Email the weapon of choice in office power battles

6 August 2004

Email, an indispensable communication tool in the modern workplace, is fast becoming a key political weapon in office power struggles, a Monash University research study has found.

The study of office email practices and policies by Dr Susan Yell, head of Communications at the Monash Gippsland campus, revealed an increasing use of email to gain or maintain power.

"Office workers interviewed for the study complained of colleagues in the same room emailing each other to ask questions or raise concerns, rather than speaking face to face, resulting in an email 'war'," Dr Yell said.

"Complaints were also made about people storing emails that showed the sender in a bad light as future ammunition against them, managers sending group emails blaming subordinates for mishaps without allowing them to present their defence to the whole group, and workers sending group emails to brag about their achievements.

"In one reported case, a staff member emailed his work group saying he had completed a job, which the interviewee interpreted as bragging, prompting him to reply with a sarcastic email copied to the group, asking what took the person so long, to 'kick him off his peg'."

Dr Yell surveyed office workers from a range of levels and jobs in three organisations -- a manufacturing company, a public service department and a university -- asking questions about email use and official policies.

She analysed the connection between policies to combat problems like spam and email wars, and workers' adherence to these policies. Her research showed workers were more influenced by their own codes of 'good email behaviour' than by official policies. Most knew their organisation had an email policy, but were not very clear on what it did and did not allow.

Dr Yell said that despite the negatives, the majority of workers were highly enthusiastic about the positive aspects of email in regard to the potential for speedy response, its cost effectiveness, the ease of sending documents electronically and the opportunity it provided for working from home.

For further information contact Dr Susan Yell on (03) 9902 6442, or 0419 599 409; or Ms Michele Martin, Monash Media Communications, on (03) 9905 9315.