5 Unsuspected Ways You Can Already Be Documenting Your Projects (Without Even Knowing!)
Over the past few weeks, our team has faced a challenging project that has undoubtedly resulted in a degree of exhaustion. While identifying a singular cause may be difficult, a key factor could have significantly mitigated this challenge: clear and comprehensive documentation.
A well-documented project acts as a vital resource, fostering a thorough understanding amongst all team members. It clarifies not only the project's objectives but, more importantly, the rationale behind them. This transparency cultivates a shared vision between those requesting the project and those responsible for its execution. The benefits of clear documentation are undeniable: reduced confusion, streamlined communication, and a unified team.
Fortunately, creating clear documentation is an achievable endeavor facilitated by a diverse range of tools at our disposal. Traditional options encompass text documents enhanced with visuals, presentations incorporating flowcharts for improved clarity, and even spreadsheets that can be utilized for checklists, task tracking, and data definition.
Let's move beyond the limitations of static paper documents. This article will delve into five innovative (or not) approaches to documentation, empowering us to build a robust repository that fosters a culture of clear communication and empowers our team. By embracing these strategies, we can ensure the continued success of our projects and prevent future instances of exhaustion.
Leveraging Emails for Project Documentation
While email might seem like a simple tool, it possesses remarkable power for documenting important information. Although we often receive a volume of emails daily, and other communication methods may be faster, email remains a standard for clear and reliable communication.
Emails can be used to create a variety of helpful documentation for your projects. The key is to maintain focused and specific content. This avoids lengthy email threads that become difficult to understand later.
Here are some examples of valuable documentation you can store in emails:
Meeting minutes: Capture key decisions and action items discussed during meetings.
Requests for key information: Clearly outline the specific information needed and the deadline for receiving it.
Summary of agreements reached: Briefly restate the decisions made after an email exchange, ensuring everyone is on the same page.
The Importance of Lists and Checklists
Lists are a fantastic tool for coordinating tasks across different teams. They help visualize the critical path – the essential steps everyone needs to follow – and set clear deadlines for each team's input. This facilitates progress tracking and identifies any areas requiring extra attention.
Checklists are another powerful type of list, essential for everyone involved because they ensure everyone is on the same page. They help you keep track of the items you need to complete your tasks, or in the case of a shared list, the items you need to deliver to another team.
Microsoft 365 offers great tools for managing lists, such as Microsoft Lists and SharePoint Online lists. These tools work seamlessly with other services like Power Automate for automating workflows and Power BI for generating clear status reports. Take advantage of these powerful features to keep your projects organized and efficient!
Utilizing Chat Conversations Effectively
Microsoft Teams has revolutionized communication by offering chat features with a natural, conversational flow. This flexibility streamlines decision-making processes that could previously be slow and cumbersome.
While long chat threads can sometimes be challenging to follow, there are ways to maximize their effectiveness. If you haven't been actively involved in a conversation, consider quickly scanning the chat history to get up to speed. Luckily, Teams makes it easy to search for specific terms or keywords within a chat. Don't forget to use Copilot to obtain valuable information.
Even if a chat contains technical jargon, it can still be a valuable source of project information. Excerpts from conversations or references to existing chats can be a great way to keep your documentation current and comprehensive.
The Power of Video Documentation
Technology advancements are making video a powerful tool for project documentation. Imagine attending a knowledge transfer session and having the recording available for anyone who needs it later. Videos capture the details shared, making them a valuable resource beyond the initial participants.
This approach extends to brainstorming, ideation, and modeling sessions. Reviewing these videos allows you to catch any missed details and revisit decisions with a fresh perspective. Additionally, team members can record tutorials or showcases to share their expertise with the entire team.
Microsoft 365 offers Stream, a platform designed specifically for hosting and managing these types of videos. Stream simplifies video creation, sharing, and access, making it easier than ever to leverage the power of video for your project documentation.
Embracing New Approaches to Information Capture
Our understanding of information is constantly evolving! It's no longer just static text on paper. As new needs arise, innovative ways to document and manage information are emerging. OneNote was a game-changer, offering a flexible digital canvas to collect information in various formats. It remains a valuable tool today.
Now, we have Loop, which takes information capture to a whole new level. Loop allows for easy and fast writing, maintaining, and sharing information. It even supports markdown formatting for those who prefer it.
With Loop, you can create a variety of content, including lists, tables, and paragraphs. It also integrates seamlessly with third-party items. Plus, Loop enables real-time collaboration across Outlook, Teams, OneNote, and Whiteboard – perfect for brainstorming and working together on the go!
Conclusion
Remember the days when everything was documented on paper (or Microsoft Word)? Thankfully, those days are behind us. Documentation has come a long way, and new tools are constantly popping up.
The cool thing about these new tools is that they can be used alongside our existing ways of documenting things. Emails, chats, and even videos can all be part of our documentation toolbox. We can use them to capture important decisions, discussions, and even how-to guides made by our team members. This keeps everything organized and accessible, no matter when someone needs it.
Think of it like having a giant digital filing cabinet where everything is easy to find. By embracing these new approaches, we can build a documentation system that's both powerful and user-friendly. This will not only keep everyone informed but also empower our team to work smarter, not harder.
What tools or methods are you most excited to try? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
References
A man sitting at a desk with a laptop and headphones by Nubelson Fernandes from Unsplash: https://unsplash.com/es/fotos/un-hombre-sentado-en-un-escritorio-con-una-computadora-portatil-y-auriculares-Xx4i6wg6HEg