Should Companies Establish Email Rules?

This time it’s not for average users of digital communication channels but for those being responsible for IT infrastructure and employees in companies or organizations. While reading Five Things Your Email Policy Needs to Have this morning – a post in GFI’s worth reading blog TheEmailAdmin – I started wondering why in each and every publication on this topic authors emphasize internal reasons (often called “eDiscovery”) for better using suitable solutions and enacting rules in that regard.

To answer my own headline question: Yes, I do think that it is better for most kind of organizations to establish an email policy. For the benefit of employers and employees at once. And to maximize effectiveness of communication is the best stimulation to act like this.
“Best practices for email usage” are a perfect approach. Before telling people they have to stop when the traffic light is red – you have to teach them how to drive in the first place.

Business communication is not like private talking. But companies should realize that especially young people rarely learned to differentiate. You have to tell them – point one. Personal email communication is allowed – fine, but determine how, why and when. If it is prohibited – it has to be stated clearly. (Which in most cases is the better, more transparent solution.) Point two: Communicating with customers or colleagues should happen conforming specifications of your corporate identity. Which makes it easier for all involved.

Surprisingly I tell you this at last: Archive all organization’s email! And tell your employees that you do so. It will give good returns to be able to protect your company’s critical business information and intellectual property – and simple make use of it. You can speed up procedures because of streamlined servers and more versatile email clients. The access to old emails will be lightning-fast, promise!

The lesson is clear that you don’t need the sword of Damocles thinking about your company’s email policy. Email is a wonderful tool of advantageous communication – you and your staff just have to be sure how to play the piano.