We have just published a major study on messaging policy management among midsized and large organizations. One of the key findings of the study was that only about one-third of organizations have what they consider to be a detailed and thorough e-mail policy, while most of the rest have only a basic policy that covers general use of e-mail, but does not contain much detail on specifics about e-mail use, etc. We also found that 2% of the organizations surveyed actually did not have an e-mail policy in place.

Should you have a detailed and thorough e-mail policy? Absolutely and emphatically yes. An e-mail policy should include a number of elements, including what constitutes appropriate and inappropriate use of corporate e-mail resources, the types of content that can and cannot be sent through company e-mail, how personal Webmail accounts should and should not be used with the corporate network, how file transfer tools should be used, what instant messaging tools should be used, who owns the content in an e-mail system, the rights of employers to review content on corporate e-mail stores, and a host of other elements. 

A good e-mail policy should also include a statement that e-mail is not necessarily a guaranteed delivery mechanism – for example, responses to an RFP sent via e-mail 5 minutes before a deadline might not necessarily be delivered on time.

Unified messaging and communications will clearly up the ante for policy management, requiring even more stringent policies given the inclusion of real-time conversations, voicemail and fax messages in the message store. Organizations of all sizes should establish clear and detailed policies about e-mail use and include all other forms of electronic communications in the policy, as well. A failure to do so will increase the risk from employee lawsuits, lower morale and friction that could otherwise be avoided through the application of clear policies.

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Michael Osterman is principal analyst of Osterman Research.