VOICE MAIL, E-MAIL AND FAXES CAUSE STRESS
By Adnews Staff
A recent study into the communication habits of corporate and government workers conducted by the Institute of the Future, finds the volume of messaging in the workplace remains very high. The study found people send and receive an average of 190 messages a day - forcing everybody from administrators to executives to constantly reprioritize their day. The study was commissioned by Pitney Bowes. Meredith Fischer, vice president, corporate marketing says, "It has come to the point where a worker's goal for the day is try to conscientiously respond to all the message..." Fifty per cent of Canadian respondents said the work created in responding to a message caused them some difficulty. However, the research showed administrative assistants showed the least amount of stress from handling messages because they view their efforts in handling a high volume of messages as a "badge of honor." Some key Canadian findings concluded 70 to 75 per cent of executives agree or strongly agree that they regularly work with co-workers who are not in the office. It also found that Canadians prefer electronic messaging over paper messaging by 70 per cent.