Does Email at Work Create Resentment? [Infographic]

As written for Social Media Today

Of all the communication methods in the workplace, 43 percent say email is the one most likely to create resentment between senders and receivers —this according to a new survey from CPP, “The People Development People,” and publishers of the Myers-Briggs®  personality assessment. In a popular article I wrote last year, the company examined which personality types are most/least likely to use the various social media platforms. Now they’ve released an infographic based on a collaborative study with email management provider Sendmail.

While 92 percent of those surveyed agree email is an essential communication tool, 64 percent report having either sent or received an email that resulted in some sort of tension. Not to say other forms of communication are clear of feather-ruffling, 32 percent blame text messaging, and 9 percent get miffed using the phone. But email was the leader.

The biggest pet peeves were broken down by mail senders, and mail recipients, separately. Because different behaviors in each case drive frustrations. 51 percent of those surveyed can’t stand when they don’t receive an email respose. And I’m one of them, for sure.

On the receiving end of email communication, 25 percent cite improper “reply to all” use as the leading annoyance. You know what I’m talking about…the guy in finance included in the mass email of newborn infant photos who replies, “so precious” not just to the sender, but to everyone. Which in turn encourages the lady in payroll to respond, “looks like my nephew”. The whole thing continues a few rounds until the infant photos are no longer precious at all, but a big fiasco.

These experts stress the importance of combining personality awareness with proper email etiquette to avoid communication aggrevation. From a Myers-Briggs perspective, for instance, extraverts, who tend to send long and frequent emails, should take care in cutting out the fat. Not everyone wants to read a diatribe. And anyone emailing a Millennial should know that 7 percent are more likely than other age groups to be annoyed by bad grammar. They’re impatient, too; 12 percent are more likely to want faster replies.

Other notable email aggrevations cited by survey respondents include:

• Too much email in general (18 percent)
• Emails that are confusing or vague (19 percent)
• Careless replies (11 percent)