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> I've established a guideline for my group that all (non-sensitive) communication should happen in public, and that means on Slack. That alone has made a big d

> I've established a guideline for my group that all (non-sensitive) communication should happen in public, and that means on Slack. That alone has made a big difference in making sure people are in the loop and that bad decisions are visible to everyone. This is one of the main challenges I'm seeing. Getting people off DM's and into public chats. I explained several times that DMs should only be for sensitive, personal conversation. Everything else should go into channels. But people seem to drift into DMs to "not disturb" others, or because it's only a question to one person etc. Our stats show around 40% public chat vs. 60% in DM (sometimes even 30/70). I some times wish I could block DMs completely, but I don't think it's possible. Any tips?

mratzloff 10y ago
Blocking DMs wouldn't solve the core issue and is counterproductive. You still want them for coordinating things like one-on-one meetings, for starters. Instead, tie concrete problems for the individuals who prefer DM to a lack of visibility. Hold them accountable for future problems that occur. Oh, that release went poorly? Who needed to be in the loop who wasn't? What can you do differently next time? Yes, getting them all in a group chat would be an improvement, but if you really want it to go smoothly next time, make it visible and public so everyone who has something to contribute can and you personally don't have to run around making sure everyone is in the loop. It's easier for you and it's a better practice. The next time there's a problem that can be attributed to lack of public communication, reference the first conversation and ask why they didn't make it public. Then ask what steps they can take after this conversation to make sure they do it next time. After this it becomes a standard coaching/performance issue.
captn3m0 10y ago
Whenever someone sends me a DM, I usually reply with a "please use #tech" or whatever the relevant channel is. Our company onboarding guide includes the line: "All communication on slack _must_ be in public channels. All emails must be cc'ed to a mailing list." Of course there are sane exceptions to this, but everyone follows this generally, and we get >90% public communication over slack every month. Our current stats are: >95% public channels, 0% private channels, 4% DMs (>1M messages)
- LinuxBender 10y ago
  You probably know this, but any public channel a user is in can be relayed to a 3rd party (entirely) if that user subscribes to an app that was approved. All of those messages are also available for any of your admins to pull on demand. All of this said, I'm sure your org is ultra careful what things you talk about in Slack. I am just saying this in the event someone doesn't know.

mratzloff 10y ago

Blocking DMs wouldn't solve the core issue and is counterproductive. You still want them for coordinating things like one-on-one meetings, for starters. Instead, tie concrete problems for the individuals who prefer DM to a lack of visibility. Hold them accountable for future problems that occur. Oh, that release went poorly? Who needed to be in the loop who wasn't? What can you do differently next time? Yes, getting them all in a group chat would be an improvement, but if you really want it to go smoothly next time, make it visible and public so everyone who has something to contribute can and you personally don't have to run around making sure everyone is in the loop. It's easier for you and it's a better practice. The next time there's a problem that can be attributed to lack of public communication, reference the first conversation and ask why they didn't make it public. Then ask what steps they can take after this conversation to make sure they do it next time. After this it becomes a standard coaching/performance issue.

captn3m0 10y ago

Whenever someone sends me a DM, I usually reply with a "please use #tech" or whatever the relevant channel is. Our company onboarding guide includes the line: "All communication on slack _must_ be in public channels. All emails must be cc'ed to a mailing list." Of course there are sane exceptions to this, but everyone follows this generally, and we get >90% public communication over slack every month. Our current stats are: >95% public channels, 0% private channels, 4% DMs (>1M messages)

LinuxBender 10y ago
You probably know this, but any public channel a user is in can be relayed to a 3rd party (entirely) if that user subscribes to an app that was approved. All of those messages are also available for any of your admins to pull on demand. All of this said, I'm sure your org is ultra careful what things you talk about in Slack. I am just saying this in the event someone doesn't know.