Many workers face e-mail overload in their company inboxes. How do you go about sorting through the endless messages?

The number of business e-mails will most likely reach more than 6 billion gigabytes this year, which is double the amount of e-mails sent in 2005, according to the research firm IDC.

Bobbie Gossage, associate editor of Inc. Magazine, suggests trying an e-mail add-on program to help organize your inbox. Download e-mail plug-ins from the Web; they all work with Outlook 2003 or 2007. Employees will receive assistance such as sorting through e-mails, arranging contacts or creating e-mail templates.

Xobni, which started in public beta this past May, helps workers by organizing their contacts. The plug-in arranges your e-mails from different associates, according to Gossage. When you search for a person's name, a chart tracks the number of sent and received e-mails, recent messages and files relating to the specific contact. Put a profile picture with each sender to remember a face. Xobni provides a faster search function than Outlook and is available for free at www.xobni.com.

ClearContext assists with e-mail organization through color-coding. Tasks, appointments and e-mails are color-coded according to the subject and how often you communicate with the contact, according to Gossage. Do you sometimes forget to answer e-mails in a timely manner? This plug-in, which is still in private beta and available to the public for about $90, reminds you to answer messages from important senders. For more information, visit www.clearcontext.com.

Search through e-mail at a fast pace with Lookeen. This search function calculates the amount of time to locate an e-mail. Launched last June, this new program costs about $40 to download at www.lookeen.com.

Yousendit.com, which has been around since 2004, can eliminate large file attachments that can cause your inbox to crash. Send your contact a link in order to download the file, according to Gossage. Try this Outlook plug-in for a two-week free trial at www.yousendit.com.

Sperry Software can save you from sending a private message to the whole company. When you click the reply-to-all button, an alert box pops up asking if you really want to reply to all senders before hitting the send button, according to Gossage. Or the function called "attachment forget me not" reminds you that an attachment has not been made. For more information on downloads and prices, visit www.sperrysoftware.com.

Do you tend to send the same e-mail to multiple contacts? E-mail Templates can help save time. Design personalized messages that are accessible from a pull-down menu in Outlook. The program creates a template that can be used many times. Gossage says the download is available for free, but the better version with more features costs approximately $100 at www.emailtemplates.com.

"Managing the amount of incoming e-mails is a growing problem," says Gossage. "This is probably why new companies have popped up to help manage e-mail accounts."

For information on the e-mail add-ons, visit www.inc.com.

INTERPERSONAL IMPORTANCE

Social interaction skills play off in the workplace. Fifty percent of chief financial officers, according to a survey by Accountemps — a staff service — that questioned 150 CFOs, say interpersonal skills are the most essential communication tool for financial workers.

Presentation/public speaking ability came in second with 17 percent, followed by negotiation skills and writing ability.

"Strong interpersonal skills are a key factor for any profession," says Max Messmer, CEO and chairman of Robert Half International. "Businesses seek accountants who have the requisite technical skills but who also can build rapport with colleagues, resolve conflicts and develop consensus among team members."

For more information, visit www.accountemps.com.

To find out more about Amy Winter and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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