Email
The message sounds urgent.
Jane is emphasizing her need for the report and even mentions that she
may miss her own deadline if she doesn’t get the report from Mark. It seems
more on the informal side and somewhat desperate. Mark reading the message may
interpret it as Jane would blame Mark for missing her deadline.
Voicemail
The message sounds friendlier by voicemail. It still sounds
like Jane is in an urgent situation but is more just looking for help from Mark
to complete her deadline.
Face-to-Face
This one seems more relaxed then urgent. While she still
really needs the report she seems understanding that he is busy. I don’t think he would misinterpret anything
she is saying face-to-face. Of the three methods, I think face-to-face is the
friendliest and least likely to cause offense.
Personally, I think email being the least personal of the
three methods could also be open to the most misinterpretation by the reader. I
think this activity shows how personal and friendly face-to-face interactions
can be. In addition, you can also get to know your co-workers better this way
and gain a better understanding of how they communicate. In my office most
individuals work remotely so it is harder to speak face-to-face, but in my case
I think I may start to choose phone calls and voicemails in certain situations
versus just email.
It is interesting how one’s experience and personality codes how we receive messages.
ReplyDeleteI agree that email is the preferred method of communicating in a professional setting. It is a good way to document a verbal conversation and may provide clarity from a previous discussion.
You wrote that the face-to-face interaction was nicer. I thought the exact opposite. I felt that the message in the voicemail and the face-to-face were equal. They both sounded like they were annoyed with Mark and really did not want to beg him to do his job. The email was straight forward with no whining and pleading. I am an old school Generation Xer who can separate business demands from personal relationships in the office. At work, I will be firm and ask for what I need. I’ll even offer to help if it will boost my performance. Over lunch, we can laugh about it and talk about how the boss is overloading everyone and nothing is getting done on time.
Melissa,
ReplyDeleteI also found the communication from the F2F to be very laid back and lack the sense of urgency that the other two conveyed. I felt that that she must of had a very good rapport with he person for the mannerism and body language she portrayed. Also, I have found myself wondering the true meaning behind emails as the leave the most to the imagination of the reader and lacks the personal touch to let someone know in what context it was written.
Andy Beane