Lenka PincotChief of Staff to the CEO| Project Management InstituteParis, France
Hi everyone! I'm having this question on my mind for a long time and I was wondering what is your opinion? Is it ok to write emails late at night so that people see them the first thing in the morning or othen at the same night because we all stay very much connected 24/7 and use smartphones.
How do you feel about that?
Thanks for sharing! Saving Changes...
Jordan SuggsIT Project Manager| Pilot Travel CentersKnoxville, Tn, United States
I like the comments about knowing your crowd and the cultural aspect. When I did b2b sales (in the USA,) we had a precedent of sending important follow-ups or drips in the morning, to have a higher chance of being at the top of the inbox (most people I know check email first thing in the morning before other task.) So it depends also on who is receiving it, are they known for actually reading their emails and responding? If yes, send it whenever. If no, or inconsistent, I would sending it first thing in the morning so there is a higher chance they see it at the very top of their inbox in the morning.
Great insight in this thread, good question! Saving Changes...
Wade HarshmanScrum Master| GDITIndianapolis, In, United States
May 21, 2019 4:12 PM
Replying to Vincent Guerard
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I understand some country tried to pass legislation to restrict email outside "regular hours". I think France did that a few years ago.
So the organization made an adjustment to the email servers!
Hi Lenka
In our company it is ok.
But one of our values is balance people live , reason why we agreed at director levels not to do it.
Leaders lead by sample, we do not like employees 24/7. Saving Changes...
DORA LUZ MejiaCEO| IT ExploreEnvigado, Antioquia, Colombia
strongly think that it is a practice that is against the life balance. If someone has that practice and prefers working on these hours needs to understand that not all people is the same. I ignore them. If someone needs something urgent please call. Different think is if you are working in a time difference scenario in a Project and we need to have clear agreegments and ground rules for managing the teams and the differences Saving Changes...
DORA LUZ MejiaCEO| IT ExploreEnvigado, Antioquia, Colombia
May 20, 2019 10:31 AM
Replying to Anton Oosthuizen
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Yes perfectly ok. But you should expect people to only react to them during office hours, except when otherwise stated i.e. 24/7 support. When you work with virtual teams across geographic boundaries it actually becomes a 'must do' if you want to keep the wheel moving. Waiting until business hours might result in the loss of a business day if the time differences are big.
absolutely agree with your point Saving Changes...
Sending emails at anytime is perfectly fine. If I receive them after hours I never feel obligated to respond until the next day. If I am sending emails late at night I will sometimes apply the "Delay Send" option so it is sent in the morning during the start of business hours. This is because I know some of the recipients will actually think they should respond right away as if they think work success means being responsive 24/7, which it is not (seriously, if we're in the same time zone, please do not reply immediately to my 1am email or weekend email...enjoy the sleep and non-work time instead and tackle it the next day). Saving Changes...
Deepesh RammoorthyICT Project Manager ( PMP®AgilePM®Certified ScrumMaster® (CSM®))| Australian Red Cross Blood ServiceTarneit, Vic, Australia
Unless there is a weekend cut-over/ go-live type activity happening or if the people involved in either side of the email or telephone conversations are both working and doing after hours support , you are not obliged to pick up the phone or check on emails once you have left work Saving Changes...
Asif GulConsultant Project Manager| Energoprojekt EntelMuscat, Oman
I only feel compelled to compose emails in my mind at night and send only in Business hours. Cause I believe once you are out of your working hours, at least don't go near that screen, specially for work related matters.
Of course,Very Important and urgent matters can be an exception. Saving Changes...
Ann SavageRetired and on to new adventures| Self-employedNorth Bay, Ontario, Canada
It's a good idea to have company guidelines on this and other email management topics. Saving Changes...
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