Business Communication: In Person, In Print, Online
INSTRUCTOR’S GUIDE
Note
Welcome and Overview
company scenarios:
• Aggresshop
• Bank on Me
• Dewey, Wright,
and Howe
• In the Loop
• PersuadeCafé
• Writeaway
• Explanations of PowerPoint slides that require more information
or student responses
• Solutions to 3Ps in Practice and end–of–chapter exercises
In addition to the IGs for each chapter, you’ll find a Welcome Video for
the ninth edition with more information:
• Detail about the Instructor’s Guides
• Options for using the PowerPoint slides
9e
Sample Course Syllabi
Depending on your course length, objectives, and students, you can choose from four sample
syllabi. Each syllabus suggests chapters to cover each week of the course.
The most traditional course syllabus is the 14–week course, Version A (see table on page 3). In
this course, you can simply follow the order of the chapters in the textbook. This order is
designed to cover broad business communication concepts first, then types of written
communication, then more complex report writing, and finally, oral and employment
communication.
Additionally, we suggest a slightly different version of a 14–week course, in case the course is
offered to business–major students or is part of a business school curriculum. In this case,
employment communication could be covered early in the semester because these students are
likely to be more familiar with the subject and more career oriented. The rest of this syllabus is
similar to Version B of a 14–week course.
14–week
course (A)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
5
11
0
12
14–week
course (B)
1
4
6
5
7
8
9
2
10
5
11
0
3
12
students
7–week
10
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Sample Assignments and Rubrics
NOTE: Amy has used all of these assignments but for different classes. They are not presented in
sequence for one class.
Assignment 1: Student Orientation Review
Your first major assignment is to review your student orientation experience at Cornell’s School of Hotel
Administration. This assignment will help you learn how to deliver constructive feedback by email, a skill
that leaders frequently use in their business careers.
Assignment Instructions
The primary targeted audience for your review is the assistant director of student services, Shawn
Meyer, but other staff in the Student Services and Admissions office (i.e., your secondary audience) also
may receive your feedback. To develop relevant content for your audience, you may consider questions
such as the following:
1. What orientation elements were effective and why?
2. Which areas were less useful to you and why?
3. How can the Student Services office improve the orientation experience?
Effective Emails
Make sure you develop your email to reflect the business writing principles (audience approach and
analysis, content, organization, writing style, tone, and editing, which are shared in class and are reflected in
Deliverables
You have three deliverables for this assignment:
• Dra review: due in class on Tues., Sept. 10 (Bring three copies to class—two copies for peer review and
one for me.)
Assessment Criteria for the Student Orientation Review
AUDIENCE APPROACH AND PERSPECTIVE
• Offers a good analysis of the business situation and relationships.
• Achieves the communication objectives.
• Provides an appropriate approach and tone for the audience and culture.
ORGANIZATION
Introduction
• Includes a descriptive subject or message title.
• Offers an engaging opening.
• Provides the purpose and main points up front.
Body
WRITING STYLE
• Offers a natural and professional style with appropriate formality.
• Develops smooth and easy to follow sentences.
• Uses appropriate word choice.
• Articulates ideas in a concise manner (i.e., no more than 500 words).
EDITING* AND FORMAT
Adapted from Peggy Odom-Reed, Cornell University
7
Business Improvement Proposal and Presentation
For your first two major assignments, you will propose an improvement to a business where you have
worked. This assignment includes two parts: a written proposal and an oral presentation to the class.
This assignment will challenge you to achieve the following:
• Persuade a business audience to accept your ideas.
Scenario
This is your big chance to tell a former employer how to improve the business. Consider where you
have worked, and think about one major improvement you would recommend. Brainstorm ideas that
will help the business improve operational efficiencies, save money, increase revenue or market share,
improve guest satisfaction, increase social responsibility, or enhance brand image. You might suggest
Deliverables
Your first deliverable is Homework 3, due when we meet for our tutorial. Please bring to our meeting
two copies of an outline of your idea with three or four claims identified. This will give us a starting
point to discuss your topic and the organization.
Second, you will write a proposal to your identified audience. Please write a two– or three–page internal
memo using principles from HA 1165.
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Grading Report for Business Improvement Proposal
Grading Key:
4 points = Very good—a positive strength of this project. Good job!
3 points = OK. Strengths balance any weaknesses in this category. Keep working on this.
STRATEGY AND ORGANIZATION
• Good analysis of the situation and relationships
• Appropriate tone for the audience
• Chose a logical organization for the topic and audience
• Included 4 Ps in the introduction
• Demonstrated a logical sequence; easy to follow
• Closed strongly
WRITING STYLE AND EDITING
• Clear, natural, professional style
• Appropriate, exact word choice
• Concise
• Parallel phrasing
• No errors in grammar, usage, spelling, punctuation,
mechanics, proofreading
• Accurately cited sources
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Team Social Media Consulting
Business Improvement Proposal and Presentation
For Assignment 3, you will research and present recommendations about social media or other
communication technologies for the Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers, part of the Starwood
brand. This assignment challenges you to become an expert in a communication technology,
tailor recommendations to a specific audience, give a PowerPoint presentation, and work as part
of a team. This is a real assignment for a real client who is interested in your expertise.
Scenario
The client for this project is the sales and marketing division of Boston Park Plaza, a Starwood
property on the register of “Historic Hotels of America,” located in downtown Boston. This
property provides a “classical, caring experience” for its guests, with 941 guestrooms, 65,000
square feet of function space,
and 9 restaurants and lounges
The group wants to use more
communication technologies to
market the hotel. Of particular interest is social networking (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, MySpace).
But the group is also open to blogging (e.g., WordPress, TypePad, Xanga), instant messaging, text
messaging, email marketing, consumer–generated content, and other technologies, tools, or
sites you believe would provide new marketing avenues for the Boston Park Plaza.
SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
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Another challenge is Boston Park Plaza’s limited funding and staff support for this initiative.
They will not have, for example, a dedicated person to update “What are you doing?” tweets ten
times a day. The sales and marketing group wants to implement something they can realistically
manage. Ideally, they would like you to develop an initial framework (e.g., a Facebook page, a
blog template) which they can easily implement and update.
How to Proceed
To complete this assignment, you will work in teams to choose a communication technology,
research how it is used by other companies, and recommend ways Boston Park Plaza can
capitalize on the technology as a marketing tool. You can work with people you choose, or I will
assign teams based on your interests.
Oral Presentation Deliverable
In teams, you’ll present your findings and
recommendations to our class, and I’ll
send your videos and PowerPoint
presentations to the Boston Park Plaza
team. For the class presentation,
students in the audience will play
assigned roles, for example, a Sales and
Plan for a 20–minute presentation plus 10 minutes of Q&A (30 minutes total). You will certainly want to
demonstrate the technology as part of your presentation. You also should prepare a comprehensive
PowerPoint presentation. And you may practice with our TA before your scheduled presentation date.
SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
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Research
• Explain the communication technology: What is it, and how does it work?
Recommendations
• How can Boston Park Plaza capitalize on the benefits of this technology? For what audiences?
• How would this technology improve marketing? How do you know it will work? Be realistic about
what this initiative can do.
I hope you enjoy this project. I know the Boston Park Plaza group is looking forward to your
recommendations!
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Team Consulting Report and Presentation
For your fih assignment, you will work in teams to analyze a news story about communication and
make recommendations to a client. This assignment will give you experience in the following:
• Researching and analyzing several perspectives of a story in the news
Scenario
Assume that you and your teammates represent a boutique consulting firm that specializes in business
communication. You have been hired by an organization that wants to understand a news item in more
depth and hear your recommendations based on your analysis. Imagine that your client has read an
article about a situation—that you will choose—relevant to business communication. For example, you
may focus on Taco Bell’s “Real Beef” campaign, an aggressive approach in response to a lawsuit claiming
Select a Story and a Client
• Inspired reports by at least two major news outlets (e.g., The Wall Street Journal, CNN, The New
York Times)
• Involved at least two company messages (e.g., a commercial, a customer letter, a company
statement)
• Elicited extensive public response (e.g., tweets, posts on Facebook)
Research and Analyze the Situation
To provide your client with a thorough analysis and in-depth recommendations, research the story from
several perspectives. A report that relies only on the guest or customer perspective, for example, will be
Formulate and Support Recommendations
After you complete your analysis, think carefully about the implications for your client. How does the
news impact the client’s business, and what can the management team learn from the story? Your
recommendations will vary depending on your client and what is important to them. Analyze your
audience to identify three or four useful recommendations.
Work as a Team in Person and Online
To get your team off to a good start and to organize your activities, please complete the following:
• Create a Team Work Schedule
Organize and Write a Report
As always, you will want to develop a detailed pyramid diagram or outline before you begin to write the
report. What major topics will you include in your report? What is the best sequence for these topics?
How will you describe each section and subsection? How will you transition from one topic to another?
What will you cover in your introduction? How will you end the report?
Deliver an Oral Presentation
In addition to your written report, you will explain your analysis and recommendations to your client in
person. Imagine that the class represents your client’s management team. They have taken time from
Plan Deliverables
Because you’ll work as part of a team to produce a written report and the client presentation, you’ll
need to use good project management skills to complete the following:
1. Write a team memo, due on November 14. In the memo, describe the news story, identify the
client and explain how the news is relevant to the business, and include a Work Team Schedule
to determine who will do what by when.
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Grading Report for Team Consulting Report
Grading Key:
4 points = Very good—a positive strength of this paper. Good job!
3 points = OK. Strengths balance any weaknesses in this category. Keep working on this.
2 points = Needs improvement to eliminate weaknesses. Make studying this element a priority.
0-1 points = Unacceptable. Focus on this area right away.
APPROACH AND AUDIENCE PERSPECTIVE
• Purpose, point of view, and tone appropriate for the client
audience.
• Context made clear.
• Tailored to the client’s business and interests.
ORGANIZATION
Introduction
• Clear purpose, main points, preview
Body
• Logical sequencing and paragraph breaks.
• Clear headings, subheadings, and section overviews.
• Good paragraph development.
Closing
TOTAL
20 = A+ 15 = C
19 = A 14 = C–/D+
18 = A–/B+ 13 = D
17 = B 12 and below = F
16 = B–/C+