Office Etiquettes

Ajay Chauhan
Chief Manager(HR)-Corp. Recruitment

19th, September 2019

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Definition of Etiquette
The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines etiquette as the conventional rules
of personal behaviour in a polite society

Why Etiquettes in Office

Nobody wants to spend eight hours in an office with someone who

does not know how to behave

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Area of concern
– What is office etiquette
– Office relationships
– Professional conduct
– Professional attire
– Courtesy for individuals with a disability
– Handling difficult people and personal issues
– Ethical dilemmas
– Personal contact etiquette

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Area of concern…

– Etiquette in meetings
– Appropriate use of the internet, email, telephone and cell phone
– Attending business functions, social gatherings and office parties
– Open plan office etiquette
– Bathroom etiquette
– Confidentiality
– Unacceptable behaviour at work and common office etiquette
mistakes

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Office etiquette

Office etiquette may include having good manners and being

courteous of others, as well as using workplace technology in a
suitable manner

Your behavior - workplace - follow certain rules

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 Office Relationships

• Office behaviour-Personal,People

• Addressing colleagues

• Conversations at work

• Saying Please and Thank you

• Displaying affection

• Sexual harassment
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 Professional Conduct

Basic Do’s And Don’ts

• Show respect for management and your colleagues
• Dress according to the company requirements
• Avoid expressing negative attitudes as they lead to
negative behaviour
• Introduce people to one another
• Say please and thank you
• Remember names
• Avoid using vulgar and inappropriate language

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 Professional Conduct (CONT.)

• Be on time

• Be discreet

• Be courteous

• Be concerned with others, not just yourself

• Dress appropriately

• Use proper written and spoken language

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 Professional Attire

• Personal appearance
• Clothes
• Hair styles, colour and cleanliness
• Accessories
• Make-up
• Posture
• Skin
• Nails
• Perfume / colognes / after-shave
• Dress code

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Courtesy For Individuals with a Disability

• Don’t assume they need help

• People with disabilities can usually get around fine
• Treat as independent people
• Offer assistance only if needed
• Ask how before you act
• May depend on their arms for balance
• Avoid patting a person / touching his wheelchair
• Don’t make decisions for them
• Please respect their privacy
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 Difficult People

• Dealing with difficult people

– Basic needs
• How do your colleagues signal these needs to
you?
– “I need to be understood”
– “I need to feel welcome”
– “I need to feel important”
– “I need to feel comfortable”

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 Personal Contact

• Introductions

• Who is first

• Names in order

• Handshakes

• Personal body space

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 Meeting Etiquette

• Arranging a meeting

• Agenda and minutes

• Before the meeting

• Formal meetings

• Duties of the chairperson

• During the meeting

• End of meeting

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 Internet Usage

• Remember the human

• Adhere to the same standards of behaviour
online that you follow in real life
• Know where you are in cyberspace
• Respect other people's time and bandwidth
• Make yourself look good online

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 Internet Usage….

• Share expert knowledge

• Keep flame wars under control

• Respect other people's privacy

• Don’t abuse your power

• Be forgiving of other people's mistakes

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 Three working core

• Email etiquette
• Telephone etiquette
• Cellphone etiquette

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 Open Plan Office Etiquette

• Showing consideration
• Be accessible
• Keep your desk tidy
• Be careful when having conversations
• Never shout to a colleague
• Use designated aisles or walking routes in an
open plan workspace

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 Open Plan Office Etiquette…..

• Never use anything which might cause disruption to

others, e.g. a speaker phone or radio unless permission
is granted

• Do not have loud music playing

• Do not speak in a language your fellow staff do not

understand

• Avoid taking personal phone calls

• Be wary of speaking openly about any issues of

confidentiality

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 Open Plan Office Etiquette…..

• Move to private enclosed space to make or take private

calls
• Always switch your answer machine on before leaving
your desk
• Don’t interrupt during the call
• Pungent or bad odours are one of the most complained
about aspects of working in an open plan office
• Practice good hygiene- don’t go overboard with
aftershave or perfume

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 Open Plan Office Etiquette…..

• Choose neutral smelling foods when eating at your desk

• Eat in designated areas, or outside

• Do not eat in front of someone fasting

• It is not polite to fight in an open plan environment

• Do not use vulgar language

• Keep confidential information you may accidentally over

hear private

• Don’t gossip

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 Open Plan Office Etiquette…..

• Don’t invite yourself to an informal meeting, if you haven’t

been invited
• In general, it’s easy to get along well in an open plan
working environment
• Being accessible to people but still maintaining
boundaries
• Treat people how you would like to be treated

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 Bathroom Etiquette

• No business in the bathroom

• Wash your hands
• Emails during a bathroom visit?
• Don’t lie in wait
• Keep down the smell
• Dealing with cultural difference
• Not the place to socialise
• Keep it clean

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 Confidential Issues

• Computers, fax machines and printers

• Computer display
• Telephone, internet (email) and other communications
• Passwords
• Storage of confidential information
• Access

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 Unacceptable Behaviour

• Gender neutral
• Business meals are for eating and networking
• Adhere to the protocol in your office when addressing
superiors
• On casual dress days wear business casual clothes
• Avoid flirting
• Do not scream and shout at your colleagues in front of
others
• Never treat colleagues differently, all are equal
• Always wear shoes

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 Unacceptable Behaviour …..

• Do not chew gum with your mouth open

• Avoid funky ring tones on your cellphone
• Do not give yourself or a colleague a manicure or
pedicure in the office
• Avoid negative behaviour
• Never bad mouth your colleagues or organisation
• Replace paper in the copier and fax machines
• Do not steal food and drinks from the fridge
• Taking office supplies home is unacceptable

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 Common Mistakes

• Men opening the door or pulling out a chair for a female

co-worker/ women waiting for a male co-worker to open
the door or pull out a chair
• Men waiting for women to exit an elevator first
• Waiting for the person who called to end the conversation
first
• Tracking down a caller when the line was disconnected
during a call

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 Common Mistakes…..

• Hand writing all personal notes

• Shaking hands across your desk
• Deferring to age and/ or gender when making
introductions
• Exchanging business cards
• Addressing your boss by his/her first name when around
others

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Thank you

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