What is an asynchronous meeting?

How is it different from sending an update?

An update shares information. An asynchronous meeting also asks people for something specific, such as checking a proposal, flagging a dependency or choosing between options. The organizer says what reply is needed and what happens once the deadline passes.

Atlassian's meeting-audit play asks teams which recurring meetings could move to async work. It suggests message threads, recorded roundups and shared written updates. Picking a format is only half the job, though. The team still needs a way to reach an outcome.

Set the rules before it starts

Put these details at the top of the discussion so nobody has to dig through old messages. Give the deadline a time zone, and leave people enough time to read and reply.

What does an asynchronous meeting look like?

Picture a distributed team reviewing a workshop agenda. The organizer posts a short draft, marks which parts are open for feedback and links the customer's requirements. People comment on the relevant section instead of starting their own versions.

One colleague spots that an exercise assumes a tool the customer doesn't use. Another suggests a paper-based version. The organizer checks it, updates the exercise and posts a summary. The result is a revised agenda with a visible decision, not a thread that just goes quiet.

Don't mistake silence for agreement

To the organizer, an unread message and an agreement look the same. If someone must confirm, ask them directly and follow up if they don't reply. Agree in advance whether no reply means anything. Don't invent that rule when you want to close the thread.

Ask people to separate questions from objections. A useful reply names the part affected, the concern and a next step. “I can't confirm the equipment list until the venue replies” helps far more than an emoji.

When should it become a live meeting?

Switch to a short call when replies show people reading the problem differently. Do the same for an urgent dependency or a sensitive topic. Afterwards, post the outcome back in the original thread.

Atlassian's guide to asynchronous communication describes the same balance. Save live conversation for the moments when it really helps, and let people reply on their own time otherwise.

Moving every meeting to a document creates its own problem: lots of open threads with no owner. Try async on one recurring discussion first. Then ask whether the context was clear, people had time to reply and the decision was easy to find.