At my current workplace, I got an OOO about someone being on sabbatical and off driving a vintage VW bus. Loved that one. But also got one about someone bringing a tiny human into the world – that was a weird overshare.
Setting a proper out-of-office email also puts pressure off you when you have limited time to respond to emails outside the office. We will look at a few examples together here:
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Dear all, I am out of the office until 4, February. If you need immediate assistance please send me a message on my cell phone: +111 1111. Otherwise, I will respond to your emails as soon as possible. Thanks, (YOUR NAME)
“I will be away on a vacation from June 3 to June 14. For urgent queries, you can call [person] at [phone number].”
Here are some samples and templates of automatic reply messages across various scenarios.
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I worked in a call center for Big-Evil-Bank for five years, and every new manager would have a different OOO policy/pet peeve that they would require phone-miners to follow. In particular, the memory of the six month period where we were forced to put an OOO up if we left our desk for so much as ONE HOUR smacked me in the face when I saw question. That was by far the worst/strangest/most tedious OOO policy I have ever been forced to follow.
It’s crucial for clients to feel as if they can rely on you if they have an urgent request. Before taking time off, you need to create an out-of-office email response. Let your clients and business partners know that you are currently unavailable, but will be back soon. They, understandably, expect you to reply promptly… but everybody is entitled to some time off. Just remember keep your contacts in the loop.
I think important context here is that no matter what the details added were, it always had this aggressive tone of “I’m taking a break and breaks are IMPORTANT”. Which I agree with, but it felt like it was almost aggressive/accusatory, and more importantly: this person was without a doubt the meanest, cruelest, least understanding and empathetic person I’ve ever worked with who ran her staff into the ground with urgent demands and expectations.
Skip the "Greetings," "Salutations," "Dear sir/madam." These are far too stuffy and robotic. Instead, start off your response with a simple "Hi" or Hello."
Happy holidays! I am currently getting into the holiday spirit, and so is the rest of the office. I'll be sure to respond to your email when I return to work on Dec. 28, 2020. Thank you for your patience, and I hope you and your loved ones have a joyous holiday. All the best, Lennox Haven Marketing Director
Thank you for your message. I’m on sick leave and will get back to you as soon as I return to the office.
I will be out of the office from DATE LEAVING to DATE RETURNING. I wanted to assure you that I have handed off all important information off to DELEGATE’S NAME while I am away. Should you have any questions or need anything during this time, please feel free to contact DELEGATE’S NAME and they will do their best to assist you.
On a serious note… sailing vacations are the best for no access/contact vacations. I heartily endorse them!
Turn on automatic response indefinitely or choose the dates you’d like for them to appear. Write your OOO message in the message field, then click “Save.”
Thank you for your e-mail! I’m out of the office and will have limited access to my e-mail. I will respond to you upon my return.
Note: If you are using an older version of Outlook, such as Outlook 2007, go to Tools > Out of Office Assistant.