What is the best way to word my persistent e-mail "follow-ups" with non-responsive colleagues?

March 25, 2011 8:07 AM

What is the best way to word my persistent e-mail "follow-ups" with non-responsive colleagues?

I work for an agency that employs about 180 people and the agency's role is to regulate a technical sector.

A lot of the people are perfect nerd stereotypes: brilliant in their areas of expertise but don't have much experience interacting with the general public. Also, they seem to have underdeveloped communication skills in general.

My role is to respond to the general public's enquiries but frequently my responses need to include very technical, precise explanations where I have to get exact legal/technical wording from other staff.

I have 15 days to respond to an initial e-mail to the agency and no formal timeline for follow-ups. I have the option of sending an interim response along the lines of, "Thank-you for your correspondence; we need more time to find an answer for you," but I like to get my work done in a timely fashion and prefer not to rely on that interim response. Also I feel it's disrespectful to the enquirer if I let it drag on forever.

I find staff will sometimes not reply to my enquiries for days and weeks. I can't go to their supervisor because they're the supervisor.

Also I should mention I'm near the bottom of the pile at the organization and so I have no authority to "order" anyone to help me.

I send my enquiries to staff over e-mail and need to continue to do so. (I am not looking for suggestions about stopping into people's offices in person or talking over the phone. The nature of the work doesn't really allow for this option.)

My questions are:

-How frequently should I follow-up with people for their responses?

-How should I word my 2nd, 3rd and 4th e-mail follow-ups?

-What has worked for you when your work hinges on the actions of a higher-up colleage, but don't want to be a pest?

(I saw this question but it deals more with the sales side of things.)

posted by cranberrymonger to Work & Money (25 answers total)

(bah, i should read the entire question)

If you can't make phone calls or drop by the office, can you IM them?

If you can't IM, what i've found starts getting attention is CC'ing various people if the initial person doesn't respond.

I'd send a follow up daily. Perhaps at different times of the day. (Maybe people get swamped first thing in the morning and might respond better in the afternoon).

Every follow up after the first, CC additional people that might be able to respond or get things moving (whether it's a supervisor or not). This will almost always get SOMEONE involved. But don't CC a bunch of people from the beginning because often people will think someone else will take care of it if it's sent to a ton of people.
posted by empath at 8:13 AM on March 25, 2011 [2 favorites]

Also, technical people often work through a ticket system and kind of ignore direct emails unless someone brings them to their attention that they need to act on it, do you have a ticket system there?
posted by empath at 8:14 AM on March 25, 2011 [1 favorite]

(I am not looking for suggestions about stopping into people's offices in person or talking over the phone. The nature of the work doesn't really allow for this option.)

If the reason is that you need to have the technical wording in writing, that's fine - shouldn't prevent you from phonecalling just to get the other person on the line and saying "I need that response by tomorrow." Phone calling just really gets people's attention. It will be more embarrassing for the person and demonstrate your seriousness and persistence in the way one email in a giant inbox with hundreds of emails on a non-urgent (to them) matter never can.

I have a colleague who isn't shy about bolding key lines in a severe email, like "This is my third request. This response is needed by Friday at the latest." You can try this, but even so, it's easier to ignore than a voice or face communicating directly with you.
posted by Miko at 8:15 AM on March 25, 2011

Best answer: The nature of the work doesn't really allow for this option.

I can't think what you mean by this. You don't have to call them and get the information over the phone - I generally just use the phone to remind them to respond to my email it is urgent and I will bug you until you do so.

So it would go like this:

(1) Send an email, "If I don't hear back from you I will give you a call"
(2) Wait a few hours to a day
(3) Call, "Did your receive my email? Do you have any questions or requests for clarification? When do you think you will be able to respond?"
(4) Based on their response to step 3, wait until their self-enforced time limit has passed, and then give them another call. Remind them that they said they'd be ready by now. Ask when they will be able to respond.

Repeat step 4 until you get results.
posted by muddgirl at 8:18 AM on March 25, 2011 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Just to clarify... I am not prevented from stopping in/calling them but as Miko said, I do need the technical wording in writing.

I find when I stop by in person, they'll give me the "plain language" version so that I can understand it, which is good, but I can't send that wording out to the public.
posted by cranberrymonger at 8:18 AM on March 25, 2011

Best answer: I have sometimes done a bit of passive-aggressive behavior on my nagging emails. If I have not received an answer to a query in a timely manner, I REPLY to my own message so that the text of my initial request is below, and then write something alone the lines of "Hi, Joe. I hope all's going well. I'm just following up on my email from last month regarding the xyz matter. Could you please tell me __________."

If the second request goes unanswered, repeat. That way, you are creating a record of the requests you've made (along with their frequency). In some cases the chain of unanswered emails can get quite long.

Be careful, though. This tactic can become an unwelcome nag if you're sending the emails every day and there's lots of time for the responder to get back to you. I usually only start doing this when things become overdue or there is a pressing deadline.
posted by QuantumMeruit at 8:25 AM on March 25, 2011 [2 favorites]

This is ancillary to your question, but I hope that when members of the public send you a message, you reply immediately letting them know that you'll get back to them within X amount of time (apparently 15 days). For someone sending an email to a stranger, it can be off-putting to just not get a response for two weeks. Sending that initial email with a timeframe estimate in it might also help you later on if you do find you need more time, because you'll have already established contact and can say "here's what I know now, and I'm continuing to do more research and will get you the rest within x days." That way, they don't feel put-off, they feel like you're working hard on their case. And that gives you some breathing room to wrangle the answers out of the tech staff.

Also, you may need to get your boss and the tech folks' bosses on board. Clearly, this is a high priority for you, but your boss needs to help you convince the tech folks' bosses to make them take this seriously and do the work if it's a priority for the organization. Your boss can help you with the personnel management side. Or, if it's actually not supposed to be a priority for the tech staff, your boss should help you figure out how to deal with that.
posted by decathecting at 8:26 AM on March 25, 2011 [2 favorites]

Best answer: I find when I stop by in person, they'll give me the "plain language" version so that I can understand it, which is good, but I can't send that wording out to the public.

Oh if that's the problem, don't ask them to give you the explanation in person. Just stop by their office and say, "Hey, can you reply to my email at some point today?"
posted by empath at 8:29 AM on March 25, 2011

When I make an initial request, I tend to go with a two week lead time. It looks like this:

Dear Johnny,

Can you please provide me with a chart of YTD widget operations for FY11?

I need this information by April 15th, but you can get it to me earlier.

I will follow up with you in five days if I do not receive a response.

Sincerely,
Cranberry

If I don't receive a response at all, I send the following five days later:

Johnny,

I am following up with a reminder that I need the chart of YTD widget operations for FY11. I need it by Friday, April 15th.

Please respond to this email with a timeline of when I can expect this document.

If I do not receive it, I will have to let Regional Manager know that we are lacking this important document.

Sincerely,
Cranberry

If I still don't get a response, I send an email the day the item is due, saying:

Johnny,

The due date for the widget chart is today. Please send it to me as soon as possible.

If I do not receive it, I will have to convey to internal and external audiences that this chart is not available.

Sincerely,
Cranberry

In short, tell them exactly what you need, exactly when you need it, and the consequences for not providing it. If they still fail to get you the information, you're going to have to tell whoever needs the info that unfortunately it is not available. Your audience will do the rest. This is a strictly CYA endeavor.
posted by juniperesque at 8:31 AM on March 25, 2011 [6 favorites]

Response by poster: For someone sending an email to a stranger, it can be off-putting to just not get a response for two weeks.

I said "email" but the public actually sends their enquiries through a webform and there's a pop-up after submission that gives the timeline. They're also given the option of phoning the agency's call centre if they really can't wait.
posted by cranberrymonger at 8:32 AM on March 25, 2011

Best answer: Welcome to my workday! I often need written responses from some of our supervisor folks here, who can be bad about responding.

My boss and I have developed what he calls "strategic notification" to deal with this. Here's how it works:

1) I send email notification to the person who's supposed to give me an answer. I indicate clearly in the email when the due date is.
2) After a few days, I phone the person or go see them in their offices to remind them they need to respond to me in writing.
3) If they persist in not responding, I send another email, and this time I copy my boss.
4) If the deadline is looming and I still have no response after multiple phone calls and emails, I send an email to my boss, with his boss in cc, noting the items that are in danger of being past-due.

It's extremely rare that I have to go all the way to 4. Usually just copying my boss on the email is enough to bestir the other person into responding.

I should note that I am unfailingly courteous, friendly and gentle in my reminders. I also follow up after I get what I need by being friendly and pleasant to the person who gave me the response. If the information providers feel that the nagging is because the matter is urgent, they are less likely to label me a nag, and are more likely to respond in a timely manner the next time.

Good luck!
posted by LN at 8:35 AM on March 25, 2011 [2 favorites]

I have a colleague who isn't shy about bolding key lines in a severe email, like "This is my third request. This response is needed by Friday at the latest." You can try this

Given your status in the organization, I absolutely do not recommend this. It sounds like you have no authority, and seeming rude will not make you a priority. I always have more work to do than time available, and rude people go straight to the bottom of the list.

I said "email" but the public actually sends their enquiries through a webform and there's a pop-up after submission that gives the timeline.

Given the number of organizations where these timelines are blatant lies, I would not find that reassuring at all. In general, it is professional to reply promptly to inquiries even to say that the response is not ready immediately. If I knew an actual human being with a name were on the job, I think I would relax about it quite a bit. Having to phone the agency's call center is a failure of the system and a waste of time for everyone involved.
posted by grouse at 8:37 AM on March 25, 2011

If I had submitted such a request, I would definitely appreciate some notification that the email was received and that you're looking into it. (even an automated message is better than nothing, but a message that had even a tiny bit of content would be much better!)
posted by leahwrenn at 9:10 AM on March 25, 2011

One trick to getting people to do things is asking them "What can I do to help you respond to my request?" It sounds helpful, even though there is likely nothing you can do.
posted by Gor-ella at 9:19 AM on March 25, 2011

Best answer: One thing it took me a while to learn is the importance of being concise in business emails. If your request is buried in the middle of a paragraph, or at the end of a lengthy explanation, the recipient may not even notice it. I got better results once I started thinking of business emails like resumes: assume nobody's going to read it word-for-word. Make sure your most important point (i.e. the request and deadline) is going to jump out when somebody quickly scans the email.
posted by vytae at 9:52 AM on March 25, 2011 [3 favorites]

Best answer: A lot of the people are perfect nerd stereotypes: brilliant in their areas of expertise but don't have much experience interacting with the general public.

If they hit the full nerd stereotype of analytical thinkers, what may help is to try to word the e-mails as a problem for them to solve rather than a favour for them to do for you. Softer or more social approaches don't necessarily work for technically minded people.
posted by slimepuppy at 10:08 AM on March 25, 2011 [1 favorite]

One thing not to do is get cute with the wording.

I have someone in my office who has taken to appending 'Gentle Reminder' to all of his emails that require a response. The amount of passive aggression perceived in that phrasing means that I'm slowly building up an impressive volume of resentment and irritation the moment I see his name, which is not what you want to happen.

If you have an email system with calendar attached, can you send them a reminder through that?
posted by winna at 10:22 AM on March 25, 2011 [2 favorites]

Yeah, when I had an unresponsive boss, I tended to put things like, "Please respond to this email so that I know you received it" in the email (he liked to pretend like his email system ate my emails to avoid me), which allows you the opportunity to call in a couple of hours/next day if you don't get that reply to make sure they are getting stuff. Also, if it's only a couple people who are chronically bad with them, perhaps a call or visit to suggest ways that you can help them out so that you can get the answer quicker (remember to phrase it as such, if you ask what they can do to get information to you faster, they will just be annoyed at you). Then you have let them know, very politely while offering to help, that they need to be better about responding to you.
posted by katers890 at 10:24 AM on March 25, 2011

The people who say to call are correct. I have worked with many a socially awkward person who prefers e-mail than phone. Hell, I am one of those people.

But it's not just the calling that will get you a speedy e-mail response, it's the threat of calling. Tell them specifically in your initial e-mail that you don't hear from them by x day, that you will call. Play on their fear of phones to get your response faster.
posted by Tooty McTootsalot at 10:46 AM on March 25, 2011

Best answer: I had to do this a lot, too.

Don't be passive aggressive. "Gentle Reminder" wording and email return-receipts are obnoxious.

I'd always put the important information in underlined bold. I made the emails formulaic so that I could send the same wording for every request and it wouldn't seem like my bolding/underlining was a personal comment on their laziness/forgetfulness.

Subject: Public Question re: Quarks--DUE APRIL 15th
Hey Jim:
I need an answer to this question by Monday, April 15th:
What is a Quark?
Please let me know if you need any additional info on this.
Thanks, Cranberrymonger

And then my next email would maybe be on Thursday, same subject line, with the first email quoted at the bottom (Reply to the email you sent to him to keep the chain intact):
Hey Jim:
Just following-up on Question #12345. Please get the answer to me by Monday, April 15th.
Thanks, Cranberrymonger

Make it standard practice to send the follow-up email a certain number of days before the deadline.

Next email, day before due date:
Hey Jim:
Will you be able to get me that answer for Question #12345? I need it by tomorrow, Monday, April 15th. Please let me know if you will not be able to get it to me on time so that I can inform the requester.
Thanks, Cranberrymonger

Next email, maybe 3:30 on the day that it's due:
Hey Jim:
Will you be able to get me that answer to Question #12345? I need it by 4:30 p.m. today. Please let me know ASAP.
Thanks, Cranberrymonger

Next email, day after it's due. CC someone who will intimidate:
Hey Jim:
Do you know when you will be able to get that answer to me for Question #12345? It is now 1 day overdue. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help things along.
Thanks, Cranberrymonger

Send another overdue email on the 5th overdue day, again cc-ing someone.

If you make this your standard procedure, it won't seem as rude. It'll still be annoying, but this is your job.
posted by thebazilist at 11:15 AM on March 25, 2011 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Wow, so many awesome answers. I think I could definitely improve in the areas that a few people cited:

-being more concise
-having a regular follow-up schedule
-present the issue as a "problem to be solved" and not a "favour to me"
-keeping chattiness out of the e-mails but still being polite

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I knew MeFi would come up with some good material!
posted by cranberrymonger at 11:47 AM on March 25, 2011

I just want to second, that as a technical person in charge of solving issues, sometimes I get requests directly to my inbox when in reality I can only solve those issues that come to me through tickets.
posted by The1andonly at 1:33 PM on March 25, 2011

Putting a "Response Requested by" Date in the subject line of the email is always helpful--for the recipient. Assuming that these responses do not require much time to research, use two business days. (A longer timeline invites procrastination.) Never send any of these requests on a Friday and try to send them in the early morning whenever possible. If it's possible in your company's email system, make your email work like a submission form. Something about the open, endless possibilities of a blank (email) document can stop some folks in their tracks.

N'ting using your help desk/ticket system if possible.

Do you report out to the organization on the frequency of these requests and the speed-to-answer? It's actually a great customer focus metric and publishing your SLA expectations will give you something solid to build your response times around. . . . arbitrary can be perceived as unimportant.
posted by Kalatraz at 5:57 PM on March 25, 2011

Everyone reports to someone.... unless you're at the top.

You need your communications documented.

You need buy-in from the business, in the form of a document everyone agreed to, or that the uber-boss stamped, that says the SLA for your type of requests are X days. Figure out how to write that document, and get it stamped - that's your job. Set up the process to get the results YOU need to do YOUR job for the BUSINESS.

You don't have authority to override some developer manager, but if your business has a commitment to deliver something to a third party, and you are in charge of making sure that happens, then you need support from that business to make it happen. IT doesn't have to be in the form of direct authority, it can simply be a documented procedure that everyone gets. And it has to have consequences if people fail to respond.

Don't set yourself up to have to chase everyone for answers - though a reminder system of some sort is good (ticketing system or otherwise). Set up and get formal procedures approved... .essentially, define how your job will fit into the business and then get the management team to agree to it (maybe with a few rounds of feedback)

There are all kinds of tricks to get individuals to respond faster - single emails, treating each person a bit differently as you figure them out - but seriously, defining things clearly on all sides and ensuring the follow-up process is there for non-compliance with protocol should be all it takes.
posted by TravellingDen at 9:30 PM on March 25, 2011

This is the story of how I learnt how bad a communicator I am, I hope it helps someone.

I took a communications course. The teacher said "Remember a problem you worked on, where you need someones help. Send them an email to ask for their help".

So I wrote this long email, that was structured like so:

"Hi So and so, we are having this problem. here is a very long description of the problem, including everything I have tried to resolve it so far. (maybe 2 long paragraphs).

Oh so do you think you could assist me with this issue?"

Turns out, WRONG! That course literally changed my worklife. I learnt to structure my emails like so:

What the Person Must Know - Actions
What the Person should know - the background
What the person might need to know - the waffly background ... can usually be left out.

There was a lot more to it than that, all about removing passive voicing, cutting out unnecessary words etc,, but just structuring my emails like that has made a massive difference to peoples responsiveness.
posted by Admira at 5:05 AM on March 26, 2011