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Open Thread: The value and quality of email at work
Merlin Mann | Nov 2 2005
40% of office workers spend 0.5-3 hours reading poorly written e-mail | IT Facts | ZDNet.com More with the email research results:
Things is, I keep encountering people who get 100, 200, 300, or more actionable emails each day; not cron notifications, bug list CCs, or lunch at Chili's for Suzie from AR's birthday--I'm talking about real emails that require more than a one-line response or represent some kind of non-email work. What amazes me is how much of people's email seems to be internal to their company, business unit, or direct team. If I ran a company and learned that most of my employees were spending that much time touching internal email, I'd ask my managers: "For how many and which employees is six hours of email each day adding value to the company?" Maybe that's just me. Understand: I get that email is the way teams communicate on important stuff, but at a certain point, we're back to the guy from Metropolis, aren't we? I realize my view on this stuff is extreme -- I'm a hobo and I work at home -- but you tell me:
Feel free to elaborate. And feel free to say you love getting all that email. I'd enjoy hearing a range of views on this. Also: Non-scientific email pollHow many actionable emails do you get each day? That's email that requires more than a one-line response or requests non-email work. 22 Comments
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 About 50 per day. ...Submitted by mcparsons (not verified) on November 3, 2005 - 1:22pm.
About 50 per day. 10-15 that can be acted on in less than 2 minutes. 2-3 that require more attention. I prefer email becuase I have the information to refer to later and can delegate with a simple forward. Plus people have to condense their thoughts in an email where a hallway conversation can drag on, and on, and on. (Of course, some hallway or lunch conversations are incredibly productive but that's another topic). My filing system is simple. All emails go into Action (needs to be acted on but takes more than 2 minutes), Hold (reference), or Timed (reference that will have no value in a few weeks like conference call numbers or meeting agenda). All other are dealt with in 2 minutes or deleted. I treat it like a video game - if the messages reach the bottom of the screen, I lose. Writing clear, actionable emails and directing them to the right people is a critical skill in our organization. Proper use of the subject line and clear, action oriented statements are critical. Spending years working in an organization where English is not your coworkers' first language is a great learning experience. » POSTED IN:
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