The impact of electronic mail on managerial and organizational communications

Abstract

The primary objectives of this study were to determine how an electronic mail system was being used by manager and professionals in a business setting and to describe its cognitive, affective and behavioral impacts. The organizational impacts reported by the respondents were compared with research-based evidence reported by experts in an earlier study by Kerr and Hiltz. The results showed that electronic mail was used extensively to displace phone calls and memos particularly for “organizing” activities, such as scheduling events, asking questions, and providing feedback. The experiences of the users showed that electronic mail reduced lag times in distributing information, created more flexible working hours, and provided lateral linkages throughout the organization. More pervasive social impacts of electronic mail, such as changes in social structure, expansion in group size, and increase in span of control, were not experienced to a marked degree.

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