- Many companies are requiring workers to return to the office.
- Employees who’ve been more isolated during remote work might need time to acclimate to the office again.
- Etiquette experts shared tips with BI to help smooth the transition back to in-person work.
You’ve been called back to the office and someone walks over who you’ve only ever talked with on Slack or Zoom.
What do you do?
Or maybe you recently traded the privacy of your living room office for a hot desk in an open-floor plan and your friend FaceTimes you.
Should you answer at your desk?
It’s etiquette questions like these that workers who became used to remote work might need to brush up on as more companies mandate a return to the office. And for some Gen Zers who graduated during the pandemic, remote work may be all they have ever known in their careers.
While there may not be a one-size-fits-all approach to how to behave at the office, BI talked to etiquette experts to get their advice on smoothing the transition back.
Arden Clise of Clise Etiquette says the biggest complaint she’s heard from clients is that workers need to brush up on their social skills and remember “the niceties that we can get into a habit of doing when we’re spending more time with people, but have gotten forgotten when we’re isolated in our homes.”
So whether you’re re-entering the corporate office world after a few years of being remote or starting your first in-person job, here’s a refresher on post-pandemic office etiquette.
Business attire: A little self awareness goes a long way
Many white-collar workers are dressing more casually when they return to the office today compared to pre-pandemic.
“As I’m working with HR and companies, I see every one of them dusting off an old dress code policy,” said Lisa Richey of The American Academy of Etiquette.
Daniel Post Senning of The Emily Post Institute said it can be helpful to “think about what the floor of your formality is for a professional environment or interaction.”
“That’s going to be different for different people in different industries, different jobs, different work cultures,” he said. “But making an effort to think about how you want to present professionally and setting some baseline standards for yourself, and then adhering to them, is a really good place to start.”
Take note of what your peers are wearing and consult your official dress code policy if your organization has one. In lieu of company guidance, you can ask what might be appropriate if you don’t know, the experts advised.
Besides your clothing, grooming and hygiene are also integral to how you present yourself at work.
“How you choose to dress and present isn’t just about personal expression, it’s also about showing respect for the people and environments that you’re operating in,” said Senning.
Don’t get too personal when meeting a colleague in person
The return to office means you might see a coworker in person for the first time after knowing them as a virtual head-and-shoulders for the past few years — or you might see a colleague again for the first time in a while.
It’s perfectly appropriate to shake hands in either case, but be careful not to make insensitive comments about how someone might look different than you expected, or how a coworker’s appearance might have changed since you last saw them in person, the experts said.
Saying a simple hello and goodbye when you come and go are easy “‘gimme’ social interactions,” as Senning calls them.
“They cost you nothing, and done well, and repeatedly, they really forge important social bonds,” he said. “They build a sense of connection and trust that is going to carry you through tense meetings, critical feedback, miscommunications, things like that later on.”
Shared spaces are exactly that
The pandemic made hot-desking, where multiple workers share the same desk at different times, more common.
If you’re hot-desking, make sure you clean up before you leave and remove any of your personal items from the desk for the next person.
As for conference rooms, check in with your company’s reservation system to make sure you’re not using a room someone else has reserved.
“Conflict can arise around a shared resource if people aren’t taking a certain level of care,” said Senning.
Being on time is particularly important for in-person meetings as opposed to virtual ones because of the extra effort your colleagues made to get to the office, he added.
And, unlike in virtual meetings, where you might secretly give your attention to other browser windows or IRL happenings at the same time, you should put your phone away in an in-person meeting and give your fellow attendees your undivided attention. (If you don’t, they’ll certainly notice.)
The age-old wisdom on avoiding fish at the office stands, says Clise. Remember to clean out anything you stored in the communal fridge periodically. And if you’re taking the last cup of coffee, make a new pot of it.
Take lunch in the breakroom or cafeteria versus at your desk to “have more opportunities to chat with others,” Clise suggested.
Depending on your office setup, you should also be careful to approach phone calls a certain way.
“It’s been true for years that one of the biggest complaints about coworkers’ behavior in open office environments is people talking too loudly on phones,” said Senning.
When returning to the office, step away from your desk to take personal calls. Don’t use speakerphone in a cubicle or open-plan office; you can if you have your own office, but close the door.
“Being able to project your voice at home versus working at an open space in an office is very different,” said Clise.
At social gatherings, you’re still at work
Happy hours, learning lunches, and other team outings may pick up as employees work from the office more frequently.
“You’re still accountable at business social events,” said Senning. “These are still your colleagues and your coworkers, and you want to be aware that those relationships will still exist the next day in those work and professional environments.”
Don’t feel pressured to drink or to need to explain your reason for teetotaling. For those who are drinking, it can be a good idea to stick with the one-drink rule.
“Enjoy the conversation, interact with your coworkers, and know when it’s time to go home,” said Richey.
‘Every interaction counts’
Some etiquette guidance far predates the pandemic and may hold up just as long after: Avoid sensitive topics like religion or overly personal matters, as well as swearing.
It’s also in your best interest to steer clear of gossip, Clise says.
“Typically when someone gossips with us, they gossip about us,” she said. “That can create an environment where you don’t feel safe because you’re not sure who you can trust and people are talking about other people beyond their backs.”
A good rule of thumb is to remember that “every interaction counts, whether it’s a virtual meeting, an email, or an in-person interaction,” said Richey.
For Clise, it’s about “being really self-aware and realizing that work is not just us, it’s a team.”
“We need to be sure we’re being helpful and encouraging others to share their thoughts, to feel that they belong, that they’re included,” she said. “We’re not coming in thinking, ‘Oh, it’s just me and I’m just doing my job.’ It’s all a team effort.”
And while it’s true many employees “could use a little polishing” on their soft skills coming out of a long period of remote work and social isolation, says Senning, “it’s really comforting to know that while these skills can deteriorate, they also come back.”
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