> 2. Don't expect people to be online. It's the same as irc. If people are there, they are expecting to be interrupted / they are feeling helpful at that moment.
One of the reasons I don't like Slack is that people contact me when I'm off shift. I support APAC and so work different hours from most of my company. If I have a problem, I have to either email someone, or DM someone who isn't online. Either way, my voice goes into the black hole. Likewise, they return my DM in the morning, and their reply goes into the void if Slack doesn't wake me.
But with our corporate culture buying into the "always online" concept of Slack, I can't easily communicate how email-like it can be.
Slack isn't necessarily the problem in many situations. The problem is often how the tool highlights personal and culture problems instead of helping to smooth them over, by making them less evident. Email and other asynchronous communication can hide gaps in an organization by removing the pressure to respond immediately.
We have long time established custom, that if you want to communicate with somebody via chat, you send him a 'ping' first, and wait if he responds.
On my list of pet peeves, this one is near the top. Nothing annoys me more than getting a chat message as follows: "Hey..." Because it's apparently not enough to bother me with a DM, one must first make sure that the "ping" is a complete waste of electrons, apparently. Once my train of thought is completely broken, then and only then are conditions right so as to allow the individual to fully absorb the weight of what you are about to type.
Here's an idea: how about typing WTF it is that you want, and if I respond you'll know I'm online. Typing "got a minute?" w/o any context is a sure-fired way to get me to ignore you.
With that screed out of the way, I am open to arguments on the value of sending a "ping" first. Better make it convincing. :-)
Was thinking about it, and I don't think I have arguments that would convince you :P But if we happened to work together and you were ignoring my pings long enough but was responsive to i.e. well written detailed emails, I think I would adjust.
But for me, ping signifies "I think I need to talk to you, but the details are kinda sketchy, so get back to me at your confinience.".
One of the reasons I don't like Slack is that people contact me when I'm off shift. I support APAC and so work different hours from most of my company. If I have a problem, I have to either email someone, or DM someone who isn't online. Either way, my voice goes into the black hole. Likewise, they return my DM in the morning, and their reply goes into the void if Slack doesn't wake me.
But with our corporate culture buying into the "always online" concept of Slack, I can't easily communicate how email-like it can be.
Slack isn't necessarily the problem in many situations. The problem is often how the tool highlights personal and culture problems instead of helping to smooth them over, by making them less evident. Email and other asynchronous communication can hide gaps in an organization by removing the pressure to respond immediately.