‘Not muting during conf call', rudest professional behavior for Indians

Going by an international research titled ‘The New Rude', from communication expert Pitney Bowes, some old-fashioned values are still held in high regard even in this digital age!

Bowes has revealed that actions like ‘Not meeting somebody's eyes during a handshake' or ‘Checking mails/phones while talking' are considered rude and unprofessional acts in most parts of the world.

‘Not muting during conference call' takes the lead as the ‘New Rude' in India with 43% of the respondents saying that people should always mute background noises while on a professional conference call. Coming in close second is ‘Not making eye contact during handshake' with 39% of the Indian respondents saying that it is extremely offensive to look away while greeting someone with a handshake. 33% of Indians feel that ‘Checking emails while in a meeting' is also not socially acceptable and considered professionally rude.

When it comes to international countries ‘Not meeting somebody's eye during a handshake' takes the highest priority in the ‘New Rude' survey with an average of 55% of respondents voting for the same. ‘Not muting during conference call' comes in a close second with an average of 51% respondents voting for the same.

This survey is an indication that even though communicating digitally may be quick and easy but this shouldn't open the door to offensive behaviour. People all over the world still give high regard to basic standards of professionalism.