Asynchronous collaboration

Asynchronous communication is the process of being productive without depending on the presence of other people. Async work empowers people to work independently and to trust that others are doing the same, but not necessarily at the same time. Collaborating asynchronously frees people from calendars and time zones.

With documentation, there is transparency on workloads, project capacity, and an overall understanding of what everyone's expectations are. The focus shifts away from the hours spent doing the work, to the actual results of the work.

Digital documentation

Digitally documented design with videos is a helpful way to keep creative education flowing. It is also another way to keep team members up-to-date with new and upcoming projects, design ideas, and trends.

GitHub Issues and pull requests (PR)

Issues and pull requests are where the majority of collaboration occurs. Notifire design issues are works in progress, feedback is welcome and expected, and everyone is encouraged to contribute. The platform's transparency helps remote teams interface to produce better products faster.

Synchronous collaboration

Group syncs

Meet with your group to get a better idea of what everyone is working on, where the status of a project is, and get a general sense of who you're working with. Some projects overlap, so this is especially helpful for all involved to stay in sync. Team members appreciate having these syncs on some cadence where it feels less formal (more like huddling at a desk together looking at designs) than scheduling time ad hoc.

Meeting in pairs

Schedule meetings with a co-worker. Meeting in pairs allows for some serious one-on-one face time to collaborate on challenges and goals. This time permits each attendee to share what they're working on and potentially share projects that they might not be familiar with. With Zoom, the screen sharing option lets you get hands-on with your meeting partner's work./

Social hours

Create a social hour where everyone is welcome to join to chat or play games together. Try two social hours every other week with the purpose of capturing enough time zones so that teammates can be "in-person.” This isn't exactly "work" collaboration-related, but creates a bond with teammates in order to feel more comfortable together and therefore more effective and excited to collaborate.