Bridging the gap between face-to-face communication and long-term collaboration

During the different phases of a project, stakeholders have different communication needs and make use of different communication media to satisfy them. A group memory system must be able to support and capture these different communication types. We describe two systems, GIMMe and FOCUS, the integration of which allows us to support and effortlessly capture electronic maiI conversations and structural changes in their organizational hierarchy as well as face-to-face demonstrations of software prototypes. As media and style of collaboration change, the emerging group memory goes through a metamorphosis that parallels group members’ changing demands. This approach promises low initial effort and the potential to grow in value.