Is it unprofessional to use emojis at work? Professional practices have grown more relaxed in recent years as communication has become more multifaceted and spread across multiple platforms in the workplace. It is now normal to react to a message from a manager in the work chat with thumbs-up rather than provide an actual response to the message, or end an email with a smiling emoji to emphasize enthusiasm.
Despite this, there are still some aspects of workplace rigidity that are hard to shed. Workplace etiquette has never accepted emojis as appropriate for the professional sphere, and that remains true today. In a lighthearted study by Glassdoor released last year, nearly 37% of professionals admitted to questioning whether emoji use was suitable for the workplace. While this does not directly mean that all of them condemned the practice, it does tell us that the use of emojis at work is not the standard of professionalism on the job.
The use of emojis at work isn’t ideal for your image, even if it does help you set the right tone for your digital communications. (Image: Pexels)
How Do We Feel About the Use of Emojis at Work? Answering the Tough Questions
The use of emojis in business communication has always been known to represent a casual or childlike attitude, suggesting a lackadaisical and unprofessional approach to work. Despite their utility in conveying the tone of the message better or lightening the mood, the workplace has largely thrived on brief and vaguely curt communication. While we fill our emails and messages with niceties and pleasant well-wishes, for the most part, communication at work continues to be led by a “no emojis” mandate.
Start-up culture changed what we knew about the workplace, reworking it into the shape of professional spaces where the rules were far more relaxed. Casual clothing replaced suits, and free seating took over the desk arrangements. In such spaces, relaxed communication was the standard, but even in these spaces, communication with customers, clients, and parties outside the business still followed traditional structures. Today, even these casual spaces are growing more formal, although Gen Z workers continue to break into casual lingo and tread the line on what attitudes and habits are allowed at work.
This is not to say that there are no situations where you might be allowed to relax on workplace emoji etiquette and communicate more freely. Between colleagues and close co-workers, emoji use is often accepted. It does not replace the need for complete sentences, but within one-on-one chats, it is allowed.
Should You Use Emojis at Work?
For the most part, it’s best to avoid using emojis at work, unless it’s mandated. A social media post might get the green light, but your work presentations might not. If you’re unsure of whether it is appropriate to use emojis at work, wait to understand your organization and assess what your colleagues are doing. Take their lead and follow along so you can update your communication accordingly. Even if you do decide to use emojis for workplace communication, ensure that your formal documents and communications are free from the clutter of these emoticons.
While the desire to provide additional tone and context to your message is a valid one, the use of emojis at work can bring your competence and professionalism into question. Similar questions are often asked about using exclamation marks in professional communication as well. While a conservative use of a single exclamation mark is often deemed within the realm of professionalism, it is also best avoided when possible. These rules are not written in stone, but they do give employees some directions on how to operate.
It’s also important to note that although emojis help convey emotions better, shifting interpretations of these symbols have resulted in many emojis having more than one interpretation. A half-smiling emoji or a thumbs-up could showcase agreement just as quickly as it might convey a passive-aggressive tone to your response. With so many factors already reshaping how you are evaluated, it’s a waste to let a few emojis leave an impact on perceptions at work.
Do you use emojis at work? Share your thoughts and opinions on them in the comments. Subscribe to The HR Digest for more insights into workplace etiquette and the many ways the professional sphere is evolving today.
