using 'Hi' instead of 'Dear' in work emails...

[Crosbybeach]

...when you don't know the person you are emailing/responding to. Also if they have used 'Dear your name' to respond with Hi, when you don't know them just seems too casual.

I don't have a problem with people emailing me with 'Hi Crosby' when I don't know them. But if I don't know someone and it's a formal email, I'll always use 'dear'.

Am I hopelessly out of touch? (mid 40s...)

If I am emailing one of the parents at school, I always begin the email with "Dear Mr & Mrs Smith". If it becomes a thread of several replies and responses then I take my cue from the parents' response. If they reply "Dear Mrs..." then I retain the initial form; if they reply "Hi 80s" and sign off with their first name, then my later reply would begin "Hi Sally.." etc.

Some people prefer to be addressed in the traditional formal way, so when dealing with customers, it's always wise to use the formal mode of address initially, imo.

If it's just an internal email to a colleague, I often don't bother even to use Hi or their name I just barge straight in with the message.

Looking through my emails, I never use 'Dear'. It seems weird and over-familiar somehow. I frequently use 'Hi' for people I work with a lot and know. If I need a slightly higher level of formality, I just go straight in with the name.

e.g.

Bob,

Regarding our previous conversation...

Regards

Monstrous

I find the straight-to-name thing works well if you are addressing more than one person.

Bob, George,

Following our meeting earlier...

If I didn't know who I'm emailing and just have a general address, I'd just go for 'Hello' probably. Having said that, I never have to write anything particularly formal in my job; it's all quick emails between people across the organisation.

I tend to use dear if it's something I'd normally put in a letter. Sometimes, I will erite an actual letter, but you don't always get a real address these days.

"Hi " is pretty much the norm here, regardless of nationality or seniority, including all my German colleagues. I've never used anything other than their firstnames from day 1.

In an ongoing thread, I tend to dispense with greetings all together. I avoid time-specific greetings like good morning, because even if it's also their morning (absolutely no guarantees - most of my colleagues aren't in my timezone), they might not be reading it immediately it reaches their in-box. It's not instant messenger.

I do have a habit of getting excessively formal with totally informal matters - "Dear esteemed colleagues, it has come to my attention we haven't had a pub lunch in a while. This should be rectified forthwith."

Education is old fashioned. I as a fellow professional am not calling other adjust mrs someone. Just crackers

Other adults

I always use "Dear" with work correspondence. I move to "Hi" if we have had a drink together or similar.

I tend to use Good morning/afternoon for people I don't know and Hi for everyone else. I hate using Dear, it's too informal for me.

I use dear on very first correspondence and switch to hi when contact is established.

Be glad you don't work in London's West End Theatreworld. It makes me cringe when EVERYBODY puts kisses at the end of business emails. I hate it (and refuse to)

Emails can be produced in court. I treat them like letters and start them with dear. I was once wisely advised that if you wouldn't write something in a formal email you shouldn't put it in a letter.

I have only ever put kisses at the end of work emails in error. I did notice and remove them from the last mail I sent to my director. Did make me wonder whether I've missed any in the past. I could go back through old mails and check, but I decided it's better to live in ignorance on some things.

I worked in the financial sector in the City and I have never come across Dear in an email.
All the companies I've worked for and dealt with always used Hi Name internally and externally.

That should have said if not in a formal letter then not in an email

I use Dear if emailing a lawyer, accountant, regulator etc, or one of our board members, otherwise either Hi or just dive straight into the message.
As pp say, the more senior people tend to be less formal - my ex-CEO would send emails like this
"pls deal, thx", or
"HNY, when r u back" (on 1 January)
or sometimes just "?"

I use good morning/ afternoon soandso, dear first-name sounds weird imo and hi can be too informal

Lol at in court.

If you'd heard as many threatening x rated texts as i had , read in court you wouldn't give s Toss if they're Dear or hi

No "hi" or "dear" from me in work emails, whether internal or external, I just plough right in with the name - it's the norm where I work. However I always start IMs with "hi" or "morning".

I only put kisses at the end if I have to email one of my friends at work. ....

Just starting with the name can look like you're being arsey I think xxx

I think Good Morning X is really odd, am amazed it is a standard thing. Shows how wildly conventions differ! Almost everything I get is Dear X. I prefer no greeting at all but my sector is quite formal. Would always use Dear X for externals and to superiors.

I have to email members of the judiciary quite a lot in my job and it gets really complicated and I am never sure how to manage etiquette correctly.

First email - fine - I go with whatever form of address you would use in a letter, 'Dear Judge ' or whatever. I am afraid I tend to mix up the sign off as 'yours faithfully/sincerely' seems too formal - email to me seems like a telephone call but in writing iyswim.

It gets complicated when I get a reply. Lots of judges do not even address their reply but simply start straight into their message, no 'Hello Sue' or even just 'Sue', and then simply sign off with their initials. So I might get:

'This looks fine to me.

NN'

So how do I then reply appropriately to that, or what if I need to follow up later with something else? It's all the more awkward with judges I am in regular contact with who use this format. So it means I am always sending what seem like overly formal emails to people I email reasonably often.

It bothers me.

I also find the style of addressing emails with no 'Hi/hello/dear' a bit 'I'm far too busy to greet you' and so a little bit 'I am considerably more important than you'.

But then I find 'Hi' a bit Enid Blyton: 'Hie! Moonface! Do share those pop biscuits!'

if they don't use dear so and so, you don't have to either.

I think many people treat emails like a memo rather than a formal letter. Certainly emails are structured just like a memo, with to, from and subject line.

Arguably putting dear so and so is superfluous (although I think correct if the email is taking the place of a letter).

So, having thought about it, I would say you have to ask what is the email replacing? A chat? A memo? A letter?

You see I've never had a memo. I'm not sure what they are for - I guess they pre date email in very large companies where you could just walk to the person's desk?

I think they are a weird mixture of a chat and a letter - depending on the context, obviously - I think that is why the etiquette is unclear.

Sorry - that should say couldn't just walk to the person's desk.