5 Ways HR Should Prioritize Professional Etiquette Training to Move Their Organizations Forward

Companies are working hard to innovate and adapt to a constantly changing consumer culture and business environment.

This emphasis on innovation and adaptation is behind everything from extravagant investments in artificial intelligence (AI) to the implementation of cutting-edge technologies and practices that drive efficiency and growth.

However, organizations don’t just have to rely on the latest technologies to remain relevant. Going back to the basics, elevating professional etiquette and soft skills among their teams, can similarly unlock enhanced customer relationships, improved team dynamics, and long-term sustainable success.

Here are five ways that HR leaders can move their organizations forward by going back to the basics and making professional etiquette, the positive behaviors of an individual who gives, who cares about how someone else feels, a priority once again.

1. Enhance Team Cohesion and Collaboration

Teams today have many ways to connect—in-person meetings, casual office chats, Zoom and phone calls, text messages and Slack, and email—ensuring they are always on the brink of meaningful interactions.

And yet, many people feel lonely and disconnected from their coworkers and leaders, an experience that is frequently rooted in digital interactions versus the more prevalent in-person communications that teams have had in the past.

From emails to instant messaging, the surge in a digital-first approach to team interaction can lead to an overall sense of isolation during the many hours one involves themselves in work activities hour to hour and day to day. This is especially true for remote or hybrid teams. They interact frequently but rarely actually connect.

Professional etiquette can help solve this problem. It reinforces the soft skills and communication best practices that help people feel heard, seen, and known. These standards also help people know who will be where, when, and what they will do.

To enhance team cohesion and collaboration, set clear expectations for communication and responsiveness. Combine these expectations with intentional training on effective in-person or virtual collaboration techniques so everyone has the skills and knowledge to work seamlessly together and achieve shared goals.

2. Improve Customer Service and Brand Perception

Professional etiquette directly impacts customer service and brand perception.

Since customer service is often synonymous with customer experience, maximizing every encounter is critical to building lasting customer relationships and fostering brand loyalty.

Companies can’t afford to leave this up to chance. Instead, they should make professional etiquette an explicit expectation, setting clear standards for customer interactions and regularly gathering and acting on customer feedback.

This often starts with the first customer encounter, greeting customers promptly and professionally, focusing centrally on the customer, smiling, and making eye contact.

It’s a subtle change, but companies like Chick-fil-A have built their entire brand value on customer service, excelling at soft skills and watching their revenues grow. It’s a reminder that professional etiquette is an essential component of high-quality customer service and a positive brand perception.

3. Bridge Generational Gaps

HR departments and leadership teams are managing an unprecedented moment for the workforce: five generations—from Traditionalists to Gen Z—are working together to advance organizational goals.

This is both a challenge and an opportunity.

Perhaps most obviously, generational differences, including communication styles, work arrangement preferences, and even views on the role of work itself, can hinder communication and diminish collaboration.

At the same time, bringing together and harnessing each generation’s unique experiences, expertise, and perspectives can make brands even more competitive than their more homogenous counterparts.

To achieve this, teach soft skills—like active listening, empathy, and adaptability—that allow intergenerational communication. Combine this with strategic mentorship programs that pair employees from different generations, fostering relationships and cultivating understanding so everyone can work together in a spirit of professionalism and collaboration.

Notably, this doesn’t have to be a top-down dictum. Facilitate open dialogue about workplace expectations across age groups and allow norms and expectations to develop from these conversations.

4. Increase Employee Retention and Job Satisfaction

The “Quiet Quitting” trend has come and gone, but employee engagement and satisfaction remain persistently low.

Focusing on helping employees advance their careers can help increase employee retention and job satisfaction. To ensure employees who wish to advance their careers have the internal opportunities for guidance to do so, it is important to implement regular feedback sessions focused on teaching and refining needed skills. This includes helping employees elevate their professional etiquette capacity and developing the soft skills that companies increasingly consider more important than hard skills.

Augment these efforts by recognizing and rewarding exemplary professional etiquette, making it a regular part of company culture.

5. Boost Productivity and Professionalism

Broad trends convey an ongoing issue with employee productivity over the past few years.

However, finding the causes and cures on how to address this issue is less than concrete.  Versus navigating one’s way as a leader in the darkness searching for the hard-to-find causes and how to address them, one universal approach does impact change: the setting of expectations.

Restoring professional etiquette means setting clear expectations for professional behavior.

In response, HR departments and management teams should work collaboratively to set and communicate clear expectations for punctuality, dress code, and work preparedness.

These efforts can be augmented by training on time management and professional communication standards that allow people to work more intentionally and collaboratively, ultimately driving productivity gains.

Professional Etiquette Paves the Path Forward

Companies must continue innovating and adapting to remain relevant and develop lasting, sustainable businesses.

While many brands are busy chasing the latest technologies and making expensive upgrades to stay ahead of the competition, wise leaders will recognize that bringing back the basics can move the meter and help their brand maximize its potential.

That doesn’t mean that professional etiquette alone will make companies succeed, but it’s a low-cost, high-reward priority that any business can implement today.

Pamela Eyring is the president and owner of The Protocol School of Washington®, (www.psow.edu), an accredited school focusing on international protocol, business etiquette, and communication skills training. With more than four decades of public and private sector experience in operational protocol and educational development, Pamela has extensive knowledge of U.S. and international practices and is a global thought leader in the etiquette and protocol industry.

Prior to her work at PSOW, Pamela was Chief of Protocol at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, (the first civilian to hold the position), where she planned and directed military, government, international and civic ceremonies, conferences, special events and presidential visits.

In both her military and professional work, she has worked with heads of state, four-star general officers, CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, leaders in academia, and entrepreneurs from around the globe.

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