Rethinking async communications: A maturity model for remote teams
In 2020, many organizations were thrown into remote work without warning, reacting to the global pandemic by moving traditional in-person rituals into virtual spaces. Meetings became Zoom calls, check-ins moved to Slack, and teams tried to replicate old ways of working in a new environment. But remote work done right is more than just a shift in location — it’s a shift in mindset. It’s an opportunity to rethink how we collaborate, communicate, and make decisions, especially across time zones and distributed teams.
That’s where asynchronous communications comes in.
Adapted from the principles and practices originally developed at GitHub, Rethinking async communications is designed to help teams across industries adopt more effective async-first communication strategies. While GitHub has long embraced remote work, these principles have been generalized to fit a broader variety of teams. The result is a set of core guidelines that encourage transparency, autonomy, and collaboration, no matter your company or industry.
The most frequent questions teams ask when trying to adopt these principles is, “This all sounds great, but what now? How can I improve?” To answer that, the async communications maturity model was created to help teams assess where they stand and provide guidance on how to gradually mature their async practices.
Mature your practices
The async communications maturity model and one-page overview are designed to guide teams from relying on real-time, synchronous communication to fully embracing async workflows. By offering clear guidance and concrete examples, the model can help teams break free from constant interruptions and unnecessary meetings, leading to more focused work and better collaboration across time zones.
The model focuses on five essential areas:
- Documentation: Giving everything a URL ensures decisions and processes are accessible, allowing teams to operate autonomously.
- Decision making: Capturing decisions in durable, transparent formats helps reduce bottlenecks and ensures clarity across the team.
- Work tracking: Consistent, centralized work tracking keeps everyone aligned and enables seamless cross-team collaboration.
- Meetings: Reserving meetings for points of escalation or social connection helps teams preserve flow and focus.
- Leadership and culture: Leaders set the tone for async practices by working transparently and fostering a culture of inclusivity and psychological safety.
Each area is divided into four maturity levels, so teams can assess where they stand and use the examples provided to improve. Whether you’re just starting to experiment with async practices or you’re looking to optimize an established workflow, the model offers practical steps that will help your team:
- Work more efficiently by reducing interruptions and unnecessary meetings,
- Communicate more clearly and inclusively, with less friction,
- Enable deeper, more focused work by minimizing reliance on real-time responses, and
- Build transparency and autonomy into your culture, so your team can collaborate seamlessly across time zones and locations.
The goal isn’t to perfect your practices overnight — it’s to help you make steady progress, one step at a time.
Ready to rethink how you work?
Remote work, when done right, isn’t just about logging in from different locations — it’s about unlocking new ways to focus, collaborate, and thrive. The Rethinking async communications resources can help you shift from a world of back-to-back meetings and constant interruptions to one where deep work and thoughtful, intentional communication become the norm.
This isn’t about overhauling everything all at once. It’s about taking steady, meaningful steps that empower your team to work more efficiently, more autonomously, and more happily. Whether you’re just beginning your async journey or looking to fine-tune your processes, the maturity model can help you make gradual improvements — so you can do your best work on your own terms.
The road to async maturity is a journey, not a destination. And it’s one we’re all on together. Join the conversation and help refine the model. Your insights could make remote work even better for teams everywhere.
Are you ready to rethink how you work? Dive in, and let’s get started.