Channels, not DMs: working in the open

Ask in a shared channel and mention the person, so others can help, answers stay findable and work doesn't wait on one inbox.

Why DMs stall

GitLab's handbook asks staff to avoid direct messages for work, and explains why. You might be contacting the wrong person, and they can't easily redirect you. If the person is away, nobody else can jump in. Its instruction: use a public channel and mention the person or group you want.

Answers in the open get reused

In Microsoft's 2023 survey, 62% of people said they struggle with too much time spent searching for information. An answer given in a DM helps one person once. An answer in a channel is there for the next person who searches.

The rules of thumb

Ask work questions in the relevant channel, and @mention the person.Keep DMs for what's genuinely personal or sensitive.If a conversation started in a DM, post the outcome to the channel.Remember that "direct" isn't "private": GitLab notes workspace admins may be able to access DMs.

It changes the culture, too

Working in the open makes it normal for anyone to help, and for anyone to see how decisions were reached. That visibility is part of what the next lesson is about.

The short version

DMs bottleneck on one person; channels let others help.Mention the person you need, in the channel.Answers in the open are searchable later.Post the outcome of a DM back to the channel.

Try it in Kanvo

Next time you're about to DM a colleague a work question, ask it in the team's Kanvo channel with the @ button instead. Use Search this conversation before asking something that may already be answered.

Sources

Use low-context communication and provide as much context as possible; write down the conclusions of offline conversations; avoid direct messages for work and use a public channel, mentioning the person; assume positive intent.