CHAPTER 3
SOLUTIONS
Organizing and Drafting Business Messages
Critical Thinking Discussion Guide
11. A recent PayScale survey revealed a significant gap in perception between managers
and new grads. “Overall, the majority of workers (87 percent) feel well prepared
(immediately or within 3 months) for their job upon graduation from college. In
contrast, only about half of managers (50 percent) feel that employees who recently
graduated from college are well prepared for the workforce.” The skill most lacking,
said the managers, was writing proficiency. What could explain this gap in
perception between managers and new grads? (L.O. 1–5)
The gap might be explained by a difference in standards. Students have been graded on
their work according to academic standards. It could very well be that employers have
different and perhaps higher standards. Students have an opportunity to rewrite some
12. How can bad writing waste a businessperson’s time? A researcher asked that
question of workers who read business material an average of 25 hours per week
(about half of which was e-mail). What writing flaws do you think they named?
Should new employees be trained in writing effectively on the job? (L.O. 1–5)
Of the 547 businesspeople interviewed in this study, 81 percent reported that what they read
was frequently ineffective because it was (a) too long, (b) poorly organized, (c) unclear, (d)
13. Ashley, a twenty-one-year-old college graduate with a 3.5 GPA, was hired for her first
job. She was a fast learner on all the software, but her supervisor had to help her with
punctuation. On the ninth day of her job, she resigned, saying: “I just don’t think this
job is a good fit. Commas, semicolons, spelling, typos—those kinds of things just
aren’t all that important to me. They just don’t matter.” For what kind of job is Ashley
qualified? (L.O. 1–5)
14. Why is audience analysis so important in the selection of the direct or indirect
organization strategy for a business message? (L.O. 2)
Audience analysis is important because it helps the writer decide whether the receiver will
15. Now that you have studied the active and passive voice, what do you think when
someone in government or business says, “Mistakes were made”? Is it unethical to
use the passive voice to avoid specifics? (L.O. 4)
By using the passive voice in the familiar statement Mistakes were made, the speaker or
writer is avoiding responsibility by refusing to identify who or what caused the mistakes.
Radical Rewrites
3.1 Radical Rewrite: Improving a Message About Checking References (L.O. 4, 5)
Weaknesses
a. Lacks parallelism in the first sentence; should read as follows: . . . many of you are
reviewing candidates’ applications and checking references. Match verbs: reviewing and
checking.
b. Lacks parallelism in the third sentence; should read as follows: by calling or by writing.
(The second by could also be dropped.)
3.1 Radical Rewrite: Improving a Message About Checking References (L.O. 4, 5)
Revision
To: All Managers
From: Mark Sanchez <marksanchez@zycamindustries>
Subject: Improving Reference-Checking Procedures
With our recent increase in hiring, many of you are reviewing candidates’ applications and their
When calling to check references, several important steps should be followed to obtain the best
information:
• Call once to schedule the reference check, then call back when you said you would.
Communication Workshop: Social Media
Eight Guidelines for Safe Social Networking
Students should be able to generate from their own experience many tips for using social media