Microsoft Teams and Instant Messaging
Microsoft Teams is the primary instant messaging and collaboration platform used within ISS.
Teams allows employees to communicate quickly, collaborate with coworkers, participate in meetings, share information, and work together across teams and locations.
Using Teams
Employees should:
- Be signed into Teams during their scheduled work time.
- Monitor Teams for messages that may require their attention.
- Maintain a reasonably accurate Teams presence/status.
- Use Teams for routine internal conversations and collaboration.
- Participate in voice or video calls when appropriate.
- Use team and channel conversations when information would benefit a larger working group.
Teams is especially useful when a conversation requires immediate or interactive communication that would be cumbersome through email.
Teams Is Communication, Not Documentation
A Teams conversation does not replace required documentation.
The ISS Communications Standard requires work to be documented in tickets or appropriate project artifacts rather than remaining only in private chats, hallway conversations, or other informal communication.
If a Teams conversation results in:
- A decision,
- A technical change,
- New troubleshooting information,
- A customer commitment,
- A project requirement,
- A work reassignment, or
- Other information someone would need later,
the relevant information should be added to the appropriate ticket, project documentation, IT Hub article, or other official work record.
Choosing the Right Tool
As a general guideline:
Teams is best for conversation and collaboration.
Email is best for formal correspondence and asynchronous communication.
KACE is used to manage and document service requests and operational work.
Additional requirements for documenting work are covered in Service Management, Operations, and Documentation.