Optimising e-mail communication: the impact of seminar- and computer-based training

Many organisations worldwide are benefiting from the use of electronic mail (e-mail) for workplace communication. However employees continue to report multifarious e-mail concerns (“e-mail defects”) including ambiguous unclear messages, e-mail overload, security and privacy issues, and e-mail interruptions. Such e-mail defects affect employee productivity and satisfaction, organisational costs and even organisational performance, and therefore should be managed. This paper explores the importance of identify email defects and the effectiveness of training employees in efficient use of e-mail at four medium-to-large UK organisations, using seminar-based training (SBT) and computer-based training (CBT) delivery modes. The findings suggest that SBT has a diminishing impact over a very short period of time, but a combined approach of SBT and CBT is far more effective in the longer term and provides better results. Key implications for e-mail management scholars and practitioners are discussed.