Deciding what to do with a unclear message

The situation

They received a message that was not clear and needed to figure out what to do with it. The message seemed to be a question, but the context was not entirely clear. They had to decide whether to take action or just keep it as context. The message had been answered in the chat at the time, which made the decision easier. They considered the fact that no outstanding work remained in the message.

What they weighed

• Act on the message and verify the result

• Keep it as context when no action is called for

  Chosen

What they decided

Keep it as context when no action is called for

Why

The question had already been answered in the chat, so no further action was needed. They looked at the chat transcript and saw that the question was answered right after it was asked. This made it clear that keeping it as context was the right decision. The fact that no outstanding work remained in the message also supported this choice.

The first step

None beyond the answer already given in the chat

How they would know it worked

The question has an answer in the chat transcript right after it

How it turned out

Not known yet. The result is added here when it comes in.