# Async-First Workplace Communication Norms & Meeting Reduction Framework

Operational principles to protect cognitive focus, reduce reactive interruptions, and establish psychological safety for neurodivergent and distributed teams.

## 1. Default to Documentation
- **Pervasive Context:** If a decision affects two or more team members, write it up in a shared document (spec, RFC, or ticket) before requesting feedback.
- **No "Quick Syncs" for Status Updates:** Progress reporting belongs in written async updates, not live calendar meetings.

## 2. Communication Channels & Response Expectations
- **Urgent / Outage:** Pager / dedicated emergency channel (response expected within 15 minutes).
- **Standard Collaboration:** Asynchronous messaging or tickets (response expected within 4 business hours).
- **Deep Reviews:** RFCs, PR reviews, strategy briefs (response expected within 24-48 business hours).

## 3. Meeting Governance
- **No Agenda, No Meeting:** Every meeting invitation must include a written agenda and pre-read materials 24 hours in advance.
- **Meeting-Free Focus Days:** Designate recurring focus blocks (e.g. Tuesday & Thursday afternoons) with zero scheduled meetings.