"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
03/04/2019 at 15:45 • Filed to: None
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"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
03/04/2019 at 15:45 • Filed to: None | 0
| 13 |
I frequently have to call people who are “too important” to respond to someone as lowly as myself, but my job is somewhat time-sensitive. In this case, I called Friday and was told this person had left for the day but would return my call this morning. I sent an email mid-morning and have not heard back by either. Planning on calling shortly, but I’m never sure when this becomes nagging.
(Dude is 9 hours away, I need to inspect the place this week...and he is presumably the one who instigated the process requiring the inspection)
farscythe - makin da cawfee!
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 16:02 |
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who cares when it becomes nagging
dudes paid to deal with your shit
Ash78, voting early and often
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 16:04 |
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If at all possible, CC someone higher up in your followups. That’s the universal symbol for “I’m not messing around” and it’s not even rude. It’s expected.
If you need to be more direct than that, just throw out a quick line or two about the benefits of replying — conversely, explain how much hassle the recipient will face if he doesn’t get back to you.
Either/both should get you something. I’ve been full-time remote for 3 years and the art of email is like the cornerstone of half
my work.
AestheticsInMotion
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 16:07 |
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I’ve found that adding a more important title to the end of my emails increases the likelihood of getting quick responses, better treatment, etc. This may not be feasible for you, but just going from "Operations Manager" to "Director of Operations" or "Regional Operations Manager" made a relavent difference. Because I'm a total dork, I originally made a spreadsheet tracking callbacks and response time to see if this actually had any effect.
WilliamsSW
> Ash78, voting early and often
03/04/2019 at 16:11 |
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^^^
I try not to do this unless I have to, but I find that this works *very well*. People notice when higher ups are copied on emails.
It really shouldn’t matter, but it does.
MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 16:18 |
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You’re not nagging in the least, you were told they’d call in a certain time frame and even sent an email towards the end of that time frame as a reminder. At this point it’s definitely not morning anymore, calling is perfectly fine.
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smobgirl
> AestheticsInMotion
03/04/2019 at 16:21 |
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Hahaha, I love that you made the spreadsheet. I’ve also done some experimenting and I tend to get better responses through email because my name is gender-neutral-leaning-towards-male, where a phone call/voicemail immediately ruins that. My boss doesn’t care about my title at all so maybe I’ll play around with the phrasing.
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smobgirl
> MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
03/04/2019 at 16:25 |
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I mean to be fair, I’m technically only nagging his secretary and she’s probably used to it.
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MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 16:29 |
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Either way it’s not nagging in my opinion.
Calling always seems to get the quickest answers though in my experience.
functionoverfashion
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 16:46 |
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I don’t know, smob girl kind of gives away gender if you ask me.
But seriously, I have a gender-neutral-maybe-leaning-toward-female name and I hear you on assumptions made ....
SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 17:07 |
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I tend towards bluntness. Asking the question “Do you want this job done on your time or my time?” does tend to move things along...
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smobgirl
> Ash78, voting early and often
03/04/2019 at 17:12 |
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Unfortunately I’m not able to CC anyone he would have heard of. I’ve reiterated a few times that I needed confirmation TODAY. He’s “out” when I call, so I told my boss so he can tell our client so they can tell their client so they can tell this guy to please respond or his loan closing will be delayed and/or he can pay more to expedite.
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smobgirl
> MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
03/04/2019 at 17:16 |
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It usually works sooner than later if I have a direct line (secretary or not). I’ve had two sitcom caricatures of uncaring hourly employees take messages, been hung upon twice, and left on hold while someone went to lunch. I think I’ve given it a good enough try for today!
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Ash78, voting early and often
> smobgirl
03/04/2019 at 17:31 |
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In that case, you can call out the CC specifically (eg “I’m copying John Doe, manager of loan discombobulation, as an fyi or in case I’m unavailable when you call.”)
Good luck with it...amazing that people are willing to delay loan closings like that. I deal with loans, but on the workout/impairment side, so we have to work with a lot of very rich dirtbags along the way.