What do you do if your email and communication are overwhelming your program management tasks?

1 Set priorities and boundaries

One of the first steps to deal with email and communication overload is to set clear priorities and boundaries for yourself and your team. Identify the most important and urgent tasks for each day and week, and block time in your calendar to work on them. Communicate your availability and expectations to your stakeholders, and avoid checking your email or responding to messages during your focused work time. You can also use tools like autoresponders, filters, and labels to manage your incoming email and flag the ones that need your attention.

2 Use a communication matrix

A communication matrix is a tool that helps you plan and document who needs to know what, when, how, and why in your program. It can help you avoid unnecessary or redundant communication, and ensure that everyone is on the same page. A communication matrix can include information such as the communication purpose, frequency, format, channel, audience, owner, and feedback mechanism. You can use a template or create your own, and share it with your team and stakeholders.

3 Choose the right communication channel

Not every communication needs to be an email or a meeting. Sometimes, a phone call, a chat message, or a document comment can be more effective and efficient. Choose the right communication channel based on the nature, urgency, and complexity of the information you need to share or receive. For example, you can use email for formal or detailed communication, chat for quick or informal communication, phone for urgent or sensitive communication, and meetings for collaborative or strategic communication.

4 Follow email etiquette and best practices

Email is still one of the most popular and practical communication tools for program managers, but it can also be a source of disarray and vexation. To evade email overload and miscommunication, it's important to adhere to some email etiquette and best practices. This includes writing clear and concise subject lines that summarize the main point or action of the email, using the CC and BCC fields judiciously and properly, avoiding reply-all unless necessary, utilizing bullet points, headings, and formatting to make your email easy to read and scan, including a clear call to action or next steps at the end of your email with a specified deadline or expected response time, and proofreading your email for spelling, grammar, and tone before sending it.

5 Schedule and run effective meetings

Meetings are an essential communication tool for program managers, yet they can be a waste of time and energy if not properly planned and conducted. To ensure effective meetings, have a clear agenda and objective for each one and only invite the relevant people. Use a meeting platform that supports the format, such as video, audio, screen sharing, chat, etc. Start and end the meeting on time, assign roles and responsibilities to the participants, such as facilitator, note-taker, timekeeper, etc. Summarize the key points and action items at the end of the meeting and follow up with a meeting summary and next steps. Email and communication are vital for program management but can be overwhelming if not managed correctly. By following these tips, you can reduce the clutter and noise in your inbox and calendar to focus more on your program management tasks.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?