September 2, 1997

You have nine new messages
The impact of new technologies on business communication

By Anita M. Harris

With explosive recent growth in the use of new information technologies, communication in the workplace is undergoing profound changes.

The good news is that such tools as E-mail, voicemail, the Internet and videoconferencing open doors outside the organization and allow you to communicate internationally, between hundreds and thousands of facilities, and with people you never even see, so says Paul Kampas, an Acton-based research consultant who teaches a course on the Information Revolution at Cornell University.

The new technologies free executives to travel and attend meetings, yet remain in touch with their offices, according to Parmelee Eastman, director of the Technology Practice at Fuld and Company, a Cambridge business research firm.

"You can share more information faster," says Joseph Weintraub, professor of management at Babson College, and president of Organizational Dimensions, a Wellesley management consulting and training firm. "Five or six people on a project can communicate with everyone on a team which makes them all a part of it -- instead of waiting to bump into someone in the hallway to let them know what is going on," says Weintraub.

But there is also some bad news: the same tools that so greatly enhance communication between people in some situations can cause problems in other instances -- by diminishing personal contact.

E-mail, for instance, offers a less formal way of communicating than the traditional office memo and is less intrusive than the telephone. It allows for rapid transmission of words and pictures to almost anyone, anywhere, regardless of the time of day.

"I like E-mail, because it allows me to communicate with journalists all over the world," says Barbara Blair, assistant director of Public Relations at Babson. But within her own organization, she says, "It is easy to get into an isolated chamber with my computer. I have to make an effort to see people in person and be careful not to use E-mail as a wall."

According to Weintraub, within many organizations, people are in fact using E-mail -- intentionally or unintentionally -- to distance themselves from others who work nearby.

One of Weintraub's clients complained of a co-worker who sent E-mail rather than speak, even though their workstations were just five feet apart. "I asked [my client] why he didn't just turn around and ask, 'Can we talk?'"

A health care marketing communications consultant, who asked not to be identified, says she left her full-time job in part because her colleagues sent E-mail rather than meet, which meant that she often went whole days without talking to anyone in person. ";I like social interaction," she says.

Janice Zazinski, public relations manager for the School of Management at Boston University says that in a previous job, she could easily E-mail with colleagues for a whole year before meeting with them.

While sending E-mail within an office may save time in the short run, it cannot replace the informal communication and sparking of ideas that come with chats by the doorway or water cooler. While such chats can sometimes be a waste of time, "they can be a good waste of time," Zazinsky says.

Another problem, according to Weintraub, is that too often, bad managers use E-mail as a wedge to divide themselves from their employees. There is a trend for more and more managers to use E-mail to do performance evaluations, he says. "They E-mail the employee, 'Read this. If you agree, hit this button'," rather than allow for any personal interchange.

Donene Williams, president of the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers, says that E-mail is sometimes used as a substitute for potentially difficult human interaction -- as when a supervisor criticizes someone by E-mail rather than tell the person they weren't happy with their performance in person.

Exclusive use of the new technologies can also lead to misunderstandings. "When you don't see someone face to face, you cannot pick up the nuances of meaning," Weintraub says. "A big part of the communication is missing if you don't know how someone looks or sounds when they are commenting. It might be that you roll your eyes when you say something, or your tone of voice might indicate that you are joking or enthusiastic, whereas the E-mail you send might not."

Voicemail, too, has its plusses and minuses. "I like leaving voicemail messages because you know no one is translating what you are saying," Weintraub says. But leaving voicemail can also create misunderstandings. "If you call someone at one in the morning, they may wonder why you wouldn't call to talk in person."

These days, however, it is nearly impossible to reach anyone in person. "Almost no one picks up the phone anymore,"says Barry Unger, associate professor of innovation and technology at Metropolitan College at Boston University. When telephoning, as soon as he hears the beginning of a recorded response, Unger says, he hits "0" in hopes of reaching a live operator.

Another rapidly developing technology is videoconferencing, which allows companies to save money on travel expenses by having people in different places see and talk to one another via live video transmission. This is especially useful when you have work groups separated by countries, Weintraub says.

Videoconferencing can help to build relationships, allow you to see people you wouldn't ordinarily see, and make things more personal -- all of which can lead to stronger commitment to the company or project and enhance team efforts. "The downside is if it used as an excuse for not getting together,"Weintraub explains.

As use of these technologies expands, it is important to understand that there are different uses for different technologies, and that different people have different tolerance levels for them. "When we look at who uses or overuses a technology, we see that some personalities want everything live; they like to surround themselves with people,"says Weintraub. "Others feel more comfortable working alone. And different people respond differently to different technologies."

In the view of Lisa Gallatin, Regional Director of District 925 of the Service Employees International Union, which represents clerical workers mainly in small Massachusetts cities and towns, "It is important to make the most of these technologies... which in certain ways offer clear advantages as communications tools."

But, say many, it is equally important to manage them properly, and to make sure that people throughout a hierarchy have a voice in how the technology gets used.

"The technology should be used as a tool,"says Gallatin, "And never to replace human interaction."

(Anita M. Harris is a researcher, writer, and speaker on the social impact of technological change.)

 
Copyright © Anita M. Harris