The story of rediscovering "the importance of reporting, communicating, and consulting" after having AI write code

Introduction

Recently, I've had more opportunities to use AI coding tools like Claude Code and Codex. What surprised me when trying them out was that these AIs don't really keep you in the loop very well.

Before you've even decided on a direction, they just charge ahead and start implementing things on their own. When problems arise during testing, they move on without reporting them. As a result, you sometimes end up with something completely off the mark. I felt there was something distinctly human-like about this behavior. And it reminded me once again that regular reporting and communication matters, whether you're dealing with AI or humans.

With that in mind, this article offers some brief thoughts on what I normally think about when it comes to reporting, communicating, and consulting.

The Two Things That Matter: Reporting and Consulting

We often talk about the three pillars of workplace communication (reporting, informing, and consulting), but the two I truly consider important are reporting and consulting. These two can be distinguished by whether or not you are pressing the other person to make a decision. Reporting doesn't call for a decision; consulting does.

Good reporting is reporting that conveys a story.

"What has been happening up to now" → "What the current situation is" → "What you intend to do going forward"

It's important that this thread runs continuously from past to future. The heart of reporting is being able to share the same picture with the other person, and conveying exactly where you currently stand along that line.

Timing also matters. Especially critical is reporting before you set off. Simply saying "This is where I'm headed" gives someone the chance to catch you early if your direction is off. Course corrections are costly once you've already moved far along. The AI example at the beginning is exactly this. Because it sets off without reporting, misguided output is the result.

Consulting, on the other hand, is a somewhat weightier act. That's because you are pressing the other person to make a decision.

What I want to avoid here is simply dumping the decision on someone else. Just throwing out "What should we do?" only adds to the other person's load and keeps things from moving forward. I make a point of framing it as: "For these reasons, I'm thinking of doing this — does that work for you?" You present your own reasoning and conclusion, and then leave the final call to the other person.

The one thing I want to be thorough about in both reporting and consulting is reducing the cognitive load on the other person. Thinking about how to communicate so the other person can understand as quickly as possible and make decisions as quickly as possible. That alone makes a remarkable difference in how smoothly work progresses.

The Worse the News, the Faster You Should Move

There's one more thing I really want to convey. Bad news should be escalated quickly.

Reporting also serves to protect yourself. If you've reported something, someone will stop you even if you're heading in the wrong direction. Conversely, if you push ahead without reporting and a problem surfaces later, you'll be asked why you made that call on your own.

It's embarrassing to admit, but when I first entered the workforce, I wasn't able to do this. When a problem arose from my own mistake or misunderstanding, I felt the urge to quietly cover it up and brush it under the rug. Looking back now, I think that was truly the wrong approach. When you hide something, you can't reflect on the failure, and it does nothing to prevent it from happening again. Problems should be brought to light as problems, and faced together as a team.

Bad news makes you instinctively brace yourself — you worry about being scolded or blamed. But the most important thing is that the project moves forward. The sooner bad news is shared, the sooner everyone can focus on getting back on track.

On a personal note, one trick I've found is that getting along well with team members day to day significantly lowers the psychological barrier to delivering bad news. It's important to be honest with yourself about your own personality and tendencies, and to develop the ability to manage your own mindset.

Closing

The moment you think, "I'd rather not get yelled at" — that's exactly when you should start moving your hands and writing that report. What matters more than saving face is keeping the project moving forward. Don't hide things; face problems together as a team. In the end, that makes things easier for both yourself and the team.

The worse the news, the faster you should move. That's the phrase I hold most dear when it comes to communication at work. And each time you overcome a challenge together, the bonds within your team grow stronger.