What is etiquette
Etiquette is behavior that is considered appropriate for a certain situation or context. Here is a social-media example of etiquette: It is considered appropriate behavior, on Facebook, to show off your new car. On LinkedIn, however, it is only appropriate to share work-related or business-related content, e.g. a Promotion. It is not good LinkedIn etiquette to post about your personal life, including your shiny, new, personal car. But to show off a company car would be appropriate, if your company allows such. So what etiquette is appropriate for the office?
Related links:
Service & Excellence: https://wowza.blog/?p=228&preview=true
Workplace Etiquette: http://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/workplace-etiquette
Conservative
The corporate office is a conservative space. This means that your dress and your manner need to be somewhat understated. An understated dress and manner are deemed to be professional. In a typical office, your dress style must never be too sexy. Your dress sense must also not be too flamboyant. Some fields of business may be an exception, e.g. advertising and marketing. The more creative the field, the less ‘uptight’ (conservative) the culture.
Your etiquette role model(s)
Many young role models in SA are in the entertainment industry. Their style is therefore generally flashy and overtly sexy. This is not the style you want to emulate in a corporate office. (If you value your career and want to be taken seriously, that is). There will be many mountains to climb, where your credibility is concerned. It is unwise to place yourself on the backfoot, on account of an unhelpful dress style. You can get flamboyant on the weekend.
For women, a conservative dress sense means you keep sexiness in check, and more on the subtle side. A decent length of skirt. Not too much flesh showing. For men it might mean saving that lime-green suit for the family wedding – and rather wearing the greyish-blue suit for the office meeting.
The best thing to do is to watch the dress sense of the leadership in your company or department, with a view to emulating their general tone of dress.
Social Etiquette at Work
It is very important to be sociable at work (as far as your personality will allow). Attend work functions. You are not forced to go to work functions, but it is to your advantage to attend them as much as possible. This is where you get a chance to get to know your colleagues, and they get to know you. No matter how good you are at your job, you need social capital to get ahead. The way to get social capital is to connect with others at your workplace.
Stay for after-work drinks. Don’t be that guy or girl who always has to work late – but will not stay for after work drinks. People will stop inviting you eventually, and you will slowly get isolated and unhappy.
Participate in committees and initiatives outside of your job. You need this to connect with your colleagues – but it also helps you to enjoy the workplace, and feel a sense of belonging.
Etiquette @ the Socials
As you attend company socials, it is important to remember that they are still an extension of the workplace. It is not a good idea to consistently get too drunk. You will just succeed to brand yourself as irresponsible and out of control. Fields like marketing and advertising may be an exception here. If you work in Finance or IT, which I have worked in – such excesses would be inappropriate.
It will be possible to flirt at these functions, but please do not be a creep / pervert. Do not sexualize the ladies, guys! This just makes people uncomfortable. It also paints you in a negative light a.k.a. the creepy one lol. It is better to get to know the opposite sex as a whole person, and not just focus on their sexuality. In any case.
Even as you socialize and forge friendships, be aware of who you are dealing with. You do not want to cross boundaries with your superiors. You also do not want to make inappropriate jokes that may be offensive to others. Other than that – it is possible to enjoy a social life at the office, over and above your other social life outside.
Office Etiquette
Efficient & Organised
Being efficient means that you complete a task correctly, in the shortest space of time. Being organized will go a long way in helping you to be efficient. It is easier to be efficient if your workspace is neat, and your paperwork is filed and/or organized. It also gives a good impression to anybody watching you.
If you are organized, you cannot be easily thrown off balance. When the demands of work start to pile up (which they will at some point) – having all your ducks in a row (i.e. organized) could be the difference between you sinking or swimming.
Record keeping
When you are new to the job or new to the company – people will tell you things, to impart their knowledge to you. You will need to make notes. You can take notes in a physical notebook or an electronic tablet. You do not want to ask people the same question twice, just because you lost your notes! It gives a bad impression and will cause people to doubt your intelligence and/or focus.
Productive
Office etiquette is centered around productivity. You earn your salary on the premise that you will be productive in your role. This means that you will produce quality work, for most of the time that you are in the office. You need to be able to show results as you work, and not merely look busy without results. Of course, sometimes one might aim to look busy even when they are not productive. Perhaps to manage perceptions. Every once in a while, such gimmicks may be necessary. Nonetheless, the heart of productivity is showing results. As long as you can show results at the end of the day – when the work deadline hits.
Continuous Improvement
The more productive you are, the more you hone your skills and become good at your job. It is therefore a win-win situation for your career and for the company. You may not enjoy all the aspects of your job, but you do still need to perform them. Hopefully, you have chosen a career where the more enjoyable tasks exceed the less enjoyable ones. However, I digress. The point here is that ideally you should be continuously improving. This is so that you are gaining the experience and growing. This is also to keep your company competitive in the marketplace.
Composure
Another important office etiquette is to maintain composure. Composure is synonymous with professionalism. Venting in the office is not a good idea, no matter how emotional you get. You may need to excuse yourself from an altercation in order to compose yourself. It is better to address an issue the following day or the following week, than to speak up in anger/ hurt etc. Otherwise, you may not mince your words.
This does not mean that you suppress your feelings and never speak up. It just means that when you do speak up – you are composed and articulate. When working through an emotionally charged issue with others, you may want to write out your thoughts first before you get your chance to speak. It will sound more composed when saying it verbally afterward.
What about positive emotions, you may ask? From my experience, even positive emotions need to be composed. Of course, excitement and enthusiasm – even if overdone – will always be better received than unbridled anger, for instance. The individual corporate culture will determine how far you go expressing positive emotions.
Confrontation Etiquette
Annoying people, or saboteurs, will sometimes push you towards a confrontation. They may do this because they are just insensitive to your needs or are baiting you. If you fall for the bait, you will then act disrespectfully or speak out of turn. This can count against you for future work assignments. You will be labeled as abrasive and difficult to work with. If the confrontation is with your boss – it could even be grounds for dismissal. A confrontation with your boss is generally taken as insubordination. Avoid losing your cool, as far as possible. Pause, and tackle emotional issues after some deliberation. Or find a polite way to confront the issue / the person.
This applies the same way in emails. Read and re-read your email before you send it – and make sure that your tone is not offensive or aggressive. You could even postpone sending the email until you are certain that it sounds rational. Ask a trusted colleague to help you edit it. Keep it factual and succinct. No unnecessary outbursts on email! You will thank me later.
Speech Etiquette
Another issue pertaining to composure is the volume of speech. In my over two decades of work, I have developed an office voice and a home voice :-). This may change in the future, but currently, more hushed tones are appropriate for the office.
This helps a lot lately, when most office spaces are in open-plan format. If there was too much noise in an open-plan office, it would be difficult to focus on work.
It is better to speak up then to shut down and withdraw. I have found, in my experience, that extroversion is rewarded more than introversion. When you speak up in meetings and engage, you will be thought of as proactive and desirable.
Grievance etiquette
Office etiquette is very procedural. You need to follow procedure for most activities. Take lunch at specified times. Apply for leave and wait for approval before going on vacation. Fill in forms before you can get access to certain offices or computer systems. You get the drift.
You also need to follow proper procedures when aggrieved. It is best to first address the person who is directly involved with the issue, first of all. You can hopefully reach an agreement with them individually without the grievance going any further than the two of you.
If, however, the situation does not improve, you can raise the issue with their manager (or yours). Generally, you would talk verbally first, and follow up with an email on both occasions.
Managing Upwards
It is career suicide to bypass a manager, and raise a complaint with their superior – without raising it with them first. Even if you know that they will do nothing about it, just follow the procedure and begin the communication with the first manager. As the issue persists, then take it up the line.
At all times, do keep the communication professional, as stated previously. With some composure. Follow-up verbal communication with an email to summarize what was verbally discussed and agreed. This is important for record-keeping purposes.
If talking calmly, and recording evidence over email do not help. It may be time to raise a grievance procedure, as per your HR guidelines.
Curiosity
Another important piece of etiquette is to ask questions and to ask for help. Ask your colleagues and superiors for help and information as much as possible when you need it. Even sometimes when you do not need help – it is still good to ask. This helps you to connect with others. It further helps others gauge how much you know/don’t know. You get to know a lot about other people, as well, as you ask questions and interact with them. Even when you do know a lot – if you are quiet and keep to yourself, people around you tend to assume the worst. Others often think that you are so confused, that you will not even risk talking! The quality of your questions is what will help those around you to realize when you do know what is going on.
Ask etiquette
Asking questions will help you to learn quickly. Do not worry too much about asking stupid questions in the beginning. You are qualified and suitable for the job, otherwise, you would not have been hired. Do not let the fear of sounding stupid, keep you from asking questions. This will just keep you in ignorance. You may prefer to target individuals to ask your question(s), instead of using public forums like meetings and emails – in the event that you think your question is too ‘dumb’.
Last Word
Finally, do remember to put your best foot forward. Avoid bad habits like frequently coming late to work or always arriving late for meeting. People are always watching, and there is always competition for good jobs. You do not want to lose out because of petty behavioral problems. Cultivate the habits outlined above, and you will soon be swimming confidently in your work role.
Please let me know if you have observed the same etiquette at your workplace. I do reply to all comments.