How Loom Engineering Team Utilizes Loom for Communication
Introduction
This guide will explore the practical ways in which the Loom engineering team incorporates Loom into their daily workflows. From incident management to knowledge sharing and code reviews, you'll learn how asynchronous video communication can streamline complex technical dialogues and enhance team collaboration. By the end of this guide, you'll have insights into how to leverage Loom for various engineering processes.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Incident Management with Loom
During an incident where latency spikes or server graphs show abnormalities, the team quickly communicates using Loom. This replaces long chains of text messages and provides clear, visual context to the problem.
Back-and-Forth Conversations
Engineers like Cheyenne send a Loom to provide updates or findings, which others like Olga can respond to with their own Looms. This reduces the time spent waiting for responses and accelerates the investigation process.
Show and Tell Channel
A dedicated channel is used to share new technologies, work on prototypes, and display in-progress builds. This keeps the entire team informed about ongoing developments and fosters a culture of knowledge sharing.
Work on Prototypes
Discussing prototypes is made simpler with Loom. Instead of lengthy written explanations, visual demonstrations can convey the nuances of a prototype more effectively.
Bug Reporting with Loom
Technical support engineers include Looms in their bug reports to provide a clear picture of the issues to the engineering team. This visual context helps engineers understand and resolve issues more efficiently.
Code Reviews Using Loom
For code reviews, Looms are attached to demonstrate UI changes or to guide reviewers through the codebase. This method is quicker and more informative than written descriptions.
Documentation and Onboarding
Looms are also used to create documentation and to onboard new team members. The visual and auditory aspects of Loom make understanding complex systems and processes more accessible for everyone.
Conclusion
Loom serves as a versatile communication tool for the engineering team, akin to Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Docs, or Notion. The guide demonstrates how integrating Loom into various facets of engineering work can boost productivity, reduce miscommunication, and foster a collaborative environment. By following these steps, teams can enhance their communication strategies with high-fidelity, asynchronous video interactions.