...But what is wrong with email?

Email is actually a fantastic technology, but is also one of the most absused and poorly used. One of the most common abuses of email is to try to use it as a team management and communication tool. So why is email so terrible for internal communication and team management?

• Email is unsafe - Have you ever emailed the wrong John Smith? What are the consequences of accidentally sending confidential documents externally to the wrong recipient?
• Email reduces productivity - How often do you receive time-wasting emails that are completely unrelated to your actual work?
• Email encourages bad habits - Attaching files is almost never a good way to share information as you immediately loose the ability to manage versions or control access.
• Email is irreversible - Once an email or attachment has been sent, it almost always stays sent.
• Email is distracting - Have you ever felt that you spend more reading and responding to endless emails than your actual job?
• Email is clumsy - Organizing and filtering emails is a primitive and error-prone process that requires continuous effort.
• Email can destroy team spirit - by encouraging back-covering and selfish behaviour due to impersonal communication.
• Email is uncertain - Somebody changes their job and suddenly you have no way to get in touch.

Given the overwhelming problems with email, it is actually amazing that any company would choose email as a primary internal communication system.

Don't be a victim of email oppression! Try teamstinct for free and work better.