i-think Twenty-Two

Workplace Instant Messaging Etiquette

I’ve been getting progressively more and more annoyed at the use of Instant Messaging in the workplace. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is a fantastic way to get quick messages across to people and for communicating across boundaries (such as across the other side of the building), but I feel that there are a few rules that should be followed if Instant Messaging is going to be an effective form of communication.

1. If you want something or are asking a question put it in your first message.

Every time I am interrupted by an instant message that just says “Hi” or “Rhys” I scream a little inside. This “handshaking protocol” has broken my concentration and I am now trying to work out what the person wants. I can even see that they are feverously trying to type their actual message. Why waste my previous cycles by forcing me to process a single useless “header” and wait for the actual body. Send the header and the body at the same time!! As an example:

Hi Rhys, do you have time for a quick test review?

This message is concise, expresses the point and can easily be responded to, like so:

I’m busy. Go away.

Ok, in reality it would probably be more like this:

Sure

Or if I really am busy:

Can it wait? I am in the middle of something and should be ready in about 20 minutes.

2. Send complete messages

The last example leads us into the next rule, send complete messages. Don’t leave the recipient of your message guessing. Sure, you can’t answer all possible questions at once, but at least answer the most obvious ones. Empower the person you are communicating with  by giving them the information they need to make a decision so that the conversation can end quickly.

3. Don’t let conversations drag on

If an Instant Messaging conversation is going on too long it is a good indication that the process has broken down. If possible it may be time to get up and speak to the person the old fashioned way. You’ll be able to get more information processed more quickly. If you can’t speak in person, use a telephone or if there is just a lot of information that you need to pass, write an email.

Final words

I’m sure there are more rules that could be applied, but I know that if everyone could follow the first rule I’d be much much happier.

  • http://buffered.io/ OJ

    Hi, (I couldn’t resist)

    IM is a medium that people use for many different things. Sometimes I use it to catch up with people because I have no other way of doing so. Sometimes I use it for work-related questions and interactions. It varies.. a lot.

    If your post is referring to the case where people are contacting you for work-related queries only, then I only partially agree. If you’re referring to any messages you receive while you’re at work then I almost totally disagree. To say “get to the point or I’m going to get pissed off” is a sure fire way of cutting yourself off from potential contact.

    The way I see it is, if you’re signed in with an “available” status, then you’re saying “I’m happy to talk to you if you want”. If you’re not happy to, then sign out or change your status. While online, you’re under no obligation to respond to people if you don’t want to. That’s the beauty of it. If you’re busy, you don’t have to say “Leave me alone I’m busy.”, people understand and appreciate that no response means “I’m busy”.

    So I guess what I’m trying to say is be accepting of people’s attempts to make contact. It’s better they start with “Hi Rhys” than not starting at all!

    OJ :)

  • http://omegadelta.net/ Will

    I hardly use IM anymore. I used to use it heaps back in the ICQ days, but for me now it’s just a constant distraction that I do not need. People can email or tweet me (or in an office, come and talk to me) which I find less distracting when I’m trying to work. For my work contacts I much prefer a quick skype call, than a long, drawn out chat.

    It is useful in an office for quickly sending config info & files though (e.g. svn configs…) that’s about it…

  • Joseph Cooney

    4. Don’t be affraid to negotiate up – Like how sites do key exchange using public key crypto, but then negotiate up to shared key: this is kind of a follow on to #3, but if as a result of a conversation that started on IM you realize you need to have a much longer or more involved conversation don’t try to keep going with IM.

    5. Don’t expect a response immediately – IM is asynchronous. Don’t block waiting for an async call. If you need a synchronous response use a different transport (facemail, voice). Don’t get uppity if you don’t get a response in a “timely” manner.

  • http://www.i-think22.net Rhys

    Perhaps I came off a bit anti-social in my post. There are a few important points that I clearly missed. I remember typing some of these things out, but I was never really happy with the wording (and they felt out of place) so I omitted them. Here they are now for your enjoyment and my vindication.

    These rules only really apply to a small subset of IM use. Specifically rule 1 applies to the scenario where someone is asking something of you. It definitely does not apply to casual conversations with friends/coworkers or even an IM meeting.

    I’m also not suggesting that we throw out all niceties (which is why I’m still quite happy for the first message to include some sort of greeting). What I would like to see is the overhead of these often 1 question, 1 answer conversations being as low as possible. If someone wants a test review a lower overhead means that I’m reviewing their work quicker, getting to the real heart of what we want to be doing.

    IM status goes part-way into giving people an idea of whether you are available or not, but it is too black and white for my needs. I want to be available for conversations and rank their priority on a case by case basis. An essentially empty message makes it hard to determine the priority.

    So please, don’t take these rules as an indication I don’t want to deal with your IMs, but rather pointing out a small deficiency in the way we are working.

  • Jon

    whinge whinge whinge.

  • Trisherino

    I think it’s really only a problem for slow typists. It is pretty annoying to get a “hi” and then have to watch the window for 20-30 seconds waiting for the important bit to turn up. Here’s my 3 step plan for getting the message out faster:

    1. Learn to touch type for goodness’ sake.
    2. Capitalization is for sissies, it just slows you down.
    3. Press “enter” liberally.