Of all the technological advancements made in the past fifteen years, electronic mail, or e-mail, has made one of the greatest impacts on the workplace. Viewed by many to be the Internet�s �killer app,� e-mail�s fast, low-cost, and easily accessible platform has reinvented communication in offices globally. While some employees see e-mail as a valuable and necessary business communication tool, others welcome it as a means to chat with pals and forward jokes to co-workers. Recognizing the importance of e-mail in the workplace, Vault.com decided to get the �inside� story about the behavior, practices and attitudes surrounding this subject. We are pleased to present the first comprehensive survey of e-mail behavior in the workplace. In May 2000, Vault.com surveyed over 1,000 employees to determine how e-mail affects productivity, communication, and quality of life at work. The following results, and the comments provided by respondents, shed light on this largely unexamined phenomenon.

Mailing
 For the majority of your business correspondence, has e-mail replaced snail mail?
 
 Faxing
 For the majority of your business correspondence, has e-mail replaced faxing?
 
 Phone Calls
 For the majority of your business correspondence, has e-mail replaced phone calls?
 
 Monitoring
 Are you worried about your employer monitoring your e-mails?
 
 Personal Account
 Do you have a separate account for personal e-mails? (e.g. Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.)
 
 Improper E-mails
 In the event that you receive a sexually explicit or otherwise improper e-mail, would you:
 
 Deletion
 Do you regularly delete your e-mails?
 
 Forwards
 Which type of viral marketing are you most likely to pass on?
 
 Impressive Lists
 Have you ever received an e-mail in which the sender was trying to impress you with a lengthy or prestigious distribution list?
 
Address Appropriation
 Have you ever contacted a person off of someone else�s e-mail list?
 
 E-mail Acquaintances
 Are there people with whom you communicate strictly via e-mail?
 
 Bcc
 Do you use the Bcc feature?
 
 Tone
 Do you think the tone of your e-mails is sometimes misunderstood? (e.g. misperceived as angry, abrupt, overly casual, etc.)
 
 Employer/Employee Communication
 Does e-mail increase/improve communication with your boss?
 
 Raise
 To ask for a raise, would you most likely communicate via:
 
 Resignation
 When quitting, would you most likely submit your resignation via:
 
 Offer Praise
 To thank someone in office for doing a good job, you would most likely communicate via:
 
 Report Wrongdoing
 To report office misconduct, you would most likely communicate via:
 
 Have a Nice Day
 Do you like the smiley face?
 


Source: Vault.com E-mail Behavior in the Workplace Survey of 1,004 Employees, May 2000