Emailing etiquette- did I get it that wrong?

[Lemons1571]

I work in a professional support role/team in a huge public sector organisation. My own small team are operating at 25% (50% at best) due to sickness, leave, other reasons. And other teams within my dept are not doing their roles properly, coasting, and pushing queries that they arguably should be dealing with, onto us (they would have a different viewpoint on that I’m sure).

So i need to protect my poor team who are constantly on the verge of tears. A couple of times, I’ve forwarded email requests from the wider organisation who we support, to the (slacking, closer) teams, asking if there’s been progress and can anyone else help? And I have copied in the original business requestor.

I have now been pulled up, as copying in the wider business on these chaser emails “makes us look unprofessional and makes us look bad”.

Addressing and sorting the underperforming individuals seems impossible, managing anyone out just doesn’t happen, getting anyone to take ownership and accountability is zilch. So my team are truly suffering from the “ask a busy person” overwhelm from lots of people right across the frontline teams. If I lose remaining members of my own team, there won’t be anyone to answer any queries at all.

I feel like I can’t win. And like my own manager is completely focussing on the wrong issue and a different email etiquette won’t fix anything. Anyone got any advice? This email I sent chasing up the underperforming team and coping in the business, seems to have caused uproar.

It’s a very “keep calm and support the business” culture. Those working themselves to the bone are pushed and pushed, while those who check out on any kind of sick or absence leave are protected to the core. i am looking for another job anyway, but the market is dire right now.

Is it your responsibility to check that it was done? If it is not my remit and it came to me, I would:
If the right person is also copied in reply to the requester immediatley to say, thanks for the email. X should be dealing with it. If you need anything please do contact them directly. Then I can forget about it.
If the right person is not copied in I would forward to the right person and copy in the requester, then as per above.

I wouldn't keep it on my to do list/keep chasing. Especially if I'm busy and not in my remit to chase. It would be useful to understand what your role is.

Regarding others pushing things on to you, I would have a separate conversation about your team's remit and be clear about what they will do. Can use the reason if reduced resource to say why you are being much stricter on what you support with

This particular step of the task / process was not directly our responsibility. However we are a team that can be viewed as a bridge between the front line and getting admin done (new starters onto payroll, absence recorded correctly, invoices paid, that kind of issue).

The process often hits blockers where no one on the front line knows who to go to. So my team get all these “do you know…” “can you help…” emails, and are forever signposting forward to teams who should be responsible but who find it easier to hide.

The systems and technology are archaic, and do not support us in any way whatsoever.

Do you mean that

1. Request comes in re (eg) adding someone to payroll.
2. This request is not for you/you are not required to track progress, so you forward it on to the correct team.
3. A chaser to 1 is received.
4. You copy in original requestor and the team you forward it to.

If that’s the case, I’d be copying in original requestor the first time I forward it on. “Morning HR, please see below a request for your area from @ original requestor.”

Hopefully that will reduce follow up traffic to you as original requestor can see who deals.

By doing that, it may also mean it gives some education for any regular/similar requests and they may bypass you entirely.

FWIW, no, I don’t think cc’ing the original (internal) requestor into a chaser is poor etiquette, unless you are the team to be keeping the progress up to date.

Agree with this.

Also, if this keeps happening where things are wrongly routed to your team, then what is being done to educate the business broadly on who the correct contacts are. Until this is made clear then this will just continue and your team will continue to waste time on redirecting emails... Also,how about an auto reply on your teams emails, "if your email is related to payroll setup, please note we're unable to support you, you will need to contact [email protected] directly", the business will soon learn