My average client receives about 45 emails and 15 voicemails a day. But the effectiveness of usage is what determines our efficiency. Here's some tips to help increase your personal performance and that of your team:

Sending messages Be specific about your subject. The subject line is a great tool to communicate…but so often overlooked. For example, 'October 31 Sales Meeting Agenda'. In your voicemail, let the person know very early in the message why you are calling and what you need. For example, 'I'm calling because I need your input on the Jones Project before I can complete the report due Monday'.

Be specific in your first sentence. For email, the first sentence should answer the 'who, what, why, where and when' for the recipient. With voicemail, using a list helps prevent phone tag, so write down your key points before picking up the phone. In both cases include timelines or deadlines. For example, 'I need you to review and approve the attached budget by 4PM Friday'. Be selective about distribution. When it comes to emails, try to copy only those individuals directly affected by the content. Copying or forwarding information indiscriminately wastes the recipient's time as well as your own.

Retrieving messages Retrieval frequency. Generally speaking I recommend picking up messages 3-4 times a day.

Filter by person. If you are consistently copied or blind copied on emails, they will probably have a lower priority than ones written specifically to you. Save them in a digital Folder labeled 'cc/bc' and read them at a later time. If they consistently fail to provide information you need, contact the sender and request removal of your name from the distribution list.

Maintenance Treat your email inbox as you would you paper inbox. Leaving information in an inbox just clutters up the system and promotes delayed decision making (aka procrastination). Establish electronic file folders and after reading the message, either file or delete it.

These are just a few tips, but the single most important thing to remember is to develop an email and voicemail strategy, share it with the team and encourage everyone to stick to use!

Copyright  2001 Cynthia Kyriazis. All rights reserved.
About the Author

Cynthia Kyriazis is an organizing and time management consultant, trainer, speaker, coach and author.Organize it, a division of Productivity Partners, Inc. is an organizational training firm that serves Fortune 500 clients. since. She currently serves as Secretary on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO), and is member of the National Speakers Association (NSA).