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Business
Etiquette
First
published in four parts on www.successfactory.co.za
Copyright
© 2007 Elsabé
Manning
Used with
permission of the author:
Author: Elsabé
Manning
www.successfactory.co.za
20 November 2007
Content
Business
etiquette describes the display of certain behaviours, actions,
attitude and overall conduct in business, which is based on our
personal and professional values, culture and expectations.
Many
business deals have been lost due to unintentional lack of manners
or etiquette. Ignorant, unintentional behaviour, causing people to
feel disrespected or abused has lost organisations and business
leaders a lot of money and respect. You may never be given a
second chance unless you find out what went wrong and can admit
your ignorance and apologise profusely. Make it your business to
know as much as possible about the client’s and/or the
organisation’s culture and expectations.
The
most important thing to remember is to be courteous, considerate
and thoughtful to everyone around you, regardless of the
situation. Address conflict situations with utmost respect and
apologise when you step on toes.
Remember,
when speaking in meetings, not to raise your voice, remain calm at
all times and think before you speak. You will earn the respect
and credibility expected of you.
Build
relationships
-
Make
it your business to get to know as many people in your own and
your client’s organisations as possible. Secretaries, PA’s
and receptionists may have more clout than you think. The rule
of thumb is to treat everyone with respect. You never know
when you may need them.
-
Always
be ready to introduce yourself to other participants in
workshops, meetings or functions and hand a clean business
card to each person. Remember, you never know who you might
meet at social functions. Use the opportunity to network.
-
Be
sincere in your approach and be a good listener. Ask
open-ended questions (“What do you do for a living?”) –
it gets people talking about themselves, their business etc.
-
Keep
notes on people. Create a contact database with names, name of
company they work for, type of industry, the person they work
for, their designation, addresses, phone numbers, birthdays,
spouse and children’s names etc. All and any appropriate
information you may need. Remember to use the information.
Send an e-mail or make a phone call to them on their birthday
or to congratulate them on a promotion. Send a gift for
engagements, weddings or send condolences for a death of a
loved one. Remember to check the person’s religious or
cultural background, because it may not be acceptable or
appropriate to send gifts or certain colours or types of
flowers.
-
Kindness
is a virtue. If you are kind to everyone you come into contact
with, you will gain the respect and admiration of others and
by being courteous and respectful to everyone you come into
contact with, you avoid ever having to apologise for your
conduct or ignorance.
-
Remember
to build relationships inside your own organisation as well.
Colleagues and direct reports may help or hinder your
promotion in the organisation. They may leave your
organisation and become an important client or join a
sought-after organisation.
-
Always
give people the benefit of doubt.
Superiors
-
Always
give your boss clear and concise feedback. Report your
movements to your boss and make sure that you inform him / her
of issues that may arise. Be sure that your boss is aware of
all outcomes and milestones.
-
Always
treat your boss with the utmost of respect and never speak ill
of him or her. The same applies to your organisation.
Don’t
-
Step
on anyone’s toes. In other words, be careful not to intrude
on anyone’s space, deals etc. You need permission to
approach someone else’s client, staff member or boss.
-
It
would be unprofessional to give a colleague’s staff a task
to perform or to wrap them over the knuckles for something
done wrong. You need to approach their direct superior (your
colleague), who will deal with it.
-
Do
not go over a client’s head to their boss, for business. You
need to ask your client’s permission to approach anyone else
in the organisation. If you suspect that they will block you
to protect themselves, then say, “I hope you don’t mind if
I see Mr Jones. It is vital to get his input on the issue of
training the staff. Would you like to be present?”
-
Don’t
report colleagues to superiors. You will be viewed as childish
and perhaps jealous. It is best to stay out of other
people’s business, unless you witnessed disrespect or a
crime or something that will affect the company or you
personally.
-
Don’t
speak negatively about your organisation to others. If the
company is that bad you shouldn’t be there. Your values
should be in sync with organisational values – if you feel
it is not, you should find another job.
-
Never
burn a bridge. In other words always make sure that your
relationships are intact with colleagues, staff, superiors,
clients and client’s staff. If you make an enemy out of
anyone, it will come back to bite you some day. You may sit
opposite that person for an interview one day – and you will
NOT get the job or you may need them for something else. Dr
Phil McGraw said: “You either contaminate a relationship or
you contribute to it…”
Meetings
Meetings
are often seen as a waste of time. This may happen when the
organiser and / or chairperson of the meeting didn’t do enough
preparation.
Communicate:
-
The
objective of the meeting
-
The
expected duration of the meeting
-
The
exact location of the meeting
-
The
names of everyone expected to attend
-
The
minutes of the previous meeting (if any)
-
The
agenda
Remember
to:
-
Do
your homework. You may have been given a task in the last
meeting. Don’t wait until the last minute before completing
the task
-
Excuse
yourself, preferably in writing and in good time, if you are
unable to attend the meeting. If you had a task to perform,
make sure that it’s done and report on when you excuse
yourself from the meeting. Do not make a habit of excusing
yourself from meetings.
-
Make
every effort to attend every meeting, because management will
notice.
-
Observe
the rules of meetings.
-
Be
on time.
-
Be
prepared.
-
Do
not be loud or disruptive.
-
Tell
the truth.
-
Give
any and all feedback required of you.
-
Be
respectful of everybody.
-
Observe
the rules of Communicating With Integrity elsewhere in
this book.
-
Listen
before you give your point of view.
-
Resolve
conflict amicably and respectfully.
-
Do
not leave the meeting, unless there is a crisis.
-
Switch
your cell phone off.
-
Participate.
-
Stick
to the commitments you make in meetings.
If
you chair the meeting:
-
Do
not allow interruptions. Management often feel they have the
right to interrupt informal working sessions or meetings of
subordinates. This may be viewed as disrespectful, unless it
is an urgent matter that needs to be attended to immediately.
Always apologise if you must interrupt conversation, meetings
or someone’s concentration on a task.
-
Make
sure that you thank everyone for their time and participation.
-
Get
approval of previous well-documented minutes.
-
Never
assign work to anyone not present in the meeting, unless it is
absolutely necessary. Note that the person has not agreed to
do the task and that they have not been informed of it yet.
-
Stick
to the agenda. As the person chairing the meeting, you are
responsible for reaching outcomes of the meeting as quickly
and effectively as possible.
-
Thank
everyone again for attending at the close of the meeting and
for the tasks they agreed to do.
-
Remind
everyone of the time, date and venue of the next meeting
New
staff members and guests
- Be
well prepared for any visiting guests, or for the arrival of
new staff members. Don’t leave everything to the last minute
to organise.
- All
guests should be fetched from reception. Do not let your
guests wander through the building looking for you.
- Greet
and introduce yourself to your guests by shaking hands. Do not
use the ‘African’ handshake unless you are sure that they
know it well.
- Invite
the guests to use your first name, and they may reciprocate.
If they are guests of your superior, you should not use their
first names unless they invite you to. People should be
introduced to each other in a professional manner.
- Guests
visiting a manager should be taken to an agreed place such as
a boardroom or the manager’s office. Make sure the manager
has been notified of the visitor’s arrival.
- Make
sure the guests are introduced to everyone. Also make the
necessary introductions if people from within the organisation
don’t know each other, invite everyone to take a seat, and
offer them something to drink.
- All
guests should be welcomed sincerely and made to feel at home
as soon as possible.
- Make
sure that the guests have all the resources and information
they need to do their job. The same applies to visitors who
may be with you for a while, for instance consultants,
auditors, trainers, facilitators, or people from Revenue
Services. They will need to use relevant documentation and
information—allow them access to everything necessary.
- If
a guest is to be provided with an office or work area, make
sure that it is of a standard similar to one you would give to
an employee working in a comparable role.
Visiting
your clients It
doesn’t matter how well you know your client, you have to make
sure that your conduct is utterly professional at all times when
you visit them. Here are some useful rules.
-
Always
make an appointment in advance — never arrive unannounced at
your client’s office or business.
-
Make
sure that you have all relevant documentation with you.
-
You
simply must be on time. Make every effort in this regard.
-
Write
down the name of the receptionist so that you can use it next
time
-
Switch
your cell phone off. You cannot under any circumstances
receive or make calls in the company of your client, unless it
is for their benefit and with their approval.
-
Do
not smoke, unless your client is a smoker and you are in a
designated area. If your client is smoking, you can ask for
permission to light up too.
-
Make
sure that you have done what you promised to do or what is
expected of you. Do not make excuses or give outlandish
reasons why something has not been done.
-
Look
and behave your best. Don’t be loud or aggressive.
-
Never
lie to anyone about anything. Your organisation’s image will
be tarnished and the client will have the right to take
serious steps against you. If this happens you may even lose
your job.
-
Deal
with your meeting professionally and do not overstay your
welcome.
-
If
your client seems to be in a hurry, politely refuse any offer
of a drink since this is likely to delay your departure, and
thus delay your client.
-
Do
not wander through your client’s organisation hoping to meet
more people. This is unprofessional and will be viewed with
suspicion.
-
If
you want to meet more people in your contact’s organisation,
ask them whether they would be willing introduce you, or
whether it would be in order for you to contact other people
yourself. Do not go over your client’s head.
-
Diarise
everything. If you do not, you may miss your next meeting, or
forget to do certain tasks. It is totally unacceptable to say
you forgot.
-
Always
thank you client for their time, and shake hands. Do not greet
your client with a kiss — even if you know them well.
Elsabé
Manning is an Executive, Life and Business Coach; Facilitator;
Author of Up The Corporate Ladder - Professionalism in the
Workplace, Public Speaker and Consultant. She studied Human
Resource Management at RAU in Johannesburg. Elsabé founded Success
Factory - a highly successful business, specialising in
professionalism; communication; sales training; performance
management; leadership development; coaching, mentoring and team
re-building. She consults with organisations on skills development
and coaching for individuals and teams from foundation to executive
level. Elsabé is a sought-after public speaker and an accomplished
writer. She writes weekly leadership and self-development articles
for organisations and she has a monthly television slot on Professionalism
in the Workplace on the commercial channel of DSTV and her own
professionalism slot on ABSA Bank’s internal television training
channel. Elsabé is a member of the Coach Trainers Association of
South Africa - A Special Interest Group of COMENSA (Coaches and
Mentors of South Africa). She stays abreast of all the latest ideas
and developments through constant self-development and her own
personal coaching programme. Success
Factory is an accredited service provider - SETQAA
Decision Number 2075.
She can be contacted at
011 648 8969 or www.successfactory.co.za
Short summary
Business etiquette supports one's professional image and reputation
, as well as that of the organisation. Keywords
and relevant phrases
abuse, access to information, actions, apology, appointment,
appreciation, attitude, behaviour, business card, business
etiquette, clarity, communication, conduct, conflict, considerate,
contact database, contribution, courteous, credibility, culture,
expectation, feedback, handshake, honesty, ignorance,
induction, introduction, kindness, listening skills, manners,
meeting etiquette, milestones, minutes, networking, outcomes,
participation, permission, preparation, professionalism,
promotion, punctuality, reception, relationship, reputation,
reputation management, respect, sincerity, thoughtful,
understanding, trust, values, virtue, welcome,
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