About this article

Read time:

4 minutes

Category:

Opinion

Bucket, spade, sun cream, tablet, iPhone…

Schools out, and it’s wind down office holiday season. As I prepare to leave the B2B technology PR world behind and head off for my two-week holiday, on my packing list is my smart phone and iPad, so I can continue to access my emails while I’m away. It’s not because I’m so important that the office will collapse in my absence, it’s actually for more selfish reasons. I have a tidy mind and I like my inbox in the same state. If that means reviewing and answering urgent or appropriate questions for ten to fifteen minutes each day while lying on the beach sipping a cocktail, so be it.

For some the thought of checking emails while on holiday fills them with horror and in some cases resentment. Not so me. I’ve always felt that there is something much more manageable about keeping on top of emails so I don’t return to 1000s that take me three unproductive days to clear.

Interestingly Dave Coplin, chief envisioning officer (whatever one of those is) at Microsoft UK has released a new book entitled Business Reimagined: Why work isn’t working and what you can do about it. In the book Coplin argues that we’ve become trapped by technology rather than freed up by it to work anywhere.

He cites email as an example of the problem. In an interview with the BBC, Coplin argues we use email for everything, rather than pick up the phone, say, or using other collaborative applications. This, he says, stifles both productivity and creativity… We’ve become trapped by the need to check our email at weekends, evenings, at the school play, at the supermarket, wherever we are.

While I agree that email has a time and a place, I don’t agree that I’m trapped by it. What do you think? Am I constrained or liberated by it? My biggest worry is keeping the sand out of my USB drive ;).

Claire

About this article

Read time:

4 minutes

Category:

Opinion

Sustainability – how our team is crushing plastic and saving the planet

B2B thought leadership PR – everything you need to know

Browse more blog posts

Posted on
byClaire James
In B2B PR, thought leadership is one of those concepts that gets spoken about all the time. But do you actually know what thought leadership is? And do you have the right tools and skills in place to make it work effectively for you? In this post we aim to clarify what B2B thought leadership can do and help you gain greater benefit from it.
Posted on
byRob Skinner
In B2B PR, thought leadership is one of those concepts that gets spoken about all the time. But do you actually know what thought leadership is? And do you have the right tools and skills in place to make it work effectively for you? In this post we aim to clarify what B2B thought leadership can do and help you gain greater benefit from it.
Posted on
bySkout team
If you haven’t heard by now, Skout is under new ownership! No, we haven’t been bought out – in fact it’s quite the opposite. As of last week, Skout officially became an employee-owned business. This was achieved by the founding shareholders, Rob and Claire, signing 100% ownership over to a newly established Employee Ownership Trust acting on behalf of the...
Posted on
byClaire Lamb
A few weeks ago, the entire Skout team visited the beautiful and historic city of Palma, Majorca for our annual kick off event. It’s been a long time in the planning (pre-pandemic to be precise) and the first time we’ve been abroad for a kick off to the new financial year. We’ve always found kick off meetings a great way...
Posted on
byHonor Williamson
TikTok is increasingly being used as a platform for B2B companies to implement their marketing strategy, aiding in brand exposure, lead generation and profile building. But, where does paid TikTok advertising come into play? Is it an effective tool to engage with B2B audiences, or is the ROI just not worth it?  If you’re the least bit social media savvy,...
Posted on
byClaire James
In May I was fortunate to be able to attend the recent UK Construction Week at Excel in London and see the strides forward an industry, that has become recognised as one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions, is making in tackling the thorny issue of achieving Net Zero. In his keynote on day one, Lord Callanan, Under Secretary...
Posted on
byJames Weaver
In the world of B2B marketing, it is essential that you have a solid B2B marketing strategy in place to effectively connect with your target audience.
Posted on
byHonor Williamson
Why was PR your chosen career?  PR is all about storytelling, with so much opportunity for creativity and content creation. Since I’ve always loved writing and always had a big imagination, I thought that PR would be the ideal career to channel my creativity. I’m all about communication, and PR really allows you to foster meaningful relationships. I’m already learning...
Posted on
byJack Doyle
As a smaller business, it can be hard to know where to start when it comes to sustainability. Sure, we all do our best to use the right recycling bin at home, and bring our re-usable coffee cups to work. But with serious pressures now mounting from the government – which pledged to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 –...
Posted on
byLee Simpson
Another week, another round of mass layoffs in the tech sector. With Amazon (AWS) and Meta cutting thousands of jobs, and further layoffs at Salesforce and of course Twitter, it has felt a bit like the tech world has been imploding of late. This is of course concerning for us working in B2B tech PR, but more importantly for the...

Send us a message

Download The B2B business relationship report

The B2B relationship renaissance – did digital kill it? The importance of relationships throughout the customer buying journey. Please complete the form below and receive a download link via email.