I wonder if email has become a replacement for good old-fashioned leadership.
Being a fan of my iPad and smartphone and addicted to email like the rest of society, there is no doubt it has definitely changed the way we work. It appears to have become a core business activity as executives regularly speak of going to "do email" as if it were a critical action. Whenever I hear that I pause and wonder what do they mean. Do they mean "emptying" their inbox? Or filling up someone else's?
Nevertheless, in reality, business life has accepted the task of email and allowed it to replace the essence of management - communicating, assigning work, providing accountability and developing people.
It seems email has ushered in a new management style - so out with MBWA (management by walking around) and in with MBEA (management by emailing around). We used to manage face-to-face. In that environment, we knew our employees much better than we do in this email era.
It may be speedy to pop off a couple of words rather than pick up the phone or go see someone but this change in leadership style is causing some disruptions in the workplace.
No longer is the leader and the her diary in charge of the rhythm of business. Now, the inbox is as important as most leaders keep one eye on their email inbox or the little blinking light on the BlackBerry. When the "you've got mail" indicator illuminates, the temptation is to respond immediately. The speed of the inbox filling up and the desire to be prompt and keep the message count to a minimum has become a vicious game.
I wonder what started that off - the desire to respond in a timely fashion or to have a clean inbox?
Many times when pressing send, leaders forget about the emotion of work and the distraction an email can bring to a motivated worker. While unintentionally hiding behind the keyboard, leaders type words in ways they would never speak over a phone or face-to-face - whether they are one-word answers, bullet points or contentious phrases. Before you press send, think about the impact the email will have on the motivation of your employees.
Email is like any other form of communication and should focus on making the message clear for the recipient. When a leader looks at a computer screen and sees a reflection it is his or her own, often representing the thoughts of the sender. This reflection reiterates the need to see the other person and imagine you are speaking with him or her face-to-face. What would you say if you were face-to-face?
There is no doubt leaders intend to be clear and the message they are communicating is clear in their heads - but somewhere between pressing send and the message opening up in the recipient's inbox it gets stripped of context. I am curious how clear are the majority of emails employees read.
When relied on as a primary communication tool, email can be very dangerous. Open and honest two-way communication is one of the top drivers of employee engagement. Perhaps it is time we walk away from the keyboard and go lead.
Tommy Weir is an authority on fast-growth and emerging market leadership, an advisor and the author of The CEO Shift. He is the founder and managing director of the Emerging Markets Leadership Centre
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Honeymoonish
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
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Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The biog
Name: Ayisha Abdulrahman Gareb
Age: 57
From: Kalba
Occupation: Mukrema, though she washes bodies without charge
Favourite things to do: Visiting patients at the hospital and give them the support they need.
Role model: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood.
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP
Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)
Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)
Read more about the coronavirus
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases
A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.
One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.
In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.
The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.
And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
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Petrarch: Everywhere a Wanderer
Christopher Celenza,
Reaktion Books
