Workplace

Businesspeople are fast becoming as text-message-obsessed as nimble-thumbed teenagers, said Etan Horowitz in the Orlando Sentinel. “For an immediate quick answer, it seems to be better than e-mail,” says Rob Nunzieta, 36, president of a Florida mortgage company and a recent convert to texting. But just because you’re a fan of the form doesn’t mean you can assume the same of your colleagues, clients, or managers. For one thing, they’ll probably have to pay a (tiny) fee to receive your message. Texting also comes across as a little more personal than other forms of communication, notes Wendy Kurtz, president of a Florida marketing and communications company. Sometimes it can seem too personal.

The casual tone of most text messages is the problem, said Sarah E. Needleman in The Wall Street Journal. Some would say it’s completely inappropriate for business communication. After a job interview, for example, you don’t have to send a handwritten thank-you note. But a text saying “thx 4 the iview” may do more harm than good. Then again, sending an e-mail can also be bad form, especially if you use abbreviations or smiley faces. “We don’t feel emoticons have a place in any formal communications,” says Blane Ruschak, national director of university relations and recruiting at KPMG. In fact, the firm considers it a sufficient offense to put job candidates out of the running.

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