Email Etiquette When Vacating Your Post
When you leave a job, is one of the most wonderful opportunities you would have to showcase your professionalism and good etiquette. It is a monumental occasion that should not be taken lightly; it is one to be handled with utmost care and good judgment. While there are multiple angles that you need to consider, this post will cover purely the email etiquette that needs to be upheld when leaving a job.
01.Inform the Key Outsiders
It may not be practical to reach out to everyone on your network personally and notify them of your impending departure from the organisation you serve in. However, there would be key personnel with whom only you have developed a rapport and those who depend on you heavily for their interactions with your organisation. These parties should be notified via a personal email or even better, a call. Try to inform them at least a week or two before you leave and acquaint them with the person who would be taking over or give a temporary alternate contact.
02.Inform the Insiders
Either send a note to HR/ Admin for them to circulate on your behalf or if you are permitted, send out the email yourself to all those in your organisation just before you leave, so that everyone knows of it officially. People hearing of things through the grapevine or learning of your departure when they receive the farewell dinner invitation are not to be considered ‘good enough alternatives’.
03.Get an Automated Mail Set Up for After You Leave
Prior to leaving, speak to your manager and the IT department to make sure that an automated email is set up to show that you are no longer in service and provide an alternate contact point. The alternate should be your replacement or someone in your team who is capable of handling the query without any further redirection.
04.Have a Plan for Mail Redirection
Instead of getting the emailer to send the email to another person all over again, it would be better if the email thus received can be redirected to the alternate contact point. This should be notified to the emailer by stating something simple such as ‘Your email has been redirected to Person B who would attend to your query as Person A is no longer in service at Organisation A.
It does look like this is not your problem, but if you take the initiative and work with your boss and team to set this up, it will not only be appreciated, but it would go a long way to prove your professional etiquette.
05.Send a Thank You Note to Key Stakeholders
Send a personalised thank you note to both internal and external parties who played a key role in your career while at the organisation. This includes your boss and team mates. Even if you are leaving due to being demotivated or an internal dispute, the world is a small place and negativity should not travel. Let bygones be bygones and leave on a positive note by cementing yourself as a true professional with high personal standards and good etiquette.
Some make it a point to provide a personal contact number when leaving; this is entirely your choice and is not mandatory from an etiquette point of view. However, leave a personal contact number with your team for emergencies; that is a great gesture and would be really appreciated if you do answer it and help out in a crisis.
Planning to leave and have questions about handling the exit with composure and sophistication? Write to us at fullofetiquette@gmail.com.
Till I return with ‘Full of Etiquette’ next week, stay safe!
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Praveeni Jayasekera is the Founder and Editor of fullofetiquette.com; she is a regular advocate on the subject. She is an ACMA, CGMA; holds a BSc. Economics and Management; PG in IT and Diploma in Social Sciences. She is employed full time in the capacity of Chief Operating Officer at CL Synergy (Private) Limited; a Sri Lankan freight forwarding company. She is an ardent fan of the written word and has compiled content for numerous websites for search engine optimization (SEO) purposes, corporate profiles and blogs. She has experience in training corporate professionals on customer service and business etiquette. She conducts coaching sessions on etiquette for school children every now and then.
