How to Use Asynchronous Communication to Sustain Remote Work
Haebom
Remote work requires more frequent communication through asynchronous communication. This means less frequent but richer communication, less time spent talking about work, and allows systems to achieve higher throughput and efficiency.
Remote work is not about replicating the office environment online. Remote workers must adopt asynchronous, high-quality communication methods rather than constant, synchronous interactions, such as writing long documents or watching thoughtful videos.
Asynchronous work allows for more thinking, research, and synthesis. People working asynchronously have time to think, learn, and synthesize before sharing ideas, opinions, or solutions. This improves the quality and clarity of communication, and most importantly, improves overall communication throughput.
A similar concept to gzip compression can be applied to human-to-human communication. It may incur some initial processing overhead, but it allows for more communication using fewer "packets".
Remote workers need to choose the right and most effective communication method for their message. For example, writing is used to document, explain, and persuade; video is used to demonstrate, educate, and tell stories; chat is used to collaborate, clarify, and socialize.
Remote workers should be clear, concise, and thorough in their writing, considering other employees, and provide sufficient details, context, and evidence to support their points, answer potential questions, and avoid ambiguity.
When recording video, you should use a human approach that is empathetic, passionate, and engaging. Use eye contact, facial expressions, voice modulation, and use visuals, examples, and questions to create short, focused, and interactive videos.
Remote workers should actively communicate goals, plans, and updates asynchronously, without waiting for prompts, requests, or deadlines. Synchronous communication should only be used for urgent, complex, or sensitive matters.
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