Email etiquette when confidentiality is important

Padlocks

A survey on the Flying Solo website found that over 54% of respondents believe it is appropriate email etiquette to discuss sensitive business topics via email. I think this is a huge risk for soloists and our customers.

Recently I met with a partner of a law firm who spoke of concerns within the practice in relation to business email etiquette and and confidentiality. In this instance, several staff were sending and receiving emails relative to a particular case. One employee decided to forward a message - and its chain of email history - to someone outside the business.

Luckily all was okay in this instance. Although the employee’s intentions were pure, the practice could have been open to the possibility of litigation as a result of the individual’s action. Not only would the firm’s integrity be open to question, but so too would the individual who forwarded the email.

Email has become so much a part of our everyday lives that we often react to it rather than use it as it was intended – as a tool to assist our business communications.

It isn’t our only form of communication!

Just as we often have to revisit the basic principles of customer service and sales, so too we should revisit our personal email etiquette and protocols.

When sending and receiving emails it is important to ask ourselves a number of pertinent questions:

Is email the most appropriate way to respond to this?
Would a phone call result in a more immediate outcome/resolution?
Is there any information in this email or documentation that may be considered organisational or client related intellectual property or confidential?

If the answer to any of these is yes, then stop!

Take a deep breath and think about your email before you send it. By thinking, we shift our mindset from reactive to proactive. We start to consider the impact and appropriateness of sending an email.

A few moments spent considering the situation can save you from potential embarrassment and humiliation.

Donna Hanson specialises in computer and technology related education for business and corporate users. Her company provides customised training and resources to help users understand and increase their knowledge of computer related technology.

3 comments | Add your own

Excellent reminder. If a subject is sensitive or confidential, then it's better to respond in a letter or phone call. Obviously the person is reaching out and needs a considered response.
If distance prevents other contact and email is the best form to reply, then a good recommendation is to make a draft email and save to the drafts folder; then reread it (and edit) at least twice before sending the email, bearing in mind that someone else could accidentally read it sometime. Karen from Springwood NSW
The problem with email communication for sensittive matters is that it is one-dimentional - there is no expression or tone of voice - so the essence in which the communication is being delivered can be lost or misinterpreted leading to offence where none may be intended. If the email exchange is then continued (and I have learned this from experience, the sensitive matter can escalate into a right to a right royal row, until someone picks up the phone to clear the air)
I agree with Karen, if you have a sensitive matter that you must communicate or reply to by email, save it in drafts at least overnight and re-read very carefully before you send. But ideally, pick up the phone, even if it is only to frame-up or qualify the email you are sending. Wendy Buckingham from Sydney, Australia | Read my articles
Very good advice and so true about the loss of tone to help get your point across in an email. Even forwarding a joke can cause problems, particularly if sending from a busines and it still has the trail of previous senders. It's always good policy to keep things between you and only the required recipients and delete any previous sending history, unless necessary to keep. I also ensure when sending fun stuff to put all the recipients in the BCC so information can't accidentally be passed on. Marie Chandler, Office Support Online from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

3 comments | Add your own

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