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Original poster

Irrationally enraged by colleague's email signature, or is it inappropriate?

383 replies

Peakhim · 13/04/2019 08:32

I have a newish colleague who has his email set up to give his full name, degree achieved (masters) followed by his full job title. This comes up in all internal emails and his job rarely involves sending external ones.

I think it's wanky and actually rude. No one else does it and many have more qualifications than him. People even comment on it and poke fun. I hoped he would notice by now that it's not done and take it down. It doesn't help that it comes up in really big letters after his normal sign off.

I'm his line manager and wonder whether to tell him to take it off but things aren't going well with him overall so I don't want it to look petty or like bullying.

But fuck, who does that??

OP posts:
anangalou · 13/04/2019 09:01

Captain - we had a parent at my school who referred to himself as 'Lord x', turns out he'd bought the title online !

Shadowboy · 13/04/2019 09:02

It’s standard where I work. Maybe he is just used to it from a previous place of work?

CustardOmlet · 13/04/2019 09:04

I work externally to a university but liaise on a daily basis with academics and it just seems normal and nothing special to put your credentials. I also attended a lecture led by a nursing union that questioned why nurses don’t include their credentials and we should be proud to include it in our Twitter handle!

Teddybear45 · 13/04/2019 09:04

It’s quite common in the banking industry to have your degrees on your business card; and email is just an online business card really. If anyone sounds like a knob it’s OP

WhoKnewBeefStew · 13/04/2019 09:04

I’m not sure I could ever get enraged by an email signature

My company automatically attaches a signature to every email.

SovereignIndividual · 13/04/2019 09:04

I missed that OP was this guy’s manager, she’s definitely intimidated by his qualifications and Is worried he’ll over take her.

theonewiththecats · 13/04/2019 09:05

if it's not the done thing in your company, tell him. He may not notice that it comes across odd.

Do you have a standard format you could refer him to?

stressedoutpa · 13/04/2019 09:05

Does the company have an email signature template? If so, tell everyone they need to use it.

I worked in a company where the HR Business Partner used to have her degree (i.e. BA (Hons) English Literature) or something similar

huggybear · 13/04/2019 09:06

I'm confused why the job role would be considered weird, isn't that the whole point of the signature?

flumpybear · 13/04/2019 09:07

@amusedbush - thAts standard in our university! Albeit dont usually double count or add extra to the Dr bit ...
So
Dr Flumpybear McFlumples
Job title

Without the BSc, MA, PhD tho

stressedoutpa · 13/04/2019 09:08

Mind you, if he's not the greatest then it's a bit more rope to hang himself.

Putthatlampshadeonyourhead · 13/04/2019 09:08

what are you on about? There’s no evidence that OP is a bully.

Actually there is.

She is allowing people to openly laugh at him and either not tackling that.

She is 'enraged' that he dare mention is qualifications and attaching derogatory labels to him because of it. Her dislike of him personally, is clear.

She is also concerned that her management of him is going to interpreted as bullying.

I have managed lots of people. I have also dismissed quite a few. I have never ince been concerned that my handling of the colleague could be seen as bullying. Because I do my job professionally. I have been accused of bullying. However all the paperwork, the conversations I have had and the way I conducted myself showed that everything I raised was legitimate and I would raise it with any other colleague where is was an issue.

You can not manage someone, effectively, if you are avoiding conversations incase you are seen as a bully.

The OP is either not confident or lacks skill in managing people, or she knows her behaviour has been off.

Putthatlampshadeonyourhead · 13/04/2019 09:10

It didn't feel appropriate as PA to one of the Directors but I always felt she thought she was ahead of me in the academic stakes. She wasn't.

You think she put it on there just for you?

And so what if she was ahead academically? It's not like you even did the same job? What would that really have meant to you, if she was ahead?

feduuup · 13/04/2019 09:10

It's cringe, I'm not sure why it's annoying though? So long as they are accurate and not fictional I'm not sure what you can do. Why does it bother you to this extent?

TheOnlyLivingBoyInNewCross · 13/04/2019 09:11

I meet several people who insist in using professional accolades outside their originating places (academic - professor, Dr, military retired - Rear Admiral...) and don't realise most people could and don't.

I'm a bit confused by this. A relative of mine is a professor and so uses professor as her title when filling in forms and so on. Why wouldn't she? Likewise, DH has a PhD and so uses "Dr". Are you saying they should use Ms and Mr instead? Why?

Babdoc · 13/04/2019 09:12

He may sense hostility from OP, feel insecure, and flaunt his qualifications to defend himself and boost his confidence.
But whatever his reason, what harm does it do? You’re hardly going to waste precious seconds reading his list of degrees every time you receive an email. I’d just ignore them and focus on the content.

DrWhy · 13/04/2019 09:12

I started work and having been in an academic environment where people put their qualifications/title on as standard I put my name as Dr Xxx and then my job title (no degree letters, university name etc). I was working in a specialist team where a couple of people did that and didn’t realise it wasn’t standard. Then I sent some e-mails to a team offshore and started getting them back with signatures of “Dr (team leaders name) school of hard knocks, university of life” - I took the hint and dropped the Dr. I find it sad, I worked bloody hard for the right to use that title but it’s not uncommon where I work to have a PhD and very few people use the title. Personally I think it would be helpful if people did use it, you could then ask what the topic was and know what they had special expertise in but they don’t - and clearly using it makes people think you are full of yourself so I’ve ditched it. Fromthis thread it sounds like the culture is different everywhere.

BalloonSlayer · 13/04/2019 09:14

Where I work everyone has an abbreviation based on their initials (eg Mary Ann Smith would be MAS) A new person joined and I saw her referred to as Paula Davies PHD and I sniggered & eyerolled quietly to myself and thought she must be a bit of a twat (we have other people with PHDs at work who don't mention it). Then I realised that her middle name was Helen . . . Blush

[Disclaimer - not actual names]

MissB83 · 13/04/2019 09:14

I think email signature should have useful information in it! So it might be a bit detailed. Mine always has my full name, job title, phone number, work address and also my working pattern as it is unusual so people know where I am. This is helpful as my clients are often people I haven't met before.

Degree details? Naaaaaa. Reminds me of Rimmer in Red Dwarf (Rimmer BSC = Bronze Swimming Certificate).Grin

HundredMilesAnHour · 13/04/2019 09:15

It’s quite common in the banking industry to have your degrees on your business card; and email

Really?! I've worked in the City/Canary Wharf for over 20 years and have yet to see a business card or email signature that has someone's degrees on.

I agree with the OP. It's wanky and smacks of insecurity.

twattymctwatterson · 13/04/2019 09:18

We are very sneery about people being publicly proud of their achievements in this country aren't we?

Lazypuppy · 13/04/2019 09:18

Job title is definitely normal, aling with email, address and phone number.

People who just sign off with their name anmoy me

And where i work you addjob specific qualifications to ypur signature

Jetstream · 13/04/2019 09:18

How is he expected to automatically know the company email signature formst if he hasn’t been told it? No wonder things aren’t going well for him, is there anything else he is expected to know about? Just take him aside and tell him, be friendly about it.

Putthatlampshadeonyourhead · 13/04/2019 09:18

I agree with the OP. It's wanky and smacks of insecurity.

Perhaps it does. Then perhaps insecurity is the cause of the other problems too.

If OP was a decent manager, she would be helping this person over come that and working with him on it.

The OP is clearly showing insecurity too if she views this as rude and gets enraged by it.

BalloonSlayer · 13/04/2019 09:20

I'm a bit confused by this. A relative of mine is a professor and so uses professor as her title when filling in forms and so on. Why wouldn't she? Likewise, DH has a PhD and so uses "Dr". Are you saying they should use Ms and Mr instead? Why?

Just seems to be the etiquette that unless you are using your PhD in your line of work (ie a University lecturer, or Scientist) you don't call yourself Doctor. Am not clever enough myself to have that luxury of a decision, just basing that on work friends who could all have called themselves Dr but would not as they were not working in the field of their Doctorate.

Having said all this, for women, Dr is a great alternative to Miss, Mrs or Ms if you are able to use it.