You’ve got Mail! And Slack messages. And app DMs. And…

Everyone knows that good communication is essential for team effectiveness, but achieving it can be tricky and requires some dedicated attention. With a messaging feature built into basically every app in existence, no two team members are likely to agree on their default preferred way to receive various types of information. 

The dizzying array of tools available have made it more important than ever to establish communication norms as part of building your team charter. In this conversation, it’s best to frame the options in the context of the specific needs of the group - what is it you need to communicate about anyway? How often? What systems are relevant to connect to as part of your regular discussions? When do you loop in specific team members or external stakeholders?

Once you map out how the principles of your communication needs match up with the features of the tools available to you, it’s easier to come to consensus on the right system to deploy. 

Still have a myriad of workable options on the table? Try a tip from government land and use ranked choice voting! In this system, participants rank their options in order of preference rather than just vote for one favorite. If a choice doesn’t receive an outright majority, votes from the last place finisher are redistributed to those voters’ second choice option, with the process repeated until a clear winner emerges. This system helps get to a selection that everyone can get on board with.

It might seem like overkill to workshop something as basic as team communication, but having the group invest some time in the topic builds more buy-in to the system you select. In addition, success is built on flawless execution of the fundamentals - take the time to get it right!