What’s Message of Email Clutter?

One of the more common complaints I hear from managers concerns emails - too many, unnecessary and never ending.  Unopened emails linger over the manager’s head and create a sense of resignation as the train of email appears to have no end.

Several different approaches are used to cope with this endless list – ignore them, cherry pick some (maybe the funny ones), try to read all of them or a combination of these techniques.  This may work, temporarily.  But then the cycle of receiving emails continues.  How do you get out in front of the tidal wave of emails and stay there?

A high volume of email traffic can be symptomatic of a bigger issue.  Emails can be a request for guidance, information or possibly a process which needs to be provided.   In which case, the solution resides outside the use of emails.  Figuring out if the emails fit into one of these needs and reducing the number of emails is a two step process.

The first step is to figure if there is a way to group any of the emails being received. Who is sending emails, either by person or group?  Is there a common theme?  Do the emails seek information in any sort of pattern?  Does the number of emails increase in conjunction with an event or a certain date?  Some of the emails will fit into a category and that category is one that can be addressed in a more comprehensive method rather than using piece meal emails.

Once a category has been identified the next step is to understand what is needed to address the underlying need for a group of emails.  If the emails are coming from one specific group of people, then that group needs to be engaged to find out what is needed to clear up the confusion prompting the high volume of emails.

If the emails are grouped under a new initiative, then the plan might need to be either more fully developed or explained.  If the emails are about a procedure, then that procedure needs to be refined/ communicated.  Sometimes emails are a manifestation of a personal agenda such as passing the buck, covert resistance or a cry for attention.   If there is someone flooding the email channel a deeper look is required to understand why so many emails are being sent.

The problem with the volume of emails doesn’t have to be solved all at once.  Identify a trend in emails that is causing an inbox to overflow and start working on it.  If the root issue is being addressed, the number of emails in this category will decline noticeably. 

Avoidance of emails isn’t a solution.  Bosses lose credibility when emails go unanswered and people come up with their own solutions without guidance.  When emails don’t get answered there is a tendency to ‘amp up the volume’ so more emails are sent.  All of this results in frustration and confusion.

More than likely if a manager is frustrated by emails, other are also.  Developing a better solution for doing business will reduce both confusion and the number of emails. 

Leadership's Golden Rule

"Ph D in leadership, short course.  Make a list of all things done to you that you abhorred.  Don't do them to others, ever. Make another list of things done to you that you loved.  Do them to others,   

always."

 Dee Hock

Don't Confuse Busy with Being Productive

“We trained hard, but it seemed every time we were beginning to form up into teams, we would be reorganized.  I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency and demoralization.”

Petronius Arbiter

Greek Navy

210 B.C.

Change Requires Buy-in

I remember purchasing my first smart phone.  After poking around to understand more about it, I decided to move ahead with the smart phone.  However, I had reservations.  How much time was it going to take to learn how to use the phone?  Was the return going to be worth the time invested?  

Evaluating a business opportunity could follow a similar path - defining what you want to achieve, determining how much time it is going to take and evaluating the commitment needed to get it done.  Exploring an opportunity is more difficult when doing something new involves others. 

When this occurs, more homework is required before deciding to pursue the new opportunity.  This involves asking employees what they think about the change. Why, because you’re asking employees to strap on a new requirement and they are the ones who are going to make it happen. If people don’t have a chance to ‘weigh-in’ most likely they won’t ‘buy-in’ for what the boss wants to accomplish. 

But what the boss decides, others have to go along with, right?  Yes, bosses make decisions but employees can help the change go smoothly or become tied up with other competing priorities or worse yet, resist the change.

Isn’t a boss’s authority undermined by asking people for their input?  No, to the contrary, the role of boss is strengthened.  When employees are asked what they think, they feel respected.  They feel they matter and that goes a long way towards helping the change succeed. 

Doesn’t the boss open themselves for negative comments about the change?  Absolutely, but it is better to get those comments on the table and deal with them rather than let them undercut the initiative once after the project is under way. 

What happens if the boss doesn’t follow their recommendations?  The boss is still better off as long they follow up with those who provided the input by presenting their reasoning for the decision and showing that they valued employee contributions. 

This process of asking employees what they think sounds like a lot of work.  True, more time will be spent up front in order to achieve buy-in.  On the flip side the change will achieve a better result sooner by yielding a good return on the time spent initially to get the project rolling.  

Change is never easy but including others up front helps accomplish the objective by fostering more cooperation.

Learning how to use the smart phone had its bumps along the way but did prove to be a good return for my time.  I’ve dropped it a couple of times so it isn’t pretty anymore.  I receive offers to upgrade my phone with more features and faster connectivity.  I don’t think the trade-off for upgrading is there yet so I’ll just keeping using the one I have.

The Leadership Void

I had the chance to observe a lot of folks during the recent county fair.  As I watched the people, I noticed several different types groups.  Among the groups were families, teenagers and couples.  Besides enjoying the fair, the groups all had one thing in common – a leader.

Some of the leaders were readily identifiable.  The parent could be seen and heard guiding family members.  For the teenagers, the leader was usually the person who was more vocal and animated in trying to coax the group.  For some of the couples, the leader could be seen gesturing.

Leaders are necessary for the group to function.  For the family, the parent keeps the group physically together, reminds family members of the rules and makes decisions for the family.  The leader for the group of teenagers helps to identify what the group wants to do next and works toward maintaining group cohesion.   

Without a leader to accomplish these types of critical tasks, the group will have difficulty in serving its intended purpose.  The group will lose its way and cohesion will be in jeopardy.  Ultimately, the ability of the group to function will deteriorate.  This absence of leadership creates a void. 

Having a leadership void in a group can have a disastrous affect.  Symptoms of such a  void include a lack of critical decision making and significant problems not being addressed.  Another indicator of a leadership void is a lot of squabbling with the resulting increased tension. 

Left unchecked, these types of behaviors can lead to declining morale which in turn can generate personnel turnover and lower productivity.  Trust wanes as confidence in leadership declines.  No one wants to works in this type of environment, including the boss.

If these types of behaviors are occurring, then the boss needs to figure out what they need to do differently and strap it on.   This is not an easy task as change can be daunting.  Chances are mistakes will be made.  Trying to be a better leader, even if it is not overly successful will be seen as a positive. 

The informal groups at the fair were having fun.  With effective leadership, the work place can be a positive experience which in turn leads to greater morale and enhanced productivity.

Effective leadership is rooted in developing habits

http://www.tekara.com/road-london2012-willpower-overrated/

Focusing on people leads to many dividends