If you’re anything like me, the first thing you do when you sit down at the desk each morning is wade through vast amounts of digital dross.

Aside from the interminable spam messages (most of which thankfully get caught by the filter) there are news summaries, press releases, event invitations, RSS feeds and general messages. By the time I’ve finished my email triage it feels like half the day has passed me by.

The problem’s not new, but it’s certainly not getting any better. In fact growing numbers of employers are becoming concerned about the amount of time their staff spend dealing with email, and they don’t know what to do. They might have been able to block Facebook and YouTube, but they can’t exactly take the same approach to email.

Now the very corporations that caused the problem in the first place are actively trying to find a solution. The likes of IBM, Microsoft, Intel and Google are putting their collective heads together in a concerted effort to make information overload a thing of the past.

The companies have set up a not-for-profit group that will embark on research and offer advice to those who feel they are drowning in the digital ocean.

Called, not surprisingly, the Information Overload Research Group the group’s stated mission is to “...build awareness of the world’s greatest challenge to productivity ...”. The group's site contains pointers to white papers on the topic as well as practical tips.

At the moment there are only five tips listed, but the group promises many more will be forthcoming. They include things like turning email notifications off, limiting CCs and replies and designating specific blocks of time to deal with messages.

IORG is planning an initial meeting on July 15 in New York. During the event delegates will review recent research and discuss the latest corporate ideas on how to deal with email and other online information flows.

I, for one, wish them every success. Looking at my inbox, I need all the help I can get.