The importance of chatting etiquette in (remote) work
By: Ceverfeld Oü
Tags: Slack, Remote Working, Remote Work, Work Chat, Work From Home

Working from home has become the new reality for many due to not only the COVID-19 pandemic, but also due to the ever-increasing rise in popularity of remote working. With working remotely comes the new challenge of navigating communication online, especially the more informal and “water-cooler style” conversations. Contrary to what you might assume, communication in a remote working environment needs to be facilitated, maintained and paid attention to, and will not simply evolve on its own. Like most things in a remote setup, it is important to critically assess, document and discuss the “chatting etiquette” that will be implemented. Not only does this make everyone aware of where the company stands and what the expectations are, but it also enables team members to confidently use the communication tools available to them in a manner that is appropriate, effective and enjoyable.

Establish a code of conduct on messaging etiquette

With working from home comes the need to find a way to communicate with your team. There is no “meeting room” available to have a quick discussion on that project, you cannot simply walk to your colleague’s desk to ask them to do you a quick favour, and there is no water cooler around which to stand and make awkward jokes. These social interactions now all take place online, and they need a space that is carefully created, carved out and dedicated to their purpose. This is where the importance of messaging etiquette comes in- it allows everyone to become aware of, understand and hence participate in these various types of online communications. As a company, it is crucial to publicly announce and distribute a form of “code of conduct” for the various messaging platforms. This does not serve the purpose of merely setting strict guidelines on what language can and cannot be used – rather, it allows for clear guidelines on which channels are dedicated to which type of conversation, and hence allow employees to operate and engage more freely within these channels. This also serves the benefit of making sure that each communication channel fulfills its purpose and is used to its full capacity, increasing both efficiency and ease of use. Having a communal document where all this information is shared allows everyone within the team to be on the same page and focus on communicating their needs instead of fretting on how to best reach someone.

The importance of establishing set communication channels

One of the key aspects of establishing effective communication channels is designating a purpose or use case for the various channels – a channel for meetings, a channel for water cooler conversations, a channel for quick responses. By allocating channels to purposes, everyone goes in knowing what to expect. An example of this would be deciding on Google Hangouts or Zoom as a place for meetings, presentations and one-on-one conversations, which will be scheduled in advance and notified by calendar, which gives both parties the opportunity. to prepare and set aside time. Informal updates or information can be distributed via email, which allows both parties to take in the information at a time convenient to them, given that the situation is not urgent. It should also be established what urgency each channel will be carrying, so that someone does not send an email containing an urgent task and then wonder whether their employee has read the email or not. This is where quick response messaging platforms such as Slack come in handy – they enable quick and immediate responses, whereby both parties can contact each other immediately and in real time. These can be used for both informal and formal purposes – to notify someone as to the urgency of a sent email and a decision needed, or for pure office banter and social conversation. By knowing which channel to use for what occasion, employees can avoid sending colleagues lengthy emails when they could just convey this information in a video meeting, or sending constant status update messages when an urgent matter was conveyed via email, or even sending multiple messages, also known as “pinging”, on Slack that could have been summarized and sent via email to be read by the recipient at a time convenient for them.

Establishing acceptable “chatting behaviour”

Once the channels and their communication purpose have been established, it is also important to note that the accepted behaviour and communication style within these channels also needs to be established. This is especially true for the more informal channels such as Slack, where real-time messages are sent, much like Whatsapp or texting within a company. Whilst an immediate response is often favoured, it is important to not abuse this privilege. By, for example, establishing certain “social channels” within slack, employees can have a space to share office jokes, memes, or have a laugh about their weekend activities. This dedicated “fun” space is accompanied by more relaxed language, the use of emojis and memes, and a more casual take on “pinging” or spam messaging. By dedicating a space for these types of “watercooler chats”, employees do not mind sticking to more static and professional chatting etiquette within personal Slack messages.

Acceptable chatting etiquette will look different for each company and team, but some general guidelines can be applied to most: Try to keep it short and sweet in writing – if it gets too long, rather have a face-to-face video or phone call. Avoid sending multiple small messages, which continuously alert and “ping” the recipient – instead choose to condense the information relevant to the topic into one paragraph or message. Never send a message with the expectation of an immediate response, unless explicitly notified so – this leads to a bad communication channel, disappointment and chaos. If something is urgent, briefly follow up via personal message, but give the person time to read and reason without aggressively notifying them – especially in a remote work environment it can be difficult to know what the other person is currently working on or busy with. And the golden rule of chatting etiquette within the work environment – never send a message with a simple “hey” or “hello” – always include your reason for communication or your plan within the message instead of waiting for the other person to first respond. And another important tip to make your communication more fluid, efficient and well-received is to always spell check – this can be using an automatic program such as grammarly, or simply scanning over a message once before sending it.

Update your status

One of the most important things to agree on and practice religiously within a remote team is to update your status. Transparency and honesty are values that can really make or break a remote team, and letting your team know where you currently stand enables both of you to adapt to the situation accordingly. Status updates on a platform like Slack may include lunch breaks, dropping children off at school, time-off for deep focus and concentration, and even vacation or sick days. By letting your team members know that you are currently not available, which is also incredibly important in a remote team of different time zones, you can avoid misunderstandings to happen and allow urgent situations to not escalate, whereby you come back to your laptop and are bombarded with 20 messages, or your phone rings during your vacation. Status updates allow the person who is unavailable to fully enjoy their time off and not have to worry about their work, whilst signalling to their team members that now is perhaps a good time to reach out to someone else for more immediate help and planning projects and tasks accordingly.

Although it may seem tedious to explicitly announce and spend time on establishing communication channels and discussing chatting etiquette, it allows for a better functioning team and ultimately, better communication, and hence better business.