Google has just announced plans to allow users to search not only the web but all of their Google docs and gmail accounts on one screen. This impressive array of information–and the corresponding potential for potentially embarrassing discoveries–brings up an issue that few organizations care to confront; namely, what are the limits of communication?
The age of information has been defined primarily by our wish to make everything as accessible as possible, whether it’s an internal company memo or a government directive. In general, this is a positive action; it allows people from around the world to share ideas on pressing issues in real-time, which correspondingly leads to faster and more sophisticated problem-solving. There are, however, certain processes that require more delicacy. Google’s ability to search through correspondence sent over gmail, for example, is wonderful as long as that correspondence is related to the work at hand, but could be potentially devastating if a personal email or an email written in a spirit of satire was intercepted by the wrong parties. Not all business associates are friends, and not all friends make good business associates.
It’s important to recognize that the way we communicate with each other is often influenced by the type of relationship we have with a particular individual. It is unfair to expect that we will have the exact same relationship with every single person we know. We need the ability to share a sense of humor with a friend, just as we need the ability to discuss a thorny technical issue with a colleague without having to make the conversation funny.
Opening up the doors of communication without recognizing that people’s feelings or sensitivities can be offended is a sure way to generate a human resources nightmare. While work should be a place dedicated to professional pursuits, it’s worth noting that people are not machines. Businesses that choose to make every single piece of information accessible to all parties should, at the very least, prepare themselves for the potential of a backlash. While information should be made as accessible as possible, companies should recognize that there are limits to communication. We all need a space which is “off-limits” to others.
