# Do you include a signature on your work email? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 25, 2012, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897 "2012-04-25T13:09:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/21 "2012-04-25T17:02:05Z")
Name Title Email address w/hyperlink Mailing address Office phone number Corporate website w/hyperlink Corporate-required legalese Team-specific legalese\* I work in a company that has dozens of branches nationwide and thousands of employees. The signature is supposedly required, but a few people at other branches don’t use them. I have to look them up (which branch along with their contact info, because branch location impacts other work tasks) and it’s annoying as all fuck. Everything is digital, so put your damn contact info there! - _it basically amounts to:_ The shit we do is maintained by a number of people. If you have a question on the status of your shit, need to send in an update or have general questions about your shit, please email {hyperlinked central team email address} rather than contacting any of us individually. This will help us provide the best and most accurate information. **In other words don’t fucking email me directly!** ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/22 "2012-04-25T17:11:42Z")
Yes, but pretty short. Name, firm name, and web page. I don’t put all the crap that most lawyers think is required. I just did a quick word count of what some lawyers do. One I got this morning was 260 words (not including a nice quote) ---
**Author:** ![Bilbo1967](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@Bilbo1967](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bilbo1967)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/23 "2012-04-25T17:27:08Z")
Yes - mandatory for new mails where I work. Not needed on replies or forwards though. It basically has name, job title and contact details on it. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/24 "2012-04-25T17:37:28Z")
Here’s a thing: I have my e-mail address in my signature. People always ask why, and the answer is because if my e-mail is printed or forwarded, the address will most likely show up as My Name. Hence, the forwardee or person reading the printed copy won’t be able to see the address. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/25 "2012-04-25T17:45:20Z")
I have the usual (title, phone), but I’ve added my hours as well. I work part-time so I let them know upfront when I’m in, so I don’t waste their time. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/26 "2012-04-25T18:18:10Z")
Yes, and it drives me freakin’ nuts when people don’t. Sometimes, the content of an e-mail warrants a follow-up phone call rather than an e-mail reply, and then I have to take a bazillion extra steps to find a phone number. It really bugs me when people whose job includes communication functions don’t use a signature. ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/27 "2012-04-25T18:58:04Z")
Yes, not required by my company or anyone, but I deal with many people in my company and with contractors who may want to call me to verify something. Lotus Notes just lets me make a boiler plate signature and sticks it at the bottom of all my emails. When I respond to an email or send an email from my phone, no signature. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/28 "2012-04-25T19:02:35Z")
I use one. My company doesn’t require them, but they prescribe a format if we choose to have one. It’s alright: Name Title Business Unit Company Name T xxx.xxx.xxxx | M xxx.xxx.xxxx | email address Company Street Address Company Website We’re not supposed to have graphics in our signature files, which is kind of a bummer because I used to have the company logo at the end of mine. I liked it. I hardly ever include a signature on replies: only if I’m replying to something that I was copied on, and the person I’m writing to might not already have my contact info. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/29 "2012-04-25T19:12:40Z")
Nope. But I rarely email anyone outside of our existing client base and rarely does my correspondence require the phone. I do put a sig on our billing emails when we send out invoices every month. It’s not my personal account, though. I somehow feel it would be skeevy to get an invoice with no contact info in the email (even tho contact info is in the invoice attachment). Sigs are getting pretty out of hand, tho. One client we have has a big colorful sig with a graphic in it. Not her company logo but the logo of her favorite NCAA team. I think it’s weird that in this era of tiny screens and reading emails on smart phones that people feel it necessary to have huge graphical sigs. Seems like you’d want everything to be as terse as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/30 "2012-04-25T20:07:48Z")
Yes, but it is just my first name. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/31 "2012-04-25T20:29:35Z")
Another person burdened with the “This message may contain confidential…” boilerplate. We’ve also got corporate specs on its format - IIRC, no less than 8 points and black. So, no trying to hide it with 3 point pale gray. Above that, it’s name and title, function, group, phone. About every nine months, someone decides to re-jigger our aim in life or the group name. A couple of years ago, it was something absurd like: Gotpasswords, CISSP West Mainframe End-User Access Provisioning and Access Certification Global Access Management - Global Information Management Technology Operations and Infrastructure 888-555-1212, option 4,3,2 [http://teamsite.groupsite.divisionsite.corporatename.com/accessrequests](http://teamsite.groupsite.divisionsite.corporatename.com/accessrequests) Did we fascinate you today? Please click here to recognize our efforts. Pretty please? This message may contain confidential and/or privileged information… ---
**Author:** ![kushiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbce88/32.png) [@kushiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kushiel)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/32 "2012-04-25T20:41:34Z")
Name Position, Company Email address I send lots of client emails, some unsolicited, and some people might be all like, WTF who are you what are you talking about? and the sig identifies me. ---
**Author:** ![vix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a88e4f/32.png) [@vix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vix)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/33 "2012-04-25T21:15:41Z")
Mine is long, but it’s in the smallest type available in gmail, so it doesn’t look huge. No graphics, no disclaimers. It’s not required, but someone at my organization started using it and the rest of us liked it, so we all copied it. Name, title, organization website facebook page blog work phone cell phone ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/34 "2012-04-25T21:27:15Z")
We have official guidelines and shit and everything. Alas, they require putting the word “phone” after what even Helen Keller could see is a phone number, and even if there are no other phone numbers, fax numbers, or similarly-punctuated 10 digit numbers to confuse the issue. KneadToKnow Librarian Branch Branch 704.xxx.xxxx phone [ktoknow@library.org](mailto:ktoknow@library.org) [www.library.org](http://www.library.org) [www.linkedin.com/in/knead](http://www.linkedin.com/in/knead) Email correspondence (and any attachments) to and from this address may be considered a public record subject to public records requests pursuant to North Carolina Public Records Law, resulting in monitoring and potential disclosure of this message to third parties. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/35 "2012-04-26T00:14:21Z")
I voted ‘yes’ because I couldn’t vote ‘sometimes’. I have a signature set up in Outlook, but I don’t use in on all emails. It all depends on how ‘official’ the communication is. Also, I tend not to use it on multiple emails in a single ‘conversation’, as I figure everybody involves should know who I am after the first time. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/36 "2012-04-26T00:58:34Z")
Although not required company wide, I use a sig with my name, title, department, branches, hours, e-mail and phone numbers, with all but the name in smaller type. The company does have specs on the type, color and size allowed for the body of e-mails. ---
**Author:** ![brainstall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@brainstall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brainstall)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/37 "2012-04-26T01:18:45Z")
I set up my email so my signature goes out with every new email I send. It has my full name, job title (because I just changed jobs, so people need to know that I have new duties and that the reason I am contacting them, instead of the person they are used to hearing from, is because I am her new assistant), company name, branch address and phone and fax numbers. I like it when I have that information from people who contact me, so extend the same courtesy to them. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/38 "2012-04-26T04:14:59Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Good idea! > > “The Struggle of the Proletariat and the Servility of the Bourgeoisie” > -VI Lenin > > or > > “There’s One Born Every Minute.” > -PT Barnum We were swapping work war stories the other day and my colleague told one about this boss he had who was pretty much not doing anything all day, think Michael from the office, but on valium and in Afghanistan. After six months he finally got fired. The boss had this phrase in Latin as part of his email signature. No one thought much about it, but my friend got curious and translated it: “The world wants to be deceived.” In my office people put inspiring messages about making the world a better place. I’d like to put my personal slogan: “I’ve never met a smart optimist.” But it wouldn’t be exactly career enhancing to do so. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/39 "2012-04-26T08:50:22Z")
Yes. It’s a corporate requirement. The personalisation is all done through Active Directory, and then there’s a legal disclaimer added. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897/40 "2012-04-26T11:05:10Z")
Any official email I try to at least sign my name. I have yet to work anywhere that required more than that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-include-a-signature-on-your-work-email/619897.md?page=3)