How Graphite Communicates With Clients
The communication channels, meeting cadence, and expectations that keep Graphite and client teams aligned.
As an extension of the client’s team, Graphite wants communication to be effortless. There are a few clear channels to reach the Graphite team — Slack and email for day-to-day communication, SafeSend for anything sensitive, and a regular meeting cadence to keep everything moving.
We’ll set up the client with tools during onboarding.
Slack
Slack is our go-to platform for real-time, informal communication — think of it as the digital equivalent of popping by someone’s desk.
We’ll respond to Slack messages no later than one business day, often sooner.
- Ideal use: Easy questions, like a payment inquiry, and brief updates
- The benefit: Faster response times and less clutter in inboxes
- Tip: Don’t send sensitive information via Slack — use SafeSend instead.
During onboarding, clients are assigned a dedicated Graphite email address that’s specific to the account.
Behind that address sits the full Graphite team — the Customer Success Specialist, the Services Lead, and the relevant experts across any service lines engaged.
Client messages are routed and triaged internally so the right person picks them up and responds without the client having to figure out who to address it to.
Using this dedicated address, rather than emailing individual team members directly at their personal Graphite emails, is what makes that work.
It lets Graphite track and archive client requests properly, ensures coverage when someone is out, and gives both teams full team visibility into what’s happening on the account.
Per our SLA, we’ll acknowledge emails within two business days.
- Ideal use: General communications, follow-ups, open items, and scheduling meetings
- The benefit: The full team sees what’s coming in, the right person responds, and nothing gets stuck with one inbox.
- Tip: Add URGENT to the subject line for time-sensitive requests so our team can prioritize them.
SafeSend
For anything sensitive — financial documents, tax forms, identifying information, or anything else that shouldn’t move over Slack or standard email — Graphite uses SafeSend.
It’s a secure file-sharing tool, and the team will walk through how to use it during onboarding.
Meetings
Standing Meetings
Clients have recurring check-ins with assigned Service Team Leads, with cadence set based on the nature of the engagement.
These meetings are where Graphite asks questions, reviews project work, flags issues, and makes sure nothing falls through the cracks.
Common topics include:
- Status of in-flight work and upcoming deliverables
- Open questions or items needing input
- Issues or risks to flag before they become problems
- Process changes or new information that affects the work
- Priorities for the period ahead
Quarterly Business Reviews
Quarterly business reviews are a dedicated checkpoint with the Customer Success Specialist to assess how Graphite is supporting the client’s business and where it should evolve.
Topics often include:
- Other Graphite services that may support evolving needs
- Events like fundraising or adding a new entity
- Service feedback the client would like to share
- Changes in client staff or key points of contact
- Additional training needs
- Out-of-scope work to discuss
- Invoicing or billing questions
- Upcoming deadlines
Ad Hoc Meetings
At any point, clients can request additional meetings to address specific concerns, work through unexpected roadblocks, or dive deeper into a particular project.
Graphite keeps these flexible to respond quickly and keep work on track.
A brief outline of what to cover helps Graphite prepare and make sure the right people are on the call.