Email Etiquette in the 21st Century

By Kristen Carter
Contributor, Career Services

Email is an essential communication method in today’s workforce, and it is imperative to properly communicate when dealing with internal and external parties. One common email option that may cause confusion on when to properly use is the reply all feature. Generally, when to reply all is straightforward; yet, there are situations where it is not as clear.

A reply all is generally warranted in the following scenarios:

1. If someone has been cc’d, reply all. The sender wants the people on the CC line to be aware of the conversation.
2. RSVP to an invitation. For instance, if a co-worker is organizing a happy hour get together after work, you may initially respond all to show your interest. However, once formal plans are being made, be considerate and remove the non-responders or those who have stated they cannot attend.
3. Feedback on a proposal. Maybe your manager is asking your team about the status of a project or had some follow-up questions regarding a submitted proposal. A reply all is sufficient so the other team members are aware of the additional information presented to your manager.

Now, some gray areas do exist where it is not as clear if a reply all response is necessary. Consider these situations:

1. Congratulatory email for a co-worker. While this situation requires a certain level of public acknowledgement/appreciation among the team, you do not need to reply all with your response. Simply email the co-worker with your personal congratulations.
2. Co-worker is leaving. This situation can generate an emotionally-charged response. Thus, send your good luck wishes in a private email.
3. If your answer is “ok” or “thanks.” Reply all is not necessary since you are not telling the recipients anything they do not know and you are not adding anything to the conversation.

An important factor to consider is the remote worker, which is becoming increasingly more common these days. The lack of face-to-face communication with your co-workers can present some challenges such as a lack of connection or a feeling of isolation. Because a remote employee is unable to participate in the typical office chatter, be sure to think of creative ways to engage these co-workers, aside from responding all unnecessarily.

Lastly, if you would prefer to ignore any email threads that you have been included on, there is a feature that allows you to mute/unmute conversations in Outlook or Google. In Outlook, open the email message, select the “Home” tab in the top navigation, and click “Ignore Conversation.” This will automatically send the initial message and any additional responses to your “Deleted Items” folder. As for Google, open the conversation, click the “More” button above your messages, and select “Mute.”

Remember, we all wish to open as few emails as we can each day. Therefore, taking time out of our day to delete excess emails can become a nuisance. Be kind to your coworkers and clients and think before you hit “reply all.” A good rule of thumb to ask yourself before quickly shooting off a response, “Am I adding something valuable to the conversation?”

[Related article: Reply All Email Etiquette: When to Use the Broadcast Tool]