General Etiquette > All In A Day's Work

e-mail response time . . . what does etiquette say? #20

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jpcher:
How quickly do you answer e-mails? What is the polite time-frame to respond?

I've had e-mailers send me an e-mail then, if I don't answer right away, call me 5 minutes later to ask "Did you get my e-mail?" I think this is very rude and bugs me to no end.

Granted, certain things have immediate deadlines and should be responded to right away. However, if the deadline is a week away do I need to respond immediately?

There are times when I'm working on my other computer (my Mac . . . I lurvs my Mac 8))  which isn't connected to internet, so I don't see e-mails when they pop up.

Even on my PC (where I get the e-mails) sometimes I'll turn off my e-mail signal just so that I can work in peace without interruption.

Am I being rude by not responding to every e-mail as soon as they come through?

What is your time line? How quickly do you respond to e-mails?

Dazi:
I would say within 24 hours unless it has been red flagged by the sender as must have answer now.

Typically I answer my emails within 15-20 minutes unless I am at lunch, on a break or just away from my desk.  However, I do work with a particular program frequently that will NOT  allow my email pop-up to actually pop up and I do get calls sometimes when I am working on it for long periods of time.

I think there is more of an expectation of "must have now" now that most companies use email or im regularly.  I know my boss has told our entire office it may take her several days to answer our emails if they are not an emergency, just due to the sheer number she receives.

I don't think there is anything wrong with telling your cw's something similar or putting an auto reply alert that lets them know you received their message and it may be up to xxx amount of time for them to receive a reply back.

PastryGoddess:
Personally I answer emails within an hour or so of seeing them.  however, if it is for business, I give myself 24 hours to answer just in case I have to do research or get an answer from someone else.

For people who do call 5 minutes after sending the email, I respond that yes I saw an email come through, but have not had a chance to read it. I then tell them that I'll take a look at it and answer as soon as possible.  Often, this is not true as I'll have read the whole email, but if you are that impatient and it's something that can wait, then that email will get answered when I get done with what I'm working on. 

Pippen:
I answer them when I am good and ready.

MOM21SON:
Our policy at work is 4 hours.  It doesn't always happen, but very close.

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