generate creative solutions.

Improve Employee Retention: Kona assists in identifying withdrawal signs early, allowing organizations to make necessary changes and improve employee retention.

Kona offers flexible pricing options to cater to the needs of different organizations:

Free Plan

Kona offers a free plan with basic features, allowing teams to get started without any financial commitment.

Kona’s AI Leadership Coach

Priced at $49 per user per month, this plan provides 24/7 on-demand expert leadership advice and access to Kona's exclusive Manager Book Club community.

Enterprise Plan

The Enterprise Plan offers unlimited AI Leadership Coaching sessions, premium personalized support, and bulk discounts. For detailed pricing, users are encouraged to contact Kona's sales team.

In our quest to provide a comprehensive review, we also examined alternative tools for remote team communication within MS Teams.

Let's take a closer look at some of the MS Teams bots and apps that remote teams can try to keep their communication lively and efficient.

Giphy

Giphy, the world's largest library of animated GIFs, adds a playful touch to communication within MS Teams. In an era where physical gestures like high-fives and hugs are limited, GIFs provide a creative way for team members to express their feelings.

GIFs are an integral part of discussions, with some employees even adopting GIF-centric communication styles. The easy integration of Giphy into MS Teams makes it a convenient tool for finding and sharing GIFs, adding a fun element to daily conversations.

HeyTaco

If your team leans towards the fun and lighthearted side, HeyTaco is a must-try tool. It allows team members to recognize and appreciate each other by awarding virtual tacos for accomplishments. These tacos can later be redeemed for custom rewards, fostering recognition and excitement within the team.

The "taco train" phenomenon, where one taco award leads to a chain of recognitions, highlights the positive impact HeyTaco can have on team morale and camaraderie. Mentioning a team member in an MS Teams channel with the :taco: emoji is all it takes to send them a taco, with each person allowed to give out five tacos daily.

Zoom

In the era of remote work, Zoom has emerged as a global favorite for video conferencing and virtual meetings. Its integration with MS Teams simplifies the process of initiating instant meetings directly from Slack channels using the /zoom command.

The convenience of this integration has led to a substantial increase in Zoom usage, with countless hours spent on virtual meetings. The transition from in-person meetings to video calls has become a norm in today's remote work landscape.

TinyPulse

Finally, TinyPulse is a feedback-based tool designed to encourage open communication and input from the entire team. It provides a dedicated space within Microsoft Teams for sharing thoughts on specific questions or offering anonymous suggestions.

This tool has proven valuable for the Vacation Tracker team, allowing team members to provide feedback and suggestions more freely. Additionally, TINYPulse contributes to flattening the hierarchy in larger teams, making it an ideal choice for organizations aiming to foster open and transparent communication.

In our comprehensive evaluation of Kona, our team employed specific criteria to thoroughly assess its performance and utility in the realm of remote team management.

Here are the four key criteria we used, along with our opinions on each:

1. User-Friendliness: We examined Kona's user interface and overall ease of use. Kona's integration with Slack ensures a smooth learning curve and a user-friendly experience. The tool's presence within the familiar Slack interface enhances its accessibility and minimizes the need for extensive training.
2. Price: Pricing is a crucial factor for organizations considering adopting Kona. We think that while Kona offers a free plan, the paid plans, particularly the AI Leadership Coach option, provide valuable features and support. Organizations willing to invest in enhancing their remote team management will find Kona's pricing justifiable.
3. Data Analysis: We scrutinized Kona's data analysis capabilities, particularly its ability to spot trends, warn about potential burnout, and prompt managers to take necessary actions based on the information collected from daily team check-ins. Our assessment found Kona's data analysis to be a valuable asset for managers seeking insights into their team's emotional state.
4. Integrations: Integration options are critical for tools like Kona. We examined Kona's integration with Slack and found it to be seamless and advantageous for organizations already using Slack as their primary communication platform. However, we also noted that for teams relying on different collaboration tools, Kona's integration might pose limitations.