Getting your inbox under control: How to Master that inbox!

Getting your inbox under control: How to Master that inbox! Workshop

Getting Your Email Under Control:
How to master that inbox!

www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk


Overview
• Attitudes towards email (myths and realities)
• Sending fewer and better emails
• Managing your inbox
• Emails as records
• Some handy hints
• Dealing with the backlog: A way forward



Confession time!
• Roughly how many emails do you have in your
inbox?
• Who would be happy for the contents of their
inbox/sent items to be made publicly available?

If not, why not?



Some things to bear in mind…
• Emails belong to your employer, not you
• Emails are legally enforceable
• Emails are legally disclosable
• Email is insecure and easily intercepted
• Emails are difficult for users to manage
– Leads to errors…
• Users receive too many emails
– Leads to errors…
• Email is a communication technology; not an
information management tool
• Email is a disruptive technology www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk


Suitable use of work email?
Suitable Maybe Unsuitable
Agreeing a
Ordering a contract Arranging a
Christmas meeting
present
Circulating
jokes

Applying for
another job
Notifying all staff of
the weekly canteen Discussing the medical
menu condition of a member
Transferring
of staff
documents



But there may be better alternatives…

Email is a very useful tool, but remember

It is not the only tool we have

It is not always the best tool



How to reduce the number you send
Using alternative technologies

• Ordering a Xmas present Home email account?
• Agreeing a contract Hard copy?
• Applying for another job Home email account?
• Transferring documents Shared network drive/Drop box?
• Arranging a meeting Phone
• Weekly canteen menu Intranet
• Circulating jokes Home email account/pub?
• Discussing the medical Phone/Face to face meeting?
condition of a member of
staff



The benefits of reducing the number of
the emails you send
Easier for Less chance of
colleagues to mistakes being
manage made

Virtuous circle – Gets the best out
everyone benefits of email



Good titling?



Stick to one subject per email
• Avoid addressing more than one unrelated
subject in an email
– Makes accurate titling impossible
– Makes appropriate filing and management difficult
– Makes it difficult to follow the audit trail
– Increases the risk of inadvertent disclosure



Appropriate use of message status
symbols

• Use ‘High Importance’ very sparingly
– For messages needing immediate attention
– Usually for single recipients (or a small number)

• Remember the ‘Low importance’ flag also



Careful use of group messages, ‘CC’
and ‘BCC’
• Think carefully who really needs to see your message
• Don’t be lazy and select ‘all staff’ when in reality it only
applies to a few
• Only ‘CC’ a user into a message when it is important that
they are aware of what is being discussed, but without
them needing to play an active role
• E.g. keeping a line manager in the loop
• Think very carefully before using ‘BCC’
– Can easily be viewed as sneaky and underhand



Managing your inbox

What problems have you encountered trying to manage the emails
you receive?



Its time to rethink the purpose of
your inbox!

From this… To this



The benefits of structuring your
inbox
Sub-folders keep Keeps your inbox
all related emails clear and focused
together on its proper
purpose

Makes it easier to Allows integration
make consistent of email into the
management wider information
decisions to which it relates



How to structure your inbox

Highlight the inbox
Right-click and select New
Folder

Re-title the new folder

Exact procedure may vary according to specific email applications


Replicate your main filing system
• Try to reflect your main filing system
– Makes it easier to integrate relevant information
– Makes consistent management easier
– Makes it easier for others to find information if
required
• But
– Don’t follow it slavishly (i.e. only include those areas
that are relevant)
– Be aware that some email systems do not allow you
to create further sub-folders
– You may need to shorten folder names


Don’t forget your sent items!
• Often overlooked but as important as your inbox

• Without active management of your sent items you will:
– Quickly fill your email quota
– Store important information separate to the other information to
which it relates
– Risk losing important evidence through inadvertent deletion

• Treat it in the same way as your inbox
– Clear it each day by moving items to the relevant subject folder
– Delete the rest



Deleting emails
Keep long Keep short Delete once
term term read
Link to a report Email with copy of
FOI request
on the web minutes of meeting
relevant to your attached
subject area
Notification of
closure of the
Reminder of car park
Christmas
closure dates
Airline e-ticket for Confirmation
journey to of project
Message to HR conference funding
requesting a
transfer



What makes an ‘email record’
• Exactly the same properties as you would
look for in other types of record

• Emails that:
– Are evidence of a transaction
– Document what was done, why, by whom and when
– Form part of the audit trail
– Contain unique and valuable information



Integrating ‘email records’ with other
records
• Your inbox (and its sub-folders) is a silo
• You should transfer emails likely to be of
use/significance to others as soon as possible
– Should be stored alongside like information
– E.g. in shared file server
• Exactly when this should occur will vary according
to the type of email in question and its usage
– Immediately?
– At project closure?
– Annually?
– Once approved?



Other things to consider
What is the record?



What do you need to capture?



Some ‘handy hints’…
Use Rules and Alerts to
automate the management of
your emails according to
predefined rules.

Such as forwarding to
specific folders based on
sender, title, word or other
characteristic



Some ‘handy hints’…

Use colour to organise your inbox
• Ensure that messages from a certain person (such as your
boss) stand out by receiving them in a different colour
• Highlight those messages that are only addressed to you

Can all help you to keep on top of your inbox…



That’s all very well but I’ve got 3000 messages
in my inbox at the moment…
• Start with this new approach for all new
messages from tomorrow onwards
• Tackle the backlog in a gradual, realistic way
• Make a decision as to whether to keep or destroy every
message over 12 months old as a one off batch process
• Seek advice within your institution on this
• At the beginning of each month review the contents of that
month’s emails for the previous year and sort accordingly
• A 12 month process!
• Remember your sent items!!



Any questions?

Good luck!!

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