My European colleagues get an extended summer holiday all at the same time, which means we get OOO notes like this:
In this email, you’re a UPS package getting delivered to your vacation destination. Ah, I wish UPS offered this service.
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Here’s my pet peeve: OOOs that specifically state the person “won’t have access to email.” It contributes to this pervasive idea that an employee who might technically be ABLE to check her work email while OOO better have a damn good reason why she won’t be doing so. Which calls back to the reason someone’s OOO is no one else’s business. Whether you’re OOO because you’re on your honeymoon, having your gall bladder removed, or robbing a bank, OOO should automatically imply unavailability for work stuff. Full stop.
On the iPhone, you have the option to activate DND mode in different ways. The “Automatic Mode” and “When Connected to Car Bluetooth” will take care of while driving.
You are regarded as a responsible netizen when you imbibe the habit of leaving out-of-office messages. For employers and HR managers, it is worthwhile to teach this practice to your employees. Out-of-office emails show that you are polite and professional, lending credibility to your corporate culture.
Confirm any expected deliveries will not be left at your door or unattended. Reschedule if necessary.
Eh, figuratively. It’s like saying I’ve gone to lunch even though I’m still right here eating at my desk–the point is that I’m unavailable to do any work.
However, if you do choose to do this, make sure you actually follow through and do the thing you’re bragging about, unlike this New York Times reader who was just a bit too bold.
This is so funny to be because I would chuckle getting those! You have personal context which is how you know that there is an aggeressive/accusatory tone….but without that context I would interpret these as boundaried and light-hearted. (With the exception of the ‘momtears’ one, that would feel overly personal to me.)
4. "Hello, you've reached [your name and title]. I'm currently out on parental leave until [date]. In the meantime, please direct all phone calls to [alternate contact name] at [phone number] and emails to [email address]. Thanks, and I'll see you in [month you'll be back in the office]."
I think the OOO you wrote in about is hysterically funny. I also think it would be out of place in a lot of offices (the board of directors that oversee my org would emphatically not think the message was funny).
While this may not prove so fortunate for us, we can use the poor weather for comedic relief. You can even include a screenshot of the weather forecast for a sense of realism. Not only will it give senders a chuckle, but it’ll also generate a certain amount of empathy — which is often the key to good content.
When one of my colleagues went on vacation, he sent an out-of-office message that was both clever and smart. First, he sent the recipient on an imaginary scavenger hunt to "the highest peak of the tallest mountain." He used humorous absurdity to make it clear that he would not be checking email while he was away.
2. Here’s your [holiday name] to do list. Holidays are a busy period, both for marketers and consumers alike. Most of us are turn back to the good ol’ pen and paper to put together all kinds of to-do lists.
A thing my employer does is when someone leaves, they just shutoff the email. So someone goes to the trouble of writing an out of office explaining that they have retired or accepted a job somewhere else and where someone can go for help and IT just nukes the email address 24 hours after the person leaves. Then whomever was contacting them has no idea where to turn next. It is a terrible policy.
Live support will be unavailable during our closure. Emergency support requests should be submitted via our contact form or via Basecamp if your project is currently active. We wish all of our clients a very happy and safe 4th of July holiday. We look forward to working with you when we get back from a well deserved long weekend. See you next week!
An automatic response is a pre-designated reply that is generated by a software program for incoming messages. For example, a user may set up an automatic reply for incoming e-mails that let the sender know their e-mail was received. Can you set auto reply text messages? When you first launch the app, tap the Add/Edit button to create a new rule. Give it a name, like “At Work” or “Sleeping,” and write your message in the text box. You can then go to Set Time to set the time, date, or days of the week you want that rule to be active. Privacy Policy Contact Us About Us Ask Your Question