Electronic communications methods boost productivity and job satisfaction, according to a survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit

Two-thirds of executives now prefer e-mail as a means of business communication over the next most popular options, desktop telephones and mobile phones, which are each preferred by just 16% of survey respondents, according to a global survey of 1,500 workers by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

The survey, conducted in October and November in co-operation with Cisco Systems, asked employees about their voice communications practices and preferences in the workplace, their use of communications tools and perceptions of workplace productivity.

The key findings:

·         Communications tools improve productivity.  A full 81% percent of respondents say automated communications methods make them more or very productive in the workplace.  Moreover, 73% say electronic communications methods somewhat or greatly improve their level of workplace satisfaction, increase the flexibility of their responses (91%) and encourage workers to initiate interactions (78%).  In addition, 45% of survey respondents say electronic communications decrease the likelihood of workplace miscommunication.

·         Communicating faster. Five years ago, 77% of those calling someone at their company could reach them within hours or minutes, compared with 90% today. Only half of those calling someone outside their company could reach them within minutes or hours five years ago, compared with 65% today. And only 7% of respondents say it takes a full workday to reach someone at their company today, compared with 18% five years ago.

·         Phone numbers proliferate as workers ascend the ranks. Most respondents have three different phone numbers (such as office, pager, mobile, PDA or home-office numbers). The higher in an organisation executives rise, the more numbers they acquire: 30% of C-level executives have four or more numbers where they can be reached, compared with 21% for manager-level executives.

·         Instant messaging leaders. Those who prefer instant messaging (IM) over other electronic communications stand out as the most ardent proponents of technology: 53% say they use technology for nearly all of their workplace tasks, compared with the general survey response average of 36%.  Fully 58% of survey takers who chose IM as their preferred method of electronic communication say the amount of time it takes to communicate electronically has decreased over the past two years.

About the survey respondents

A total of 1,500 executives and employees participated in the survey. People responded from all over the world: about 30% of the respondent universe replied from western and eastern Europe, 26% from North America, and 26% from Asia and Australasia.