Before you send a team update, ask two questions: who needs to do something, and who needs to know? Those are different groups, even when they overlap.
Use required when you need a response
A required person owes a response, acknowledgement, decision, or action. Be specific about that request in the post. “Please approve the launch date by Thursday” gives someone a clearer next step than “Thoughts?”
In Egg, required people are subscribed automatically. They need the later replies and the eventual outcome as well as the original request.
Use subscribed when someone wants context
A subscriber follows the discussion without an obligation to respond. That makes subscription useful for project partners, people on adjacent teams, and anyone who wants to learn from a decision.
Being interested should not look the same as being accountable. When every person is treated as required, the signal stops helping anyone prioritize.
Mentions are a separate signal
Mentioning someone brings their name into a discussion. It does not automatically make them required or subscribed. If you need a decision, make that responsibility explicit.
Put it into practice
Imagine you are choosing a launch date. Make the launch owner required, ask the support lead to subscribe, and write the decision you need at the top of the post.
Please confirm whether Thursday gives us enough time to finish the release checklist. If it does not, propose a date and name the remaining blocker.
Keep the replies in that post. When the decision is made, record the outcome and resolve the discussion. The next person should be able to understand what happened without asking the team to repeat it.