To not like impromptu calls on MS Teams?

[AlertBird]

I really dislike when people randomly call me on Teams without any warning. A quick message first would be nice! It always feels intrusive, especially when I’m in the middle of something or not in the right headspace for a call.

AIBU to find this annoying? Do most people just answer, or do you ignore and pretend you’re away?

I mean, in years gone by, I had a phone on my desk. There was no warning that that was about to ring. Surely Teams is just the same. Why object to a call? You're at work after all. Just answer it, pretty sure that's what you're paid to do. Honestly everyone is so coddled these days. 20 years ago can you imagine telling your boss you needed a warning before somebody rang you? For God's sake.

YABU - it’s the wfh equivalent of someone coming over to your desk. In normal work hours you should just be prepared to receive calls from people IMO.
If you’re doing something that needs a period of extended concentration you should mark your status as busy or do not disturb.

It’s tricky because some people might not see the message, but might receive the call. What happens if the call is missed? I’m not sure why someone would pretend to be busy when expecting a call?

Is not just like people calling you on a phone?
It is for me as Teams has replaced phones and I no longer have one (for work). Nobody ever messaged me to ask if they could ring before.

We tend to send a message first to check, or better still get it booked in as a meeting even if it is short notice.

This!

I'm old school and ring if you're showing as available. You can decline the call. Otherwise you should have DND on.

God its the work equivalent of never answering your front door... Of course you should expect calls during your work day.

People are odd.

Same here, I’m used to this etiquette, which is why it throws me off when people don’t do it!

YABU - you should be available to take calls during work time. If you’re not set your status to away or busy.

I mean a quick message is nice, but if I'm showing as green, I'm happy to take calls! Whyever not!

Agree. I work entirely remotely and make sure everyone knows if they need to do the remote worker equivalent of “swinging their chair round” and asking a question they absolutely can.

Meh depends. If I've been trying to get hold of someone for ages & I spot them green I might take the opportunity although I generally ping them first to see if it's OK.
Just don't answer if you don't want to talk 🤷‍♀️

I like a letter to be posted to me informing me I will soon get an email, then an email telling me that person is about to send me a Teams message, then a Teams message saying they are about to call me. Only after that am I able to talk on the phone. Afterwards I have a treat for being brave and lie down for 30 minutes.

I use Zoom not Teams for calls but I hate it too.

Zoom bombs. Fuck off.

I just don't answer. Then they Teams me their one sentence question which I answer within 30 seconds. No need to make a musical of it.

On the other hand I don’t tend to ‘cold call’ people myself- I’ll send a message asking if they can spare two minutes for a chat about x please.
it’s usually a bit more efficient if you’ve given people some notice to talk about a particular thing (they can refresh their memory/get up to speed about the subject) but don’t expect everyone to do the same.

My work has a policy that cameras are always on and it works really well. I freelance so I’ve worked in loads of places and it actually works the best at this place. It actually feels like you’re part of a team even though you’re remote. Other places are very isolated.

It wasn’t that long ago really - for me 7 years? The look from your secretary when you let it bounce and it went to them 🤣

If I’m Green it’s fair game, if I want to be left alone I’ll put myself on DND

When you put it like that...

YANBU. I don’t mind being interrupted for a quick question but I have a mobile phone (as does everyone in my company) and I don’t understand why people don’t use it. Why a Teams call instead of just picking up the phone? With Teams I have to faff around with putting on a headset etc, which I don’t always have ready because I get maybe one call per day, whereas a phone you can just pick up and answer straight away.

If it’s anything longer than a very quick question, as others have pointed out, you could always schedule a call or send a message first. Personally I would tend to schedule.

I don’t understand. If I don’t feel like I want to take a teams call I just ignore it and call the person back when I’m not busy. Same with phone calls.

I agree with you op. It sets me on edge.

I don't like taking unexpected phone calls either.

I think it totally depends on your workplace culture. It is really unusual for anyone to call me when WFH without dropping me a message first to see if it's a good time. DH however is back and forth on Teams calls all day when he WFH and it's totally normal in his workplace to just cold call.

My work is much more about research and writing whilst his is more fast-paced and collaborative which probably explains the different approaches. It's very rare that anyone needs information off me/ to discuss something urgently, whereas for him that's a key part of his role.

Use your teams status as its intended! If you are deep in concentration on a particular task, then set it to DND, otherwise YABU to expect people to message you first!