How your team communicates — technology is your flex friend
It pays to be explicit about how you communicate.
Otherwise it can be all too easy to fall into a back-to-back meetings culture or the email vortex. These can cause undue stress and “busy work”.
With the right technology and an open mind, successful teams can work remotely or asynchronously (or both) and kick business goals.
The right tech for the right things
Common tech choices that enhance productivity at flexible workplaces:
Internal messaging (IM/Slack):
For quick questions or updates to one or more people. Bonus: People working at a different time can catch up on the conversation.
Emails
For client communications. Tip: Use delay send to avoid stressful notifications at night
Phone calls:
To resolve a question more efficiently than via multiple emails
Video calls:
For team meetings, project meetings and client meetings. Ie. times when things could get lost in translation.
Text messages (SMS or WhatsApp):
For urgent matters, particularly out-of-work hours when team members aren’t expected to be online.
Some questions to consider as a team
Do we have a way to signal to our team members when we’re online and working?
Do we want “videos on” to be the default practice for video calls?
If we are working after hours do we put a “delay send” on our emails?
How can we use “out of office” notifications? Eg. to signal your working days — and who to contact on a non-working day
How can we use email signatures to signal our commitment to flex? Eg. Include things like “I work part-time, my work days are Monday, Wednesday, Friday” or “I work flexibly, a response is not immediately required if this email was sent after hours.”
Communicating with customers
It’s always best to be transparent with customers and other stakeholders about the team’s work patterns.
It’s possible to set customer expectations about the availability of team members, and continue to meet and exceed their service expectations.
Declare your flexible approach with confidence — most likely, you will inspire other people to work differently in the process.
