7 Writing Routine and Positive Messages
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to
1. Outline an effective strategy for writing routine business requests
2. Describe three common types of routine requests
3. Outline an effective strategy for writing routine replies and positive messages
4. Describe six common types of routine replies and positive messages
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Communication Matters . . .
“To succeed, I don’t need to be Shakespeare; I must, though, have a sincere desire to inform.”
—Warren Buffett, legendary investor and chairman of Berkshire Hathaway
Warren Buffett’s financial acumen has made him and many of his shareholders wealthy, but he is recognized almost as widely for his communication skills. His letters, essays, and annual reports communicate complex financial topics in simple language his readers can easily understand. His approach is simple: Even for a document that will be read by thousands of people, he visualizes a single person (often one of his sisters) as his audience. He treats this audience member as an intelligent human being, but as someone who doesn’t have the same level of experience with the subject matter he has. From there, he proceeds to organize and write his messages in a way that clarifies all the essential information and doesn’t try to impress or obscure with complicated language.1 Whether you’re posting a status update on a team blog or producing a report for an audience of thousands, Buffett’s approach is a great example to follow.
Warren Buffett often deals with complex financial issues in his line of business, but he has cultivated the ability to express even complicated subjects in clear, simple language that seeks to inform rather than to impress.
Louis Lanzano/Associated PressStrategy for Routine Requests
Much of your daily business communication will involve routine and positive messages, including routine requests for information or action, replies on routine business matters, and positive messages such as good-news announcements and goodwill messages, from product operation hints and technical support to refunds and ordering glitches. These messages are the focus of this chapter. Chapter 8 covers messages in which you convey negative information, and Chapter 9 addresses persuasive messages.
Making requests is a routine part of business. In most cases, your audience will be prepared to comply, as long as you’re not being unreasonable or asking people to do something they would expect you to do yourself. By applying a clear strategy and tailoring your approach to each situation, you’ll be able to generate effective requests quickly.
For routine requests and positive messages,
· State the request or main idea
· Give necessary details
· Close with a cordial request for specific action
Like all other business ...
This document provides guidance on writing routine and positive business messages in 3 sentences or less. It discusses strategies for writing routine requests, including stating the request upfront and justifying it. Common types of routine requests described are asking for information, asking for recommendations, and making claims or requests for adjustments. The document also outlines strategies for writing routine replies and positive messages, including using a direct approach and explaining details.
Most business messages deal with routine matters that require straightforward responses. Business letters are necessary for permanent records, confidentiality, formality, and persuasive presentations. Direct requests ask for information or action and should state the request clearly in the opening, explain it in the body, and specify the action and date in the closing. Claims establish a record of problems and should describe the desired action, explain the justified claim, and end pleasantly with a request. Adjustment letters rectify issues, regain confidence, and promote future business. Goodwill messages build positive relationships. Communicating bad news requires sensitivity by buffering the opening, apologizing, conveying empathy, explaining reasons, cushioning the news, and closing pleasantly.
Most business messages deal with routine matters that require straightforward responses. Business letters are necessary for permanent records, confidentiality, formality, and persuasive presentations. Direct requests ask for information or action and use a clear opening, logical body explaining the request, and specific closing. Claims establish a record of problems and are justified objectively. Adjustment letters rectify issues, regain confidence, and promote goodwill. Goodwill messages build positive relationships. Communicating bad news requires sensitivity to understand reasons and accept outcomes fairly while maintaining a positive image. The indirect pattern prepares readers for bad news.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides guidelines for each C, such as answering the five W's to ensure completeness, using precise language and including only relevant information to achieve conciseness, focusing on the receiver's needs and benefits to demonstrate consideration, and using specific facts and figures rather than generalizations for concreteness.
This document provides information about interpersonal skills in business and concepts to apply in project 1. It defines interpersonal skills as an employee's ability to get along with others while completing their job. It discusses using relationship building language, different types of business messages, and five business prose style principles. The document instructs the reader to find a negative Amazon product review, annotate it to identify concerns and tone, and write a refund letter, memo report, and email as part of project 1 deliverables.
The Seven Cs of Effective Communication.docxEdenrobe
Effective communication is essential in any personal or professional setting. To achieve effective communication, it is important to understand the Seven Cs of communication. These seven Cs of communication are clarity, conciseness, completeness, coherence, correctness, courtesy, and consideration. In this article, we will discuss each of these seven Cs in detail.
Clarity: Clarity refers to the use of clear and simple language. The message should be easy to understand and should not be ambiguous. It is important to use plain language that is easily understandable by everyone.
Conciseness: Conciseness refers to the use of brief and to the point messages. Messages should be concise and should not contain any unnecessary details. This helps in keeping the communication simple and effective.
Completeness: Completeness refers to the inclusion of all necessary information in the message. The message should be complete and should contain all relevant details. Incomplete messages can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.
Coherence: Coherence refers to the logical flow of ideas in the message. The message should be coherent and easy to follow. The ideas should be presented in a logical sequence that is easy to understand.
Correctness: Correctness refers to the accuracy and reliability of the message. The message should be factually correct and should not contain any errors or misleading information.
Courtesy: Courtesy refers to the use of polite language and respectful tone. The message should be delivered in a courteous and respectful manner. This helps in building a positive relationship between the sender and the receiver.
Consideration: Consideration refers to the empathy and understanding towards the receiver. The message should be delivered with consideration towards the receiver's feelings, emotions, and perspective. This helps in building trust and improving the quality of communication.
In conclusion, the Seven Cs of effective communication provide a framework for delivering clear, concise, complete, coherent, correct, courteous, and considerate messages. By following these principles, individuals and organizations can improve their communication skills and build strong relationships with their colleagues, customers, and stakeholders.
The three-step writing process involves planning, writing, and completing a message. The planning step includes analyzing the purpose and audience, gathering relevant information, and selecting an appropriate medium. In the writing step, the message is composed using techniques like a positive tone and unbiased language. Finally, the message is revised, produced, proofread, and distributed to complete the process. Written communication is important for business for tasks like advertising and instruction. This process helps create effective written pieces.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides guidelines for each C, such as answering the five W's to ensure completeness, only including relevant information to be concise, focusing on the receiver's benefits to show consideration, using specific facts and figures to be concrete, choosing precise and familiar words for clarity, being tactful and thoughtful to demonstrate courtesy, and checking accuracy and using the proper level of language for correctness. The seven C's provide principles for creating effective messages in business communication.
This document provides guidance on writing routine and positive business messages in 3 sentences or less. It discusses strategies for writing routine requests, including stating the request upfront and justifying it. Common types of routine requests described are asking for information, asking for recommendations, and making claims or requests for adjustments. The document also outlines strategies for writing routine replies and positive messages, including using a direct approach and explaining details.
Most business messages deal with routine matters that require straightforward responses. Business letters are necessary for permanent records, confidentiality, formality, and persuasive presentations. Direct requests ask for information or action and should state the request clearly in the opening, explain it in the body, and specify the action and date in the closing. Claims establish a record of problems and should describe the desired action, explain the justified claim, and end pleasantly with a request. Adjustment letters rectify issues, regain confidence, and promote future business. Goodwill messages build positive relationships. Communicating bad news requires sensitivity by buffering the opening, apologizing, conveying empathy, explaining reasons, cushioning the news, and closing pleasantly.
Most business messages deal with routine matters that require straightforward responses. Business letters are necessary for permanent records, confidentiality, formality, and persuasive presentations. Direct requests ask for information or action and use a clear opening, logical body explaining the request, and specific closing. Claims establish a record of problems and are justified objectively. Adjustment letters rectify issues, regain confidence, and promote goodwill. Goodwill messages build positive relationships. Communicating bad news requires sensitivity to understand reasons and accept outcomes fairly while maintaining a positive image. The indirect pattern prepares readers for bad news.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides guidelines for each C, such as answering the five W's to ensure completeness, using precise language and including only relevant information to achieve conciseness, focusing on the receiver's needs and benefits to demonstrate consideration, and using specific facts and figures rather than generalizations for concreteness.
This document provides information about interpersonal skills in business and concepts to apply in project 1. It defines interpersonal skills as an employee's ability to get along with others while completing their job. It discusses using relationship building language, different types of business messages, and five business prose style principles. The document instructs the reader to find a negative Amazon product review, annotate it to identify concerns and tone, and write a refund letter, memo report, and email as part of project 1 deliverables.
The Seven Cs of Effective Communication.docxEdenrobe
Effective communication is essential in any personal or professional setting. To achieve effective communication, it is important to understand the Seven Cs of communication. These seven Cs of communication are clarity, conciseness, completeness, coherence, correctness, courtesy, and consideration. In this article, we will discuss each of these seven Cs in detail.
Clarity: Clarity refers to the use of clear and simple language. The message should be easy to understand and should not be ambiguous. It is important to use plain language that is easily understandable by everyone.
Conciseness: Conciseness refers to the use of brief and to the point messages. Messages should be concise and should not contain any unnecessary details. This helps in keeping the communication simple and effective.
Completeness: Completeness refers to the inclusion of all necessary information in the message. The message should be complete and should contain all relevant details. Incomplete messages can lead to confusion and misunderstandings.
Coherence: Coherence refers to the logical flow of ideas in the message. The message should be coherent and easy to follow. The ideas should be presented in a logical sequence that is easy to understand.
Correctness: Correctness refers to the accuracy and reliability of the message. The message should be factually correct and should not contain any errors or misleading information.
Courtesy: Courtesy refers to the use of polite language and respectful tone. The message should be delivered in a courteous and respectful manner. This helps in building a positive relationship between the sender and the receiver.
Consideration: Consideration refers to the empathy and understanding towards the receiver. The message should be delivered with consideration towards the receiver's feelings, emotions, and perspective. This helps in building trust and improving the quality of communication.
In conclusion, the Seven Cs of effective communication provide a framework for delivering clear, concise, complete, coherent, correct, courteous, and considerate messages. By following these principles, individuals and organizations can improve their communication skills and build strong relationships with their colleagues, customers, and stakeholders.
The three-step writing process involves planning, writing, and completing a message. The planning step includes analyzing the purpose and audience, gathering relevant information, and selecting an appropriate medium. In the writing step, the message is composed using techniques like a positive tone and unbiased language. Finally, the message is revised, produced, proofread, and distributed to complete the process. Written communication is important for business for tasks like advertising and instruction. This process helps create effective written pieces.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides guidelines for each C, such as answering the five W's to ensure completeness, only including relevant information to be concise, focusing on the receiver's benefits to show consideration, using specific facts and figures to be concrete, choosing precise and familiar words for clarity, being tactful and thoughtful to demonstrate courtesy, and checking accuracy and using the proper level of language for correctness. The seven C's provide principles for creating effective messages in business communication.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all necessary information to answer questions fully.
2. Conciseness - Convey the message using as few words as possible to save time.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and needs by focusing on their benefits.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and examples instead of general statements.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words to ensure the message is easily understood.
6. Courtesy - Communicate respectfully through tact, thoughtfulness, and appreciation of others.
7. Correctness - Ensure proper grammar, spelling, punctuation, accurate information,
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides explanations and examples for each C. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the receiver's needs and benefits. Concreteness demands using specific facts rather than general statements. Clarity requires choosing precise and familiar language. Courtesy involves respectful, thoughtful, and appreciative tone. Correctness means proper grammar, accuracy, and appropriate language level. The seven C's framework aims to make communication as effective as possible for the intended audience.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: Completeness, Conciseness, Consideration, Concreteness, Clarity, Courtesy, and Correctness. Each C is defined in one or two sentences. For example, Completeness means providing all necessary information to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using the fewest words. Consideration means focusing on the receiver's interests.
Peggy Isaacson describes her experiences with written customer service communications as a human resources manager and now as an HR consultant. She finds that written communications like letters, memos, proposals and documentation are important to address customer needs, provide documentation of agreements, and ensure both parties understand discussions. However, she notes that good grammar, spelling and readability are important so customers understand the message and have confidence in the provider's competence.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all relevant information to answer the five W's: who, what, when, where, why.
2. Conciseness - Convey the message using the fewest words possible by avoiding wordiness, including only relevant information, and avoiding unnecessary repetition.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and needs by focusing on their benefits, using "you" instead of "I/we", and emphasizing positive facts.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and language instead of generalizations to avoid misunderstanding.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words,
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all necessary information to answer questions fully.
2. Conciseness - Convey messages using as few words as possible to save time.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and show how they will benefit.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and examples instead of generic information.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words to ensure the message is easily understood.
6. Courtesy - Be tactful, thoughtful, and respectful in tone through word choice and phrasing.
7. Correctness - Use the appropriate level of language and check facts
The document discusses the 7 C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all necessary information to answer questions fully.
2. Conciseness - Convey messages using as few words as possible to save time.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and show how they will benefit.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and examples instead of generic information.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words to ensure easy understanding.
6. Courtesy - Be tactful, thoughtful, and respectful in tone through word choice.
7. Correctness - Use the appropriate level of language and check facts, figures, and mechanics. Following
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides explanations and examples for each C. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the receiver's interests and benefits. Concreteness necessitates using specific facts rather than generalizations. Clarity demands choosing precise and familiar language. Courtesy involves being respectful and thoughtful of others. Correctness centers on proper grammar, spelling, and accurately conveying information. The seven C's are principles for creating effective business communications.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides explanations and examples for each C. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the receiver's interests and benefits. Concreteness necessitates using specific facts rather than generalizations. Clarity demands choosing precise and familiar language. Courtesy involves showing respect and tact. Correctness centers on proper grammar, spelling, and accurate information. The seven C's are principles for crafting effective business communications.
This document provides guidance on effectively conveying bad news to others in a business context. It discusses the challenges of communicating negative information while maintaining goodwill and business relationships. It recommends using an indirect approach by beginning with a buffer statement, then providing reasons and additional information to prepare the recipient, before clearly stating the bad news. It also suggests emphasizing solutions and positives in the closing. Examples are given for different types of bad news messages, such as refusing requests, recommendations, adjustments, credit, or orders. The document aims to help business professionals deliver unpleasant news to others in a thoughtful, logical manner.
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The document provides information on effective business communication, including the definition and concept of communication, objectives and purpose of communication, characteristics of communication, elements of communication, benefits of effective communication, importance of communication in management, and the seven C's of effective communication - completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It emphasizes the importance of clear, concise, and considerate communication in business and management.
The document provides guidance on writing positive messages and direct communication. It discusses organizing direct messages by putting the good news first, followed by details, negatives, and reader benefits. It also covers the 7 Cs of effective communication: being clear, concise, concrete, coherent, correct, complete, and courteous. Examples of direct messages include requests, replies to requests, recommendations, claims and adjustments, announcements, and fostering goodwill. The document emphasizes starting and closing messages effectively and provides sample messages and letters to illustrate best practices.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication. The seven C's are: Completeness, Conciseness, Consideration, Concreteness, Clarity, Courtesy, and Correctness. Each C is defined and guidelines are provided for how to apply each one to improve communication effectiveness. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer any questions from the recipient. Conciseness means conveying the message using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the recipient's needs and perspective. Concreteness means using specific details rather than general statements. Clarity involves choosing precise and easy to understand language. Courtesy requires being respectful and thoughtful of the recipient. Correctness involves proper grammar, accurate
Eng 209WI Hurley 1 1.0 USING THE THREE-STEP PROC.docxYASHU40
Eng 209/WI
Hurley 1
1.0 USING THE THREE-STEP PROCESS FOR WRITING
BAD NEWS MESSAGES
Communicating negative news is a fact of life for all business professionals, from rejecting job
applicants to telling customers that shipments will be late to turning down speaking invitations.
Bad news messages are challenging to write because we know our readers will not be happy to
receive the news. These messages say "no" to the reader:
No, you will not get your loan
No, you aren't being hired
No, you didn't get the scholarship
No, you aren't accepted into the college of business
No, I can't give a donation
No, I can't help you
No.
Bad news means the reader will not be able to accomplish his/her goals. For example, without a
loan, a student may have to postpone plans to graduate on time because now the person has to go
to work to raise the money. The homeless shelter that doesn't get your donation now has to worry
about how it's going to feed its clients.
But news can't always be good. In life, we do have to reject less-qualified applicants, we don't
have unlimited funds to give money to every deserving charity, and we can't always fill a
customer's request on time.
When we need to say "no" to our readers, we usually mean "not under these circumstances." "No"
now isn't necessarily "no" forever. If the student were to get a co-signer, he/she might be able to
get the loan after all. Perhaps we'll be able to send a donation to the homeless shelter next month,
after we've paid our own bills first.
So how do we give bad news without destroying our business relationship? You can see in list at
the top of this page that stating bad news directly can often be very damaging and unnecessarily
hurtful. When you need to deliver bad news, you have five goals:
1. to convey the bad news
2. to gain acceptance for it
3. to maintain as much goodwill a possible with your audience
4. to maintain a good image for our organization
Writing Bad News Messages
Eng 209/WI
Hurley 2
5. if appropriate, to reduce or eliminate the need for future correspondence on the matter.
Five goals are clearly a lot to accomplish in one message. However, by learning some simple
techniques, you can develop negative messages that reduce the stress for everyone involved and
improve the effectiveness of your communication efforts.
1.1 Step 1: Plan Your Message
When planning your message, you can't avoid the fact that your audience does not want to hear
what you have to say. To minimize the damage to business relationships and to encourage the
acceptance of your message, analyze the situation carefully to better understand the context in
which the recipient will process your message.
Be sure to consider your purpose thoroughly – whether it's straightforward (such as rejecting a
job application) of more complicated (such as creating a negative performance review, in which
you not only give t ...
This document provides guidance on writing effective messages to communicate negative or "bad" news to readers in a business context. It recommends using a three-step indirect approach: 1) opening with a buffer statement to establish rapport before the bad news; 2) providing thorough reasons and explanations to logically lead the reader to accepting the negative outcome; and 3) clearly stating the bad news while de-emphasizing it and focusing on positive implications. The goal is to deliver the necessary information while minimizing damage to the relationship and encouraging acceptance of the unfortunate situation.
The document provides instructions for answering questions for a Business English exam. It includes 4 sample questions and answers.
Question 1 asks about common barriers to communication and lists several examples like use of jargon, emotional barriers, lack of attention, differences in perception, physical disabilities, and physical barriers to non-verbal communication.
Question 2 describes eight steps for effective writing: know your objective, do research, organize content, write clearly, edit and proofread, format appropriately, follow style guidelines, and get feedback.
Question 3 explains the functions of a business letter, which include promotion, securing business, maintaining business relationships, serving as a reference, and establishing contacts to enlarge the scope of business.
Question 4
The document discusses the seven principles of effective communication, known as the 7 C's. They are:
1. Completeness - providing all necessary details to answer questions fully
2. Conciseness - conveying messages using as few words as possible
3. Consideration - focusing on the receiver's interests and benefits
4. Concreteness - using specific examples rather than generalizations
5. Clarity - choosing precise and simple language for easy understanding
6. Courtesy - communicating with respect, tact, and appreciation
7. Correctness - ensuring proper grammar, accurate information, and appropriate language level. Following these principles can help make any communication more effective.
Failure Is An Option (Success Is Too!) PUB 5924 Entrepre.docxlmelaine
Failure Is An Option
(Success Is Too!)
PUB 5924 Entrepreneurial Public Management
Week 8: Failure Is An Option
(Success is Too!)
Return to the Framework
Failure Is An Option
A Framework: Failure Is An Option (Success Is Too!)
Entrepreneurial Governance
Knowledge
(learning)
Innovation
(new ideas)
Opportunity
(timing & luck/
discover &
exploit)
Implementation
(action)
Addressing Risk Culture & Risk Reduction
PUB 5924 Entrepreneurial Public Management
Unit V
Lesson 1: Writing Professional Messages
Introduction
We all communicate through formal and informal channels in various situations, and each mode
of communication can be more or less rich in its ability to send information effectively. For
example, consider the best channel to send messages such as a company announcement or a
letter of resignation. Messages such as these should be written and sent through a formal channel
so that the sender receives the notification, and a record of the notification can be retained.
Writing Professional Messages
Writing professional messages involves four steps:
a. planning the message,
b. organizing the message,
c. writing the message, and
d. proofreading the message.
Before writing a message, careful planning is a necessity. In advance, it must be determined who
the audience is, what feedback is expected, and what outcomes are expected.
Planning Your Message
What is the purpose of the message? Is the message designed to persuade others to take action or
simply share information? Additionally, will the message achieve its purpose if part of the
process is to explain a difficult concept? In every case, part of the planning is to consider if
writing a message is the best way to communicate or whether it would be better to deliver the
message through another medium, perhaps orally.
Once the reason for writing the message is clear, the next step is to determine the support needed
to make and refine each point until it is very specific. Part of this process is to consider the best
methods that will ensure the message will be successful. For example, if the message is asking
for changes to be made, ensure that the timing is right for such a move. Is it practical to ask for
the company to spend money at this time? For example, if the message asks for the purchase of
more equipment, part of the planning must be an analysis of whether or not the timing is right
and if the company can afford to make such a purchase. If the company is experiencing a
financial downturn, then the message will be a waste of time and might even be viewed as
presumptuous or the presenter as out of touch with current trends in the company’s financial
status.
The planning for any message must always consider the people who will read the message. If the
message is going to only a select few people in the local community, it will be worded
differen ...
1. Report contentThe report should demonstrate your understa.docxblondellchancy
1. Report content
The report should demonstrate your understanding of good project management and health and safety management as appropriate within the context of your chosen project and event.
The report will present the context/background of the chosen project, describe the project, and present student’s critical reflection and thoughts on the management of one particular event/issue of project. The impacts of the event/issue on (1) people, (2) cost, (3) time, (4) health and safety, (5) sustainability, and (6) Ethics will be explored. Using the theory and tools presented in the lectures across the module as well as their own independent research, students should suggest and discuss solutions to (1) overcome the challenges and manage the risks associated with the event/issue, and (2) improve the efficiency, sustainability and ethics of the management of the event/issue.
Appendices and references must be used to demonstrate study that has been undertaken and to provide sources for points made in the body of the report. This will include copies of any individual or group student work undertaken during the module.
The student should refer to the learning materials and readings provided across the module, but are also recommended to give appropriate regard to any additional useful material available online in terms of theory and practice.
.
1. Research the assessment process for ELL students in your state. W.docxblondellchancy
1. Research the assessment process for ELL students in your state. What is the process your district goes through to properly identify students for ESL program placement?
2. Planning for effective instruction is the key to academic success for students. Using data to inform instruction is a regular process. Discuss how teachers can use longitudinal data along with other formative classroom assessments to design effective instruction.
200-300
.
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The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all necessary information to answer questions fully.
2. Conciseness - Convey the message using as few words as possible to save time.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and needs by focusing on their benefits.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and examples instead of general statements.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words to ensure the message is easily understood.
6. Courtesy - Communicate respectfully through tact, thoughtfulness, and appreciation of others.
7. Correctness - Ensure proper grammar, spelling, punctuation, accurate information,
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides explanations and examples for each C. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the receiver's needs and benefits. Concreteness demands using specific facts rather than general statements. Clarity requires choosing precise and familiar language. Courtesy involves respectful, thoughtful, and appreciative tone. Correctness means proper grammar, accuracy, and appropriate language level. The seven C's framework aims to make communication as effective as possible for the intended audience.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: Completeness, Conciseness, Consideration, Concreteness, Clarity, Courtesy, and Correctness. Each C is defined in one or two sentences. For example, Completeness means providing all necessary information to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using the fewest words. Consideration means focusing on the receiver's interests.
Peggy Isaacson describes her experiences with written customer service communications as a human resources manager and now as an HR consultant. She finds that written communications like letters, memos, proposals and documentation are important to address customer needs, provide documentation of agreements, and ensure both parties understand discussions. However, she notes that good grammar, spelling and readability are important so customers understand the message and have confidence in the provider's competence.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all relevant information to answer the five W's: who, what, when, where, why.
2. Conciseness - Convey the message using the fewest words possible by avoiding wordiness, including only relevant information, and avoiding unnecessary repetition.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and needs by focusing on their benefits, using "you" instead of "I/we", and emphasizing positive facts.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and language instead of generalizations to avoid misunderstanding.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words,
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all necessary information to answer questions fully.
2. Conciseness - Convey messages using as few words as possible to save time.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and show how they will benefit.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and examples instead of generic information.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words to ensure the message is easily understood.
6. Courtesy - Be tactful, thoughtful, and respectful in tone through word choice and phrasing.
7. Correctness - Use the appropriate level of language and check facts
The document discusses the 7 C's of effective communication:
1. Completeness - Provide all necessary information to answer questions fully.
2. Conciseness - Convey messages using as few words as possible to save time.
3. Consideration - Consider the receiver's interests and show how they will benefit.
4. Concreteness - Use specific facts, figures, and examples instead of generic information.
5. Clarity - Choose precise and familiar words to ensure easy understanding.
6. Courtesy - Be tactful, thoughtful, and respectful in tone through word choice.
7. Correctness - Use the appropriate level of language and check facts, figures, and mechanics. Following
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides explanations and examples for each C. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the receiver's interests and benefits. Concreteness necessitates using specific facts rather than generalizations. Clarity demands choosing precise and familiar language. Courtesy involves being respectful and thoughtful of others. Correctness centers on proper grammar, spelling, and accurately conveying information. The seven C's are principles for creating effective business communications.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication: completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It provides explanations and examples for each C. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer questions fully. Conciseness means conveying messages using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the receiver's interests and benefits. Concreteness necessitates using specific facts rather than generalizations. Clarity demands choosing precise and familiar language. Courtesy involves showing respect and tact. Correctness centers on proper grammar, spelling, and accurate information. The seven C's are principles for crafting effective business communications.
This document provides guidance on effectively conveying bad news to others in a business context. It discusses the challenges of communicating negative information while maintaining goodwill and business relationships. It recommends using an indirect approach by beginning with a buffer statement, then providing reasons and additional information to prepare the recipient, before clearly stating the bad news. It also suggests emphasizing solutions and positives in the closing. Examples are given for different types of bad news messages, such as refusing requests, recommendations, adjustments, credit, or orders. The document aims to help business professionals deliver unpleasant news to others in a thoughtful, logical manner.
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The document provides information on effective business communication, including the definition and concept of communication, objectives and purpose of communication, characteristics of communication, elements of communication, benefits of effective communication, importance of communication in management, and the seven C's of effective communication - completeness, conciseness, consideration, concreteness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness. It emphasizes the importance of clear, concise, and considerate communication in business and management.
The document provides guidance on writing positive messages and direct communication. It discusses organizing direct messages by putting the good news first, followed by details, negatives, and reader benefits. It also covers the 7 Cs of effective communication: being clear, concise, concrete, coherent, correct, complete, and courteous. Examples of direct messages include requests, replies to requests, recommendations, claims and adjustments, announcements, and fostering goodwill. The document emphasizes starting and closing messages effectively and provides sample messages and letters to illustrate best practices.
The document discusses the seven C's of effective communication. The seven C's are: Completeness, Conciseness, Consideration, Concreteness, Clarity, Courtesy, and Correctness. Each C is defined and guidelines are provided for how to apply each one to improve communication effectiveness. Completeness involves providing all necessary details to answer any questions from the recipient. Conciseness means conveying the message using as few words as possible. Consideration requires focusing on the recipient's needs and perspective. Concreteness means using specific details rather than general statements. Clarity involves choosing precise and easy to understand language. Courtesy requires being respectful and thoughtful of the recipient. Correctness involves proper grammar, accurate
Eng 209WI Hurley 1 1.0 USING THE THREE-STEP PROC.docxYASHU40
Eng 209/WI
Hurley 1
1.0 USING THE THREE-STEP PROCESS FOR WRITING
BAD NEWS MESSAGES
Communicating negative news is a fact of life for all business professionals, from rejecting job
applicants to telling customers that shipments will be late to turning down speaking invitations.
Bad news messages are challenging to write because we know our readers will not be happy to
receive the news. These messages say "no" to the reader:
No, you will not get your loan
No, you aren't being hired
No, you didn't get the scholarship
No, you aren't accepted into the college of business
No, I can't give a donation
No, I can't help you
No.
Bad news means the reader will not be able to accomplish his/her goals. For example, without a
loan, a student may have to postpone plans to graduate on time because now the person has to go
to work to raise the money. The homeless shelter that doesn't get your donation now has to worry
about how it's going to feed its clients.
But news can't always be good. In life, we do have to reject less-qualified applicants, we don't
have unlimited funds to give money to every deserving charity, and we can't always fill a
customer's request on time.
When we need to say "no" to our readers, we usually mean "not under these circumstances." "No"
now isn't necessarily "no" forever. If the student were to get a co-signer, he/she might be able to
get the loan after all. Perhaps we'll be able to send a donation to the homeless shelter next month,
after we've paid our own bills first.
So how do we give bad news without destroying our business relationship? You can see in list at
the top of this page that stating bad news directly can often be very damaging and unnecessarily
hurtful. When you need to deliver bad news, you have five goals:
1. to convey the bad news
2. to gain acceptance for it
3. to maintain as much goodwill a possible with your audience
4. to maintain a good image for our organization
Writing Bad News Messages
Eng 209/WI
Hurley 2
5. if appropriate, to reduce or eliminate the need for future correspondence on the matter.
Five goals are clearly a lot to accomplish in one message. However, by learning some simple
techniques, you can develop negative messages that reduce the stress for everyone involved and
improve the effectiveness of your communication efforts.
1.1 Step 1: Plan Your Message
When planning your message, you can't avoid the fact that your audience does not want to hear
what you have to say. To minimize the damage to business relationships and to encourage the
acceptance of your message, analyze the situation carefully to better understand the context in
which the recipient will process your message.
Be sure to consider your purpose thoroughly – whether it's straightforward (such as rejecting a
job application) of more complicated (such as creating a negative performance review, in which
you not only give t ...
This document provides guidance on writing effective messages to communicate negative or "bad" news to readers in a business context. It recommends using a three-step indirect approach: 1) opening with a buffer statement to establish rapport before the bad news; 2) providing thorough reasons and explanations to logically lead the reader to accepting the negative outcome; and 3) clearly stating the bad news while de-emphasizing it and focusing on positive implications. The goal is to deliver the necessary information while minimizing damage to the relationship and encouraging acceptance of the unfortunate situation.
The document provides instructions for answering questions for a Business English exam. It includes 4 sample questions and answers.
Question 1 asks about common barriers to communication and lists several examples like use of jargon, emotional barriers, lack of attention, differences in perception, physical disabilities, and physical barriers to non-verbal communication.
Question 2 describes eight steps for effective writing: know your objective, do research, organize content, write clearly, edit and proofread, format appropriately, follow style guidelines, and get feedback.
Question 3 explains the functions of a business letter, which include promotion, securing business, maintaining business relationships, serving as a reference, and establishing contacts to enlarge the scope of business.
Question 4
The document discusses the seven principles of effective communication, known as the 7 C's. They are:
1. Completeness - providing all necessary details to answer questions fully
2. Conciseness - conveying messages using as few words as possible
3. Consideration - focusing on the receiver's interests and benefits
4. Concreteness - using specific examples rather than generalizations
5. Clarity - choosing precise and simple language for easy understanding
6. Courtesy - communicating with respect, tact, and appreciation
7. Correctness - ensuring proper grammar, accurate information, and appropriate language level. Following these principles can help make any communication more effective.
Failure Is An Option (Success Is Too!) PUB 5924 Entrepre.docxlmelaine
Failure Is An Option
(Success Is Too!)
PUB 5924 Entrepreneurial Public Management
Week 8: Failure Is An Option
(Success is Too!)
Return to the Framework
Failure Is An Option
A Framework: Failure Is An Option (Success Is Too!)
Entrepreneurial Governance
Knowledge
(learning)
Innovation
(new ideas)
Opportunity
(timing & luck/
discover &
exploit)
Implementation
(action)
Addressing Risk Culture & Risk Reduction
PUB 5924 Entrepreneurial Public Management
Unit V
Lesson 1: Writing Professional Messages
Introduction
We all communicate through formal and informal channels in various situations, and each mode
of communication can be more or less rich in its ability to send information effectively. For
example, consider the best channel to send messages such as a company announcement or a
letter of resignation. Messages such as these should be written and sent through a formal channel
so that the sender receives the notification, and a record of the notification can be retained.
Writing Professional Messages
Writing professional messages involves four steps:
a. planning the message,
b. organizing the message,
c. writing the message, and
d. proofreading the message.
Before writing a message, careful planning is a necessity. In advance, it must be determined who
the audience is, what feedback is expected, and what outcomes are expected.
Planning Your Message
What is the purpose of the message? Is the message designed to persuade others to take action or
simply share information? Additionally, will the message achieve its purpose if part of the
process is to explain a difficult concept? In every case, part of the planning is to consider if
writing a message is the best way to communicate or whether it would be better to deliver the
message through another medium, perhaps orally.
Once the reason for writing the message is clear, the next step is to determine the support needed
to make and refine each point until it is very specific. Part of this process is to consider the best
methods that will ensure the message will be successful. For example, if the message is asking
for changes to be made, ensure that the timing is right for such a move. Is it practical to ask for
the company to spend money at this time? For example, if the message asks for the purchase of
more equipment, part of the planning must be an analysis of whether or not the timing is right
and if the company can afford to make such a purchase. If the company is experiencing a
financial downturn, then the message will be a waste of time and might even be viewed as
presumptuous or the presenter as out of touch with current trends in the company’s financial
status.
The planning for any message must always consider the people who will read the message. If the
message is going to only a select few people in the local community, it will be worded
differen ...
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1. Report content
The report should demonstrate your understanding of good project management and health and safety management as appropriate within the context of your chosen project and event.
The report will present the context/background of the chosen project, describe the project, and present student’s critical reflection and thoughts on the management of one particular event/issue of project. The impacts of the event/issue on (1) people, (2) cost, (3) time, (4) health and safety, (5) sustainability, and (6) Ethics will be explored. Using the theory and tools presented in the lectures across the module as well as their own independent research, students should suggest and discuss solutions to (1) overcome the challenges and manage the risks associated with the event/issue, and (2) improve the efficiency, sustainability and ethics of the management of the event/issue.
Appendices and references must be used to demonstrate study that has been undertaken and to provide sources for points made in the body of the report. This will include copies of any individual or group student work undertaken during the module.
The student should refer to the learning materials and readings provided across the module, but are also recommended to give appropriate regard to any additional useful material available online in terms of theory and practice.
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1. Research the assessment process for ELL students in your state. What is the process your district goes through to properly identify students for ESL program placement?
2. Planning for effective instruction is the key to academic success for students. Using data to inform instruction is a regular process. Discuss how teachers can use longitudinal data along with other formative classroom assessments to design effective instruction.
200-300
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1. Review the three articles about Inflation that are of any choice..docxblondellchancy
1. Review the three articles about Inflation that are of any choice.
2. Locate two JOURNAL articles which discuss this topic further. You need to focus on the Abstract, Introduction, Results, and Conclusion. For our purposes, you are not expected to fully understand the Data and Methodology.
3. Summarize these journal articles. Please use your own words. No copy-and-paste. Cite your sources. in 1200 words
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1. Read the RiskReport to see what requirements are.
2. Read the Interim Risk Assessment to see the current state of paper that needs to be revised.
3. Use the RiskReport and the details below on what is missing to revise paper.
Feedback on changes needed to the Risk Assessment Plan
Risk Assessment Plan: Purpose does not make reference to BRI at all. Provide context. Scope, assumptions and constraints appear reasonable, but you can add an assumption or constraint regarding budget.
Need to elaborate on how risk is determine using the qualitative approach.
1. Title
IT Security Risk Assessment
2. Introduction
You are employed with Government Security Consultants, a subsidiary of Largo Corporation. As a member of IT security consultant team, one of your responsibilities is to ensure the security of assets as well as provide a secure environment for customers, partners and employees. You and the team play a key role in defining, implementing and maintaining the IT security strategy in organizations.
A government agency called the Bureau of Research and Intelligence (BRI) is tasked with gathering and analyzing information to support U.S. diplomats.
In a series of New York Times articles, BRI was exposed as being the victim of several security breaches. As a follow up, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) conducted a comprehensive review of the agency’s information security controls and identified numerous issues.
The head of the agency has contracted your company to conduct an IT security risk assessment on its operations. This risk assessment was determined to be necessary to address security gaps in the agency’s critical operational areas and to determine actions to close those gaps. It is also meant to ensure that the agency invests time and money in the right areas and does not waste resources. After conducting the assessment, you are to develop a final report that summarizes the findings and provides a set of recommendations. You are to convince the agency to implement your recommendations.
This learning activity focuses on IT security which is an overarching concern that involves practically all facets of an organization’s activities. You will learn about the key steps of preparing for and conducting a security risk assessment and how to present the findings to leaders and convince them into taking appropriate action.
Understanding security capabilities is basic to the core knowledge, skills, and abilities that IT personnel are expected to possess. Information security is a significant concern among every organization and it may spell success or failure of its mission. Effective IT professionals are expected to be up-to-date on trends in IT security, current threats and vulnerabilities, state-of-the-art security safeguards, and security policies and procedures. IT professionals must be able to communicate effectively (oral and written) to executive level management in a non-jargon, executive .
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Qualitative: Based on the qualitative responses, what percentage of the participants articulated a feeling of improvement?
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1. Prof. Lennart Van der Zeil’s theorem says that any programmin.docxblondellchancy
1. Prof. Lennart Van der Zeil’s theorem says that any programming language is
complete
if it can be used to write a program to compute any computable number.
a. What is a computable number?
b. What is a non-computable number?
c. If all existing programming languages are complete why do we need more than one?
2. Two methodologies are used to transform programs written in a
source language
(also known as a
programmer-oriented language
, or a horizontal language, or a high-level language) into a
target language
(also known as a machine language, or a vertical language, or a low-level language). There is a static method called
translation
and a dynamic method called
interpretation
. Yet FORTRAN while 98% static ., uses interpretation for the Formatted I/O statement, similarly COBOL uses interpretation for the MOVE and MOVE CORRESPONDING statements; on the other hand, Java is fully interpretative except that in some programs and certain data sets it may invoke a JIT (Just In Time) compiler to execute a bit of static code
. Why do language designers mix these modalities if either is complete?
Hint: This is a long question with a short answer.
3. C and C++ store numerical arrays (matrices) in
row major
order and each index range must begin with 0; whereas FORTRAN stores arrays in
column major
order and the (default) index range starts (almost always) with 1. Engineers and scientists are often faced with the problem of converting a working program, or much more often a subroutine, from one language to another. Unfortunately, due to the index range difference (0 to n-1) in C/C++ and (1 to N) in FORTRAN, viewing one array as simply the transpose of the other will not suffice. What steps would you take to convert such a subroutine to compute the product of two matrices A(N,M) and B(M,N) to produce C(N,N) from FORTRAN to C++?
4. What was the major reason Jim Gosling invented Java? Did he succeed?
5. What are the four major features of C++ that were eliminated in Java? Why were they taken out? Why do we not miss them?
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8. What are the pros and cons of overloaded operators in C++? Java has only one, what is it?
9. State your own arguments for allowing mixed mode arithmetic statements. (See Ch 7)
10. What is BNF and why are meta-languages like BNF and EBNF used?
.
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1. Review the results of your assessment using the explanation below.
2. Write at least 200 words describing the results, how you learn best, and how you will modify your study techniques to fit your learning style.
What do the results mean? Barbara Soloman, Coordinator of Advising, First Year College, North Carolina State University explains:
· Active Learners: tend to retain and understand information best by doing something active with it like discussing or explaining it to others. They enjoy group work.
· Reflective Learners: prefer to think about it quietly first. They prefer to work alone.
· Sensing Learners: tend to like learning facts. They are patient with details and good at memorizing things. They are practical and careful.
· Intuitive Learners: prefer discovering possibilities and relationships. They are good at grasping new concepts and are comfortable with abstractions and mathematical formulations. They are innovative and creative.
· Visual Learners: remember best what they see--pictures, diagrams, flowcharts, timelines, films, and demonstrations.
· Verbal Learners: get more out of words--written and spoken explanations. Everyone learns more when information is presented both visually and verbally.
· Sequential Learners: tend to gain understanding in linear steps, with each step following logically from the previous one. They follow logical steps when finding solutions.
· Global Learners: Global learners tend to learn in large jumps, absorbing material almost randomly without seeing connections, and then suddenly "getting it." They may be able to solve complex problems quickly or put things together in novel ways once they have grasped the big picture, but they may have difficulty explaining how they did it.
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1. Search the internet and learn about the cases of nurses Julie Thao and Kimberly Hiatt.
2. List and discuss lessons that you and all healthcare professionals can learn from these two cases.
3. Describe how the principle of beneficence and the virtue of benevolence could be applied to these cases. Do you think the hospital administrators handled the situations legally and ethically?
4. In addition to benevolence, which other virtues exhibited by their colleagues might have helped Thao and Hiatt?
5. Discuss personal virtues that might be helpful to second victims themselves to navigate the grieving process.
All discussion boards should be submitted in APA style (7th edition
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1. Qualitative or quantitative paperresearch required(Use stati.docxblondellchancy
1. Qualitative or quantitative paper/research required(Use statistics and numbers or facts.
2. Apply Statistics, numbers, research
3. Primary Sources explained
4. APA Formatting(Do not use the word “I”, do not use opinions in papers do not use “we”or pronouns)
5. Write a 5 page paper (8 in total-cover page and reference page), you can go over
APA FORMAT
5 scholarly sources
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2. Look for information on the following agencies:
1. National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
2. International Federation of Social Work (IFSW)
3. Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB)
4. Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)
Be prepared to participate in a collaborative activity during the workshop.
3. Write a reflective essay of at least two pages, and elaborate on the following aspects:
1. What is the current state of Social Work in the United States?
2. What do you focus on and what are the functions of current (modern) social work in the United States?
3. Explain the historical events that impacted the different ways of practicing social work.
Remember that an essay is made up of three basic parts: introduction, body or middle, and conclusion. In a reflective essay, the student must effectively combine the concepts and foundations of the discipline of study (definitions, history, prominent figures) with their experiences applicable to the topic of discussion or the guiding questions.
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1.
Portfolio part II
a) APRN protocol also known as collaborative agreement with supervising physician(s).
b.) business proposal (refer to portfolio explanation/examples found on your BB lecture section.
There is an example of a business proposal. Use the example to create a brief business proposal with no more than two pages word or power point as your choice;
c.) Create a LinkedIn page and send me a proof of you creating the link.
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1. Post the link to
one
news article, preferably a piece of recent news (2 points)
2. Explain
A) Which concepts (in which chapters) we learn in class is this news related to (4 points).
B) Specifically, how this concept is demonstrated in the news in your perspective (11 points).
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1. Please explain fixed and flexible budgeting. Provide an example of budgeting for three
consecutive periods in which safety margin is included for flexibility
2. Explain statement of cash flows proforma and its significance in budgeting. Provide a
hypothetical example of a statement of cash flows in a manufacturing enterprise.
.
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1. Open and print the "Week 6 Assignment".
2. The assignment has four parts: A, B, C, and D.
(Part A has been created for use of the Access program where the data source recipients are to be created. However, if you do not have the Access program then you will need to create the data source recipients with the Excel program before you begin keying the letters for the mail merge. Also, If you are using Excel then be certain to create the label headers in each column with the data source recipient information beneath the headers. Whether you use Access or Excel you MUST save the data source in the Week 6 folder in which you will upload.
If you do not save the data source recipients in the folder then I am not able to grade your assignment
.)
3. Create a folder: [your last name]-Week6 (be sure to save to a disk device/hard drive NOT the desktop area.)
5. Complete the assignment as instructed and Save all work in [your last name]-Week6 folder.
6. Zip the folder and upload in the Week 6 Assignment Upload. DO NOT ATTACH THE FOLDER TO EMAIL, IT WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. I will review the assignment and send you comments about the graded work.
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A. JusticeB. ImmortalityC. TimeD. Equality
2. The most accurate way to describe Thrasymachus’ intervention onto the scene in Book I is:
A. He maintains that happiness is unattainable.B. He maintains that only the gods are just. C. He maintains that justice is the advantage of the strong.D. He maintains that justice and injustice are figments of the imagination.
3. In Book I, Thrasymachus’ ironic argument ad hominem is :
A. Socrates needs a wet-nurse.B. Socrates is ugly.C. Socrates should put himself to bed.D. Socrates should not have gone to last night’s banquet.
4. In Book II, Glaucon tells the myth of a ring, the point of which is to illustrate:
A. That we prize material goods above all else.B. That the rich decide what is just and unjust.C. That anyone will commit injustice when they can get away without punishment.D. That myth-telling is essential to philosophy.
5. In Book III, Socrates suggests the city adopt a noble lie, according to which:
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1. Objective: Learn why and how to develop a plan that encompasses all components of a security system.
Use the information found at http://nces.ed.gov/pubs98/safetech/chapter5.asp
to research how determining possible physical threats may affect the choice of physical security countermeasures while planning new or updated security systems.
2. Objective: Determine the placement of physical barriers in integration with other components of the security system.
Research the different types of physical barriers and how they fit the needs of different types of facilities. Use the information found at
http://www.fs.fed.us/t-d/phys_sec/deter/index.htm.
APA Format , references & citations.
.
1. Open the attached Excel Assignment.xlsx” file and name it LastN.docxblondellchancy
1. Open the attached “Excel Assignment.xlsx” file and name it “LastName_FirstInitial - Excel Assignment.xlsx”. 2. Set the page orientation to landscape. Change the student name(s) to your name(s). 3. Wrap the text in the column headings A4:J4 and A14:H14 in Sheet 1 and set the column width to (approximately) 10 for columns B to J. 4. Calculate the Gross Pay (F5:F9) using the following formula: Pay Rate times Regular Hours plus 1.5 times Pay Rate times O/T Hours. 5. Display the Taxable Benefits (G5:I9) in the following way: apply a formula/function to allocate and return the appropriate weekly amount of Dental, Insurance, and Medical based on his/her Benefits Level and the corresponding taxable benefit to this code in Sheet 2. The assumptions, the taxable benefit rates, and the tax rates (all in Sheet 2) may be subject to changes, so all formulas should be created in a way so that they would reflect any changes in Sheet 2 automatically. 6. Calculate the Taxable Income (Gross Pay plus Taxable Benefits). 7. Use the Taxable Income (J5:J9) to automatically locate the Federal and Provincial Tax withholdings from the Tax Table on Sheet 2. For example: Federal Tax = Taxable Income * Federal Tax %. 8. Calculate the Employ. Insurance and Govt. Pension contributions based on the Gross Pay (Note: Gross Pay not Taxable Income). The contribution percentages are located in the Assumption area in Sheet 2. Calculate the Total Deductions as a sum of all deductions (Federal Tax, Provincial Tax, Employ. Insurance, and Govt. Pension). 9. Calculate the Net Amount by subtracting the Total Deductions from the Gross Pay. 10. Calculate the totals in B20:G20 11. Insert cheque number 121 in H15 and create a formula that will automatically number all the rest of cheques in sequence. 12. Format the title as Arial 16 pt., bold, italic and merge and centre it across columns A:J. 13. Format all dollar values as: number, 2 decimal places, 1,000 separators and no dollar sign. 14. Centre the contents of the Benefits Level (B5:B9) and the Cheque No. (H15:H19) columns. 15. Format the borders and headings as shown in the example below.
.
1. must be a research article from either pubmed or google scholar..docxblondellchancy
1. must be a research article from either pubmed or google scholar.
2. the article you select must have an abstract, introduction/ background, materials &methods, results, conclusion
3. summarize the article you selected
4. no plagiarism
5. must include reference
.
A workshop hosted by the South African Journal of Science aimed at postgraduate students and early career researchers with little or no experience in writing and publishing journal articles.
বাংলাদেশের অর্থনৈতিক সমীক্ষা ২০২৪ [Bangladesh Economic Review 2024 Bangla.pdf] কম্পিউটার , ট্যাব ও স্মার্ট ফোন ভার্সন সহ সম্পূর্ণ বাংলা ই-বুক বা pdf বই " সুচিপত্র ...বুকমার্ক মেনু 🔖 ও হাইপার লিংক মেনু 📝👆 যুক্ত ..
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তাই একজন নাগরিক হিসাবে এই তথ্য গুলো আপনার জানা প্রয়োজন ...।
বিসিএস ও ব্যাংক এর লিখিত পরীক্ষা ...+এছাড়া মাধ্যমিক ও উচ্চমাধ্যমিকের স্টুডেন্টদের জন্য অনেক কাজে আসবে ...
Exploiting Artificial Intelligence for Empowering Researchers and Faculty, In...Dr. Vinod Kumar Kanvaria
Exploiting Artificial Intelligence for Empowering Researchers and Faculty,
International FDP on Fundamentals of Research in Social Sciences
at Integral University, Lucknow, 06.06.2024
By Dr. Vinod Kumar Kanvaria
This presentation was provided by Steph Pollock of The American Psychological Association’s Journals Program, and Damita Snow, of The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), for the initial session of NISO's 2024 Training Series "DEIA in the Scholarly Landscape." Session One: 'Setting Expectations: a DEIA Primer,' was held June 6, 2024.
How to Manage Your Lost Opportunities in Odoo 17 CRMCeline George
Odoo 17 CRM allows us to track why we lose sales opportunities with "Lost Reasons." This helps analyze our sales process and identify areas for improvement. Here's how to configure lost reasons in Odoo 17 CRM
This slide is special for master students (MIBS & MIFB) in UUM. Also useful for readers who are interested in the topic of contemporary Islamic banking.
How to Setup Warehouse & Location in Odoo 17 InventoryCeline George
In this slide, we'll explore how to set up warehouses and locations in Odoo 17 Inventory. This will help us manage our stock effectively, track inventory levels, and streamline warehouse operations.
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ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 42001, and GDPR: Best Practices for Implementation and...PECB
Denis is a dynamic and results-driven Chief Information Officer (CIO) with a distinguished career spanning information systems analysis and technical project management. With a proven track record of spearheading the design and delivery of cutting-edge Information Management solutions, he has consistently elevated business operations, streamlined reporting functions, and maximized process efficiency.
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Date: May 29, 2024
Tags: Information Security, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 42001, Artificial Intelligence, GDPR
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Community pharmacy- Social and preventive pharmacy UNIT 5
7 Writing Routine and Positive MessagesLEARNING OBJECTIVESAfte.docx
1. 7 Writing Routine and Positive Messages
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to
1. Outline an effective strategy for writing routine business
requests
2. Describe three common types of routine requests
3. Outline an effective strategy for writing routine replies and
positive messages
4. Describe six common types of routine replies and positive
messages
MyBCommLab® Improve Your Grade!
Over 10 million students improved their results using Pearson
MyLabs. Visit mybcommlab.comfor simulations, tutorials, and
end-of-chapter problems.
Communication Matters . . .
“To succeed, I don’t need to be Shakespeare; I must, though,
have a sincere desire to inform.”
—Warren Buffett, legendary investor and chairman of Berkshire
Hathaway
Warren Buffett’s financial acumen has made him and many of
his shareholders wealthy, but he is recognized almost as widely
for his communication skills. His letters, essays, and annual
reports communicate complex financial topics in simple
language his readers can easily understand. His approach is
simple: Even for a document that will be read by thousands of
people, he visualizes a single person (often one of his sisters) as
his audience. He treats this audience member as an intelligent
human being, but as someone who doesn’t have the same level
of experience with the subject matter he has. From there, he
proceeds to organize and write his messages in a way that
clarifies all the essential information and doesn’t try to impress
or obscure with complicated language.1 Whether you’re posting
a status update on a team blog or producing a report for an
audience of thousands, Buffett’s approach is a great example to
2. follow.
Warren Buffett often deals with complex financial issues in his
line of business, but he has cultivated the ability to express
even complicated subjects in clear, simple language that seeks
to inform rather than to impress.
Louis Lanzano/Associated PressStrategy for Routine Requests
Much of your daily business communication will involve
routine and positive messages, including routine requests for
information or action, replies on routine business matters, and
positive messages such as good-news announcements and
goodwill messages, from product operation hints and technical
support to refunds and ordering glitches. These messages are
the focus of this chapter. Chapter 8 covers messages in which
you convey negative information, and Chapter 9 addresses
persuasive messages.
Making requests is a routine part of business. In most cases,
your audience will be prepared to comply, as long as you’re not
being unreasonable or asking people to do something they
would expect you to do yourself. By applying a clear strategy
and tailoring your approach to each situation, you’ll be able to
generate effective requests quickly.
For routine requests and positive messages,
· State the request or main idea
· Give necessary details
· Close with a cordial request for specific action
Like all other business messages, routine requests have three
parts: an opening, a body, and a close. Using the direct
approach, open with your main idea, which is a clear statement
of your request. Use the body to give details and justify your
request, then close by requesting specific action.Stating Your
Request Up Front
Take care that your direct approach doesn’t come across as
abrupt or tactless.
With routine requests, you can make your request at the
beginning of the message. Of course, getting right to the point
3. should not be interpreted as license to be abrupt or tactless:
· Pay attention to tone. Instead of demanding action (“Send me
the latest version of the budget spreadsheet”), show respect by
using words such as please and I would appreciate.
· Assume that your audience will comply. Because the request is
routine, you can generally assume that your readers will comply
when they clearly understand the reason for your request.
· Be specific. State precisely what you want. For example, if
you request the latest market data from your research
department, be sure to say whether you want a 1-page summary
or 100 pages of raw data.Explaining and Justifying Your
Request
If you have multiple requests or questions, start with the most
important one.
Use the body of your message to explain your request, as
needed. Make the explanation a smooth and logical outgrowth
of your opening remarks. If complying with the request could
benefit the reader, be sure to mention that. If you have multiple
requests or questions, ask the most important questions first and
deal with only one topic per question. If you have an unusual or
complex request, break it down into specific, individual
questions so that the reader can address each one separately.
This consideration not only shows respect for your audience’s
time but also gets you a more accurate answer in less
time.Requesting Specific Action in a Courteous Close
Close request messages with
· A request for some specific action
· Information about how you can be reached
· An expression of appreciation
Close your message with three important elements: (1) a
specific request that includes any relevant deadlines, (2)
information about how you can be reached (if it isn’t obvious),
and (3) an expression of appreciation or goodwill; for example:
“Please send the figures by April 5 so that I can return first-
quarter results to you before the April 15 board meeting. I
appreciate your help.” Conclude your message with a sincere
4. thanks. However, don’t thank the reader “in advance” for
cooperating; many people find that presumptuous.8 Writing
Negative MessagesLEARNING OBJECTIVES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to
1. Apply the three-step writing process to negative messages
2. Explain how to use the direct approach effectively when
conveying negative news
3. Explain how to use the indirect approach effectively when
conveying negative news, and explain how to avoid ethical
problems when using this approach
4. Describe successful strategies for sending negative messages
on routine business matters
5. Describe successful strategies for sending negative
employment-related messages
6. List the important points to consider when conveying
negative organizational news
7. Describe an effective strategy for responding to negative
information in a social media
environmentMyBCommLab® Improve Your Grade!
Over 10 million students improved their results using Pearson
MyLabs. Visit mybcommlab.comfor simulations, tutorials, and
end-of-chapter problems.Communication Matters . . .
“You know what [consumers] hate most? A cover-up. They
understand that we all goof-up now and then, but they expect us
to fess-up immediately and do right by those who may have
been misled or injured as a result of the error.”1
—W. T. “Bill” McKibben, senior counsel, The Great Lakes
Group
From network hacker attacks to product safety failures, business
leaders must sometimes face the need to communicate
unwelcome information to consumers and other interested
parties. As communication ethics advisor Bill McKibben
emphasizes, playing it straight with those who have been
affected is essential to repairing business relationships. Sharing
unwelcome news is never pleasant, but learning how to do it
with sensitivity and honesty will make the task easier for you as
5. a writer and the experience less traumatic for the recipients of
your messages.
According to communication ethics specialist Bill McKibben,
consumers demand ethical responses from companies that make
mistakes, and that commitment to ethics must be reflected in
external communication efforts. General Motors (GM), for
example, was criticized for not disclosing long-running safety
issues with ignition switches until an outsider investigator
uncovered the problem.
Linda Parton/Alamy
Using the Three-Step Writing Process for Negative Messages
Five goals of negative messages:
· Give the bad news
· Encourage its acceptance
· Maintain the reader’s goodwill
· Maintain the organization’s good image
· Manage the volume of future correspondence on the matter
1 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Apply the three-step writing process to negative messages.
Delivering negative information is never enjoyable, but with
some helpful guidelines, you can craft messages that minimize
negative reactions. When you need to deliver bad news, you
have five goals: (1) to convey the bad news, (2) to gain
acceptance for it, (3) to maintain as much goodwill as possible
with your audience, (4) to maintain a good image for your
organization, and (5) if appropriate, to reduce or eliminate the
need for future correspondence on the matter. Accomplishing all
five goals requires careful attention to planning, writing, and
completing your message.
Step 1: Planning Negative Messages
Careful planning is necessary to avoid alienating your readers.
When you need to convey negative news, you can’t avoid the
fact that your audience does not want to hear what you have to
say. To minimize the damage to business relationships and to
encourage the acceptance of your message, plan carefully. With
a clear purpose and your audience’s needs in mind, gather the
6. information your audience will need in order to understand and
accept your message.
Choose the medium with care when preparing negative
messages.
Selecting the right combination of medium and channel is
critical. For instance, experts advise that bad news for
employees be delivered in person whenever possible, both to
show respect for the employees and to give them an opportunity
to ask questions. However, and an increasing number of
managers appear to be using email and other digital media to
convey negative messages to employees.2
The appropriate message organization helps readers accept your
negative news.
Figure 8.1 Comparing the Direct and Indirect Approaches for
Negative Messages
The direct and indirect approaches differ in two important ways:
the position of the bad news within the sequence of message
points and the use of a buffer in the indirect approach. (“Using
the Indirect Approach for Negative Messages” on
page 187 explains the use of a buffer.) Both these messages deal
with changes made in response to negative financial
developments, but the second example represents a much higher
emotional impact for readers, so the indirect approach is called
for in that case. Figure 8.2 explains how to choose the right
approach for each situation.
Finally, the organization of a negative message requires
particular care. One of the most critical planning decisions is
choosing whether to use the direct or indirect approach
(see Figure 8.1). A negative message using the direct
approach opens with the bad news, proceeds to the reasons for
the situation or decision, offers any additional information that
may help the audience, and ends with a positive statement
aimed at maintaining a good relationship with the audience. In
contrast, the indirect approach opens with a buffer (see
page 187), then builds up the reasons behind the bad news
7. before presenting the bad news itself.
To help decide which approach to take in a particular situation,
ask yourself the following questions:
Use the direct approach when your negative answer or
information will have minimal personal impact; consider the
indirect approach for more serious matters.
· Do you need to get the reader’s attention immediately? If the
situation is an emergency, or if someone has ignored repeated
messages, the direct approach can help you get attention
quickly.
· Does the recipient prefer a direct style of
communication? Some recipients prefer the direct approach no
matter what, so if you know this, go with direct.
· How important is this news to the reader? For minor or routine
scenarios, the direct approach is nearly always best. However, if
the reader has an emotional investment in the situation or the
consequences to the reader are considerable, the indirect
approach is often better, particularly if the bad news is
unexpected.
· Will the bad news come as a shock? The direct approach is
fine for many business situations in which people understand
the possibility of receiving bad news. However, if the bad news
might come as a shock to readers, use the indirect approach to
help them prepare for it.
Figure 8.2 offers a convenient decision tree to help you decide
which approach to use.
Figure 8.2 Choosing the Direct or Indirect Approach
Following this decision tree will help you decide whether the
direct or indirect approach is better in a given situation. Of
course, use your best judgment as well. Your relationship with
the audience could affect your choice of approaches, for
example.
Step 2: Writing Negative Messages
By writing clearly and sensitively, you can take some of the
sting out of bad news and help your reader accept the decision
8. and move on. If your credibility hasn’t already been established
with an audience, clarify your qualifications so recipients won’t
question your authority or ability.
Choose your language carefully; it is possible to deliver
negative news without being negative.
TABLE 8.1 Choosing Positive Words
Examples of Negative Phrasings
Positive Alternatives
Your request doesn’t make any sense.
Please clarify your request.
The damage won’t be fixed for a week.
The item will be repaired next week.
Although it wasn’t our fault, there will be an unavoidable
delay in your order.
We will process your order as soon as we receive an aluminum
shipment from our supplier, which we expect within 10 days.
You are clearly dissatisfied.
I recognize that the product did not live up to your expectations.
I was shocked to learn that you’re unhappy.
Thank you for sharing your concerns about your shopping
experience.
The enclosed statement is wrong.
Please verify the enclosed statement and provide a correct copy.
When you use language that conveys respect and avoids an
accusing tone, you protect your audience’s pride. This kind of
communication etiquette is always important, but it demands
special care with negative messages. Moreover, you can ease
the sense of disappointment by using positive words rather than
negative, counterproductive ones (see Table 8.1).
Step 3: Completing Negative Messages
The need for careful attention to detail continues as you
complete your message. Revise your content to make sure
everything is clear, complete, and concise—bearing in mind that
even small flaws are likely to be magnified in readers’ minds as
they react to the negative news. Produce clean, professional
documents and proofread carefully to eliminate mistakes.
9. Finally, be sure to deliver messages promptly; withholding or
delaying bad news can be unethical, even illegal.Using the
Direct Approach for Negative Messages2 LEARNING
OBJECTIVE
Explain how to use the direct approach effectively when
conveying negative news.
A negative message using the direct approach opens with the
bad news, proceeds to the reasons for the situation or decision,
and ends with a positive statement aimed at maintaining a good
relationship with the audience. Depending on the circumstances,
the message may also offer alternatives or a plan of action to fix
the situation under discussion. Stating the bad news at the
beginning can have two advantages: (1) It makes a shorter
message possible, and (2) it allows the audience to reach the
main idea of the message in less time.Opening with a Clear
Statement of the Bad News
If you’ve chosen the direct approach to convey bad news, use
the introductory paragraph of your message to share that
information. To avoid being overly blunt, you can open with a
neutral or positive statement that establishes common ground
with the reader, then transition into the news. If necessary,
remind the reader why you’re writing.Providing Reasons and
Additional Information
The amount of detail you provide depends on your relationship
with the audience.
In most cases, follow the direct opening with an explanation of
why the news is negative. The extent of your explanation
depends on the nature of the news and your relationship with
the reader. For example, if you want to preserve a long-standing
relationship with an important customer, a detailed explanation
could well be worth the extra effort such a message would
require.
However, you will encounter some situations in which
explaining negative news is neither appropriate nor helpful,
such as when the reasons are confidential, excessively
complicated, or irrelevant to the reader.
10. The decision whether to apologize depends on a number of
factors; if you do apologize, be sincere.
Should you apologize when delivering bad news? The answer
isn’t quite as simple as one might think, partly because the
notion of apology is hard to pin down. To some people, it
simply means an expression of sympathy that something
negative has happened to another person. At the other extreme,
it means admitting fault and taking responsibility for specific
compensations or corrections to atone for the mistake.REAL-
TIME UPDATES Learn More by Reading This Article:
Dissecting the apology letter from Target’s CEO
A PR consultant evaluates a high-profile apology point by
point. Go to http://real-timeupdates.com/bce7. Under
“Students,” click on “Learn More.”
Some experts contend that a company should never apologize,
even when it knows it has made a mistake, as the apology might
be taken as a confession of guilt that could be used against the
company in a lawsuit. However, several states have laws that
specifically prevent expressions of sympathy from being used as
evidence of legal liability. In fact, judges, juries, and plaintiffs
tend to be more forgiving of companies that express sympathy
for wronged parties; moreover, an apology can help repair a
company’s reputation. Recently, some prosecutors have begun
pressing executives to publicly admit guilt and apologize as part
of the settlement of criminal cases—unlike the common tactic
of paying fines but refusing to admit any wrongdoing.3
The best general advice in the event of a mistake or accident is
to express sympathy immediately and sincerely and offer help,
if appropriate, without admitting guilt; then seek the advice of
your company’s lawyers before elaborating. A straightforward,
sincere apology can go a long way toward healing wounds and
rebuilding relationships. As one report on the issue concluded,
“The risks of making an apology are low, and the potential
reward is high.”4
If you do apologize, make it a real apology. Don’t say “I’m
sorry if anyone was offended” by what you did—this statement
11. implies that you’re not sorry at all and that it’s the other party’s
fault for being offended.5 For example, when Target’s
information systems were infiltrated in a hacking attack that
exposed the personal data of tens of millions of customers, the
CEO’s apology to customers included the statement, “I know
this breach has had a real impact on you, creating a great deal
of confusion and frustration.”6 Note that he did not say, “if this
breach caused you any confusion or frustration.”
Recognize that you can express sympathy with someone’s plight
without suggesting that you are to blame. For example, if a
business customer damaged a product through misuse and
suffered a financial loss as a result of not being able to use the
product, you can say something along the lines of “I’m sorry to
hear of your difficulties.” This demonstrates sensitivity without
accepting blame.REAL-TIME UPDATES Learn More by
Reading This Infographic: See how expensive poor customer
service really is
Communication is at the heart of customer service, and poor
customer service is the number-one way to drive customers
away. Go to http://real-timeupdates.com/bce7. Under
“Students,” click on “Learn More.”Closing on a Respectful Note
Close your message on a respectful note, being as positive as
you can be without being insincere.
After you’ve explained the negative news, close the message in
a manner that respects the impact the negative news is likely to
have on the recipient. If appropriate, consider offering your
readers an alternative solution if you can and if doing so is a
good use of your time. Look for opportunities to include
positive statements, but avoid creating false hopes or writing in
a way that seems to suggest that something negative didn’t
happen to the recipient. Ending on a false positive can leave
readers feeling “disrespected, disregarded, or deceived.”7
Using the Indirect Approach for Negative Messages
3 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Explain how to use the indirect approach effectively when
conveying negative news, and explain how to avoid ethical
12. problems when using this approach.
As noted earlier, the indirect approach helps readers prepare for
the bad news by outlining the reasons for the situation before
presenting the bad news itself. However, the indirect approach
is not meant to obscure bad news, delay it, or limit your
responsibility. The purpose of this approach is to ease the blow
and help readers accept the news. When done poorly, the
indirect approach can be disrespectful and even unethical. But
when done well, it is a good example of audience-oriented
communication crafted with attention to both ethics and
etiquette. Showing consideration for the feelings of others is
never dishonest.
Use the indirect approach when some preliminary discussion
will help your audience accept your bad news.
Opening with a Buffer
A buffer gives you the opportunity to start the communication
process without jumping immediately into the bad news.
Messages using the indirect approach open with a buffer, a
neutral, noncontroversial statement that is closely related to the
point of the message but doesn’t convey the bad news.
Depending on the circumstances, a good buffer can express your
appreciation for being considered, assure the reader of your
attention to the request, indicate your understanding of the
reader’s needs, introduce the general subject matter, or simply
establish common ground with your reader. A good buffer also
needs to be relevant and sincere. In contrast, a poorly written
buffer might trivialize the reader’s concerns, divert attention
from the problem with insincere flattery or irrelevant material,
or mislead the reader into thinking your message actually
contains good news.
Consider these possible responses to a manager of the order-
fulfillment department who requested some temporary staffing
help from your department (a request you won’t be able to
fulfill):
Poorly written buffers mislead or insult the reader.
· Our department shares your goal of processing orders quickly
13. and efficiently.
· As a result of the last downsizing, every department in the
company is running shorthanded.
· You folks are doing a great job over there, and I’d love to be
able to help out.
· Those new state labor regulations are driving me crazy over
here; how about in your department?
Only the first of these buffers can be considered effective; the
other three are likely to damage your relationship with the other
manager. Table 8.2 provides several types of effective buffers
you can use to open a negative message tactfully.
TABLE 8.2 Types of Buffers
Buffer Type
Strategy
Example
Agreement
Find a point on which you and the reader share similar views.
We both know how hard it is to make a profit in this industry.
Appreciation
Express sincere thanks for receiving something.
Your check for $127.17 arrived yesterday. Thank you.
Cooperation
Convey your willingness to help in any way you realistically
can.
Employee Services is here to assist all associates with their
health insurance, retirement planning, and continuing education
needs.
Fairness
Assure the reader that you’ve closely examined and carefully
considered the problem, or mention an appropriate action that
has already been taken.
For the past week, we have had our bandwidth monitoring tools
running around the clock to track your actual upload and
download speeds.
Good news
Start with the part of your message that is favorable.
14. We have credited your account in the amount of $14.95 to cover
the cost of return shipping.
Praise
Find an attribute or an achievement to compliment.
The Stratford Group clearly has an impressive record of
accomplishment in helping clients resolve financial reporting
problems.
Resale
Favorably discuss the product or company related to the subject
of the letter.
With their heavy-duty, full-suspension hardware and fine
veneers, the desks and file cabinets in our Montclair line have
long been popular with value-conscious professionals.
Understanding
Demonstrate that you understand the reader’s goals and needs.
So that you can more easily find the printer with the features
you need, we are enclosing a brochure that describes all the
Epson printers currently available.
Providing Reasons and Additional Information
Build your reasoning in a way that signals the negative news
ahead.
An effective buffer serves as a transition to the next part of
your message, in which you build up the explanations and
information that will culminate in your negative news. An ideal
explanation section leads readers to your conclusion before you
come right out and say it. The reader has followed your line of
reasoning and is ready for the answer. By giving your reasons
effectively, you help maintain focus on the issues at hand and
defuse the emotions that always accompany significantly bad
news. An effective way to do this is to start with positive or
neutral points and move through progressively negative points.
Provide enough detail for the audience to understand your
reasons but be concise.
Whenever possible, don’t use “company policy” as the reason
for the bad news.
Avoid hiding behind company policy to cushion your bad news.
15. If you say, “Company policy forbids our hiring anyone who
does not have two years’ supervisory experience,” you imply
that you won’t consider anyone on his or her individual merits.
Skilled and sympathetic communicators explain company policy
(without referring to it as “policy”) so that the audience can try
to meet the requirements at a later time. Consider this response
to an employee:
Well-written reasons are
· Detailed
· Tactful
· Personalized
· Unapologetic if the writer is not at fault
· As positive as possible
Because these management positions are quite challenging, the
human relations department has researched the qualifications
needed to succeed in them. The findings show that the two most
important qualifications are a bachelor’s degree in business
administration and two years’ supervisory experience.
This paragraph does a good job of stating reasons for the
refusal:
· It provides enough detail to logically support the refusal.
· It implies that the applicant is better off avoiding a position in
which he or she might fail.
· It doesn’t apologize for the decision because no one is at fault.
· It avoids negative personal statements (such as “You do not
meet our requirements”).
Even valid, well-thought-out reasons won’t convince every
reader in every situation, but if you’ve done a good job of
laying out your reasoning, then you’ve done everything you can
to prepare the reader for the main idea, which is the negative
news itself.
Continuing with a Clear Statement of the Bad News
To convey bad news carefully
· Deemphasize the bad news visually and grammatically
· Use a conditional statement if appropriate
· Tell what you did do, not what you didn’t do
16. After you’ve thoughtfully and logically established your reasons
and readers are prepared to receive the bad news, you can use
three techniques to convey the negative information as clearly
and as kindly as possible. First, make sure you don’t
overemphasize the bad news:
· Minimize the space or time devoted to the bad news—without
trivializing it or withholding important information. In other
words, don’t repeat it or belabor it.
· Subordinate bad news within a complex or compound sentence
(“My department is already shorthanded, so I’ll need all my
staff for at least the next two months”).
· Embed bad news in the middle of a paragraph or use
parenthetical expressions (“Our profits, which are down, are
only part of the picture”).
However, keep in mind that it’s possible to abuse this notion of
deemphasizing bad news. For instance, if the primary point of
your message is that profits are down, it would be inappropriate
to marginalize that news by burying it in the middle of a
sentence. State the negative news clearly, and then make a
smooth transition to any positive news that might balance the
story.
Second, if appropriate, use a conditional (if or when) statement
to imply that the audience could have received, or might
someday receive, a favorable answer under different
circumstances (“When you have more managerial experience,
you are welcome to apply for any openings that we may have in
the future”). Such a statement could motivate applicants to
improve their qualifications. However, you must avoid any
suggestion that you might reverse the decision you’ve just made
or any phrasing that could give a rejected applicant false hope.
Don’t disguise the bad news when you emphasize the positive.
Third, emphasize what you can do or have done rather than what
you cannot do. Also, by implying the bad news, you may not
need to actually state it, thereby making the bad news less
personal (“Our development budget for next year is fully
committed to our existing slate of projects”). However, make
17. sure your audience understands the entire message—including
the bad news. If an implied message might lead to uncertainty,
state your decision in direct terms. Just be sure to avoid overly
blunt statements that are likely to cause pain and anger:
Instead of This
Write This
I must refuse your request.
I will be out of town on the day you need me.
We must deny your application.
The position has been filled.
I am unable to grant your request.
Contact us again when you have established . . .
We cannot afford to continue the program.
The program will conclude on May 1.
Much as I would like to attend . . .
Our budget meeting ends too late for me to attend.
We must turn down your extension request.
Please send in your payment by June 14.
Closing on a Respectful Note
As in the direct approach, the close in the indirect approach
offers an opportunity to emphasize your respect for your
audience, even though you’ve just delivered unpleasant news.
Express best wishes without ending on a falsely upbeat note. If
you can find a positive angle that’s meaningful to your
audience, by all means consider adding it to your conclusion.
However, don’t try to pretend that the negative news didn’t
happen or that it won’t affect the reader. Suggest alternative
solutions if such information is available and doing so is a good
use of your time. If you’ve asked readers to decide between
alternatives or to take some action, make sure that they know
what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Whatever type of
conclusion you use, follow these guidelines:
A respectful close
· Builds goodwill
· Offers a suggestion for action
· Provides a look toward the future
18. · Is sincere
· Avoid an uncertain conclusion. If the situation or decision is
final, avoid statements such as “I trust our decision is
satisfactory,” which imply that the matter is open to discussion
or negotiation.
· Manage future correspondence. Encourage additional
communication only if you’re willing to discuss your decision
further. If you’re not, avoid wording such as “If you have
further questions, please write.”
· Express optimism, if appropriate. If the situation might
improve in the future, share that with your readers if it’s
relevant. However, don’t suggest the possibility of a positive
change if you don’t have insight that it might happen.
· Be sincere. Avoid clichés that are insincere in view of the bad
news. If you can’t help, don’t say, “If we can be of any help,
please contact us.”
Keep in mind that the close can have a lasting impact on your
audience. Even though they’re disappointed, leave them with
the impression that they were treated with respect.
Sending Negative Messages on Routine Business Matters
4 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Describe successful strategies for sending negative messages on
routine business matters.
Professionals and companies receive a wide variety of requests
and cannot respond positively to every single one. In addition,
mistakes and unforeseen circumstances can lead to delays and
other minor problems that occur in the course of business.
Occasionally, companies must send negative messages to
suppliers and other parties. Whatever the purpose, crafting
routine negative responses and messages quickly and graciously
is an important skill for every businessperson.
Making Negative Announcements on Routine Business Matters
Many negative messages are written in response to requests
from an internal or external correspondent, but on occasion
managers need to make unexpected announcements of a
negative nature. For example, a company might decide to
19. consolidate its materials purchasing with fewer suppliers and
thereby need to tell several firms it will no longer be buying
from them. Internally, management may need to announce the
elimination of an employee benefit or other changes that
employees will view negatively.
For unexpected negative messages on routine matters, the
indirect approach is usually more appropriate.
Although such announcements happen in the normal course of
business, they are generally unexpected. Accordingly, except in
the case of minor changes, the indirect approach is usually the
better choice. Follow the steps outlined for indirect messages:
open with a buffer that establishes some mutual ground between
you and the reader, advance your reasoning, announce the
change, and close with as much positive information and
sentiment as appropriate under the circumstances.
Rejecting Suggestions and Proposals
Rejecting suggestions and proposals, particularly if you asked
for input, requires special care and tact because you need to
maintain a positive working relationship.
Managers receive a variety of suggestions and proposals, both
solicited and unsolicited, from internal and external sources.
For an unsolicited proposal from an external source, you may
not even need to respond if you don’t already have a working
relationship with the sender. However, if you need to reject a
proposal you solicited, you owe the sender an explanation, and
because the news will be unexpected, the indirect approach is
better. In general, the closer your working relationship, the
more thoughtful and complete you need to be in your response.
For example, if you are rejecting a proposal from an employee,
explain your reasons fully and carefully so that the employee
can understand why the proposal was not accepted and so that
you don’t damage an important working relationship.
Refusing Routine Requests
When turning down an invitation or a request for a favor,
consider your relationship with the reader.
When you are unable to meet a routine request, your primary
20. communication challenge is to give a clear negative response
without generating negative feelings or damaging either your
personal reputation or the company’s. As simple as these
messages may appear to be, they can test your skills as a
communicator because you often need to deliver negative
information while maintaining a positive relationship with the
other party.
The direct approach works best for most routine negative
responses because it is simpler and more efficient. The indirect
approach works best when the stakes are high for you or for the
receiver, when you or your company has an established
relationship with the person making the request, or when you’re
forced to decline a request that you might have accepted in the
past (see Figure 8.3 on the next page).
Consider the following points as you develop routine negative
messages:
If you aren’t in a position to offer additional information or
assistance, don’t imply that you are.
· Manage your time carefully; focus on the most important
relationships and requests.
· If the matter is closed, don’t imply that it’s still open by using
phrases such as “Let me think about it and get back to you” as a
way to delay saying no.
· Offer alternative ideas if you can, particularly if the
relationship is important.
· Don’t imply that other assistance or information might be
available if it isn’t.
Handling Bad News About Transactions
Bad news about transactions is always unwelcome and usually
unexpected. When you send such messages, you have three
goals: (1) modify the customer’s expectations, (2) explain how
you plan to resolve the situation, and (3) repair whatever
damage might have been done to the business relationship.
Some negative messages regarding transactions carry significant
business ramifications.
The specific content and tone of each message can vary widely,
21. depending on the nature of the transaction and your relationship
with the customer. Telling an individual consumer that his new
sweater will be arriving a week later than you promised is a
much simpler task than telling Toyota that 30,000 transmission
parts will be a week late, especially when you know the
company will be forced to idle a multimillion-dollar production
facility as a result.
Figure 8.3 Effective Letter Declining a Routine Request
In declining a request to use her company’s facilities, May Yee
Kwan took note of the fact that her company has a long-
standing relationship with the college and wants to maintain
that positive relationship. Because the news is unexpected based
on past experience, she chose an indirect approach to build up
to her announcement.
Figure 8.4 Effective Negative Message Regarding a Transaction
This message, which is a combination of good and bad news,
uses the indirect approach—with the good news serving as a
buffer for the bad news. In this case, the customer wasn’t
promised delivery by a certain date, so the writer simply
informs the customer when to expect the rest of the order. The
writer also takes steps to repair the relationship and encourage
future business with her firm.
If you haven’t done anything specific to set the customer’s
expectations—such as promising delivery within 24 hours—the
message simply needs to inform the customer of the situation,
with little or no emphasis on apologies (see Figure 8.4).
My BComm Lab Apply Figure 8.4’s key concepts by going
to mybcommlab.com
Your approach to bad news about business transactions depends
on the customer’s expectations.
If you’ve failed to meet expectations that you set for the
customer, an element of apology should be considered.
If you did set the customer’s expectations and now find that you
can’t meet them, your task is more complicated. In addition to
22. resetting those expectations and explaining how you’ll resolve
the problem, you may need to include an element of apology.
The scope of the apology depends on the magnitude of the
mistake. For the customer who ordered the sweater, a simple
apology followed by a clear statement of when the sweater will
arrive would probably be sufficient. For larger business-to-
business transactions, the customer may want an explanation of
what went wrong to determine whether you’ll be able to perform
as you promise in the future.
To help repair the damage to the relationship and encourage
repeat business, many companies offer discounts on future
purchases, free merchandise, or other considerations. Even
modest efforts can go a long way to rebuilding a customer’s
confidence in your company.
Refusing Claims and Requests for Adjustment
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Use the indirect approach in most cases of refusing a claim.
Customers who make a claim or request an adjustment tend to
be emotionally involved, so the indirect approach is usually the
better choice when you are denying such a request. Your
delicate task as a writer is to avoid accepting responsibility for
the unfortunate situation and yet avoid blaming or accusing the
customer. To steer clear of these pitfalls, pay special attention
to the tone of your letter. Demonstrate that you understand and
have considered the complaint carefully, and then rationally
explain why you are refusing the request. Close on a respectful
and action-oriented note (see Figure 8.5). And be sure to
respond quickly. With so many instantaneous media choices at
their disposal, some angry consumers will take their complaints
public if they don’t hear back from you within a few days or
even a few hours.8
If you deal with enough customers over a long-enough period,
chances are you’ll get a request that is particularly outrageous.
You may even be convinced that the person is not telling the
23. truth. However, you must resist the temptation to call the person
dishonest or incompetent. If you don’t, you could be sued
for defamation, a false statement that damages someone’s
reputation. (Written defamation is called libel; spoken
defamation is called slander.) To successfully sue for
defamation, the aggrieved party must prove (1) that the
statement is false, (2) that the language injures the person’s
reputation, and (3) that the statement has been communicated to
others.
To avoid accusations of defamation, follow these guidelines:
You can help avoid accusations of defamation by not
responding emotionally.
· Avoid using any kind of abusive language or terms that could
be considered defamatory.
· Provide accurate information and stick to the facts.
· Never let anger or malice motivate your messages.
· Consult your company’s legal advisers whenever you think a
message might have legal consequences.
· Communicate honestly and make sure you believe what you’re
saying is true.
· Emphasize a desire for a good relationship in the future.
Keep in mind that nothing positive can come out of
antagonizing a customer, even one who has verbally abused you
or your colleagues. Reject the claim or request for adjustment in
a professional manner and move on to the next challenge.
Sending Negative Employment Messages
5 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Describe successful strategies for sending negative
employment-related messages.
As a manager, you will find yourself in a variety of situations in
which you have to convey bad news to individual employees or
potential employees. Recipients have an emotional stake in
these messages, so taking the indirect approach is usually
advised. In addition, use great care in choosing your medium
for each situation. For instance, email and other written forms
let you control the message and avoid personal confrontation,
24. but one-on-one conversations are often viewed as more sensitive
and give both sides the opportunity to ask and answer questions.
Refusing Requests for Recommendations
Managers may get requests for recommendations from other
employers and from past employees. When sending refusals to
other employers who have requested information about a former
employee of yours, your message can be brief and direct:
In messages informing prospective employers that you will not
provide a recommendation, be direct, brief, and factual (to
avoid legal pitfalls).
Our human resources department has authorized me to confirm
that Yolanda Johnson worked for Tandy, Inc., for three years,
from June 2010 to July 2013. Best of luck as you interview
applicants.
This message doesn’t need to say, “We cannot comply with your
request.” It simply gives the reader all the information that is
allowable.
Refusing an applicant’s direct request for a recommendation
letter is another matter. Any refusal to cooperate may seem to
be a personal slight and a threat to the applicant’s future.
Diplomacy and preparation help readers accept your refusal:
Thank you for letting me know about your job opportunity with
Coca-Cola. Your internship there and the MBA you’ve worked
so hard to earn should place you in an excellent position to land
the marketing job.
Figure 8.5 Message to Refuse a Claim
Vera Shoemaker diplomatically refuses this customer’s request
for a new saw blade. Without blaming the customer (even
though the customer clearly made a mistake), she points out that
the saw blade is not intended to cut steel, so the warranty
doesn’t cover a replacement in this instance.
Although we do not send out formal recommendations here at
PepsiCo, I can certainly send Coca-Cola a confirmation of your
employment dates. And if you haven’t considered this already,
be sure to ask several of your professors to write evaluations of
25. your marketing skills. Best of luck to you in your career.
This message tactfully avoids hurting the reader’s feelings
because it makes positive comments about the reader’s recent
activities, implies the refusal, suggests an alternative, and uses
a polite close.
Refusing Social Networking Recommendation Requests
Making recommendations in a social networking environment is
more complicated than with a traditional recommendation letter
because the endorsements you give become part of your online
profile. On a network such as LinkedIn, others can see whom
you’ve recommended and what you’ve written about these
people. Much more so than with traditional letters, then, the
recommendations you make in a social network become part of
your personal brand.9 Moreover, networks make it easy to find
people and request recommendations, so chances are you will
get more requests than you would have otherwise—and
sometimes from people you don’t know well.
Social networks have created new challenges in
recommendation requests, but they also offer more flexibility in
responding to these requests.
Fortunately, social networks give you a bit more flexibility
when it comes to responding to these requests. One option is to
simply ignore or delete the request. Of course, if you do know a
person, ignoring a request could create an uncomfortable
situation, so you will need to decide each case based on your
relationship with the requester. Another option is to refrain
from making recommendations at all, and just let people know
this policy when they ask. Whatever you decide, remember that
it is your choice.10
If you choose to make recommendations and want to respond to
a request, you can write as much or as little information about
the person as you are comfortable sharing. Unlike the situation
with an offline recommendation, you don’t need to write a
complete letter. You can write a brief statement, even just a
single sentence that focuses on one positive aspect.11 This
flexibility allows you to respond positively in those situations
26. in which you have mixed feelings about a person’s overall
abilities.
Rejecting Job Applications
Experts disagree on which elements to include in a rejection
letter, but the safest strategy is a minimalist approach.
Application rejections are routine communications, but saying
no is never easy, and recipients are emotionally invested in the
decision. Moreover, companies must be aware of the possibility
of employment discrimination lawsuits, which have been on the
rise in recent years.12 Of course, having fair and
nondiscriminatory hiring practices is essential, but rejections
must also be written in a way that doesn’t inadvertently suggest
any hint of discrimination. Expert opinions differ on the level
of information to include in a rejection message, but the safest
strategy is to avoid sharing any explanations for the company’s
decision and to avoid making or implying any promises of
future consideration (see Figure 8.6):13
· Personalize the message by using the recipient’s name. “Dear
Applicant” can make it sound as though you never bothered to
read the application.
· Open with a courteous expression of appreciation for having
applied. In a sense, this is like the buffer in an indirect message
because it gives you an opportunity to begin the conversation
without immediately and bluntly telling the reader that his or
her application has been rejected.
· Convey the negative news politely and concisely. The passive
voice is helpful in this situation because it depersonalizes the
response. For example, “Your application was not among those
selected for an interview” is less blunt than the active phrase
“We have rejected your application.”
· Avoid explaining why an applicant was rejected or why other
applicants were chosen instead. Although it was once more
common to offer such explanations, and some experts still
advocate this approach, the simplest strategy from a legal
standpoint is to avoid offering reasons for the decision.
Avoiding explanations lowers the possibility that an applicant
27. will perceive discrimination in the hiring decision or be tempted
to challenge the reasons given.
Figure 8.6 Effective Message Rejecting a Job Applicant
This message rejecting a job applicant takes care to avoid
making or implying any promises about future opportunities,
beyond inviting the person to apply for positions that may
appear in the future. Note that this would not be appropriate if
the company did not believe the applicant was a good fit for the
company in general.
· Don’t state or imply that the application will be reviewed at a
later date. Saying that “we will keep your résumé on file for
future consideration” can create false hopes for the recipient
and leave the company vulnerable to legal complaints if a future
hiring decision is made without actually reviewing this
candidate’s application again. If the candidate might be a good
fit for another position in the company in the future, you can
suggest he or she reapply if a new job opening is posted.
· Close with positive wishes for the applicant’s career
success. A brief statement such as “We wish you success in
your career” is sufficient.
My BComm Lab Apply Figure 8.6’s key concepts by going
to mybcommlab.com
Naturally, you should adjust your tactics to the circumstances.
A simple and direct written message is fine when someone has
only submitted a job application, but a phone call might be
more appropriate for rejecting a candidate who has made it at
least partway through the interview process.
Giving Negative Performance Reviews
Performance reviews are designed to clarify job requirements,
give employees feedback on their performance relative to those
requirements, and establish a personal plan of action to ensure
continued performance in the future. Performance reviews also
help companies set organizational standards and communicate
organizational values.14 In addition, they document evidence of
performance in the event that disciplinary action is needed or an
28. employee later disputes management decisions regarding pay or
promotions.15
By giving employees clear goals and regular feedback, you can
help avoid unpleasant surprises in a performance review.
The worst possible outcome in an annual review is a negative
surprise, such as when an employee has been working toward
different goals than the manager expects or has been
underperforming throughout the year but didn’t receive any
feedback or improvement coaching along the way.16 To avoid
negative surprises, managers should provide regular feedback
and coaching as needed throughout the year if employee
performance falls below expectations. In fact, some companies
have gone so far as to abandon the traditional performance
review altogether. The online retailer Zappos, for example, has
replaced annual performance reviews with frequent status
reports that give employees feedback on routine job tasks and
an annual assessment of how well each employee embodies the
company’s core values.17
Regardless of the specific approach a company takes, writing an
effective performance review requires careful, objective
assessment and a clear statement of how well an employee has
done relative to agreed-upon goals. If you need to write a
review that includes negative information, keep the following
points in mind:18
Negative evaluations should provide careful documentation of
performance concerns.
· Document performance problems in detail as they happen. You
will need this information to write an effective appraisal and to
support any decisions that need to be made about pay,
promotions, or termination.
· Evaluate all employees consistently. Consistency is not only
fair but also helps protect the company from claims of
discriminatory practices.
· Maintain a calm, objective tone. Manage the emotions of the
situation by maintaining professional reserve in your writing.
· Focus on opportunities for improvement. This information can
29. serve as the foundation for an improvement plan for the coming
year.
· Keep job descriptions up to date. If a job evolves over time in
response to changes in the business, the employees’ current
activities may no longer match an outdated job description.
Terminating Employment
If an employee’s performance cannot be brought up to company
standards or if other factors such as declining sales cause a
reduction in the workforce, a company often has no choice but
to terminate employment. As with other negative employment
messages, termination is fraught with emotions and legal
ramifications, so careful planning, complete documentation, and
sensitive writing are essential.
Termination messages should always be written with input from
the company’s legal staff, but here are general writing
guidelines to bear in mind:19
Carefully word a termination letter to avoid creating undue ill
will and grounds for legal action.
· Clearly present the reasons for this difficult action, whether it
is the employee’s performance or a business decision unrelated
to performance.
· Make sure the reasons are presented in a way that cannot be
construed as unfair or discriminatory.
· Follow company policy, contractual requirements, and
applicable laws to the letter.
· Avoid personal attacks or insults of any kind.
· Ask another manager to review the letter before issuing it. An
objective reviewer who isn’t directly involved might spot
troublesome wording or faulty reasoning.
· Deliver the termination letter in person if at all possible.
Arrange a meeting that will ensure privacy and freedom from
interruptions.
Any termination is clearly a negative outcome for the employee,
but careful attention to content and tone in the termination
message can help the employee move on gracefully and
minimize the misunderstandings and anger that can lead to
30. expensive lawsuits.
Sending Negative Organizational News
6 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
List the important points to consider when conveying negative
organizational news.
As a manager or business owner, you may at times need to issue
negative announcements regarding some aspect of your
products, services, or operations. Unlike routine negative
announcements, these messages involve significant changes that
negatively affect one or more groups (such as losing a major
contract or canceling a popular product), announcements of
workforce reductions, project cancelations, and crisis
communication regarding environmental incidents, workplace
accidents, or other traumatic situations (see Figure 8.7).
Figure 8.7 Internal Message Providing Bad News About
Company Operations
The cancellation of a major development project before
completion can be a traumatic event for a company’s
employees. People who worked on the project are likely to feel
that all their time and energy were wasted and worry that their
jobs are in jeopardy. Employees who didn’t work on the project
might worry about the company’s financial health and the
stability of their own jobs. Such messages are therefore prime
candidates for the indirect approach. Note how much more
effectively the revised version manages the reader’s emotions
from beginning to end.
Negative organizational messages to external audiences often
require extensive planning.
When making negative announcements, follow these guidelines:
· Match your approach to the situation. For example, in an
emergency such as product tampering or a toxic spill, get to the
point immediately and make sure all affected parties get the
information they need.
· Consider the unique needs of each group. When a company or
facility closes, for instance, employees need time to find new
31. jobs, customers may need to find new suppliers, and community
leaders may need to be prepared to help people who have lost
their jobs.
· Minimize the element of surprise whenever possible. Give
affected groups as much time as possible to prepare and
respond.
· If possible, give yourself enough time to plan and manage a
response. Make sure you’re ready with answers to potential
questions.
· Look for positive angles but don’t exude false
optimism. Laying off 10,000 people does not give them “an
opportunity to explore new horizons.” It’s a traumatic event that
can affect employees, their families, and their communities for
years. The best you may be able to do is thank people for their
past support and wish them well in the future.
· Seek expert advice. Many significant negative announcements
have important technical, financial, or legal elements that
require the expertise of lawyers, accountants, or other
specialists.
· Use multiple channels to reach out to affected
audiences. Provide information through your normal
communication network, such as your company website,
Facebook page, and Twitter account, but also reach out and
participate in conversations that are taking place elsewhere in
the social media landscape.20
· Be open and be transparent. Mark Price, managing director of
the UK grocery chain Waitrose, puts it perfectly: “We recognize
that we have to be increasingly open and transparent. You can’t
close down businesses now; you can’t bunker up if there’s a
problem. You’ve got to go the other way.”21
Give people as much time as possible to react to negative news.
Ask for legal help and other assistance if you’re not sure how to
handle a significant negative announcement.
Negative situations give you an opportunity to excel as a
communicator and as a business leader. Inspirational leaders try
to seize such situations as opportunities to reshape or
32. reinvigorate the organization, and they offer encouragement to
those around them.
REAL-TIME UPDATES Learn More by Visiting This Website:
Communication pros discuss the latest events in crisis
communication
Situations with US Airways, Target, and SeaWorld are among
the high-profile events you can learn more about. Go
to http://real-timeupdates.com/bce7. Under “Students,” click on
“Learn More.”Responding to Negative Information in a Social
Media Environment7 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Describe an effective strategy for responding to negative
information in a social media environment.
For all the benefits they bring to business, social media and
other communication technologies have created a major new
challenge: responding to online rumors, false information, and
attacks on a company’s reputation. Customers who believe they
have been treated unfairly like these sites and tools because
they can use the public exposure as leverage. Most companies
appreciate the feedback, too, and many actively seek out
complaints to improve their products and operations.REAL-
TIME UPDATES Learn More by Watching This Video: Positive
ways to engage when you pick up negative social commentary
Aetna’s Lauren Vargas talks about the challenges of moving a
large corporation in a heavily regulated industry (health
insurance) into social media, including the best ways to respond
to negative comments online. Go to http://real-
timeupdates.com/bce7. Under “Students,” click on “Learn
More.”
However, false rumors and both fair and unfair criticisms can
spread around the world in a matter of minutes. Responding to
rumors and countering negative information requires an ongoing
effort and case-by-case decisions about which messages require
a response. Follow these four steps:22
Responding effectively to rumors and negative information in
social media requires continual engagement with stakeholders
and careful decision making about which messages should get a
33. response.
1. Engage early, engage often. The most important step in
responding to negative information has to be done before the
negative information appears, and that is to engage with
communities of stakeholders as a long-term strategy. Companies
that have active, mutually beneficial relationships with
customers and other interested parties are less likely to be
attacked unfairly online and more likely to survive such attacks
if they do occur. In contrast, companies that ignore constituents
or jump into “spin doctoring” mode when a negative situation
occurs don’t have the same credibility as companies that have
done the long, hard work of fostering relationships within their
physical and online communities.
2. Monitor the conversation. If people are interested in what
your company does, chances are they are blogging, tweeting,
podcasting, posting videos, writing on Facebook walls, and
otherwise sharing their opinions. Use automated reputation
analysis and other technologies to listen to what people are
saying.
3. Evaluate negative messages. When you encounter negative
messages, resist the urge to fire back immediately. Instead,
evaluate the source, the tone, and the content of the message
and then choose a response that fits the situation. For example,
the Public Affairs Agency of the U.S. Air Force groups senders
of negative messages into four categories, including “trolls”
(those whose only intent is to stir up conflict), “ragers” (those
who are just ranting or telling jokes), “the misguided” (those
who are spreading incorrect information), and “unhappy
customers” (those who have had a negative experience with the
Air Force).
4. Respond appropriately. After you have assessed a negative
message, quickly make the appropriate response based on an
overall public relations plan. The Air Force, for instance,
doesn’t respond to trolls or ragers, responds to misguided
messages with correct information, and responds to unhappy
customers with efforts to rectify the situation and reach a
34. reasonable solution. In addition to replying promptly, make sure
your response won’t make the situation even worse. For
example, taking legal action against critics, even if technically
justified, can rally people to their defense and create a public
relations nightmare. In some instances, the best response can be
to contact a critic privately (through direct messaging on
Twitter, for example) to attempt a resolution away from the
public forum.MOBILE APPS
The Yelp mobile app is an easy way to keep the consumer
review site at your fingertips—and to monitor what’s being said
about your business.
Whatever you do, keep mind that positive reputations are an
important asset and need to be diligently guarded and defended.
Everybody has a voice now, and some of those voices don’t care
to play by the rules of ethical communication.
For more information on writing negative messages,
visit http://real-timeupdates.com/bce7and click
on Chapter 8 .REAL-TIME UPDATES Learn More by Reading
This Infographic: Decide how to respond to online reputation
attacks
This flowchart embodies the rumor-response process used by
the U.S. Air Force. Go to http://real-timeupdates.com/bce7.
Under “Students,” click on “Learn More.”Chapter Review and
Activities Learning Objectives: Check Your Progress
Objective 1:Apply the three-step writing process to negative
messages.
Because the way you say no can be even more damaging than
the fact that you’re saying it, planning negative messages is
crucial. Make sure your purpose is specific and use an
appropriate combination of medium and channel to fit the
message. Collect all the facts necessary to support your
negative decision, adapt your tone to the situation, and choose
the optimum approach. Use positive words to construct
diplomatic sentences, and pay close attention to quality.
Objective 2:Explain how to use the direct approach effectively
when conveying negative news.
35. The direct approach puts the bad news up front, follows with
the reasons, and closes with a respectful statement that shares
any positive aspects that are relevant. Even though it is direct,
however, don’t use the direct approach as a license to be rude or
overly blunt.
Objective 3:Explain how to use the indirect approach
effectively when conveying negative news, and explain how to
avoid ethical problems when using this approach.
The indirect approach begins with a buffer, explains the
reasons, clearly states the negative news, and closes with a
respectful statement. If the bad news is not unexpected, the
direct approach is usually fine, but if the news is shocking or
painful, the indirect approach is better. When using the indirect
approach, pay careful attention to avoid obscuring the bad news,
trivializing the audience’s concerns, or even misleading your
audience into thinking you’re actually delivering good news.
Remember that the purpose of the indirect approach is to
cushion the blow, not to avoid delivering it.
Objective 4:Describe successful strategies for sending negative
messages on routine business matters.
For making negative announcements on routine business
matters, the indirect approach is usually preferred, unless the
news has minor consequences for the audience. For rejecting
suggestions or proposals when you requested input or it came
from someone with whom you have an established relationship,
the indirect approach is the right choice because it allows you to
gently reset the other party’s expectations.
For refusing routine requests, the direct approach is usually
sufficient, except when the matter at hand is significant, you or
your company have an established relationship with the person
making the request, or you’re forced to decline a request that
you might have accepted in the past.
When conveying bad news about transactions, you need to
modify the customer’s expectations, explain how you plan to
resolve the situation, and repair whatever damage might have
been done to the business relationship. Whether or not you
36. should apologize depends in part on the magnitude of the
situation and whether you previously established specific
expectations about the transaction.
When refusing a claim or a request for adjustment, the indirect
approach is usually preferred because the other party is
emotionally involved and expects you to respond positively.
Demonstrate that you understand and have considered the
complaint carefully, and then rationally and calmly explain why
you are refusing the request.
Objective 5:Describe successful strategies for sending negative
employment-related messages.
The indirect approach is usually the better choice for negative
employment messages because the recipient is always
emotionally involved and the decisions are usually significant.
When refusing requests from other employers for performance-
related information about past employees, your message can be
brief and direct. Simply provide whatever information your
company allows to be shared in these situations. Refusing a
recommendation request directly from a former employee feels
much more personal for the recipient, however, so the indirect
approach is better.
You have some flexibility when responding to requests for
recommendations or endorsements on social networks. You can
choose to ignore the request if you don’t know the person, you
can decline the request as a matter of personal policy, you can
write a full recommendation if that matches your assessment of
the person, or you can write a limited recommendation on just
one or a few aspects of the person’s capabilities.
Messages rejecting job applicants raise a number of emotional
and legal issues and therefore must be approached with great
care. Experts vary in their advice about how much information
to include in these messages. However, the safest strategy is a
brief message that opens with an expression of appreciation for
being considered (which functions like a buffer in an indirect
message), continues with a statement to the effect that the
applicant was not chosen for the position applied for, and closes
37. courteously without providing reasons for the rejection or
making promises about future consideration.
Negative performance reviews should take care to document the
performance problems, make sure that all employees are being
evaluated consistently, be written in a calm and objective voice,
and focus on opportunities for improvement. Moreover, they
must be written with reference to accurate, current job
descriptions that provide the basis for measuring employee
performance.
Termination messages are the most challenging employment
messages of all. They should clearly present the reasons for the
decision, present the reasons in a way that cannot be construed
as unfair or discriminatory, follow company policy and any
relevant legal guidelines, and avoid personal attacks or insults
of any kind. Asking a manager not directly involved in the
situation to review your message can help you avoid
troublesome wording or faulty reasoning. Finally, try to deliver
the written message in person if possible.
Objective 6:List the important points to consider when
conveying negative organizational news.
When communicating negative organizational news, (1) match
your approach to the situation, (2) consider the unique needs of
each group, (3) minimize the element of surprise whenever
possible so that affected groups have time to prepare and
respond, (4) give yourself as much time as possible to plan and
manage a response, (5) look for positive angles but don’t exude
false optimism, (6) seek expert advice, (7) use multiple
channels to reach out to affected audiences, and (8) be open and
transparent.
Objective 7:Describe an effective strategy for responding to
negative information in a social media environment.
First, be sure you are engaged with important stakeholders
before negative situations appear. Second, monitor the
conversations taking place about your company and its
products. Third, when you see negative messages, evaluate them
before responding. Fourth, after evaluating negative messages,
38. take the appropriate response based on an overall public
relations plan. Some messages are better ignored, whereas
others should be addressed immediately with corrective
information.MyBCommLab
Go to mybcommlab.comto complete the problems marked with
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9 Writing Persuasive Messages
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to
1. Apply the three-step writing process to persuasive messages
2. Describe an effective strategy for developing persuasive
business messages
3. Identify the three most common categories of persuasive
business messages
4. Describe an effective strategy for developing marketing and
sales messages, explain how to modify this approach for social
media, and identify steps you can take to avoid ethical lapses in
marketing and sales messages
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end-of-chapter problems
Communication Matters . . .
“Trustworthiness, transparency, credible authority, lots of high-
value content, and just plain old decency are your best
weapons.”
—Sonia Simone, cofounder and chief marketing officer of
Copyblogger Media
Sonia Simone was discussing the fear that keeps online
shoppers from completing a transaction, but her insight applies
to every form of persuasive communication.1 Trust is an
essential element of persuasion, whether you’re trying to
convince people to help fund your new business via Kickstarter,
asking your boss for a raise, or promoting a concert. If people
don’t believe in you, they won’t believe in what you’re
promoting.
39. In this chapter, you’ll apply what you’ve learned so far about
writing to the unique challenges of persuasive messages. You’ll
explore two types of persuasive messages: persuasive business
messages (those that try to convince audiences to approve new
projects, enter into business partnerships, and so on)
and marketing and sales messages (those that try to convince
audiences to consider and then purchase products and services).
Sonia Simone emphasizes the power of trust in persuasive
communication; without it, you’ll have a hard time convincing
people to change their beliefs or behaviors.
Sonia Simone/Copyblogger Media
Using the Three-Step Writing Process for Persuasive Messages
1 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Apply the three-step writing process to persuasive messages.
Persuasion is the attempt to change someone’s attitudes, beliefs,
or actions.
For both internal messages to colleagues, employees, and
managers and for external messages to customers, investors, and
other outsiders, you’ll use many of the same techniques
of persuasion—the attempt to change an audience’s attitudes,
beliefs, or actions.2 Because persuasive messages ask audiences
to give something of value (money in exchange for a product,
for example) or take substantial action (such as changing a
corporate policy), they are more challenging to write than
routine messages. Successful professionals understand that
persuasion is not about trickery or getting people to act against
their own best interests; it’s about letting audiences know they
have choices and presenting your offering in the best possible
light.3
Step 1: Planning Persuasive Messages
Having a great idea or a great product is not enough; you need
to be able to convince others of its merits.
In today’s information-saturated business environment, having a
great idea or a great product is no longer enough. Every day,
untold numbers of good ideas go unnoticed and good products
40. go unsold simply because the messages meant to promote them
aren’t compelling enough to be heard above the competitive
noise. Creating successful persuasive messages in these
challenging situations demands careful attention to all four
tasks in the planning step, starting with an insightful analysis of
your purpose and your audience.
Analyzing the Situation
Clarifying your purpose is an essential step with persuasive
messages.
In defining your purpose, make sure you’re clear about what
you really hope to achieve. Suppose you want to persuade
company executives to support a particular research project. But
what does “support” mean? Do you want them to pat you on the
back and wish you well? Or do you want them to give you a
staff of five researchers and a $1 million annual budget?
The best persuasive messages are closely connected to your
audience’s desires and interests (see Figure 9.1).4 Consider
these important questions: Who is my audience? What are my
audience members’ needs? What do I want them to do? How
might they resist? Are there alternative positions I need to
examine? What does the decision maker consider to be the most
important issue? How might the organization’s culture influence
my strategy?
Demographics include characteristics such as age, gender,
occupation, income, and education.
Psychographics include characteristics such as personality,
attitudes, and lifestyle.
To understand and categorize audience needs, you can refer to
specific information, such as demographics (the age, gender,
occupation, income, education, and other quantifiable
characteristics of the people you’re trying to persuade)
and psychographics (personality, attitudes, lifestyle, and other
psychological characteristics). When analyzing your audiences,
take into account their cultural expectations and practices so
that you don’t undermine your persuasive message by using an
inappropriate appeal or by organizing your message in a way
41. that seems unfamiliar or uncomfortable to your readers.
If you aim to change someone’s attitudes, beliefs, or actions, it
is vital to understand his or her motivation—the combination of
forces that drive people to satisfy their needs. Table 9.1 on
page 214 lists some of the needs that psychologists have
identified or suggested as being important in influencing human
motivation. Obviously, the more closely a persuasive message
aligns with a recipient’s existing motivation, the more effective
the message is likely to be. For example, if you try to persuade
consumers to purchase a product on the basis of its fashion
appeal, that message will connect with consumers who are
motivated by a desire to be in fashion, but it probably won’t
connect with consumers driven more by functional or financial
concerns.
Gathering Information
Once your situation analysis is complete, you need to gather the
information necessary to create a compelling persuasive
message. You’ll learn more about the types of information to
include in persuasive business messages and marketing and
sales messages later in the chapter. Chapter 10 presents advice
on how to find the information you need.
Figure 9.1 Appealing to Audience Needs
This draft of a response to an inquiry about an editorial
company’s services addresses the writer’s concerns about the
time, cost, and effectiveness of the company’s services. Source:
Microsoft Office 2013.
Selecting the Right Combination of Medium and Channel
Persuasive messages are often unexpected and sometimes even
unwelcome, so choose your medium carefully to maximize the
chance of getting through to your audience.
Media and channel choices are always important, of course, but
these decisions are particularly sensitive with persuasive
messages because such messages are often unexpected or even
unwelcome. For instance, some people don’t mind promotional
email messages for products they’re interested in; others resent
42. every piece of commercial email they receive. Persuasive
messages can be found in virtually every communication
medium, from instant messages and podcasts to radio
advertisements and skywriting. In fact, advertising agencies
employ media specialists whose only job is to analyze the media
options available and select the most cost-effective combination
for each client and each advertising campaign.
Organizing Your Information
Most persuasive messages use the indirect approach.
The nature of persuasion is to convince people to change their
attitudes, beliefs, or actions, so most persuasive messages use
the indirect approach. That means you’ll want to explain your
reasons and build interest before asking for a decision or for
action—or perhaps even before revealing your purpose.
However, in some instances, such as when you have a close
relationship with your audience and the message is welcome or
at least neutral, the direct approach can be effective.
The choice of approach is influenced by your position (or
authority within the organization) relative to your audience’s.
For persuasive business messages, the choice between the direct
and indirect approaches is also influenced by the extent of your
authority, expertise, or power in an organization. For example,
if you are a highly regarded technical expert with years of
experience, you might use the direct approach in a message to
top executives. In contrast, if you aren’t well known and
therefore need to rely more on the strength of your message
than the power of your reputation, the indirect approach will
probably be more successful.
Step 2: Writing Persuasive Messages
Persuasive messages are often unexpected or even unwelcome,
so the “you” attitude is crucial.
Encourage a positive response to your persuasive messages by
(1) using positive and polite language, (2) understanding and
respecting cultural differences, (3) being sensitive to
organizational cultures, and (4) taking steps to establish your
credibility.
43. TABLE 9.1 Human Needs That Influence Motivation
Need
Implications for Communication
Basic physiological requirements: The needs for food, water,
sleep, oxygen, and other essentials
Everyone has these needs, but the degree of attention an
individual gives to them often depends on whether the needs are
being met; for instance, an advertisement for sleeping pills will
have greater appeal to someone suffering from insomnia than to
someone who has no problem sleeping.
Safety and security: The needs for protection from bodily harm,
for the safety of loved ones, and for financial security,
protection of personal identity, career security, and other
assurances
These needs influence both consumer and business decisions in
a wide variety of ways; for instance, advertisements for life
insurance often encourage parents to think about the financial
security of their children and other loved ones.
Affiliation and belonging: The needs for companionship,
acceptance, love, popularity, and approval
The need to feel loved, accepted, or popular drives a great deal
of human behavior, from the desire to be attractive to potential
mates to wearing the clothing style that a particular social group
is likely to approve.
Power and control: The need to feel in control of situations or
to exert authority over others
You can see many examples appealing to this need in
advertisements: Take control of your life, your finances, your
future, your career, and so on. Many people who lack power
want to know how to get it, and people who have power often
want others to know they have it.
Achievement: The need to feel a sense of accomplishment—or
to be admired by others for accomplishments
This need can involve both knowing (when people experience a
feeling of accomplishment) and showing (when people are able
to show others that they’ve achieved success); advertising for
44. luxury consumer products frequently appeals to this need.
Adventure and distraction: The need for excitement or relief
from daily routine
People vary widely in their need for adventure; some crave
excitement—even danger—whereas others value calmness and
predictability. Some needs for adventure and distraction are
met virtually, such as through horror movies, thriller novels,
etc.
Knowledge, exploration, and understanding: The need to keep
learning
For some people, learning is usually a means to an end, a way to
fulfill some other need; for others, acquiring new knowledge is
the goal.
Aesthetic appreciation: The desire to experience beauty, order,
symmetry, etc.
Although this need may seem “noncommercial” at first glance,
advertisers appeal to it frequently, from the pleasing shape of a
package to the quality of the gemstones in a piece of jewelry.
Self-actualization: The need to “be all that one can be,” to reach
one’s full potential as a human being
Psychologists Kurt Goldstein and Abraham Maslow popularized
self-actualization as the desire to make the most of one’s
potential, and Maslow identified it as one of the higher-level
needs in his classic hierarchy; even if people met most or all of
their other needs, they would still feel the need to self-
actualize. An often-quoted example of appealing to this need is
the U.S. Army’s one-time advertising slogan “Be all that you
can be.”
Helping others: The need to believe that one is making a
difference in the lives of other people
This need is the central motivation in fundraising messages and
other appeals to charity.
Positive language usually happens naturally with persuasive
messages because you’re promoting an idea or product you
believe in. However, take care not to inadvertently insult your
readers by implying that they’ve made poor choices in the past
45. and that you’re here to save them from their misguided ways.
Be sure to understand cultural expectations as well. For
example, a message that seems forthright and direct in a low-
context culture might seem brash and intrusive in a high-context
culture.
Organizational culture can influence persuasion as much as
social culture.
Just as social culture affects the success of a persuasive
message, so too does the culture within an organization. For
instance, some organizations handle disagreement and conflict
in an indirect, behind-the-scenes way, whereas others accept
and even encourage open discussion and sharing of differing
viewpoints.
Finally, if you are trying to persuade a skeptical or hostile
audience, you must convince them you know what you’re
talking about and that you’re not trying to mislead them. Use
these techniques:
Audiences often respond unfavorably to over-the-top language,
so keep your writing simple and straightforward.
· Use simple language to avoid suspicions of fantastic claims
and emotional manipulation.
· Provide objective evidence for the claims and promises you
make.
· Identify your sources, especially if your audience already
respects those sources.
· Establish common ground by emphasizing beliefs, attitudes,
and background experiences you have in common with the
audience.
· Be objective and present fair and logical arguments.
· Display your willingness to keep your audience’s best
interests at heart.
· Persuade with logic, evidence, and compelling narratives,
rather than trying to coerce with high-pressure, “hard-sell”
tactics.
· Whenever possible, try to build your credibility before you
present a major proposal or ask for a major decision. That way,
46. audiences don’t have to evaluate both you and your message at
the same time.5
Step 3: Completing Persuasive Messages
Careless production undermines your credibility, so revise and
proofread with care.
The pros know from experience that details can make or break a
persuasive message, so they’re careful not to skimp on this part
of the writing process. For instance, advertisers may have a
dozen or more people review a message before it’s released to
the public.
When you evaluate your content, try to judge your argument
objectively and try not to overestimate your credibility. When
revising for clarity and conciseness, carefully match the purpose
and organization to audience needs. If possible, ask an
experienced colleague who knows your audience well to review
your draft. Your design elements must complement, not detract
from, your argument. In addition, meticulous proofreading will
identify any mechanical or spelling errors that would weaken
your persuasive potential. Finally, make sure your distribution
methods fit your audience’s expectations as well as your
purpose.
Developing Persuasive Business Messages
2 LEARNING OBJECTIVE
Describe an effective strategy for developing persuasive
business messages.
Your success as a businessperson is closely tied to your ability
to encourage others to accept new ideas, change old habits, or
act on your recommendations. Unless your career takes you into
marketing and sales, most of your persuasive messages will
consist of persuasive business messages, which are those
designed to elicit a preferred response in a nonsales situation.
Even if you have the power to compel others to do what you
want them to do, persuading them is more effective than forcing
them. People who are forced into accepting a decision or plan
are less motivated to support it and more likely to react
negatively than if they’re persuaded.6 Within the context of the
47. three-step process, effective persuasion involves four essential
strategies: framing your arguments, balancing emotional and
logical appeals, reinforcing your position, and anticipating
objections. (Note that all these concepts in this section apply as
well to marketing and sales messages, covered later in the
chapter.)
Framing Your Arguments
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through mobile communication.
Many persuasive messages follow some variation of the indirect
approach. One of the most commonly used variations is called
the AIDA model, which organizes your message into four
phases (see Figure 9.2 on the next page):
REAL-TIME UPDATES Learn More by Watching This Video:
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Persuasion is an essential business skill, no matter what career
path you follow. This video offers great tips for understanding,
practicing, and applying persuasive skills. Go to http://real-
timeupdates.com/bce7. Under “Students,” click on “Learn
More.”
The AIDA model is a useful approach for many persuasive
messages:
· Attention
· Interest
· Desire
· Action
· Attention. Your first objective is to encourage your audience
to want to hear about your problem, idea, or new product—
whatever your main idea is. Be sure to find some common
ground on which to build your case.
· Interest. Provide additional details that prompt audience
members to imagine how the solution might benefit them.
· Desire. Help audience members embrace your idea by
explaining how the change will benefit them and answering
48. potential objections.
· Action. Suggest the specific action you want your audience to
take. Include a deadline, when applicable.
Figure 9.2 The AIDA Model for Persuasive Messages
With the AIDA model, you craft one or more messages to move
recipients through four stages of attention, interest, desire, and
action. The model works well for both persuasive business
messages (such as persuading your manager to fund a new
project) and marketing and sales messages.
The AIDA model is ideal for the indirect approach.
The AIDA model is tailor-made for using the indirect approach,
allowing you to save your main idea for the action phase.
However, it can also work with the direct approach, in which
case you use your main idea as an attention-getter, build interest
with your argument, create desire with your evidence, and
emphasize your main idea in the action phase with the specific
action you want your audience to take.
When your AIDA message uses the indirect approach and is
delivered by memo or email, keep in mind that your subject line
usually catches your reader’s eye first. Your challenge is to
make it interesting and relevant enough to capture reader
attention without revealing your main idea. If you put your
request in the subject line, you’re likely to get a quick “no”
before you’ve had a chance to present your arguments:
Instead of This
Write This
Request for development budget to add automated IM response
system
Reducing the cost of customer support inquiries
The AIDA approach has limitations:
· It essentially talks at audiences, not with them
· It focuses on one-time events, not long-term relationships
With either the direct or indirect approach, AIDA and similar
models do have limitations. First, AIDA is a unidirectional
method that essentially talks at audiences, not with them.
49. Second, AIDA is built around a single event, such as asking an
audience for a decision, rather than on building a mutually
beneficial, long-term relationship.7 AIDA is still a valuable tool
for the right purposes, but as you’ll read later in the chapter, a
conversational approach is more compatible with today’s social
media.
REAL-TIME UPDATES Learn More by Reading This Article:
Using stories to persuade
Learn why stories are usually more effective than plain data
when it comes to changing minds. Go to http://real-timeupdates
.com/bce7. Under “Students,” click on “Learn More.”
Balancing Emotional and Logical Appeals
Emotional appeals attempt to connect with the reader’s feelings
or sympathies.
Few persuasive appeals are purely logical or purely emotional,
and a key skill is finding the right balance for each message
(see Figure 9.3). An emotional appeal calls on feelings or
audience sympathies. For instance, you can make use of the
emotions inspired by words such
as freedom, success, prestige, compassion, free, and comfort.
Such words put your audience in a certain frame of mind and
help people accept your message.
Figure 9.3 Balancing Logical and Emotional Appeals
Whenever you plan a persuasive message, imagine you have a
knob that turns from emotion at one extreme to logic at the
other, letting you adjust the relative proportions of each type of
appeal. Compare these two outlines for a proposal that asks
management to fund an on-site daycare center. The version on
the left relies heavily on emotional appeals, whereas the version
on the right uses logical appeals (inductive reasoning,
specifically). Through your choice of words, images, and
supporting details, you can adjust the emotional-logical ratio in
every message.
Logical appeals are based on the reader’s notions of reason;
these appeals can use analogy, induction, or deduction.
50. Many marketing and sales messages rely heavily on emotional
appeals, but most persuasive business messages rely more on
logic. And even if your audience reaches a conclusion based on
emotions, they’ll look to you to provide logical support as well.
A logical appeal uses one of three types of reasoning:
· Analogy. With analogy, you reason from specific evidence to
specific evidence, in effect “borrowing” from something
familiar to explain something unfamiliar. For instance, to
convince management to add chat room capability to the
company’s groupware system, you could explain that it is like a
neighborhood community center, only online.
· Induction. With inductive reasoning, you work from specific
evidence to a general conclusion. To convince your boss to
change a certain production process, you could point out that
every company that has adopted it has increased profits.
· Deduction. With deductive reasoning, you work from a
generalization to a specific conclusion. To persuade your boss
to hire additional customer support staff, you might point to
industry surveys that show how crucial customer satisfaction is
to corporate profits.
Every method of reasoning is vulnerable to misuse. To avoid
faulty logic, follow these guidelines:8
· Avoid hasty generalizations. Make sure you have plenty of
evidence before drawing conclusions.
· Avoid circular reasoning. Circular reasoning is a logical
fallacy in which you try to support your claim by restating it in
different words. The statement “We know temporary workers
cannot handle this task because temps are unqualified for it”
doesn’t prove anything because the claim and the supporting
evidence are essentially identical.
· Avoid attacking an opponent. Attack the argument your
opponent is making, not your opponent’s character.
· Avoid oversimplifying a complex issue. For example, don’t
reduce a complex situation to a simple “either/or” statement if
the situation isn’t that simple or clear-cut.
· Avoid mistaken assumptions of cause and effect. If you can’t
51. isolate the impact of a specific factor, you can’t assume that it’s
the cause of whatever effect you’re discussing. You lowered
prices, and sales went up. Were lower prices the cause? Maybe,
but the sales increase might have been caused by a better
advertising campaign, changes in the weather, or some other
factor.
· Avoid faulty analogies. Be sure that the two objects or
situations being compared are similar enough for the analogy to
hold. For instance, explaining that an Internet firewall is like a
prison wall is a poor analogy, because a firewall keeps things
out, whereas a prison wall keeps things in.
Using logical appeals carries with it the ethical responsibility to
avoid faulty logic.
Reinforcing Your Position
Choose your words carefully to trigger the desired responses.
After you’ve worked out the basic elements of your argument,
step back and look for ways to strengthen your position. Are all
your claims supported by believable evidence? Would a
quotation from a recognized expert help make your case?
Next, examine your language. Can you find more powerful
words to convey your message? For example, if your company
is in serious financial trouble, talking about fighting for
survival is a more powerful emotional appeal than talking
about ensuring continued operations. As with any other
powerful tool, though, use vivid language and abstractions
carefully and honestly.
In addition to examining individual word choices, consider
using metaphors and other figures of speech. If you want to
describe a quality-control system as being designed to detect
every possible product flaw, you might call it a “spider web” to
imply that it catches everything that comes its way. Similarly,
anecdotes (brief stories) can help your audience grasp the
meaning and importance of your arguments. Instead of just
listing the number of times the old laptop computers in your
department have failed, you could describe how you lost a sale
when your computer broke down during a critical sales
52. presentation.
Beyond specific words and phrases, look for other factors that
can reinforce your position. When you’re asking for something,
your audience members will find it easier to grant your request
if they stand to benefit from it as well.
Anticipating Objections
Even powerful persuasive messages can encounter audience
resistance.
Even compelling ideas and exciting projects can encounter
objections, if only as a consequence of people’s natural
tendency to resist change. Anticipate likely objections and
address them before your audience can bring them up. By doing
so, you can remove these potentially negative elements from the
conversation and keep the focus on positive
communication. Note that you don’t need to explicitly mention
a particular concern. For instance, if your proposal to switch to
lower-cost materials is likely to raise concerns about quality,
you can emphasize that the new materials are just as good as
existing materials. You’ll not only get this issue out of the way
sooner but also demonstrate a broad appreciation of the issue
and imply confidence in your message.9
If you expect to encounter strong resistance, present all sides of
an issue.
If you expect a hostile audience that is biased against your plan,
be sure to present all sides of the situation. As you cover each
option, explain the pros and cons. You’ll gain additional
credibility if you mention these options before presenting your
recommendation or decision.10 If you can, involve your
audience in the design of the solution; people are more likely to
support ideas they help create.
Avoiding Common Mistakes in Persuasive Communication
When you believe in a concept or project you are promoting,
it’s easy to get caught up in your own confidence and
enthusiasm and thereby fail to see things from the audience’s
perspective. When putting together persuasive arguments, avoid
these common mistakes (see Figure 9.4 on the next page):11