Essential Office

Etiquette
2010
Facilitated by Itukisa (Pty) Ltd
 AGENDA
• Introduction
• Session 1
– What is office etiquette
– Office relationships
– Professional conduct
• Session 2
– Professional attire
– Courtesy for individuals with a disability
– Handling difficult people and personal issues
– Ethical dilemmas
– Personal contact etiquette
 AGENDA (CONT.)
• Session 3
– Etiquette in meetings
– Appropriate use of the internet, email, telephone and cell
phone
– Attending business functions, social gatherings and office
parties
• Session 4
– Open plan office etiquette
– Bathroom etiquette
– Confidentiality
– Unacceptable behaviour at work and common office etiquette
mistakes
 Definition of Etiquette
The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines etiquette as the
conventional rules of personal behaviour in a polite
society
 Office Etiquette
• Personal Behaviour
• Polite Society
• Conventional Rules
Office Relationships
Nobody wants to spend eight
hours in an office with
someone who does not know
how to behave
 Office Relationships
• Office behaviour
• Addressing colleagues
• Conversations at work
• Saying Please and Thank you
• Displaying affection
• Sexual harassment
 Professional Conduct
Basic Do’s And Don’ts
• Show respect for management and your colleagues
• Dress according to the company requirements
• Avoid expressing negative attitudes as they lead to negative
behaviour
• Introduce people to one another
• Say please and thank you
• Remember names
• Avoid using vulgar and inappropriate language
 Professional Conduct (CONT.)
• Be on time
• Be discreet
• Be courteous
• Be concerned with others, not just yourself
• Dress appropriately
• Use proper written and spoken language
 Professional Attire
• Personal appearance
• Clothes
• Hair styles, colour and cleanliness
• Accessories
• Make-up
• Posture
• Skin
• Nails
• Perfume / colognes / after-shave
• Dress code
Courtesy For Individuals with a
Disability
• Ask before you help
• Wheelchair or mobility impairment etiquette
• People who are blind
 Ask Before You Help
• Don’t assume they need help
• People with disabilities can usually get around fine
• Treat as independent people
• Offer assistance only if needed
• Ask how before you act
• May depend on their arms for balance
• Avoid patting a person / touching his wheelchair
• Don’t make decisions for them
• Please respect their privacy
 Wheelchair or Mobility
Impairment Etiquette
• People who use wheelchairs have different disabilities.
• Don’t lean over someone in a wheelchair
• Or ask a wheelchair user to hold coats
• Setting your drink on the desktop attached to someone’s
wheelchair is a definite no-no
• Don’t push or touch a person’s wheelchair; it’s part of
their personal space
 Wheelchair or Mobility
Impairment Etiquette (CONT.)
• If you help someone down a curb without waiting for
instructions, you may dump them out of the chair
• Keep the ramps and wheelchair-accessible doors to
your building unlocked and unblocked
• Be aware of wheelchair users’ reach limits
• When talking to a wheelchair user, grab your own chair
and sit at their level
 Wheelchair or Mobility
Impairment Etiquette (CONT.)
• If the service counter at your place of business is too high
for a wheelchair user to see over, step around it to provide
service
• Ensure that security guards and receptionists can answer
questions about the most accessible way around the
building and grounds
• If the nearest public restroom is not accessible or is located
on an inaccessible floor, allow the person in a wheelchair to
use a private or employees’ accessible restroom
 Wheelchair or Mobility
Impairment Etiquette (CONT.)
• People who use canes or crutches need their arms to
balance themselves, so never grab them
• They may lean on a door for support as they open it
• If you offer a seat to a person who has limited mobility,
keep in mind that chairs with arms or with higher seats
are easier for some people to use
 People Who Are Blind
 Identify yourself before you make physical contact with a
person who is blind

 Introduce them to others who are in the group, so that

they are not excluded

 Offer them a tour of the office.

 If a person who is blind needs to be guided offer your arm

- don’t take his
 Difficult People
• Dealing with difficult people
– Basic needs
• How do your colleagues signal these needs to
you?
– “I need to be understood”
– “I need to feel welcome”
– “I need to feel important”
– “I need to feel comfortable”
 Personal Contact
• Introductions
• Who is first
• Names in order
• Handshakes
• Personal body space
 Meeting Etiquette
• Arranging a meeting
• Agenda and minutes
• Before the meeting
• Formal meetings
• Duties of the chairperson
• During the meeting
• End of meeting
 Internet Usage
• Remember the human
• Adhere to the same standards of behaviour online
that you follow in real life
• Know where you are in cyberspace
• Respect other people's time and bandwidth
• Make yourself look good online
 Internet Usage
• Share expert knowledge

• Keep flame wars under control

• Respect other people's privacy

• Don’t abuse your power

• Be forgiving of other people's mistakes

 Office Etiquette

• Email etiquette
• Telephone etiquette
• Cellphone etiquette
 Business Entertaining
• Entertaining local associates
• Give sufficient notice
• Avoid the hard sell
• Choose the venue and the menu wisely
• Watch budgets and tastes when you order drinks
• Start business talk carefully
• Never be a greedy guest
• Keep the conversation going
 Open Plan Office Etiquette
• Showing consideration
• Be accessible
• Keep your desk tidy
• Be careful when having conversations
• Never shout to a colleague
• Use designated aisles or walking routes in an open plan
workspace
 Open Plan Office Etiquette
• Never use anything which might cause disruption to others,
e.g. a speaker phone or radio unless permission is granted
• Do not have loud music playing
• Do not speak in a language your fellow staff do not understand
• Avoid taking personal phone calls
• Be wary of speaking openly about any issues of confidentiality
 Open Plan Office Etiquette (CONT.)
• Move to private enclosed space to make or take private calls
• Always switch your answer machine on before leaving your
desk
• Don’t interrupt during the call
• Pungent or bad odours are one of the most complained about
aspects of working in an open plan office
• Practice good hygiene- don’t go overboard with aftershave or
perfume
 Open Plan Office Etiquette (CONT.)
• Choose neutral smelling foods when eating at your desk
• Eat in designated areas, or outside
• Do not eat in front of someone fasting
• It is not polite to fight in an open plan environment
• Do not use vulgar language
• Keep confidential information you may accidentally over hear
private
• Don’t gossip
 Open Plan Office Etiquette (CONT.)
• Don’t invite yourself to an informal meeting, if you haven’t
been invited
• In general, it’s easy to get along well in an open plan
working environment
• Being accessible to people but still maintaining boundaries
• Treat people how you would like to be treated
 Bathroom Etiquette
• No business in the bathroom
• Wash your hands
• Emails during a bathroom visit?
• Don’t lie in wait
• Keep down the smell
• Dealing with cultural difference
• Not the place to socialise
• Keep it clean
 Confidential Issues
• Computers, fax machines and printers
• Computer display
• Telephone, internet (email) and other
communications
• Passwords
• Storage of confidential information
• Access
 Unacceptable Behaviour
• Gender neutral
• Business meals are for eating and networking
• Adhere to the protocol in your office when addressing
superiors
• On casual dress days wear business casual clothes
• Avoid flirting
• Do not scream and shout at your colleagues in front of others
• Never treat colleagues differently, all are equal
• Always wear shoes
 Unacceptable Behaviour (CONT.)
• Do not chew gum with your mouth open
• Avoid funky ring tones on your cellphone
• Do not give yourself or a colleague a manicure or pedicure
in the office
• Avoid negative behaviour
• Never bad mouth your colleagues or organisation
• Replace paper in the copier and fax machines
• Do not steal food and drinks from the fridge
• Taking office supplies home is unacceptable
 Common Mistakes
• Men opening the door or pulling out a chair for a female
co-worker/ women waiting for a male co-worker to open
the door or pull out a chair
• Men waiting for women to exit an elevator first
• Waiting for the person who called to end the conversation
first
• Tracking down a caller when the line was disconnected
during a call
 Common Mistakes
• Hand writing all personal notes
• Shaking hands across your desk
• Deferring to age and/ or gender when making
introductions
• Exchanging business cards
• Addressing your boss by his/her first name when
around others
 Summary
• Introduction
• Session 1
– What is office etiquette
– Office relationships
– Professional conduct
• Session 2
– Professional attire
– Courtesy for the physically challenged
– Handling difficult people and personal issues
– Ethical dilemmas
– Personal contact etiquette
 Summary (CONT.)
• Session 3
– Etiquette in meetings
– Appropriate use of the internet, email and telephone and cell
phone
– Attending business functions, social gatherings and office
parties
• Session 4
– Open plan office etiquette
– Bathroom etiquette
– Confidentiality
– Unacceptable behaviour at work and common office
etiquette mistakes
 Thank you

Fasset Call Centre

086 101 0001
www.fasset.org.za