Using Yammer to Communicate Effectively in a Startup

http://blog.sharendipity.com/using-yammer-to-communicate-effectively-in-a-startup

by beermann • 17 years ago

12 9 17 years ago

blog.sharendipity.com

jamesk2• 17 years ago

I've been using Yammer for my startup. The members of our team are in LA and NY. When two of the three talk, the third member can catch up when he can.

We put notes, links and documents on there. It's also a group Getting Things Done system. We try to finish every meeting with next action steps.

mrshoe4• 17 years ago

I have to add a somewhat shameless plug here, because my startup is tackling exactly the set of problems he's discussing here. We really believe that Yammer's model is somewhat flawed, and in our experience an enhanced "internal IRC" model has worked much better.

I like that he mentions integrating with other systems. Some of the biggest productivity gains we've seen have come from chat bots, which interject useful information into the conversation. They can also respond to commands from users to do useful actions. Our API still needs some polish, but we'll be releasing it to the public soon. Internally, we have chat bots that notify us about svn commits, Google alerts, changes to any Trac ticket or wiki page, etc. I can't wait to see what all the hackers here do with it. :)

Communication tools like this really change the game, especially for distributed teams.

We're in open public beta right now. Check out http://shoptalkapp.com and let us know what you think. We always value the opinion of HN readers.

beermann2• 17 years ago

Interesting product. I think it could work well for large companies where the chat rooms make more sense but I'm not sure it would work as well for a startup. Adding features like hashtags and search would help too.

I also really like that Yammer provides a desktop client. I mention that a lot of the barriers to communication have to do with integrating into my everyday routine. When I have to go to a web page, it breaks up my workflow and I end up just not using the product like I should.

mrshoe4• 17 years ago

Thanks for checking it out. We have a search feature under development. I agree that search is key for this type of tool.

I'd be interested to hear what you use the desktop client for. We have been thinking of creating one simply for DM alerts, but do you find it useful beyond that? It's a shame that browsers can't do notifications.

Also, could you elaborate on why chat rooms make more sense for larger companies than for a startup? The real-time conversation aspect has just be so useful for us, especially since we're a distributed team.

windsurfer• 17 years ago

Yes!

This is exactly the kind of thing I coded up in Perl using multicast a few months ago! The interface is done in UI::Curses and the back end uses a simple text protocol using IO::Sockets::Multicast :)

I've also had a lot of fun programming it. Some of the more useful additions include:

  * Git hooks for "official" commits
  * Hooks for when automated tests break after a commit
  * /ping and "pong!" client response to see who's at their desk (I don't work in
  an open concept office)
  * Times during the day (typing break, lunch, etc)
  * Notifications from members that need someones specific attention using notify-
  osd and (optionally) a system beep.

I also built this system because external chats are blocked, but internal multicast cannot be blocked, and doesn't go against IT guidelines :)

mrshoe4• 17 years ago

Very cool, windsurfer! I like the subversive undertones, as well. :)

Hopefully we'll have our bot API ready for public consumption soon. I'll let you know. We've taken most of our UI cues from irssi, so I bet our interface, although it's a web interface, is pretty similar to yours.

Let me know what you think if you try it out. It's all over standard HTTP ports, so hopefully your IT department won't notice. :)

ams6110• 17 years ago

We tried Yammer in a team of 12 - 15 devs. About half of them liked it. The other half thought it was "yet another annoying, distracting thing to take me out of my 'flow'"

Using Yammer to Communicate Effectively in a Startup

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