Minding our email and work space manners

Welcome to the quarterly ezine from Business Performance Perspectives Ltd.

The business etiquette topics that I am focusing on in this ezine are email etiquette and workplace etiquette. I hope that you find it of interest.

Workplace Etiquette:

Increasingly our workspaces are set out in an open plan format. Open plan working is positive as it increases communication within offices and allows teams to be seated together. However, there are some downsides to open plan working such as increased noise levels and a lack of privacy.

In our business etiquette survey conducted in October 2007, 75% of respondents had been embarrassed by a colleague’s behaviour. Many of the examples that were cited by respondents related to bad behaviour in the office.

Some of the examples of bad behaviour included; using bad language, getting angry and shouting while on the phone, criticising colleagues in front of others, telling sexist or racist jokes and asking questions that are too personal.

I believe that we all need to ensure that we treat everyone with respect and consideration in the office. If we treat people in a manner that we would like to be treated, it makes our working life easier.

Open Plan Working Top Tips:

• Treat another colleague's working space with the respect you would expect for your own.
• Always ask permission before you use another person's computer.
• Pungent odours are one of the aspects of working in an open plan office that are complained about most frequently. Make sure that you practice good hygiene but don't make the mistake of going overboard with aftershave or perfume. Likewise with food – if there is an established policy of being able to eat at your desk, be careful that you choose relatively neutral smelling foods i.e. no curries, onions or garlic.
• Many people tend to unconsciously talk louder when they are on the phone. Answer the telephone in a normal speaking voice and if you need to discuss confidential matters, use a meeting room rather than your desk to have the conversation.
• Speakerphones should never be used in an open plan environment.
• Walk to people's desks to speak to them, rather than shouting over other people’s desks.
• If you need to give constructive feedback to a colleague, always choose somewhere private to have the conversation rather than in front of other colleagues.
• If you walk up to a colleague and find that he/she is on the phone, don’t hover there waiting for them to hang up. Leave and try again later.
• One of the biggest complaints that I hear from clients is about colleagues who make inappropriate or offensive sounds. Burping, slurping coffee or yawning loudly are all sounds that are amplified in the office.
• Treat anything you overhear in the office confidentially.

Email Etiquette:

Email communication is a method of communication that most of us use every day in work. Recent studies show that many of us spend up to three hours a day managing email. As email is a relatively new method of communication, the etiquette governing email is constantly evolving. The basic rules of consideration and respect still apply to email, even in this relatively informal communication method.

Email Top Tips:

• We all need to be aware that email is never private. The email that you send to a colleague or a client can easily be intercepted or forwarded on to others without your consent.
• It is wise never to send sensitive business information such as salary information, sales or profit figures and contracts by email.
• Always use the subject line in an email. If the recipient is opening up many emails during the working day, a subject line immediately helps them to answer your email promptly.
• When managing your own email, try to respond to all emails within the working day. If you are out of the office for an extended period of time use the “out of office” function to manage client and colleagues expectations.
• We should avoid writing in all capital letters in email communication. If you need to emphasise a point it is appropriate to underline the sentence or put it in italics.
• It is very important to switch on your spell check for emails and to review the emails before sending them.
• Email should not be used to replace face to face communication.
• If you need to manage a delicate issue such as constructive feedback or any people-management issues it is always better to handle the situation in person.
• Use the “reply all” function with caution. Most of the time only the sender needs a response to the email.

Email Content:

• Even though email is more informal than a written letter, we should still use an appropriate salutation.
• It is appropriate to begin all emails to clients or senior management with a formal greeting such as “Dear Pamela”.
• With close colleagues who you email back and forth with frequently, it is thoughtful to use a greeting for the first email of the day.
• In subsequent emails, use common sense. If you are sending ideas back and forth every few minutes, it is acceptable to drop all salutations.
• It is best to keep your emails concise and professional. In business we should avoid using abbreviations.
• For signing off on an email the same guidelines apply. For clients and senior colleagues we should use a formal sign off such as “Warm regards”, “Kind regards” or “Yours sincerely”. For colleagues that you know well a simple “Regards” is appropriate.
• If you are sending an email to a large group, it is appropriate to use “Dear All” or “Greetings, everyone” while the sign off should be the same as for an individual email.
  

Recovering from a mistake:

• Many of us have experienced the mistake of sending an email to a person in error. If this has happened you should immediately go to see the person (if possible) or call the person to apologise and ask them to delete the message.

The Polished Professional Course:

The next Polished Professional course will take place on the 29th May 2008. The full day programme is designed for business professionals who want to ensure that their work style and business etiquette reflect the quality of their professional work.

The programme is ideal for professionals who are going for a new role, setting up a new business or entering a new work arena. For further information on the programme, please email me on info@pamelafay.ie.

Feedback

I would be delighted to receive your feedback on any aspect of this e-zine. Please email Business Performance Perspectives on info@pamelafay.ie.