Blank Emails and the Importance of Clear Communication
From young professionals to experienced executives, everybody has workplace pet peeves. For me, it’s managers forwarding emails to their employees without context or direction.
The boss thinks they are providing their team member with important information, but the direct report is usually left with more questions than answers. Questions like:
“Do you expect a reply to this email?”
“Do I need to set up a call or a meeting about this?”
“Do I need to change a process or procedure because of this?”
“Do I need to carry out some research related to this?”
“Is this matter time-sensitive?”
“Is this matter high-priority?”
The employee can then be left in an uncomfortable position, forcing them to:
Ask their boss some clarifying questions and risk appearing inattentive, or
Guess what their boss wants and proceed based on that assumption
In my experience, most people choose the second path. It’s the least bad option in their eyes. And generally speaking, guessing games don’t contribute to the success of a company.
Forwarding Emails: What Can Managers Do Better?
If you are in a leadership position, and you want to avoid putting your team in this uncomfortable situation, the biggest thing you can do here is add some context to your emails. It’s that simple.
It doesn’t need to be a detailed explanation, either. Even a short message can help make it more clear. Something like:
“Thoughts?”
“Can you look into this and let me know?”
“Can you make a note of this for our meeting later?”
“Not sure what’s going on here. Do you have any more info?”
“Can you call Matt ASAP? Seems like we might need to delay the latest update.”
“Can you make sure this gets logged in the tracker by EOM? Low priority.”
“Here’s another example. Seems to be happening more often now. Can you pull the report and confirm?”
“Please read below. Let’s include this as a kudos to Caitlin on a slide in our next team meeting. Great example of customer service!”
Even if you do not need your employee to take any action, context will be helpful. A simple “FYI” can let them know they don’t need to follow up on anything. They just need to take in the info.
If you’re forwarding an especially lengthy email thread, you can also help your team member by directing them to the section that’s most relevant to them:
“See Lisa’s last email. I highlighted the main points.”
“Check out the first email in this chain for more info.”
“Long thread, but look at the bullet points in Dwayne’s email when you get a sec.”
“Scroll down to the very bottom of this chain to see what I mean.”
Sentences like these might not seem like much, but they can be a huge help to your employees. They’ll ensure your team members understand exactly what you want from them and reduce the odds of them making a mistake that delays a project or costs the company money.
So, the next time you forward an email, add some context. Your team will thank you!
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About The Author
Emily Sander is an ICF-certified leadership coach with more than 15 years of experience in the business world and the author of Hacking Executive Leadership. She’s been featured in several print publications, online articles, and podcasts, including CEO Today Magazine, Leading to Fulfillment, and Leadership Powered by Common Sense.
Emily has a passion for helping business leaders reach their full potential. Go here to read her story from seasoned executive to knowledgeable coach. If you want to send Emily a quick message, then visit her contact page here.