Email management solutions for burnt out teams

AI May Not Steal Your Job—But It Might Save Your Sanity Microsoft’s 2024 Work Trend Report found 64% of developers using AI assistants like GitHub Copilot reported lower stress levels. Even better? GitHub’s internal data showed AI tools cut after-hours work by 11 hours/month. The narrative that AI fuels burnout is outdated—if you wield it right. Real Teams, Real Wins: -- Atlassian’s "Focus Mode" uses AI to auto-block Slack/email notifications during deep work blocks. Engineers regained 9 hours/week. -- Shopify’s AI scrum master analyzes sprint velocity to recommend meeting cuts. Teams slashed standups by 40%. -- Google’s Project Ellmann answers "Why was this code written?" via commit history, cutting onboarding time by half. Actionable Steps (No Code Required): 1. Automate the Mundane Use tools like reclaim.ai to auto-schedule focus time, buffer meetings, and block burnout triggers (e.g., 8 AM meetings after late-night deploys). 2. Let AI Say "No" For You Train ChatGPT to draft polite pushbacks on low-priority requests. Example prompt: "Write a response deferring this task without damaging the relationship. Tone: collaborative but firm." 3. Run a "Stress Audit" Plug your calendar/email into Microsoft Viva Insights. If >25% of your time is spent in reactive mode (putting out fires), AI isn’t the problem—your workflow is. #AI #Productivity #WorkplaceWellbeing #Tech #FutureOfWork

Still using email to run your team? It might be costing you. Endless threads. Buried updates. Decisions lost in someone’s inbox. A mountain of emails can become messy. And email wasn’t built for how modern teams work. So, at C-Serv we made a shift: No more internal emails. The results? ✅ Communication got clearer ✅ Decisions happened faster ✅ Information stopped falling through the cracks Here are the 7 boundaries that made our no-email workplace way more productive (that you can try too): 1. Email Is for Clients Only → Always use chat for internal conversations. → If it’s not external, don’t send it to the inbox. 2. Everything Lives in a Shared Drive → Create one central hub with a clear folder structures. → Make sure everyone can find what they need. 3. No Personal Drives Allowed → Shift files into shared team folders for visibility. → Use templates to keep things consistent. 4. Voice Notes Instead of Meetings → Send 2-minute audio updates instead of having a call. → Use screen recordings to explain things visually. 5. Keep Updates In Shared Channels → Create channels for key projects and topics. → Pin important updates so nothing gets missed. 6. Document Decisions Immediately → Take notes during meetings in shared docs.. → Link those docs in the relevant folder. 7. Leaders Model The Rule → Set the tone by using shared spaces yourself. → Redirect internal emails instead of replying to them. This isn’t about banning email. It’s about building a system where work is: 📂 Organized 💬 Visible ⚡ Fast What’s one shift you’ve made that had a big impact on how your team communicates? ♻️ If this resonates, repost for your network. 📌 Follow Amy Gibson for more leadership insights.

I managed to delegate 95% of my email inbox when running an 1,800 client accounting firm. Here are 11 tips to reinvent your team's approach to email: 1. Send less email You don't get responses to emails you never send. Email is for exception handling, not ongoing repetitive work. 2. Eliminate inbox propriety Email isn't your private space, it's the receiving bay of your business. Radical email transparency solves a host of email-related pains. Find an alternative home for internal sensitive messages. Btw if you want tips like this in your inbox each week, join 9,112 other accounting firm owners on the list here https://lnkd.in/gKY9X4M9 3. Delegate Email's no more immune to delegation than any other work. The fact 10% of messages require your touch isn't a reason to DIY 100% of it. 4. Batch the FYIs For everything that doesn't require your direct attention, have your team send you a once-daily FYI digest of everything you ought to know to keep you in the loop. 5. Delegate monitoring Don't leave email up just in case something spicy arrives. The fact a client may have an emergency they want you to bail them out of isn't a reason to let yourself to be perpetually distracted. Instead, make it somebody's job to check your inbox a few times per day for anything spicy. 6. Don't start the day with email That way your day gets away from you at 11am instead of 8am. 7. Eliminate inbox propriety Let's talk about this one a second time because it's so important: Imagine an employee saying "I'll keep an eye on my inbox while I'm away" despite employing 20 other people to do the same job. They'll follow your lead, so lead by example. Let other people help. 8. Don't work out of the inbox Getting to to inbox 0 is like running in quicksand. They keep coming in as fast as you can get them out. Instead, have an assistant move messages to a "today" folder once per day, and work out of that one. 9. Don't send immediate responses Nobody gets more than 1 email per 24 hours. This change alone will reduce email volume by 50%. 10. Designate a fast lane Occasionally a client will be in the thick of things and need quick access to you for a few days. Create a temporary fast lane, let the team know to ping you if anything from the client comes through. Make this level of availability the exception, not the rule. 11. Don't let people jump the line When you respond to that text or take that call, don't expect that person to ever get back in the email queue. Clients are like mice in a maze, they'll find the fastest way to get to your cheese until you stick to your comms strategy. Email sucks. It's ok to get help. It isn't an admission of defeat It's what'll let you focus on what matters, and better support your team.

You’re not lazy. You’re just buried in 275 pings a day. Try these steps to reclaim your focus: At work, we’re drowning in messages. And it’s slowly killing our focus and momentum. We’re hit with 275 pings a day. (That’s one every 2 minutes!) Each feels urgent. But the real issue? No system to manage such volume. When everything feels equal, nothing gets done. Here’s how to fix it: 1️⃣ Block deep work time ↳ 60–90 mins, no messages. ↳ Treat it like your most important meeting. 2️⃣ Turn off the noise ↳ Mute all non-essentials. ↳ Urgent? They’ll call or walk over. 3️⃣ Make your system visible ↳ Share your reply schedule. ↳ Add it to your email signature or DM status. 4️⃣ Batch your messages ↳ Check email twice a day or once every hour. ↳ What matter is you: Open, reply, close, then move on. 5️⃣ Use the 4Ds ↳ Delete, Delegate, Defer, or Do. ↳ Decide quickly... don’t dwell. 6️⃣ Follow the 2-Minute Rule ↳ Takes under 2 mins? Do it. ↳ If not, drop it into your system. 7️⃣ Set team norms ↳ Define what’s async. ↳ Align on response time expectations. Every ping is input. Your system makes it useful. What’s one habit that helps you stay focused? Drop it below. ____________ ♻️ Repost to help others reclaim their focus and time. 📌 Follow Jorge Luis Pando for actionable insights. 📘 This post comes from my weekly newsletter. Read the full edition + get my free eBook → https://lnkd.in/gQm5bSPJ

As an RVP at a rapidly scaling SaaS company 3 years ago, I faced 3 crushing problems: 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗕𝗟𝗘𝗠 𝟭: 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 • 100's of "urgent" emails demanding immediate attention • Constant Slack notifications disrupting deep work • Phone calls interrupting any moment of focus 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗕𝗟𝗘𝗠 𝟮: 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗼𝘀 • Back-to-back meetings from morning until evening • No buffer time to process information or prepare • Strategic work pushed to nights and weekends 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗕𝗟𝗘𝗠 𝟯: 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 • Perpetual fire-fighting instead of proactive management • Team relying on my input for every decision • Unable to focus on high-leverage activities The cost? Burning out and on the verge of hitting the "eject" button. Instead, I spent the next year creating targeted "mini-systems" to address each problem: 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Developed filtering protocols, planned processing times, and automation workflows that cut email time by 70% 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: Created a meeting matrix template that eliminated 25% of recurring meetings 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽: Built delegation frameworks that reduced escalations and presented growth opportunities for the team. The results were dramatic: • 10+ hours reclaimed weekly • More time for strategic projects • Less stressed and more time with family I started documenting these mini-systems in my weekly newsletter, The Systematic Sales Leader. Here's a recent issue if you care to check it out: 6 Steps to Inbox Zero For Sales Leaders (Even with 100+ Daily Emails) -> https://lnkd.in/e_a9SP4W