Anonymous wrote:this even though our HR gives regular updates about not doing this.

Ironically the people who do this most often are the men who work in technology, and who therefore should know how to delay delivery of an email so it arrives during regular hours instead of at midnight.

Fwiw these are never urgent emails, and very often any minimal urgency is caused by their delay.

How would you handle?

I don’t always respond right away, but if I see an email from work pop up, I’m going to end up thinking about it.

Anonymous wrote:Delayed response doesn’t work in our office - emails will only send while we’re logged in even if timed for another time.

My colleagues and I work in different time zones. My DH and his colleagues work around the world. For both of us, the annoyance is setting up / inviting us to a 5 or 6 am meeting when the email inviting us is sent at 2 am or something like that. But that’s not about the email - it’s about poor planning.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP has a really weird view of company policy.

I'm also chucking at her insistence that it's rude to ping someone with the "Do you have a minute for a question?" without identifying the question. She clearly is not a lawyer and doesn't work with legal. That is usually code for "I'd really rather not put this all in writing -- just give me a call." Often times that is for your benefit (sometimes it's because you've screwed something up, and the person is being kind not putting it in writing). If you get on the call and don't know the answer, find to say "Huh, good question. Let me think about that and get back to you." It's really not a big deal, and weird that you are making it a big deal.

If you have individual employees/subordinates that are pests about it, then you need to deal with them. I had a subordinate that was extremely needy and wanted to check in with me about everything -- it was like a year of coaching about when he should contact me, saving up questions for once a day, not expecting immediate replies, etc. But that's a management problem, not a policy problem.

I'm actually chuckling of how you think you're technologically modern and know better. I worked at two SaaS before my current role, one on the senior executive team. Fast paced companies typically follow this policy about bothering someone with an asynchronous 'hi, can I ask you something?', which apparently you've never heard of....https://nohello.net/en/ I suggest you read it and take note.

Yes, of course there is the occasional reason to not want to put something in writing, but a lawyer (who tend to be expert communicators) will know how to indicate that or specifically privilege the communication (other comm can still be privileged, but lawyers like to mark certain ones so they're easy to designate if there's a hold or turnover of docs). In fact, if you communicate with lawyers as you claim, you should know your communications to them are probably safer than those to other people if you're concerned about legal risk. But IME 99% of the time it is not anything that can't be put in writing (especially to a lawyer). It's often (foreign born, if I'm going to be honest) lower level tech people and unschooled junior people who often don't understand these workplace 'rules'... and apparently YOU. So here's a tip. Don't bother really busy and certainly not senior level people with 'Hi, do you have a minute?' Its unprofessional and disruptive. Just send them the question and if its too long to discuss quickly, schedule a meeting (but for god's sakes, send them a note about why you're scheduling the meeting and/or include some details in the invite so the meeting is productive). Seriously, you think you're being normal and friendly, but you are wasting people's time, and it is noticed by those above you.

And as far as the email thing, no, don't send dumb unclear emails over the weekend or late at night, unless you give some sort of timing clarification, or better yet, use email delay - its really not that hard, and as some people on here apparently didn't seem to realize, it can be deleted or revised. As I said earlier, the old or un tech savvy folks (which apparently much of dcum is- trust me, the answers would be very different on a SV board) will get a pass on this, but the tech folks do not.

You can argue with me until the cows come home about how wrong I am, but I am senior level at a major company, so I'm pretty sure I know better than some low level staff which clearly you are (although of course your response will be that you're a CEO . I know I sound snotty here, but really. It's time you hear it, especially if you're ever promoted and start having to communicate with more senior people. These semi unspoken communication rules are an important skill.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP has a really weird view of company policy.

I'm also chucking at her insistence that it's rude to ping someone with the "Do you have a minute for a question?" without identifying the question. She clearly is not a lawyer and doesn't work with legal. That is usually code for "I'd really rather not put this all in writing -- just give me a call." Often times that is for your benefit (sometimes it's because you've screwed something up, and the person is being kind not putting it in writing). If you get on the call and don't know the answer, find to say "Huh, good question. Let me think about that and get back to you." It's really not a big deal, and weird that you are making it a big deal.

If you have individual employees/subordinates that are pests about it, then you need to deal with them. I had a subordinate that was extremely needy and wanted to check in with me about everything -- it was like a year of coaching about when he should contact me, saving up questions for once a day, not expecting immediate replies, etc. But that's a management problem, not a policy problem.

I'm actually chuckling of how you think you're technologically modern and know better. I worked at two SaaS before my current role, one on the senior executive team. Fast paced companies typically follow this policy about bothering someone with an asynchronous 'hi, can I ask you something?', which apparently you've never heard of....https://nohello.net/en/ I suggest you read it and take note.

Yes, of course there is the occasional reason to not want to put something in writing, but a lawyer (who tend to be expert communicators) will know how to indicate that or specifically privilege the communication (other comm can still be privileged, but lawyers like to mark certain ones so they're easy to designate if there's a hold or turnover of docs). In fact, if you communicate with lawyers as you claim, you should know your communications to them are probably safer than those to other people if you're concerned about legal risk. But IME 99% of the time it is not anything that can't be put in writing (especially to a lawyer). It's often (foreign born, if I'm going to be honest) lower level tech people and unschooled junior people who often don't understand these workplace 'rules'... and apparently YOU. So here's a tip. Don't bother really busy and certainly not senior level people with 'Hi, do you have a minute?' Its unprofessional and disruptive. Just send them the question and if its too long to discuss quickly, schedule a meeting (but for god's sakes, send them a note about why you're scheduling the meeting and/or include some details in the invite so the meeting is productive). Seriously, you think you're being normal and friendly, but you are wasting people's time, and it is noticed by those above you.

And as far as the email thing, no, don't send dumb unclear emails over the weekend or late at night, unless you give some sort of timing clarification, or better yet, use email delay - its really not that hard, and as some people on here apparently didn't seem to realize, it can be deleted or revised. As I said earlier, the old or un tech savvy folks (which apparently much of dcum is- trust me, the answers would be very different on a SV board) will get a pass on this, but the tech folks do not.

You can argue with me until the cows come home about how wrong I am, but I am senior level at a major company, so I'm pretty sure I know better than some low level staff which clearly you are (although of course your response will be that you're a CEO . I know I sound snotty here, but really. It's time you hear it, especially if you're ever promoted and start having to communicate with more senior people. These semi unspoken communication rules are an important skill.

Anonymous wrote:OP has a really weird view of company policy.

I'm also chucking at her insistence that it's rude to ping someone with the "Do you have a minute for a question?" without identifying the question. She clearly is not a lawyer and doesn't work with legal. That is usually code for "I'd really rather not put this all in writing -- just give me a call." Often times that is for your benefit (sometimes it's because you've screwed something up, and the person is being kind not putting it in writing). If you get on the call and don't know the answer, find to say "Huh, good question. Let me think about that and get back to you." It's really not a big deal, and weird that you are making it a big deal.

If you have individual employees/subordinates that are pests about it, then you need to deal with them. I had a subordinate that was extremely needy and wanted to check in with me about everything -- it was like a year of coaching about when he should contact me, saving up questions for once a day, not expecting immediate replies, etc. But that's a management problem, not a policy problem.

Anonymous wrote:OP, this is a you problem. No one cares or sympathizes.

Understand now?