Is Asynchronous Communication The Future of Work?

 Have you ever considered asynchronous communication as the future of work? As Robert Greene says: “if you want to cut emotions out of the equation, increase your response time, rather than fall victim of blurting out the first thing that comes to mind in a meeting or when tapped on the shoulder deliver a compound benefit to the organization over time”. Asynchronous message is nothing new; it has been around for centuries, we were just less equipped to use it in the workplace. Things are rapidly changing.

Asynchronous communication is transmission of data generally without the use of external clock signals, where data can be transmitted intermittently rather than in a steady stream. While I think remote work is the future; I believe that asynchronous communication is an even more important factor in team productivity whether your team is remote or not. Unlike synchronous communication which means I exchanged information at the office with you and you have to receive and send the information back to me at the same time, asynchronous communication entails me receiving and sending the information back to you when I have the chance.

For Instance:

Synchronous = I walk over to your desk and tell you something, you consume the information immediately at the same time that I am sending it.

Asynchronous = I write you an email (at a time that is favorable for me), and send it to you before any deadline given. Then you consume the information I sent seemingly to your own time.

The reality is that most things do not require an immediate response. For most things, a one-way email or instant message should do the job, with the recipient responding when it suits them. If something really is urgent, then the mode of communication should reflect that. Several studies have found that about 30-40% of the population are night owls, which means that the modern 9 am-5 pm workday is sabotaging the creative and intellectual effort of almost half of the workforce. Studies have also shown, while early risers are more alert in the morning, night owls show stronger focus and longer attention span 10 hours after waking than the early birds.

NOTE: Pick up the phone (to call) only if it is urgent.

Apart from the obvious and massive benefit of giving knowledge workers time to think, create and get into the flow state, asynchronous communication predisposes people to make better decisions. Companies that truly practice asynchronous communication have stepped out of the industrial revolution and no longer conflate presence with productivity or hours with output as one might on the factory floor. Globally distributed teams who work asynchronously and master passing the baton can get three times more alone than a local team relying on everybody to be in an office between 9 am through to 5 pm

Basic Benefits of Asynchronous Messages

• The ability to communicate with a remote team
• The ability to build large stretches of uninterrupted focus time
• Freedom of not having to be always at our desk in case someone wants to talk to you
• The chances to digest and think about a response before responding

Ensure that asynchronous messages;

• Provide Content: Give your team members sufficient background details where necessary as well as providing clear action item(s) and outcome(s) that are required.
• Use Screenshots: If you have a lot to say, but do not want to type it all out, you could record a video or a voice note
• Provide a due date
• Provide a path of recourse, if the recipient is unable to meet your requirement.
• Set asynchronous check-ins: A central portal where everyone shares which project they are working on each day and allow them to keep track of their daily task across multiple different projects should be created.

NOTE: Never, ever use a meeting simply to communicate information – that is what emails or IM (Instant Messaging) is for.

We know that we are challenging the status quo and that calm, asynchronous communication isn’t the current norm. It’s going to take a paradigm shift to change things. We’re betting that in the future, the most successful companies and teams will be the ones who make this shift. It will be the teams that don’t require their employees to be always-on, prioritize asynchronous communication to create space for deep work, and allow employees to disconnect and recharge fully.