Mind Your Manners

From dressing appropriately to eating at your desk, the modern work environment has thrown the rules around office etiquette into question. Brush up on your manners with our handy guide.

- Faye Rowe

With ‘out of the box’ concepts such as treadmill desks, collaboration rooms and nap spaces creeping into offices, combined with our growing reliance on social media for work and play, the rules around how to behave in the office can seem a bit blurry at times.

“Etiquette has moved with the times, as it needed to, but there are still some situations where individuals need to consider whether they are becoming too casual with etiquette and the office is certainly one of them,” says Paul Russell, a workplace psychologist and founder of Luxury Academy London (www.luxuryacademy.co.uk), who has worked with companies in the UAE on etiquette issues. “A laissez-faire attitude towards hierarchy is one possible result of etiquette becoming more ‘loose’, but there is still a strong societal leaning towards manners and politeness and this would include due deference to superiors in a work situation.”

Attitudes vary, so consider the culture of the company you work for when it comes to communication.

“For some, a quick ‘thanks’ as a sign off in an email is enough, while others will take on a more traditional 'letter-writing' approach,” says Helen McGuire, Co-Founder & MD, Hopscotch (www.hopscotch.ae), a recruitment company that champions flexible work for women. “As a general rule of thumb, it’s always better to be cautious, particularly where client meetings, interactions with superiors or interviews are concerned and take a slightly more formal attitude to start with. It’s much easier to dial it down than dial it up, and first impressions count for a great deal.”