Tell me where the fuck I should send this message
Daniele Catalanotto
Oct 11, 2022
A Service Design Principle to make communication easier.
You have a question for a colleague. What should you do: send it via email? Call him. Send him an instant message via WhatsApp or Slack? Or check his calendar to set up an appointment?
These are potentially all good ways to get your answer and to interact with your coworker. The problem is that in many teams, people treat different requests through different channels and expectations.
That leads us to feel overflowed with information, miss important information or doesn’t remember where we received that critical message. And obviously, this wastes our time and makes us frustrated.
The solution to this problem is simple.
Define what type of messages gets sent where. Then set the minimum expectation. Then, say how often I have to check each channel. We can make internal communication more effortless and less frustrating.
Here are practical questions you should answer as a team:
What tool do we use for fast replies? What tool do we use for reference? What tool do we use for the personal and fun stuff? If there is an emergency, how do I get in touch with someone? How often do we have to check our emails? Once a day? Or is every two days okay?
Daniele’s personal notes
- You just read the second draft of this Service Design Principle.
- The length of this principle has been reduced by 37% compared to the first draft.
- Once improved even more, this principle could be part of the book “Service Design Principles 201-300.”
- As always, feel free to share comments, feedback or personal stories to improve this principle.
4 comments
No Name
Oct 12, 2022
The title is missing "send" this message. Right now it says where should I this message ;)
Jochen Bergmann
Oct 13, 2022
Now the title is even missing the "me"... 😉
Maybe it's overblown, but some companies have quite elaborate rules.
Vor example, "Mobile Jazz" - a fully virtual company working across several time zones - define their way of working in a detailed manner (American English as language, acknowledging if you've been pinged via chat etc.). See more here: Mobile Jazz Company Haandbook, or an example of a team 's Rules of Engagement.
Rules of engagement, team charta... works for teams, customer interactions, kindergarten.
-> The principle could be generalized as "Tell me the rules of engagement (whether I'm a new customer or a new team member)"
Maybe it's overblown, but some companies have quite elaborate rules.
Vor example, "Mobile Jazz" - a fully virtual company working across several time zones - define their way of working in a detailed manner (American English as language, acknowledging if you've been pinged via chat etc.). See more here: Mobile Jazz Company Haandbook, or an example of a team 's Rules of Engagement.
Rules of engagement, team charta... works for teams, customer interactions, kindergarten.
-> The principle could be generalized as "Tell me the rules of engagement (whether I'm a new customer or a new team member)"
Daniele Catalanotto
Oct 16, 2022
Thanks for sharing the additional references Jochen ❤️ really helpful !
Daniele Catalanotto
Oct 30, 2022
The third draft of this Service Design Principle
You have a question for a colleague. What should you do: send it via email? Call him? Send him an instant message? Or check his calendar to set up an appointment?
These are all good ways to get your answer. In many companies, most people use different channels. Everyone also has different expectations for their response time.
That makes us feel overwhelmed. We miss important information or don't remember where we received that critical message. The solution is simple.
Define what type of messages gets sent where. Then set minimum expectations. For example, say how often I have to check my emails. (1).
So let me ask.
What's the calmest and best way to handle communication in your organization?
Footnotes
(1) A good example of such principles is a guide created by the company 37signals — The 37signals Guide to Internal Communication. 37signals. Available at https://extra.swissinnovation.academy/1N4P accessed 30 October 2022.
(2) Here are more questions you can answer with your team: What tool do we use for fast replies? What tool do we use for reference? What tool do we use for the personal and fun stuff? If there is an emergency, how do I get in touch with someone? How often do we have to check our emails? Are every two days okay?
Daniele’s notes
- This is the third draft of this principle.
- I’ve reduced the length of this principle by 41 % compared to the previous draft.
- I’ve added in the footnotes an example of a document that explains the rules of engagement for internal communication.