In an era dominated by short attention spans and the constant rebranding of every platform you can think of, humanity has yet to turn its attention to the most stubborn survivor of the modern age: the email. It’s safe to say that with the fast-paced world we live in, email has yet to change its ways, whether that be for better or for worse. As we welcome new generations of expanded varieties and fresh tastes, is the email safe? Will the email die out, or just be reconstructed against its will?
Does anyone even read their email anymore? Not really, unless your job requires spending hours combing through email after email as if your life depends on it. But the average person will barely look at their inbox, finding it hilarious when they see they have 3,482 unread emails just piling up in their inbox. A place infested with spam is not a very friendly one.
So, if people don’t use email, what do they use? In the workplace, email is a vital resource, allowing for quick communication over long distances, but is it quick enough? Microsoft Teams, a platform designed to streamline communication for businesses and organizations, had 320 million users worldwide as of 2024, with eight million companies being in the United States. In a new age of technology, many will choose the swiftest option, even if it only makes life three seconds more efficient.
Microsoft Teams also provides more collaboration, incorporating video calls, group chats and file sharing that create a more collaborative workspace. Email, though tough and reliable, doesn’t exactly have as much flair as something of that stature.
It’s not the email’s fault that it’s not being used; it can just blame COVID-19.
Post-pandemic, companies began to accommodate the hybrid work style, allowing employees to work in the office and from home. Email doesn’t have the means to hold a company up on its shoulders when its employees are running rampant across the globe — companies need something a little quicker. Switching to a multifaceted platform makes the email look mundane in comparison.
With this in mind, as society grows, ideas grow with it, especially as Generation Z (Gen Z) continues to fill the workplace. They have many ideas on how to change things to their liking, email being one of their next victims. By questioning the rigidity and formality of email, they are likely to prompt a switch to match their fast-paced lifestyles. Many even now rely on social media for forms of communication, reducing their dependence on email.
Gen Z, for the most part, did not grow up in a time when email was one of the only resources for communication. Now that they have the resources, they will usually opt for something along the lines of Microsoft Teams, Slack or even Instagram DMs for more efficient communication, sacrificing the use of the email in the process.
The truth is, email isn’t going anywhere, but let’s not mistake survival for thriving. Email will always be there, but more as a backup than a first choice. At some point in everyone’s life, they will use email, but at the rapid rate at which things change, it wouldn’t be a surprise if its lifespan were cut short. Email is not dead, it’s just that no one has the heart to tell it to retire.
