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Study suggests 24/7 email is becoming the new normal

Just what did we do before email?

In mid-May 2013, Opinion Matters and GFI Software released the results of a 500-person survey that revealed email use is creeping into more and more of an employee’s personal time.

Sound familiar?
• More than three-quarters of respondents (81 percent) check their work e-mail on weekends. About 55 percent check e-mail after 11 p.m., and 59 percent check it while they’re on vacation.

It gets better (or worse)
• About 64 percent of respondents check their work e-mail at least once a day outside of regular work hours.

• One in 10 respondents has checked work e-mail during a child’s school event; 9 percent has checked it at a wedding; and 6 percent at a funeral. Six percent said they’ve even logged in to their work e-mail account while they, or their spouse, was in labor.

It’s not all work
The study found “nearly one-third (30 percent) of employees also said they send personal e-mails from their work account.”

But it’s all email, of which usage has boosted exponentially because of the wide use of smartphones. Is email getting in the way of your productivity on the job, or your downtime out of the office?

Email can be tamed
The study affirmed how critical it is for organizations to manage email to ensure it is used as a revenue generator and a benefit to the company, rather than an inconvenience.

Tame your email habits to heighten your productivity.
• Have separate email accounts for work and personal life.
• Choose a few specific times during the work day to check and respond to work email. Get work done in between those times.
• Maintain a file system to archive emailed data. Using your inbox as a living database leaves information susceptible to email corruption.
• Schedule a time each week to clean up/delete/file your old emails.

EctoHR, Inc. is here for your company
EctoHR, Inc. is ready to assist your company with all aspects of HR, including developing and implementing employee development plans that include email and time management workshops, as well as prioritization training. Contact a team member at EctoHR by calling 810.534.0170, or by email to hr@ectohr.com.

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