We have all grown used to e-mail. It's part of our daily lives. Many of us are using it on the go, in transport, anywhere, and at anytime. I have even known people in Canada who were using e-mail on their blackberries while brushing their teeth! But does this mean that we are using it properly?

of improper e-mail usage in the workplace

E-mail usage has increased considerably. Barring a few exceptions, maybe when it comes to top executives, most managers and even execs will respond to their e-mail directly. Typing on the keyboard is no longer frightening anyone, and it is now frequent that you come across top executives even in non-tech companies who are self-proclaimed technophiles. This is the bright side of things. On the contrary, a number of practices have developed, which are questioning e-mail as an appropriate tool for increasing business efficiency. We have already described some of them which have led companies like Deloitte (insert link to previous post) to ban e-mail usage in so-called 'no e-mail Fridays'. I even asked a question through LinkedIn on this subject a few days ago, and this question triggered quite a few interesting responses: many said that companies like Deloitte were hitting on the wrong nail; that the issue was not about e-mail on Fridays, and that it would even make things worse on Mondays, when it would come to work through an even bigger queue of unread e-mails. Most pointed out that the real issue was that of education and getting people to better use e-mail as well as actually reduce the number of messages by better talking to one another. All of these comments make perfect sense. We can't just decree that Friday e-mails aren't possible. All our LinkedIn friends are right, it's a matter of education. Hence this article on Visionary Marketing.

In the following chapters, I have attempted to list some of the issues and the strategies that we can associate with them in order to improve e-mail usage.

worst practice number one:

Long e-mail developments A few years ago, because managers thought the typing on keyboards was so difficult and so unnatural, it was rare that they would send long e-mails in order to convey simple ideas or requests. In this day and age, this is no longer the case. And it seems that typing on the keyboard has become some sort of international sport, at least, if I judge by looking at my personal e-mail queue in the office (as it happens, this problem is more frequent in the workplace than on the Internet). Assuming a manager receives a hundred one-page e-mails a day (A4-size), this is as if you were reading a 100-page novel every day. Like it or not, reading that many pages today, is wearing thick before long. Besides, ecological issues and growing environmental concerns are making us - rightfully - more and more reluctant to print e-mails before we read them.

As a result, we have to read on a screen, and let's face it, 100 pages on a screen are not really readable. Sometimes, this kind of e-mails is unavoidable. This is namely the case when you have requested somebody to write a statement of requirements for instance. In that particular case, it is perfectly normal to receive along e-mail which describes the need for a new system or a description for a new project for instance. These are examples for which e-mail is most useful.

However, when you haven't requested anything and somebody comes up with a request which is more than one-page long, chances are that a short phone discussion would be very helpful either in order to bring clarification to the e-mail, or even solve the issue in a different manner.

At the end of the day, if a five-minute conversation can solve an issue, which it took you one hour to write on e-mail, this is not a very good sign for productivity improvement in the workplace. One of my recommended strategies for this kind of e-mails is, when e-mail cannot be avoided, to use bullet points and keep sentences short. Rich text format is now available to all in all systems, and then you should structure your e-mails in that way (Lotus Notes users may still find it hard though, poor buggers!).

worst practice number two: acknowledge receipts

if you have ever received an angry e-mail asking you to acknowledge receipt of this particular message, beware! Of course, there are examples whereby one merely wants to ascertain that you have received the message and you were expecting. In that case, e-mail usage is spot on. However, this functionality is often used by people were trying to play tricks on you. It seems that many users are reluctant to pick up the phone or even come and see the people are sitting next to them and ask them questions directly. It is much more comfortable - so it seems - to avoid eye contact and send an impersonal message via e-mail. In that case, when I read behind the lines, I see something like "just in case I haven't got a response, I will have a copy for my files ...".

If you want to avoid this kind of danger, my recommended strategy is to go into the tools options menu of your e-mail reader and to disable that feature within your e-mail reader, and as soon as you have received a message of that kind, to either give this person a buzz, or even come and talk to him or her in person. Buy this person a cup of coffee and talk the matter through, and it is most certain that in no time the problem will disappear. Besides, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that keeping files about people's deeds is not really a good idea.

I have witnessed people do this all the time. Namely one who felt utterly frustrated by the way that others were reacting with him, the lack of responsiveness, the lack of efficiency, even what he thought was blatant incompetence. However keeping files on these people that he thought were incompetent didn't really help him. He finally got sacked because of the very files he was keeping on people. At the end of the day, he lost his job and it took him quite a few years to bounce back. Although he had a point when he was talking about certain people that he was dealing who were not really up to the job, these people remained employed and he didn't. I do not recommend at all costs using e-mail to store traces of what people have done right or wrong. Always favour one-to-one negotiation and face-to-face discussions when you can. At the end of the day, remember that e-mail is a tool, and does not replace people - heaven forbid!