Speech Appendix I Appendix Business Writing About Appendix Writing Skills Are Necessary All Steps The

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APPENDIX II

Business Writing

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About Appendix II

Writing skills are necessary at all steps of the employment process. From crafting cover letters and

résumés to composing e–mail messages, proposals, project reports, and social media content, the modern

work environment requires writing proficiency. This appendix informs students of the most common

types of writing they will encounter in their professional lives.

First, students will learn the following components of writing effectively: adapting to the

Discussion Launchers

1. What are some types of writing that you have used, or observed being used, in various

workplaces?

2. In more formal types of business writing, it is not considered professional to use emojis or gifs to

convey emotion. What are some ways that we can show interest, concern, and empathy without

these images?

3. Recall e–mail messages that you have received. We tend to have an ability to identify those that

are spam or imposter accounts as opposed to being official messages from companies we do

business with. How does the appearance of the message play a role in our ability to discern

between real and fake messages?

4. We now have the choice between using paper or e–mail to send messages. In what situation(s)

6. What type of company information would be considered newsworthy by audiences outside of the

organization?

7. What are some common mistakes that you think people make when creating and submitting a

résumé for a job search? How might we prevent those types of mistakes?

8. Many jobs expect applicants to have several years of experience. How might you gain experience

while still a student?

9. Consider the career you would like to begin upon graduation. How might you tailor the skills and

experiences you have had in previous employment (unrelated to your career field) to demonstrate

that you have gained relatable skills?

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10. Consider the reports you have had to deliver in school. How do these reports compare and

contrast to business reports?

Classroom Activities

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1. Writing Well

Objective: Students will understand the importance of writing in professional environments.

Procedure: One to two weeks prior to covering the unit on writing, students should be instructed to

conduct a brief interview with a business professional who is working in the industry in which the student

wishes to be employed after graduation. It is recommended that this interview be conducted over the

• What types of writing is required of you on a regular basis?

• How important is writing to this line of work?

• What are some tips that you have for being an effective writer?

• May I see a few examples of the types of documents that you have written in this job?

Class Discussion: On the day that this unit is covered, ask students to share what they learned during the

2. Writing Well

Objective: Students will apply the components of effective writing to improve an existing business letter.

Procedure: The focus of this activity will be writing well when responding to upset customers. In

preparation for this activity, instructors should either locate an existing business letter (such as Wells

Fargo’s “A Letter from our CEO Tim Sloan” that was published in response to the 2017 scandal where

employees opened more than 2 million banking and credit card accounts without customers’ approval) or

During class, provide students with a brief explanation of the scenario that has led to the distribution of

this letter. Place students in pairs or small teams to discuss the following questions:

• Who is the intended audience for this message?

• Given the scenario, what type of information will the audience want to know? What type of

information do they need to know?

• Given the scenario, what level of formality is appropriate for this letter?

Class Discussion: After this preliminary discussion, provide a copy of the letter to each team. Ask

students to critique the letter based on their responses. Begin a class discussion regarding the

effectiveness of the writing in this letter. Ask students specific questions that pertain to the characteristics

for writing that are provided in the Appendix:

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• Does the writer demonstrate concern for the audience? Explain.

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3. News Releases

Objective: Students will understand the elements that comprise a news release.

Procedure: One to two weeks prior to covering news releases, students should be instructed to locate a

news release (press release) online. It is recommended that they use an Internet search engine like Google

to search for a prominent organization’s (such as Disney, Netflix, etc.) online news room. Terms like

“Disney news releases,” as well as browsing the organization’s official website are both acceptable ways

Class Discussion: This version of the activity requires a central computer and projector in the classroom.

While students share the news releases they have brought to class, the instructor should conduct a Google

search using key words from the headline of the news release. The goal is to locate media coverage of the

topic, to show students how news releases are converted into news stories.

For example, a Walt Disney Company news release (dated August 29, 2017) features the headline

Class discussion should cover the following topics:

• whether the headline remains the same or was modified

• how information from the lead appears in the article

4. Résumés

Objective: Students will identify career–related skills that they have gained in other situations.

Procedure: This classroom activity is tied to the Cover Letter and Résumé assignment included in this

section of the Instructor’s Manual. Often, students do not realize that they have gained career–related

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Class Discussion: On the day that the Cover Letter and Résumé assignment is due, students should be

prompted to come to class prepared to discuss the duties they have had while employed or when engaged

5. Reports

Objective: Students will practice writing a report.

Procedure: This activity should be tied to a larger class assignment. A few days or weeks before the

assignment is due, students should be given class time to compose a brief progress report. This may best

be done in groups, to alleviate any additional stress on individual students. Students should be encouraged

to share the status of the project, describe any challenges they have overcome or still need to overcome,

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Assignments

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Memo

Business Letter

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Memo

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Using the hypothetical scenario below, place yourself in the role of a Payroll Manager at a company of

your choice. Submit to your instructor a typed memo of one page maximum that communicates the

forthcoming payroll changes to your employees. Use the formal memo format, as described in the

Appendix of your text. Use subheadings in the body of your memo.

Scenario: Your company will be adopting a new software system to track time and manage payroll for

employees in three months. Currently, employees can opt to set aside a percentage (either 10% or 15%) of

Relevant Information:

• Employees who are currently enrolled in the program to set aside a percentage of their paycheck

for retirement will automatically be enrolled in the program equivalent with the new system.

• Employees who no longer wish to participate in this program can cancel at any time.

• If an employee cancels, they will need to wait for one fiscal year to re–enroll in the program.

• The new program no longer calculates a percentage of monthly pay; participants will need to

specify a dollar amount that they would like to save each month. If an employee was making

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Business Letter

Using the hypothetical scenario below, place yourself in the role of a Communications Manager for a

non–profit organization. Compose a typed business letter of one page to thank a specific individual that

donated money to your organization. Use the block letter format, as described in the Appendix of your

Scenario: Your non–profit organization, Construction for a Cause, participates in construction projects

aimed at improving the quality of life for persons with short– and long–term disabilities and the elderly

who are living in your state. Almost one year ago, your organization held a day–long online fundraising

Relevant Information:

• This is the 14th year that Construction for a Cause has been in existence, and this was the 3rd year

You may create details for this assignment, including your contact information, the name of the donor, as

well as stories about the beneficiaries of the ramps and modifications.

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News Release*

Create a typed standard news release of one page to promote an upcoming event featuring a prominent

speaker held at your local bookstore. Use the guidelines, as described in the Appendix of your text.

Include contact information, header, headline, dateline, lead, body, search–engine optimized keywords,

You may create details for this assignment, including the name and details surrounding the event, people

and quotes, etc.

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Cover Letter and Résumé*

Create a typed cover letter and résumé suitable for use in a professional job search.

Guidelines: Begin by searching the classifieds in the newspaper or online for jobs related to your degree

currently have.

• a cover letter tailed to this specific job

• a résumé tailored to this specific job

Give your cover letter and résumé a professional appearance, free from grammatical and typographical

errors. Be sure to prepare accurate documents – only discuss credentials that you have earned.

*Adapted from an assignment by Michelle M. Maresh–Fuehrer, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi

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Additional Resources

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Print

Williams, A. G., & Hall, K. J. (2017). Creating your career portfolio: At a glance guide for students (4th

Web

Lewis, H. (2017, August 29). Disney, Beyonce, Sandra Bullock pledge millions to hurricane relief. The

Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/disney–donates–hurricane–

harvey–relief–efforts–1033600

On Target English (n.d.). Business communication targets. Retrieved from

http://www.ontargetenglish.com/bct