As reported on TechCrunch last week.  The management team at Nielsen Media decided to control the abuse of Reply-To-All by simply removing this functionality entirely from the Microsoft Outlook email client.  In a memo sent by Nielsen CIO, Andrew Cawood, he explains that the measure will “eliminate bureaucracy and inefficiency”.

Here is the original, republished by Folio.

A Message from Andrew Cawood

In December, the Nielsen Executive Council (NEC) held an Act Now! event to review suggestions from across the business that would eliminate bureaucracy and inefficiency. Beginning Thursday, January 29, we will implement one of the approved recommendations: removing the “Reply to All” functionality from Microsoft Outlook.

We have noticed that the “Reply to All” functionality results in unnecessary inbox clutter. Beginning Thursday we will eliminate this function, allowing you to reply only to the sender. Responders who want to copy all can do so by selecting the names or using a distribution list.

Eliminating the “Reply to All” function will:

• Require us to copy only those who need to be involved in an e-mail conversation
• Reduce non-essential messages in mailboxes, freeing up our time as well as server space

This is one of the many changes being implemented as a result of the NEC Act Now! initiative. If you have any suggestions on how we can continue to improve the way we work, please send your comments to Nielsen Communications [mailto: REDACTED].

Andrew Cawood
Chief Information Officer

As pointed out on numerous blogs, the move is most likely linked to an email faux pas by Mitchell Habib, Executive Vice President at Nielsen who accidentally sent a derogatory note to all Nielsen employees, a few months ago.

The unintended use of Reply-To-All keeps generating headlines of personal embarrassment and email system meltdowns.  I cannot imagine having to retype all email addresses every time I reply to an email as part of my typical team collaboration.

Removing the Reply-To-All functionality is as silly as Email-free-Friday’s.  Instead, companies should invest in user education of best practices and technology solutions to prevent these mishaps from happening.

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