267
votes
Accepted
Is it okay to slightly modify a forwarded email?
Can I modify it instead of rewriting it?
Absolutely not.
Is it frowned upon?
Absolutely.
When you're forwarding an email, it's implied that you're leaving the original email chain untouched or ...
- 59.7k
239
votes
Accepted
Response to a bugfix suggestion said to just report bugs (not suggest solutions). Is this typical?
No, this is not usual. You have run across a fairly common beast, however, the Elitist Super Entitled Developer. He's smarter than everyone else in his own mind and is entitled to be rude for the ...
- 33.1k
235
votes
Accepted
Angry email from customer insisting he didn't get a refund
First thing to do is double check and make certain that you issued the refund on your end. You say that his account says he has been refunded, but also go and find the actual bank transaction to be ...
- 29.7k
220
votes
Accepted
Does a one-line email response from a job seeker show a lack of interest?
My problem with his response is that I am offering him a job interview
and he replies with 5 words.
I don't think this is a big problem. Yes, a salutation would be better, yes, thanking you would ...
- 23k
215
votes
I'm being blamed for not responding to an email from a client that was directly addressed to coworker
Ask your boss: "How do you want me to respond to e-mails when I am only CC'd?".
I do not think you did anything wrong, but you can reach a more effective solution to the real problem by putting all ...
- 5,697
212
votes
What can I do to avoid potential charges for bribery?
At my job, we are told to immediately report potential corruption/bribery to our line manager/a specific person depending on the scenario.
If you get ahead of this and own up to it with your boss, ...
- 951
204
votes
Accepted
How should I respond to a colleague who refuses to email me task requests?
If the designer doesn't want to e-mail you, you can take down notes when you're on the phone and then send him an e-mail with what you discussed.
Hello Designer,
As per our discussion I will ...
- 27.8k
199
votes
Accepted
How should I reply to an email which feels unprofessional after declining a technical interview/test?
No need to reply at all - you don't want this job (for good reasons) and they don't want to offer you a job (for dubious reasons, IMO). Just move on to the next opportunity and don't spend any more ...
- 90.9k
194
votes
Boss IMs my private email account at work
That should be easy. Open up a new account to use at work and tell your boss that having your private account open at work reduces your productivity because of the private messages that your friends ...
- 108k
191
votes
Accepted
How to politely tell someone they did not hit "reply to all" in an email?
Hi Bob - just so you're aware, seems like you haven't hit reply all there.
No need to dress it up any more than that.
- 34.3k
189
votes
Accepted
Is it professional to write unrelated content in an almost-empty email?
Just leave the email with the attachment and state
This timesheet refers to X.
Please see attached.
Regards, Bracco
Just leave the quote out of it and keep the email basic. Your emails are for the ...
- 19.2k
182
votes
Accepted
Take me off the endless email threads
So set up a folder for each project like that one and a mail rule to direct the emails there.
Then once a day, or every other day, a quick gander will keep you up to date.
Leaving the inbox for more ...
- 16.1k
175
votes
Is it legal for company to use my work email to pretend I still work there?
Regarding the first question, "is it legal?" questions should always be posted on Law SE, not here.
As for your LinkedIn account, LinkedIn has the ability to change your email address associated with ...
- 40.9k
169
votes
One of my subordinates' child passed away, how can I inform my team?
First send out the email about the loss separate from anything about rearranging duties. It should include any information you have about the funeral or visitation or even if there is a charity they ...
- 141k
165
votes
Accepted
Should I reply to urgent emails if I am not fit for work?
Question: am I supposed to reply to urgent work emails even if I am
not fit for work?
No.
You decided you weren't fit enough mentally to be working, and your doctor and HR agreed to put you on ...
- 346k
161
votes
How should I respond to a potential employer thanking me for my application and telling me they'll be in contact?
Don't send any reply. They told you they received your application and will contact you when they're ready. There's nothing for you to say, and any email you send with a non-message will just clutter ...
- 5,113
160
votes
Accepted
Should I use my personal e-mail address, or my workplace one, when registering to external websites for work purposes?
You're not accessing the sites for personal reasons, you're accessing the sites to perform a work activity - ergo, use your work email address.
Furthermore, some companies require verification of an ...
- 5,823
154
votes
How does one title a resignation email?
None.
This is one of those things that you do in person. "Hey boss, do you have 5-10 minutes?". If you're remote, then a phone call is fine. They'll ask you to eventually write the email so there's a ...
- 36.1k
154
votes
Accepted
How to react to an unusually informal first contact from a recruiter
What is bothering me is the use of "tu" instead of "vous" :
I don't really know how to react to this. Why being so informal ? Am I
over thinking this or does it scratch you too ?
You are ...
- 346k
153
votes
Accepted
Co-Worker Overreacts to Request for Clarification
From what I understand, here are my answers to your questions:
Did I say anything wrong?
In my opinion, yes:
In asking for clarification on whether or not there was a program to do what the ...
- 926
143
votes
Accepted
How to proceed when remote boss doesn't answer emails?
When you are missing a response from your boss, the very worst thing you can do is exactly what you did last time. They say that insanity is repeating the same action and expecting different results. ...
- 139k
140
votes
Colleagues routinely only answer the first of my questions?
I'll usually enumerate my questions if I have more than one, like
Can you tell me more about XX?
I saw YY and infer ZZ. Is that correct?
Am I also right that Peter should take care of task A?
This ...
- 739
138
votes
Accepted
HR at my new job just sent me an email saying that I am a volunteer. I've been working here two months under the impression that it's paid work
Like Kozaky said, check your contract. Any paid position would have involved signing an official job offer that would have specified your salary. Find that document and read it again to make sure ...
- 11.4k
135
votes
Accepted
How to tell sender they forgot the attachment without embarrassing them?
Hey, is it possible you can resend this? I didn't get any attachments.
Thanks!
Don't overthink this. No one's perfect.
Word it in a way which isn't accusational and you'll be fine. Don't say "...
- 110k
133
votes
Accepted
How to handle it when someone drags in upper management to get you to solve a problem that they were the source of
Let your manager handle this. Now that it has gone up the chain your manager will want to handle the narrative. If your manager tells you to reply and cc all then fine - but let that call come from ...
- 36.5k
132
votes
How to get domain experts to answer questions correctly, completely & concisely
You don't ask open ended questions. You ask concise, directed questions for specific relevant information pertaining to a task or project they care about or have some stake in.
People are not there to ...
- 197k
131
votes
Accepted
How should I respond to a (positive) email about my career path that I don't think was supposed to come to me?
Here's an alternative to Philip Kendall's excellent suggestion:
Do nothing.
Don't tell anyone (at work or at home). Wait and see if you are in fact promoted.
Normally notifying the sender about ...
- 30.3k
130
votes
What's the politest way of writing when you have not received a reply?
While I also think your mails are reasonable, I'd like to provide a different perspective:
You are telling them that they failed to reply. While true that might be considered rude, no one likes ...
- 577
128
votes
Accepted
Should I bother to reply to emails from recruiters when I'm already employed?
Typically, you can ignore recruiters who:
email you about a job that is far out of your area/experience
seem like they haven't done their homework on you
appear to be spamming anyone who matches ...
- 1,712
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible