Introduction

In many work settings, people operate in synchronicity — a manner in which two or more parties exert effort to be in the same place (either physically or virtually) at the same time. Asynchronous communication is the art of communicating and moving projects forward without the need for additional people to be available at the same time as you.

In an all-remote setting, where team members live and work where they choose, mastering asynchronous workflows is vital to avoid dysfunction and enjoy efficiencies.

How to Implement Asynchronous Workflows

One way to enter into an asynchronous mindset is to ask this question: “How would I deliver this message, present this work, or move this project forward right now if no one else on my team (or in my company) were awake?”

This removes the temptation to take shortcuts, or to call a meeting to simply gather input.

Focus on Iteration

Practicing iteration at Agapic requires intention and effort, but helps with asynchronous communication.

For example, if you’re working on a few different projects, it’s easier to make iterative progress on one, tag a person or team within a GitHub issue or pull request for desired input or action, and then switch to another project while you wait. If you cycle through your assigned projects, making iterative improvements on each before handing off, you’re able to push forward many more projects, while being less concerned over the immediate response to any one of the projects in particular.

Aim for Progress, Not Perfection

At Agapic, everything is in draft and subject to change. Asynchronous workflows are more easily adopted when you foster a culture of progress over perfection.

Celebrate Incremental Improvements

Asynchronous workflows require a culture where incremental improvements are celebrated equally, if not more, than massive launches.

Documentation as a Prerequisite

Mastering the art of communicating asynchronously has a prerequisite: documentation. At its core, asynchronous communication is documentation. It is delivering a message or series of messages in a way that does not require the recipient(s) to be available — or even awake — at the same time.

Utilize the Right Tools

At Agapic, the right tool is GitHub. Any side conversation that occurs in a meeting is documented in an agenda, and the useful elements are contextualized and ported to relevant GitHub issues and/or pull requests. The same goes for side conversations that happen in, for example, Slack. Relevant portions are ported over into GitHub, which is the single source of truth for any ongoing work.

If it’s not in a GitHub issue or pull request, it doesn’t exist. This mentality is essential to reaping the benefits of asynchronous communication.

Using GitHub for Remote Collaboration

GitHub is a collaboration tool designed to help people work better together regardless of their distrubution across geographies or time zones. Originally, GitHub let software developers collaborate on writing code. Today, Agapic is extending GitHub’s collaboration platform to all team members and all roles.

Remove Bias Toward One Time Zone

We should remove bias toward one time zone. All-hands meetings should be rotated to accommodate all time zones. They should also be recorded so that others can watch at a later time.

Reducing Reliance on Slack and Synchronicity

One of the more challenging aspects of remote work is to stop thinking about work once you leave work. Since remote enables you to work a non-linear workday, it’s difficult to rationalize where one working session ends and another begins. There is oftentimes no reason or excuse other than “it’s time.” Dedicated remote workers may struggle with disconnecting from work, deprioritizing their own wellbeing, and falling into the trap of “just one more reply.”

The goal is to place the power of prioritization back into one’s own hands. This is critical to being an effective manager of one.

Asynchronous Meeting Participation

Have as few mandated meetings as possible. The notion of “optional meetings” seems strange if you only think in terms of syncronous communication — you’re either at a meeting to contribute, or you aren’t.

The beauty of asynchronous is that team members can contribute to meetings that occur while they sleep.

Meetings are more easily made optional when each one has an agenda and a Google Doc attached to each invite. This allows people anywhere to contribute questions/input asynchronously in advance, and catch up on documented outcomes at a later time.

The person who called the meeting is responsible for contextualizing the outcomes and porting relevant snippets to relevant GitHub issues and/or pull requests.

By placing this burden on the meeting organizer, it acts as a filter for whether or not a meeting is truly necessary. The organizer is responsible for informing the entire company of the outcomes via post-meeting documentation. That responsibility should help keep the quantity of meetings in check.

Benefits of Asynchronous Workflows

Working asynchronously is more efficient, less stressful, and more amenable to scale. The benefits for both employee and employer are numerous.

Reduced Tension

The expectation in many work settings is that you are online, available, and responsive during set working hours. Worse, the notion of “set working hours” has steadily expanded into every hour of the day. At Agapic, our entire company operates with an understanding that any team member could be offline at any time, for any reason, and there is no expectation that one will reply instantly to an inquiry.

Everything is Thoughtful

Nothing is urgent (unless our service is down), so comments can be made after mindful processing and never in real-time.

Autonomy, Empowerment, and Agency

In an asynchronous company, team members are given agency to move projects forward on a schedule that suits them. At Agapic, we measure results, not hours. This means that people are free to achieve results when it best suits them. This is an environment that allows people capable of being managers of one to thrive.

Knowledge is Spread Broadly

Although taking the time to compose and edit thoughtful documents may feel inefficient, the long-term benefits are remarkable. All team members, present and future, can read what was written and understand the context and drivers for any particular decision. This keeps all team members, including new team members, knowledgeable.