E-mail-free Fridays catch on in U.S.

ADDISON, Texas, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Many businesses in the United States are adopting e-mail-free Fridays to cut back on information overload and encourage direct communication.

Nathan Zeldes wrote on Intel’s IT@Intel Blog that the Santa Clara, Calif., company has instituted a "Zero Email Friday" initiative to encourage employees to interact face-to-face, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Brian Jensen, managing director of global communications at Addison, Texas, real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, said Fridays with no e-mail at the company have increased productivity and led to more interaction among the more than 100 employees working on the same floor.

"What that means for us is that any communication on that floor amongst your peers has to be done face-to-face or at least by telephone," he told the Morning News.

The rules do not ban e-mail to clients or people outside the office and allow for electronic documents to be sent if necessary.

"Some people are so chained to e-mail that it just really messes with their world if you attempt to throttle their e-mail," Jensen said. "Other people are so put off by their e-mail world that they light up when you tell them about e-mail-free Friday."