The Communication Framework That Eliminates Interruptions and Wasted Time | Ep 235

Dr. Steve Day: When you don\'t use a written standard for how people should communicate within your business, it can lead to total chaos. People can use whatever channel they see fit at the time, whether that\'s email, text message, or phone call. They can interrupt people at completely inappropriate times. It can lead to completely disjointed conversations where they start in one place and continue somewhere else. When you need to find an important piece of information or bring someone else into the conversation ; it can be impossible to do that effectively. Today, I would like to discuss an updated version of our internal communication standards document. If you stick around to the end, I\'ll give you a link so you can get this for yourself. And use it today in your business to streamline all communication within your team.

And please remember to hit subscribe. So you can keep up to date with all the latest policies; the systems, all the tools and apps we use, and basically everything you need to make your business work more efficiently. And have more time to do the stuff you love each day.

So today I want to go through our new version of our internal communication standards. I have mentioned this in previous episodes. But today I want to go through an updated version because I feel that we\'ve made a real improvement on this, and it\'s so good. I want to share it with you. And you can get it for free if you go to sys.academy/guides, and there you can actually download a copy of the document I\'m going to be talking about today.

So listen in, and if you think this would be useful in your business, head over to sys.academy/guides. And you can get your own copy. So you actually start using this in your business today. And it\'s fully editable, so you can change whatever you want to make it perfect for your business. So my motivation behind revamping our communication standards was because an issue happened. When I was on holiday a couple of weeks ago, I went away. And I wouldn\'t have typically checked in on my Slack messages, which is my business channel. I don\'t ever check my emails when I\'m on holiday either, and I don\'t log into my task management app.

I\'m on a holiday. Why would I do that? However, there are occasions, as the business owner, that I may need to be alerted to something super important. But when I came back, I saw a couple of messages had been escalated to my Slack channel. Now, arguably, they weren\'t important enough to interrupt me during my holiday and for someone to pick up the phone. But then, why would they be put into my Slack channel? If my staff know I\'m not going to check that, then why bother escalating to that? It\'s either worth escalating, as in they need to get hold of me, it\'s urgent. They need to either pick up the phone or send me a WhatsApp and make sure I see this. because I might have to jump in and actually do something about a disaster that\'s happening, or they don\'t.

And therefore, it needs to wait until I come back from holiday and then I\'ll deal with it in a normal, non-urgent fashion. This misunderstanding or this grey area about what and how to escalate made me realise, actually. I needed to revamp or re-evaluate how I am asking my staff to communicate within the business. We have had a communications policy for some time, and it\'s worked okay, but it\'s quite long-winded.

It\'s about six pages long. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. There are loads of examples and stuff. And it wasn\'t really a succinct document that spelt out just the basics that are needed. And we give very clear guidelines. So there\'s no grey area. So people know exactly when and how to escalate about what urgency means. And the most appropriate way to actually go about documenting all types of conversations within the business and how to involve other people and at what time they should be actually involving other people. We don\'t want people being interrupted during the day for no reason. If something will wait until a more appropriate time, then we would actually explain that.

So people actually just get on with their work. They can focus on what they\'re doing without getting sucked into other people\'s problems. So, I just want to walk through this document, and as I said, you can get your own copy at sys.academy/guides. It\'s totally free. You can download it and start using it today. So our internal communication standards start off with a very brief description of what this guide is. It talks about what it outlines, so where to document updates, where to ask questions, make requests and raise issues. And when to notify people and best practices for communicating clearly and effectively to reduce delays and minimise miscommunication and keep everything easy to follow.

This is really important, just stating what the thing is about so people understand. Like yeah, this is the document I need to be reading to understand the answer to my question. That\'s pretty standard for any of our policy documents. The next section, which again is a standard part of any policy document, is why this matters. So our document reads. Poor communication creates delays, confusion and rework. It wastes time for both the person sending the message and the person trying to interpret it. When we each follow the standard, we avoid interrupting people with messages that can wait until a more appropriate time. We reduce internal direct messaging and eliminate email to improve productivity.

We avoid unnecessary meetings and that back and forth, and our systems stay organised and audit-friendly. Ignoring this leads to inefficient communications, lost information and unnecessary frustration. This isn\'t optional; it\'s how we work, that is stating why this document is so important. And those things I\'ve covered there are like absolute goal for the business when we can get people to be able to focus on the work. They are meant to be doing in that moment, without interruption of knowing there is a time and a place to have these conversations to get those questions answered. That is how this works.

And I\'ve talked about in other podcasts about our daily stand-up meetings and about our five-star team meetings. And it\'s this combination of having these communication policies. Plus a regular cadence of meetings to allow people to have an appropriate time to get their questions answered that makes this whole thing work. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. So, if you haven\'t already checked it out, episode number 126 is all about the holy trinity of meetings.

Where I talk about company meetings, I talk about departmental meetings and about daily stand-ups as well. And using that structure along with this internal communications policy is how to get this to work really efficiently. Next in our policy, we talk about where people should write messages. It\'s all good and well, for people knowing when they should be sending stuff. And we\'ll talk about urgency in a second. But it\'s so important for people to document in the right place. In our business, we use a task management app. We use Asana, and that\'s where tasks are delegated and projects are worked on, et cetera. And so for any message related to any live task, it goes onto that task itself.

We don\'t send a message via WhatsApp or via email about any work that\'s going on. We write the message onto the task itself. So there\'s a full auditable trail of every conversation that\'s being had about that particular task. And then we ask people to go and review that comment and reply to the task. Again, to keep the conversation thread in one place; what we can do is send a little link to say, “Hey, I\'ve got a question on this task, Task xyz, whatever, here\'s the link. Can you click this and then reply to the task?” That\'s how we communicate.

So if we want to escalate something, and I\'ll talk about escalating in a second. Then, we still keep the communication in one central place. But then we use other channels such as WhatsApp and Slack, et cetera, to make sure the person sees it in a timely fashion.

If we want to ask about something that isn\'t related to an existing issue or existing task within our task management app; we actually create a new task for it. They could create that on their task board to keep a reminder that this is a conversation that\'s going on. Or it could be added to an issues list of a company meeting or a daily stand-up meeting. There\'s now a placeholder that we can actually start this conversation again, keep it all in one place.

So as long as that conversation goes, as long as that issue is now getting resolved; it\'s all going to happen in one place. And there\'s no back and forth between different channels and bits in emails and bits in WhatsApp sort of thing. It\'s all in one place. We can bring in new collaborators if we want, and everyone can contribute in the way they need to.

So again, it\'s all in our task management app. And the only exception to this is when, for example, someone\'s running late for a meeting or there\'s just a quick like “Hey, FYI,” you know, or a “fun fact” or something. It\'s not appropriate to put it onto a task or to create a new task in our task management app. Those sorts of messages are saying, “Yeah, I\'ll be running five minutes late. I\'ll see you there, whatever,” that can go via instant messaging. There\'s no need to document that and keep a trail of it, an audit trail of it. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. It\'s just there. It\'s just to keep people up to date. So that kind of messaging is just natural, and of course, you just keep that in your instant messaging.

But everything else goes into our task manager. Now that in itself can cause some headaches for some people. It definitely stresses me out. The idea of thinking that if I want to ask anyone a question about anything, I\'ve got to go into my task management app. I\'ve got to create a task or find the right task and then comment on it. Whereas it may be I\'m just like lying in bed at night. And I just come up with an idea ; and I just like about say some work that\'s going on at the moment. Or a new idea entirely and I haven\'t really got the patience or the effort to go and go into Asana open up, etc, which is really tedious and time-consuming. So I might just send a quick WhatsApp message, or it\'ll be in my company, a Slack message.

But what I do is say, “Hey, Von,” for example. Von is one of my assistants. “Hey, Von, can you just add this comment to the task?” or “Hey, can you add this to the issues list for tomorrow\'s meeting?” And that way, even though I\'m using Slack because it\'s an easier way for me to do it. It\'s my preferred way of communicating because it\'s super quick and simple.

I\'m still pulling that information back into the correct place in my task management app. That means when that conversation continues going forward and we have to involve other people, it\'s in the right place. And all the stuff I just talked about applies. So now we know where we\'re going to put stuff, so primarily in your task management app. Unless it\'s just those ad hoc random messages. So once it\'s in the right place, we now need to get the right person to read that. And act on it in a timely fashion.

Now, it may be appropriate just to leave it in your taskboard; tag somebody in, and then hope for the best. But we found over the years that actually people aren\'t very good at sort of seeing stuff in their inbox in the Task manager app on a regular basis. And things get missed. So we have a policy that explains how to let people know about new tasks; new comments, new issues or new questions that have been added to tasks.

There are three levels of urgency we have here. So firstly, we have the critical stuff. This is like absolutely needs a response, you know, within minutes or hours that same day, absolutely, definitely. And this is the kind of stuff that\'s maybe blocking really important work; or there are deadlines coming up that we need to deliver on, or it\'s client impact, or something is like majorly wrong.

And this absolutely critical. This stuff, we add to the task in exactly the same way. So if there\'s an existing task about this, we add it on there. If it\'s a new issue, a new problem, we\'ll create a task. And then we\'ll add that task to the daily standup issues list. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. As I said, we\'ve talked about the daily standup in a previous episode. Do check out the holy trinity of meetings episode to understand more about the daily standup.

And then that issue will be set in the issues list on that daily standup meeting. It will then be reviewed the next day at the very latest when we have that meeting. However, because this is a critical issue; we also want to actually let the person know via either Slack as your internal communication tool, or WhatsApp or whatever you use internally. So we get the link to that task we\'ve just created. We send that link via the preferred instant messaging channel and say, “Hey, there\'s a critical task we need your input on. Please jump on this as soon as you can.”

We also then have a additional step that if the person is on holiday or they don\'t respond within a couple of hours or whatever the urgency is for this particular task. You need to send a text message, a personal WhatsApp, or pick up the phone to make sure they are aware that they need to jump on this. So for critical stuff, we have a clear path of escalation. We have a defined place it needs to go, and people know exactly what type of messages that equates to. And also, for example, when someone\'s on holiday; we need to actually have additional steps to make sure they are actioning it. Because if they\'re on holiday, they\'re probably not going to be checking their business email, or their business WhatsApp ; or whatever they\'re using for their internal communications. The next level of urgency is our urgent stuff.

So, this is stuff that typically needs to be announced sometime today, tomorrow at the very latest. And this again, we put it in the same way. So we put it into the comments on the task, or we create a new task and stick it into the issues list. We add it to the daily stand-up meeting, and then that\'s enough. Because every day, everybody is in that daily stand-up meeting. And therefore it will be flagged up to the correct person during that time. If, for some reason, someone isn\'t in that meeting, yes, we can escalate it because then it becomes a critical issue. And then we can follow that critical path to make sure that that gets resolved.

So this covers both if people are in attendance and also if they\'re all sick or they don\'t attend the meeting, whatever. Then there\'s a clear path to explain how we need to escalate messages. This means that we\'re getting our urgent questions answered, but we\'re not interrupting people for no reason. If something can wait till the next day, then it can wait.

We don\'t need to break someone\'s flow by just interrupting them, saying, “Hey, I\'ve just got a real problem I need to deal with right now.” When actually it can wait. Therefore, we have this very clearly defined standard for our urgent messages for everything else. So all the not urgent stuff. So it\'ll wait until typically the next team meeting or your next one-to-one with your boss. Ffor example, then you still put it onto the task as a comment, but then the task itself would be added to either the next departmental meeting issues list or your one-to-one agenda. And therefore, there\'s a time and a place later in the week; where you can discuss that with the appropriate people. That again means we\'re not pinging people out of hours, so to speak, or during the day.

We\'re not interrupting people\'s workflow; we\'re not involving other people who don\'t need to be involved. But we know it\'s going to get answered in a timely fashion. The key thing to making this work. When we escalate issues is that we don\'t ask the question in our instant messaging app. The question, the comment, the concern, the issue goes on to task in the task management app and then we provide a link to that in the message when we escalate it.

This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. That means that person has to click on that link. Go into the task manager app, and they respond in there. And that keeps all those answers and the questions all in one thread. Which means it\'s so much easier actually to keep track of stuff going forward. But there are going to be occasions when people don\'t follow your rules. They don\'t actually put it onto a task. They just ask the question on messenger, especially in the early days. And if that happens, we then have a policy to say how to deal with that.

So, ultimately we want to get that message back into our task management app. So if you are the manager, for example, and someone asks you a question. The best thing you can do is say, “Hey, can you just send me this question again? But add it to the task and send me the task link so I can respond on there.” That\'s like the gold standard.

Or you can say this should have been asked on the task. Here\'s my response: “Please add both your question and my response to that task. So it\'s all in one place.” Or the other option which for example my assistants will use for me, like in the example I gave earlier is if I send them a message via instant messaging, I might ask them to put it into the right place. So, therefore, we keep it in flow, so to speak, on the task.

But it\'s actually not getting in the way of me sort of just working the way that I find the most easy. Which is often just to send people a Slack message by having these standards that are the best gold standards, like it goes on the task, it escalates in this way using a task URL. So, people go back into the task manager app, having that as the gold standard, but also understanding that humans are humans. And we will sometimes do things the wrong way or be a bit lazy and take the easy way out, and have guidance on how to cope with that. That means we can cope with the normal human behaviour, but still keep everything standardised going forward.

And the final part of our communication standards document is some best practices for effective communication. And this is just a rule of thumb for whenever communicating about anything. Number one, consider whether a video or a screenshot is the best medium. Again, I\'ve gone in-depth into this in the episode where I talk about video transforming the way we work.

But ultimately, if you share your screen, you can share so much more information with somebody than just speaking or writing text messages alone. So that you can show them what you\'re doing. They can see things that you\'re not even aware of, because if you\'re asking for help with something. You might not even know what it is you need to ask. But if you show them the screen, then they can actually see what the problem is. Sometimes without even realising what you need to actually ask them.

Also, if you\'re using a video, then people get to see your face, your body language, your facial expressions. They can hear the tone of your voice, et cetera, et cetera. And so it adds so much more depth to the conversation or to the to the communication as well. Which is ultimately going to get you a better result going forward and build rapport and trust within the team. Standard number two, we\'ve talked about this before. Don\'t write things in instant messaging.

Put them on the task and then escalate. Standard number three is to tag the recipient into the comment. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. So if you ever put something in a task management app, we have a standard policy that you always have to tag them. That then alerts them that that message is specifically for them. There\'s no sort of misinterpretation, or you can\'t say, I didn\'t know it was for me. Or it could be that the task has been assigned to somebody else randomly. And then just putting the comment there, hoping that the right person will see it.

By tagging them in, it draws that person to accountability for actually answering that question. Next, we add direct links and shareable links to any materials that are needed. So rather than saying, ‘Hey, oh yeah, this document I\'m working on,’ and give the name.

It\'s like we want to have a clickable link. Like anything you want that person to actually action or respond to or give advice on. We want them to make it easy as possible for that person to do that. So if you\'re the one raising the issue, you\'re the one asking the question. Make it super slick and easy for the person on the receiving end ; to actually give you the answers you need. And part of that is by providing them shareable links to anything you need them to actually review.

You can also use screenshots to avoid them having to log into stuff. So if you want to get advice, for example, on a webpage, you could take a screenshot of the webpage. And send the link in your question. With a shareable link, they can just click and open, which saves them having to log in and go. And actually finding the web page, etc.

Which can actually get, again, speed up the communication. I mean, you actually get an answer to your question much quicker. If people can answer stuff in like a few seconds, it\'s much more likely they\'ll do it on the fly, rather than having to sit down. And schedule time to actually, like go through stuff and in a painstaking way and actually apply it to you. So the better you ask questions, the better you present those questions and the more information and access you give them. Then the more chance you actually get a response in a fast time. So that is number five of our best practices.

Number six is to use our Ideas Over Issues Framework, which again, I discussed in a recent episode. And I gave you a link to get that. It\'s also on the sys.academy/guides; where you can get this company policy, communication standards document and also our Ideas Over Issues Framework. And this is an absolutely brilliant framework; for getting your team to present their ideas over the issues that they have.

So it\'s about them thinking things through, providing a solution and then giving their options of what they\'re going to do going forward. And also telling you what they\'ve already done. When they do that, when they get those four things into any issue they raise ; your response is so much quicker. It\'s transformed the length of our meeting because it means that I can typically just go, ‘Yep, looks good. Crack on, like at best, or I just say,’Yeah, you don\'t need my input. You know, just get on with it.’ You know, that\'s it. Because I can see they\'re working, I can see their thinking, I can see where they\'re planning on taking it. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. So, the Ideas Over Issues Framework just comes into anytime anyone is raising any question ; asking or bringing an issue to the test.

So the final thing on an internal communication standards policy document is the final checklist before you notify people. This is a checklist that people can go through and just mentally check. Have they actually done all these things when they are sending any message or any question? And obviously, this isn\'t something that people actually review every single day. It\'s a standards policy. It\'s something that people need to familiarise themselves with once they get the hang of it. They don\'t need to review it, but it\'s there if they need to.

But if you put this into the onboarding process ; then all new people coming in actually start communicating in a standardised, effective way from day one. So, just to finish up, the final checklist is your message documented in the right place? Second, has the person been notified in the correct channel? Third, have you tagged the correct person? Fourth, is your message structured clearly?

Five, have you used the Ideas over Issues framework if it\'s an issue? And six, have you included all relevant links, documents or videos, and are they properly shared? Doing those six things every single time. And obviously, there\'s the whole document there to back up what that checklist means. It means that all the communication within your business is far more efficient. It means that stuff gets resolved quicker or in a timely fashion. I should say it means that you\'re not interrupting people. So people can focus on what they actually should be working on. But people get answers that they need in the appropriate time based on the urgency of the question ; or issue that comes up. That\'s it. I hope you found this interesting and useful.

This is our new internal Communication standard. It\'s part of our Systemised Success Academy. You can also obtain this standardised document for yourself. It\'s an editable format at sys.academy/guides. And you\'ll also find the Ideas over Issues Framework there as well, so you can check that out if you like. Please remember to hit subscribe so you don\'t miss out on future episodes of All Things Cool. Wwhich will make your life more enjoyable and your business run more smoothly. Please share this with your colleagues, friends, and anyone else you know who owns a business. Thank you so much. This is essential for maintaining effective internal team communication standards. See you next time. Bye.

The Communication Framework That Eliminates Interruptions and Wasted Time | Ep 235

We cover:

KEY TAKEAWAYS: Strengthening Internal Communication for Workplace Efficiency

BEST MOMENTS: Real Insights into Effective Internal Communication

TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW

Episode Transcript

VALUABLE RESOURCES

LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST

ABOUT THE HOST

Link to mentioned episodes:

For more articles related to internal communication, you may also like:

SYS 197: The Time Multiplier Effect: The Exponential ROI of Process Optimization

SYS 117: Revolutionize Your Client Comms: Top Reasons to Get a WhatsApp Business Account

SYS 195: How We Improve Remote Team Loyalty with Health Insurance Incentives

Discover How Small Business Owners Leverage The SixR System To Achieve Time Freedom In Under 90 Days

How Small Business Owners
Leverage The SixR System
To Achieve Time Freedom
In Under 90 Days

Free On-Demand Masterclass