The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation.

I've previously mentioned we have an IRC channel. That's due to practical considerations. When we need to frequently and quickly share information among a group of people who deal with each other often throughout the day (and are generally on the same page to begin with), IRC will work. Notice how many qualifiers I put on that sentence :D

It would be unsuitable for multiple teams to physically interrupt one another's thoughts numerous times per day. IRC has another advantage because it is a "pull" channel. When I finish a feature or need a mental break, I can switch to IRC for a moment, and address any questions. When we need to have an extended talk, we walk over to that person's room or jump on Skype/iChat video. Nothing beats seeing a face. Babies are known to stare at faces within days of birth, and our brains are hardwires to see faces and extract information from them constantly. Look at how well-known and recognized the "face on Mars" has become.

When we're talking client-engineer communications, the whole goal is to get people who have different mental states to be thinking the same way. Engineers need to understand the product and what drives business value, and the product owner needs to understand the technical requirements to make the system work. To do that requires more bandwidth than short text messages. This is another facet of businesspeople working with engineers on a daily basis. You need frequent, high-bandwidth communication.

At the start of a new project, I always prefer an in-person meeting. There's nothing that beats shaking someone's hand, getting a meal with them, and learning about their project. It gets a great sense of who they are, where they're coming from, and it helps build the trust that is mentioned in Principle #5 ("A Team Of Motivated Individuals"). Once we get going, video chat usually replaces in-person meetings, since our clients are spread across the country. It's not reasonable to physically travel to weekly planning meetings, and we've adjusted our process to accommodate this need.

That's all there is to this principle. Communication from businesspeople to a team, and among team members is vital, and the best way to communicate is face-to-face. If you'd like to discuss it more, I'd prefer to go grab a coffee or lunch with you, but I'll settle for a comment on this blog post. Next post, I'll be talking about progress in a project, and how it gets measured.