My Newest Pet Peeve
Written by Michael on June 7th, 2005For those who have worked with me, you know I’m pretty easy going at work. I almost never, ever get angry at anyone (or at least let it show) and I’ll do anything to to help another co-worker out. Except for today. I stopped by to see a co-worker and explained a few things regarding a project’s status. In the middle of my sentence, she said, “just send it to me in an e-mail.” NO I WILL NOT. E-mail is often a good thing, because it preserves things in writing that people can reference long after the conversation is over but I think there’s still a lot to be said for meeting in person. I walked away thinking she was just a lazy person and it will suck to be her when she goes to the exec status meeting and doesn’t know what’s going on in engineering.
I had thought about sending what I had to say in an e-mail but opted to go in person since it had been a while since the last status update and maybe their were some things that needed to be addressed that I wasn’t aware of.
Maybe it’s just a case of the Mondays…
19
AM
I couldn’t help but relate to the lady you mentioned. Although I totally agree with your take on how people rely unnecessarily on mails,although there is another side to this…
I manage a small team..11 people..and my boss refuses to let me out of development and into core management (which is actually fine by me). 11 people in 2 teamsets and my own work generates for me at an average 3 to 4 projects ( all with the deadline “ASAP” )And I have on occasion had to do this “pls send me an email” thingie.
My reasons: My focus is elsewhere and I would rather not divert it right then.
Mails let me absorb the matter at hand conveniently at my own time and pace.
Status reports, I wouldnt want to rushthrough. My colleagues are a little “Chatty” (for want of a better word) and sometimes I just cant afford the diversion. Maybe it is different in your case but just thought I’d drop my 2 cents in anyways :)
19
PM
Oh, I completely agree with you but I in my haste to vent, I left out some parts to the story. This happened twice in one morning and one of the co-workers was playing solitaire. The other part is that when we have meetings, it’s said over and over again that we “cannot just put it in an e-mail and hide behind it.” Mine wasn’t so much of a status report but a comment about one technical requirement added to my group’s plate.
Thanks for the comment
20
AM
Ahh…solitaire…now that certainly tilts the balance a wee bit. I stand corrected.
Luck in dealing with such specimen. I’ll just zap a plump zit on her nose from my side of the planet. Do let me know when it “pops” up.
*cackle cackle.
20
AM
I think that due to the sheer volume of messages, e-mail has lost it’s effectiveness as a communication tool. My status reports are sent via e-mail but I always follow them up with a meeting (despite my disdain for meetings) to make sure it’s crystal clear where everyone stands. At least once a day I hear “but I don’t have time to read all my e-mail so it’s your fault.” LOL.