There are two ways to send automatic out-of-office replies. The way you use depends on the type of email account you have.
German vehicle-maker Daimler has an innovative approach to holiday email, which many people about to return from holiday may well wish their company would copy, writes William Kremer.
.
The auto-delete policy - which is optional - follows a piece of government-funded research on work-life balance, which Daimler carried out in 2010 and 2011 with psychologists from the University of Heidelberg. The company now trains managers to set a good work-life example, and encourages them to set aside time when no meetings can be scheduled. This is supposed to be a time when workers can concentrate on their job, or take time off for any extra hours they have spent in the office.
“No matter what your best intentions, you're going to get bogged down the minute you return to the office,” Sullivan says. “Don't set exact timeframes for responding to messages in your OOO. Instead, set general expectations for‘I'll respond as quickly as possible upon my return,’ giving you some leeway.”
If you're looking to embark on a website build project, whether it's completely from scratch or a site refresh, our ebook will give you the knowledge to make your project as stress-free as possible. How to Setup Automated Email Responses for Gmail and Outlook
There’s just one problem with this approach: you’ve now obligated yourself to regularly check your email the whole time you’re out.
But for employees at Daimler things are a little different. Email these people while they are on holiday and you will get a message like this:
Season’s Greetings! It’s my favorite time of year, which means I’m currently out of the office chugging mugs of cocoa, stuffing my face with cookies, and attempting to fulfill my life-long goal of memorizing every single line of [FAVORITE HOLIDAY MOVIE]. I’ll be back in front of my computer on [DATE] and will respond to your message at that time. If you need immediate assistance, please send an email to [NAME] at [EMAIL] so that the other elves in this workshop can help you out. Happy ho-ho-holidays!
Thanks for your email. I’m currently on holiday with my family for the first time in what seems like forever. For urgent matters, [NAME] will help you. She doesn’t have a cape, but she is basically Superwoman. See you real soon. (Source: Futureofworking.com)
We are here to help, so you can focus on your time off! The less time you spend on the operational bits and pieces, the more time you will have to do some awesome reading.
You can include the range of dates that you will be away, but ultimately the sender wants to know when they can reach you again.
If you are a customer still in onboarding, please reach out to your Data Migration Specialist, Jane Smith, at [email protected] or 971-314-6323.
There are a few auto-reply text modes on iPhone that can be used while you drive or when you are on vacation. This vacation auto message will work both for incoming phone calls and iMessages. This workaround is capable of sending a standard auto-reply text from iPhone for the scheduled interval, or you can set the vacation time manually. I hope this will work for you guys to reply to your business clients while you enjoy a smartphone free vacation. Disclaimer: MashTips is supported by its audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you.
Join us at the HAR Reception Tues., 6pm @ Ballroom B. If you need tickets, send me a text: 555.555.5555
If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to create awesome OOO email messages, we suggest trying out completely free OOO Email Generator, and you’ll have your perfect OOO email within seconds.
See, in my head, “as soon as possible” reads simply as a more formal way of saying “I will respond at my earliest convenience.” Like, either way, this person is getting back to you as soon as they can, whatever that actually means.
I get why that would bug the hell out of you. But on the flip side, having worked with a lot of European colleagues who do this, it’s not that they’ll have to 8 hours of work on vacation, it’s that they won’t be working at all. So if your bit isn’t done by X date, then their bit won’t get done until they return. That’s just the culture there.