Best Sideways 6 Alternative: When Teams-Only Idea Management Isn't Enough (2026)

Looking for a Sideways 6 alternative? Sideways 6 is a lightweight idea management tool built for Microsoft Teams and Slack. Its strength is meeting employees where they already work. But if you need more than basic idea capture inside a chat tool, here is what to consider.

Why teams look for Sideways 6 alternatives

Sideways 6 has genuine strengths. If your entire workforce lives in Microsoft Teams and you want the simplest possible idea channel, it is hard to beat. The install is fast, the interface is minimal, and there is almost nothing to configure.

That said, here are the most common reasons teams outgrow it:

Teams-only limitation. Sideways 6 works inside Microsoft Teams (and Slack, Yammer). If any part of your workforce does not use those tools, they cannot participate. This is a dealbreaker for manufacturing, retail, and logistics companies with significant deskless workforces who do not have corporate email or Teams accounts.

No structured evaluation. Sideways 6 captures ideas. It does not evaluate them. There are no scoring matrices, no multi-stage review workflows, no decision tracking. Ideas go into a channel and then evaluation happens informally in meetings or email. For teams running serious continuous improvement programs, this creates a black hole where ideas disappear after submission.

No frontline accessibility. No QR codes, no SMS submission, no offline mode. If someone does not have a Teams login, they cannot submit an idea. This excludes exactly the people who tend to have the best process improvement ideas: frontline workers on the shop floor, in the warehouse, or on the road.

Limited reporting. Sideways 6 provides basic idea counts and engagement metrics. It does not offer the kind of program measurement that innovation managers need to report to leadership: ideas implemented, cost savings tracked, ROI per campaign.

Sideways 6 vs Hives.co: Feature comparison

How Hives.co solves the Sideways 6 gaps

Multi-channel idea collection

Sideways 6 is channel-native: ideas live inside Teams. Hives.co is channel-agnostic: ideas come from anywhere and flow into a single evaluation pipeline. You can set up QR codes on the factory floor, send SMS links to field workers, embed a submission form on your intranet, and still have office workers submit through a web interface. Every idea ends up in the same place, regardless of how it was submitted.

This matters because the best process improvement ideas often come from the people furthest from a desk.

Structured evaluation and scoring

With Sideways 6, what happens after an idea is submitted? Usually a manager reads it, thinks about it, and either acts on it or does not. There is no structured process, no scoring, no record of why an idea was approved or rejected.

Hives.co gives you configurable evaluation workflows. You define the stages (initial screening, expert review, business case, final decision). You set scoring criteria with weights. Multiple evaluators can assess the same idea independently. The entire decision trail is recorded.

This is not bureaucracy for the sake of it. It is how you ensure good ideas do not get lost and that employees see what happened to their suggestion.

Impact tracking and ROI measurement

Sideways 6 tells you how many ideas were submitted. Hives.co tells you how many ideas were implemented and what they were worth. When you need to build a business case for continuing your idea program, having concrete ROI data makes the conversation with leadership much easier.

Innovation intelligence

Through its Findest integration, Hives.co adds external technology scouting alongside internal idea collection. This means you can match employee ideas with external research, patents, and technology trends. Sideways 6 focuses exclusively on internal idea capture.

When Sideways 6 is still the right choice

To be fair, Sideways 6 is the better fit in some specific scenarios:

• 100% Teams-based workforce. If literally everyone in your organisation uses Teams daily and you want a lightweight suggestion channel with zero learning curve, Sideways 6 is fine.
• Early-stage program. If you are just starting to collect ideas and do not yet need structured evaluation, starting simple in Teams can work. You can always migrate to a more capable platform later.
• Small teams. For teams under 100 people where the manager personally reviews every idea, the lack of structured evaluation is less of an issue.

The problem is that most organizations outgrow these conditions quickly. Once you have hundreds of ideas, multiple evaluators, or any workers without Teams access, the limitations become painful.

Pricing comparison

Sideways 6 does not publish its pricing. You need to request a quote.

Hives.co publishes transparent pricing: €695/month (Core) for up to 500 contributors, €1,495/month (Pro) for up to 2,000, and €1,995/month (Enterprise) for unlimited contributors. No per-user fees, no hidden costs.

For a broader look at what the category costs, see our idea management software pricing comparison.

How to switch from Sideways 6 to Hives.co

The transition is straightforward. Most teams are running their first campaign in Hives.co within two weeks. Here is the typical process:

• Week 1: Set up your Hives.co workspace, configure evaluation criteria, import any existing ideas you want to carry over.
• Week 2: Launch your first idea challenge. Distribute QR codes and links. Announce the new channel to your organization.
• Ongoing: Run campaigns, evaluate ideas, track results. Use the ROI tracking to demonstrate value to leadership.

What should you look for in a Sideways 6 alternative?

If you are evaluating alternatives, here are the capabilities that matter most based on what Sideways 6 lacks:

• Multi-channel submission. Can employees without Teams accounts submit ideas? Look for QR codes, SMS, web forms, and offline support.
• Evaluation workflows. Does the platform have structured scoring, multi-stage review, and decision tracking? Or does evaluation happen outside the tool?
• Impact measurement. Can you track which ideas were implemented and quantify their business value? This is critical for getting leadership support for continued investment in the program.
• Transparent pricing. Some platforms in this space hide their pricing behind sales calls. Look for published pricing so you can evaluate fit before committing time to a demo.
• Data ownership and GDPR. Where is your data hosted? For European organizations, EU hosting and GDPR compliance are non-negotiable.

For a comprehensive overview of the category, our buyer's guide covers all the major platforms including their strengths, weaknesses, and ideal use cases.

What is the main difference between Sideways 6 and Hives.co?

Sideways 6 is an idea capture tool embedded in Microsoft Teams. Hives.co is a full idea management platform with multi-channel collection, structured evaluation, and impact tracking. If you only need to collect ideas from Teams users, Sideways 6 works. If you need to collect, evaluate, and measure ideas from any employee, Hives.co is the stronger choice.

Can I use Hives.co with Microsoft Teams?

Yes. Hives.co integrates with Teams for notifications and idea sharing. The difference is that Hives.co also supports QR codes, SMS, web forms, and other submission channels, so you are not locked into a single platform.

For the full head-to-head breakdown, read our Hives.co vs Sideways 6 comparison. Or book a demo to see the platform in action.