The NZ Herald published this story about a lady got the sack for sending emails that others thought were confrontational and caused ructions in the workplace.
A few points of interest to ponder come out of this story -
- Were the emails the real issue?
- Was her communication style behavior the real issue?
- How do you approach your work colleagues when you have issues?
- How do you communicate in your emails?
I have recently changed the layouts of my email's so that I have specific questions and actions bullet pointed so the receiver knows exactly what I am after. For example if I am asking a co-worker about the progress of a project I will format the email like this -
"Hi Josh,
Can you please update me on where the marketing project is at the moment. I am particularly interested in knowing -
- Who and when will the marquee bookings be confirmed?
- Who is co-ordinating the printing of the brochures?
- When will the brochures be printed?
- When can we distribute the brochures?
I look forward to your prompt reply,
Regards, Jonathon."
The plan is to get the most information out of the email recipient in one go that way you don't have to repeat yourself.
I can't help but think the sacked woman's email style was also indicative of her person-to-person style...
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