roakleyca;48970 said:
...but other people in my business unit may need access to the information in those emails. And what if I need to review the email later on for potential action items to be done some time in the future?
Maybe I'm missing something in this line of questioning, but here's my two cents...
My "sent" folder retains everything I've sent for some period of time (3 months, I think). Usually, if I need to hunt down something I sent to someone, it is within that 3 month window.
If I know ahead of time that a particular email has the potential to be important more than 3 months from now (legal matters, etc), I either cc: myself or use the "Send and File" capability of my email client - this way I can be sure that it gets archived.
If there are others in my business unit who may need the info in the mail I'm sending, I either bcc: them, or forward it separately from my "sent" folder.
I don't know that I've ever had to review an email that I sent for action items -- any action items on my part should have been self-evident at the time I sent the email. Also, I always put a "waiting for" item for any email which I expect a response to. My weekly review may prompt follow-up actions, and if I need to review the email itself, then it is usually available in my "sent" folder.
The short of it is that I use email primarily for communication, secondarily for reference, never for tracking to-do's.