Arguably the biggest challenge of managing a remote team comes from finding out the optimal way to communicate. Failing to do so often leaves teams underperforming.
And there are a series of other adverse effects too. WFH developers can fall out of synch, and remote collaboration can break down. Deadlines can go unmet. Time zones can become a nightmare to navigate. Projects can go over budget. And then there’s the increased risk of burnout for developers who can’t keep up.
In this article, we’ll show you how to choose a communication method that fits your business objectives and values. It will help you get the most out of your team. Let’s start!
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Two Popular Types of Communication for Remote Teams
There are two popular strategies for communicating with remote teams: synchronous communication and asynchronous communication.
Confused about the meaning of asynchronous or synchronous? Read on.
What is synchronous communication?
Synchronous communication occurs “in sync” which means live between two or more people at the same time.
Synchronous communication refers to communication that happens in real-time and requires an immediate response. Synchronous communication types include face-to-face conversations, Skype, Zoom, and Google Meetup calls. It also includes simultaneous messaging when everybody is using the same technology online at the same time (e.g., having a conversation with a colleague on Slack).
What is asynchronous communication?
Asynchronous communication happens “out of sync” with two or more people responding to each other over a more extended time.
Asynchronous communication refers to communication that doesn’t happen in real-time, and participants can send a response whenever they want. The time delay between the asynchronous message and its response could be anywhere from minutes to weeks — but the basis is that the communication doesn’t have to be “live”. Asynchronous communication relies on tools such as email, Google Docs feedback/comments, Twist, Todoist, and others.
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Most companies prefer synchronous vs asynchronous. However, as remote work matures and more and more people WFH on distributed teams, an increasing number of companies are now choosing async vs synchronous communication.
This is usually based on their style of work and the geographical distribution of their employees. But in most cases, they opt for a blended approach. An approach that reacts to the needs of the team, employees, and projects.
Now we’ll discuss which one you should choose based on your business objectives, your remote team, and your values. If you’re running a remote team, this decision is particularly important.
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Asynchronous Communication vs. Synchronous Communication
The Advantages & Disadvantages of Synchronous Communication
Many managers and remote workers might think chatting in real-time would provide the best results. But it is not without disadvantages that run counter to many of its benefits.
The first disadvantage to note is that while many people prefer to chat in real-time, it’s also a drain on focus. As the co-founders of Basecamp point out, constantly inviting interruption disrupts productivity.
Furthermore, since these conversations occur in real-time, timezone differences profoundly impact the quality of synchronous communication. While a call’s time may be optimum for some, for others it may be well into the night. This disrupts the work-life balance and contributes to employee burnout.
However, synchronous communication, if used well, can be an excellent tool for socializing. This can help create a strong company culture and lasting connections. In other words, it can create a working environment people want to remain a part of.
Additionally, synchronous communication provides more in-depth interaction. This is particularly clear during meetings (which aren’t possible in an asynchronous environment). Live discussion comes into its own for problem-solving, particularly when there’s an emergency. You can even cater to those who were unable to attend the meeting by recording sessions and uploading them to Google Drive. This is a strategy Gitlab often relies upon!
And finally, another big advantage: real-time online communication (using tools such as Slack) enables developers to address different issues on the spot. You don’t have to wait to get the most pressing problems fixed. Production can keep moving forward because you don’t need to wait for someone else’s response.
Read More: 8 Signs Your Freelance Developer Isn’t Working Out & What To Do About It
The Advantages & Disadvantages of Asynchronous Communication
Advantages
Asynchronous communications lack the real-time advantages of their synchronous cousin. That’s right — put down the phone! But it does provide managers and remote teams with a simple solution for some of the common challenges they face.
The most significant advantage is that time zones and coordinating meeting times with others need not apply. As communication isn’t happening in real-time, asynchronous communication sidesteps the challenges of time zones and mitigates the risk of burnout. It also makes it easy for everyone to practice effective cross-cultural communication.
Besides, organized, recorded discussions that you wake up to create a living company environment. This environment provides everyone with the information they need to get their best work done. This is why many organizations build their own asynchronous communication tools, such as Zapier’s Asynch.
With asynchronous communication, work can happen even while you sleep! You can use collaborative tools such as Google Docs for editing and writing, Gitlab for development, and Sketch for design.
Twist is yet another excellent option for asynchronous communication. It allows you to break discussions down into topics and threads. Your remote developers can then join the discussion relevant to them whenever they are online. It saves lots of time that would usually have to be spent going through long conversations.
Disadvantages
When it comes to disadvantages, here’s an important one. Slow communication means remote teams need to ensure their discussion is much more detailed.
This means it’s always better to over-communicate than under-communicate. Remote teams mean it can take 12 hours from when you push send to get a critical response from a colleague, so make every communication count. Ask detailed questions and provide accurate answers. Likewise, keep decision-makers involved, and meeting roles clear, so conversations don’t trail on forever with no final, actionable decision.
And yet another disadvantage is that when conversations aren’t happening in real-time, connection to the organization can falter. This often leaves people feeling like a small, isolated cog in a big machine. This is why information transparency and a strong organizational culture is vital.
Companies like Buffer, for example, choose to be completely transparent, right down to everyone’s earnings. This helps ensure everyone feels like one big family.
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When Should You Use Each Type of Communication?
The communication option that you choose should always reflect the needs of your remote team. How is your team built? Have you optimized decision-making processes to that everybody knows their role? Are your team members problem-solvers, and able to move forward when situations are ambiguous?
However, certain statistical realities of remote work can guide your decision. For example, Digital Ocean’s 2019 yearly report on remote developer trends reveals that by far the most important quality for remote developers is independence. As such, 44% of all remote developers surveyed said that a flexible working schedule is the most important factor for them.
This is why you may face difficulties in setting “office hours” when your remote team is all across the globe. In this case, your only real alternative is to have at least some elements of asynchronous communication.
However, if you find that your remote team is mostly in one area of the world, it may be much more productive for you to set some “bare-minimum” standard office hours. This allows developers to maintain their flexible working schedules for the most part, and it will enable you to have 1 or 2 hours every day when everyone is online.
Likewise, if the application or software you are developing needs lots of complex changes that require many developers to work together simultaneously, then consider keeping your team closer together in terms of geographic distribution. Leaning towards talking in real-time will also be productive.
On the other hand, asynchronous communication will help you provide more flexibility to your developers. Given that most remote developers value their freedom the most, this will help you attract and retain some of the best talent.
Now that we have an overview of when to choose each and what to consider, it’s best to see how these considerations play out in a real scenario. Here are two case studies.
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Case Studies
We’ll look at examples of two organizations that rely on remote teams of developers. They have grown by adopting two diametrically opposed styles of communication. Looking at their examples will help you choose what is best for your own business. The two organizations are InVision and Doist.
InVision
InVision is a remote team that has developed a design platform. At InVision, they base their work off synchronous communication for the most part. Why? The 500-person team needs to be able to make quick decisions and implement them together as fast as possible.
It’s much easier to discuss an issue over a call than through replies on a thread. So what InVision has done is that it divided itself into the Western Hemisphere and the Eastern Hemisphere. Basically, two work shifts. Each shift requires “shared work hours” – times when real-time communication can occur.
And to work in real-time, they mainly rely on Slack and Zoom. Other collaboration tools include Dropbox, Google Docs, Annotate, Droplr, and Skitch. This way of working has allowed them to get the most out of their team, despite timezone differences.
Doist
On the other hand, Doist has a very different point of view. They found that Slack caused them to feel a need to always “be online”. In the end, developers were losing what they valued most: a flexible working schedule. In addition, they were also feeling stressed by the constant interruptions.
That’s why Doist created their own tool, Twist, based on working asynchronously. It aimed to solve the communications problem they faced within their team.
Developers at Doist use Twist to divide communication by topics and threads of interest, and each developer can contribute when they come online. With a team of 68 people in over 25 countries, Doist has managed to build an organization that values time independence and promotes balance at the workplace.
The drawbacks, of course, include the inability to make quick decisions at key points. Nevertheless, the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks for Doist. First, they have a happier and more productive remote team. Then they also spend less time going through conversations to find what’s relevant. And finally, the added structure to their messages is a huge plus when it comes to distributing work.
Read More: How to Implement a Welcoming Software Developer Onboarding Process
Wrapping Up
This wraps up our short post on remote team communication types. If you’re trying to make the decision surrounding asynchronous vs synchronous, the technology and communication style you choose largely depends on business objectives and the size and distribution of your remote team.
Also, think about people’s personal preferences, including yourself. How do you communicate? How do you wish you communicated?
Organizations that require real-time interaction (and fast decisions!) and have more narrowly distributed teams should lean towards synchronous communication. On the other hand, those who value more flexibility and have more widespread teams should lean towards communicating asynchronously.
But ultimately, you must tailor a solution to the unique needs of your own organization. We hope that this article has provided you with the necessary knowledge to make the right decision for you. If you’re looking to hire an expert remote developer with great communication skills, get in touch with us!
You can also try Arc, your shortcut to the world’s best remote talent:
⚡️ Access 450,000 top developers, designers, and marketers
⚡️ Vetted and ready to interview
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