Am I in trouble?

Question

So, my supervisor never told me what to call him, so in email correspondence I address him as "Mr. Doe." But when I need to talk about him to other people, I say "John."

So I accidentally addressed my latest email to him: "Hi John." Crap. Am I in trouble? I'm just an intern, btw.

Answer 1

No, you would not ever get in trouble for that, and he probably does not dwell on the subject of his email when it is addressed to the name he goes by.

Answer 2

If he has instructed you to refer to him as Mr. Doe, then really, that is how you should refer to him to others too. In this situation, he may remind you of the office policy, but hopefully you won't receive any type of reprimand.

I work in a doctor's office, and my boss is referred to as Dr. at all times, including out in a social situation such as a Christmas party, etc.

If you're really worried, shoot him off another email and don't make a huge deal out of it but just say sorry for not addressing him properly, that you meant no disrespect.

Good luck.

Answer 3

It depends on how strict your place of employment is. But technically, if he never told you how to address him, then you aren't at fault and can address him in any polite manner until told differently.

If you want to save face, go up to him and ask him in a normal manner, "you never specified how I should address you...how do you preferred to be addressed?". Then, the rules are clear.

Otherwise, just blow it off for now and forget about it. Should he say anything later, tell him, "thank you for telling me how you would like to be addressed".

Whatever you do, never let them see ya sweat! ;-)

Answer 4

I doubt it. Try not to worry about it and not draw attention to yourself. Just do your job, pay attention to details from now on. Everyone makes mistakes and it might be easier to call him Mr. Doe unless he says otherwise. Good Luck...you'll be fine!

Answer 5

No, but my butt is.