I’ve had people inform me that my OOO is up during a period that I was still away. Yea I’m aware my systems are set to send an OOO message, it’s doing its job if you got it.
When you’ve finally powered your way through that seemingly endless to-do list and are ready to check out of work mode once and for all, there’s one final thing you need to take care of: setting your out-of-office response.
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Hello! I’m going to be out of the office until [date]. If you need something before then, please contact [colleague] at [email] or [phone number] to receive assistance.Hello! Thank you for your email. I am out of the office right now but get back to you ASAP. You can expect a reply by [day] latest. For anything you need right away, you can contact [alternative contact option].
2. Vacation Auto-Reply Email Giving Alternative Contact Person. [Your Greeting] I will be out of the office from ____ until ____. For immediate assistance please contact
until you have the client who calls, lvm, then when they don’t call back in an hour emails to complain they can never get hold of you.
I’ll be back in the office on [end date] or after I’ve perfected my banana bread (whichever comes first)—and will respond to your message then.
Many companies offer an escape option so that if a caller ends up in a staff member’s voice mailbox, he or she can “escape” out of the mailbox and go back to the attendant menu. Use a customized auto-attendant for this situation. If you would like to leave a voicemail, please press 1 and leave your name, number, and a brief message. If you would like to return to the main menu, please press the # key.
Our Public Service Announcement: Each year, Americans leave 700 million DAYS of paid time off on the table. Stop and think about how many great out of office reply opportunities are missed because of this!
I had coworkers (and people up my chain of command) that did/do this. The thing all those people had/have in common is that they came from the military. So I always took it as a military thing. Curious if that particular coworker had a military background.
I use a basic OOO message – “Hi! I’m out of the office x date(s). I will return your email when I’m back at my computer on x date. If you have an urgent matter, please contact x or y. Have a nice weekend/holiday/etc!/Thanks!” My office WANTS us to use more personal and witty OOO messages like this article’s message. And that stresses me out. I don’t want to spend time worried about whether my OOO is witty. I don’t want to annoy other people just looking for basic info like when am I back and who they can contact in the meantime. I correspond a lot with third parties on serious matters (legal), and I don’t think a message like that is appropriate. So, I just keep using my basic message and hope my supervisor’s supervisor doesn’t email me and see that I’m not “trying.” Ugh.
Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and
A ‘Type A’ who can’t ever fully switch-off from work… at least they’re honest about it!
I still will get urgent messages from coworkers with multiple follow-ups during my OOO period. Then an angry call or email when I return that the response time was too long. When I check with Jane about the status she says she was never contacted about the issue. I always push back “Why didn’t you contact Jane?” but I think a lot of people in my organization like to shift blame when they are behind on their deadlines. If it was really so urgent, why did you wait a week just to get an answer from me?
Perhaps I’m you guys’ worst nightmare, but for the past couple of years I’ve been writing haikus for my OOO, which give a flavour of what I’m out doing. A couple of examples:
We are closed today for the [public holiday name]. Our office will re-open tomorrow at am.
I have literally never seen an OOO that wasn’t “I will be out of the office until DATE/further notice. Please contact X or Y at EMAIL/PHONE if you need assistance.” This is fascinating stuff.
COVID-19 Floating Holidays — Three new COVID-19 floating holidays have been granted to all full-time staff members who are eligible for floating holidays and who are employed as of the effective date of November 23, 2020 and all part-time exempt and non-exempt benefits eligible staff employed as of the same date. These additional days are available for use from November 23, 2020 through December 31, 2021.