You work for Mayfield Medical Center (MMC) in its human resources department. MMC’s policy is that whenever someone leaves a position in any department, a department supervisor must submit a proposal to human resources to request to fill the position. Human resources must then approve the request before the position can be filled. The approval process allows MMC to evaluate which positions are truly necessary and to allocate its open positions to the neediest departments. Because your office has used the same instructions for the proposal for many years, people have continually added to the instructions without much thought to their look, organization, and readability. As a result, the instructions are a mess, and you decide to revise them so that the layout, font, colors, and other visual elements result in a form that is clear, readable, and visually appealing. The instructions you need to revise are as follows:
> It is the only shrink resistant antiwrinkle and inexpensive material available.
> It would not be fair however to consider only this point.
> How can the use of analogous or complementary colors help you choose a color palette for your business document?
> What word choices in the following email message might give a nonnative speaker trouble? Rewrite the memo to avoid such wording. Dear conference-planning team, High-fives to you for an awesome conference! I heard tons of compliments from the participants
> Employment for October totaled 12,741 an increase of 3.1 percent over September.
> We suggest that you use a mild soap for best results but detergents will not harm the product.
> Sales for the first quarter were the highest in history, profits declined for the period.
> The truth of the matter is, that the union representative had not informed the workers of the decision.
> Our January order consisted of the following items; two dozen Post-it pads, cube size, one dozen desk blotters, 20 by 32 inches and one dozen gel roller pens, permanent black.
> The auditor asked us If all members of the work group had access to the petty cash fund
> Charles E. Baskin the new member of the advisory committee has been an employee for seven years.
> 1. We have less than 25 registrants so far. 2. I did not mean to infer that you had made a mistake. 3. He is not averse to your suggestion; he simply wants more information. 4. The handbook offers advice on professional behavior. 5. Please except my apol
> 1. We will get back to you after we have made a determination of the damages. 2. Harold made a recommendation that we apply for a grant. 3. We will ask him to bring about a change in his work routine. 4. This new equipment will result in a savings in
> 1. Many of the (businesses, business’s, businesses’) in town are closed for the holiday. 2. I share my (bosses, boss’s, bosses’) opinion that he and I should get the corner office suite. 3. Many (peoples, people’s, peoples’) lake homes are subject to hig
> What are some considerations for choosing a font(s) for a business document?
> Criticize these sentences from cover messages. Beginning Sentences a. Please consider this my application for any position for which my training and experience qualify me. b. Mr. Jerry Bono of your staff has told me about a vacancy in your loan departme
> Criticize the following excerpts from résumés. (They are not from the same résumé.) a. Work Experience 2016–2019 Employed as sales rep for Lloyd-Shanks Tool Company 2015–2016 Office manager, Drago Plumbing Supply, Toronto 2014–2015 Matson’s Super Stores.
> Following is a report that was written for the manager of a large furniture retail store by the manager’s assistant. The manager was concerned about customer complaints of late deliveries of their furniture and wanted to know the cause of the delays. Cri
> Critique the following beginning sentences of transmittal messages. a. In your hands is the report you requested January 7 concerning . . .” b. “As you will recall, last January 7 you requested a report on . . .” c. “I recommend that we open a new outl
> Making any assumptions needed, construct complete yet concise titles for the reports described here.
> Review the following report situations and determine for each the makeup of the report you would recommend for it. a. A professional research organization has completed a survey of consumer attitudes toward BankOne. The survey results will be presented t
> List the advantages and disadvantages of each of these different media for writing collaboratively. a. Face-to-face meetings b. Email c. Discussion board d. Online writing tool (e.g., Google Drive) e. Live online interaction (e.g., chat or Skype)
> Assume you are writing a report that summarizes a survey you have conducted. Write a paragraph of the report using the present-time viewpoint; then write the paragraph using the past-time viewpoint. The paragraph will be based on the following informatio
> Assume that you are writing up the results of a survey conducted to determine what kinds of groceries are purchased by female college students in the United States. What organizational patterns could work here? Which would you recommend?
> For each of the following report situations, write a clear problem statement and list what factors could or should be explored. a. A manufacturer of breakfast cereals wants to attract a new demographic of customers. b. The manufacturer of a toothpaste wa
> How can writers use leading and kerning to improve readability?
> Evaluate each of these parts of sales messages.
> Critique the following persuasive request message. It was written by the membership chairperson of a chapter of the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), a service organization consisting of retired executives who donate their managerial talents t
> Choose one of the items in number 2 and write a paragraph that uses scenario painting to promote the item.
> For each item in exercise 2, list two likely product features and then turn them into reader benefits.
> List some added-on benefits you might use as an extra push if you were promoting the items in exercise 2.
> List the tangible and intangible benefits that you might describe when promoting the following items or services: (LO1) a. Membership in a health club b. High-speed Internet service or digital cable service c. A certain line of clothing d. Car insurance
> Pretend you are writing an unsolicited internal proposal to request funding for a trip to a major professional meeting in your area of expertise. What kinds of information will you need to include? What arguments might your supervisors or management find
> You work for an online mail-order company, Nonsensicals, which sells such novelty items as T-shirts with clever sayings, unique toys and games, and such household accessories as framed posters and retro table lamps. Most of the employees are young, somew
> Criticize the following message refusing the claim for a defective riding lawn mower. The mower was purchased 15 months earlier. The purchaser has had difficulties with it for some time and submitted with the claim a statement from a local repair service
> Point out the shortcomings in the following email message from a sports celebrity declining an invitation to speak at the kickoff meeting for workers in a fundraising campaign for a charity.
> Why are the Gutenberg diagram and Z-pattern helpful for laying out information?
> Criticize the following operational message from a restaurant manager:
> Critique the following direct claim message:
> Point out the shortcomings in this message granting a claim for a scanner received in damaged condition. The box was damaged when it arrived in Ms. Nelson’s office, but she has no proof that Mr. Hicks’s company is at fault. Think about whether the direct
> Criticize the following thank-you message from a college student to a professor who has sent her a job lead.
> Point out the shortcomings in this email response to an inquiry about a short course in business communication that Casey Webster’s company offered to its employees. The course was taught by a local college professor. Mr. Braden’s initial inquiry include
> Choose five or six types of exercise. In a visual, identify the activity as a type of (1) cardiovascular training, (2) strength training, or (3) muscle stretching and toning. You can assume that some forms of exercise will incorporate all three types
> For each of the types of information described below, which form of visual would you use? Explain your decision. a. Record of annual sales for Kenyon Company for the past 20 years. b. Comparison of Kenyon Company sales, by product, for this year and last
> After noticing that some workers were starting work late and finishing early, a department head wrote this message to subordinates: It is apparent that many of you are not giving the company a full day’s work. Thus, the following procedures are impleme
> Through research, find the approximate milligrams of caffeine in the following items and create an appropriate visual for Affiliated Food Products, Inc., to illustrate your findings. (LO2–5) a. 5-oz. cup of coffee (drip brewed) b. 7-oz. glass of iced tea
> Determine what percentage of each type of registered vehicle is owned in the United States, including hybrid vehicles as appropriate. Choose an appropriate visual type and create it to convey the data. Consult the U.S. Department of Transportation for st
> What strategies can you use to incorporate the principles of document design in business documents?
> For each of the following sets of facts, (a) determine the visual(s) that would be best, (b) defend your choice, and (c) construct the visual. a. Average (mean) amount of life insurance owned by Mutual Life Insurance Company policyholders; classification
> List your criticisms of this email message inquiring about a convenience store advertised for sale.
> As required by company policy, I am denying your refund request because you needed to have submitted the warranty agreement within two weeks of your purchase.
> 1. (In a report that several managers will read:) The customers’ evaluations of our service were pretty mixed, with some being really positive and others not so positive. 2. (In an email message to your division head—whom you do not know well—to congratu
> 1. I hereby acknowledge receipt of your July 7 letter. 2. Please be so kind as to reply at your earliest convenience. 3. Attached please find the receipt requested in your May 1st inquiry. 4. In reply to your letter of July 13, permission to quote from o
> 1. Our Stone-Skin material is less weak than the fabric used by other brands. 2. Even though you were late in paying the bill, we still allowed the discount. 3. We were sorry to learn of the disappointing service you have had from our salespeople, but we
> 1. Your misunderstanding of our January 7 email caused you to make this mistake. 2. We hope this delay has not inconvenienced you. If you will be patient, we will get the order to you as soon as our supply is replenished. 3. We regret that we must call y
> What is meant by parallelism of headings?
> Discuss the appropriateness of beginning a cover message with these words: “This is to apply for . . .” and “I would like to. . . . ”
> Using this chapter’s discussion of communication, explain how people reading or hearing the same message can disagree on its meaning.
> What are three techniques for approaching difficult conversations?
> Being able to start a conversation is especially important when meeting clients in social settings. Discuss the types of topics that would and would not be appropriate.
> Discuss why we have difficulty listening well.
> As meetings should be democratic, everyone present should be permitted to talk as much as he or she wants without interference from the leader. Discuss.
> If you were giving a presentation and you saw that your audience’s eyes were glazing over, what might you do to regain their attention?
> Why is the direct order generally used in the shorter reports? When is the indirect order desirable for such reports?
> Why is the personal style typically used in the transmittal message?
> Explain the difference between the present-time viewpoint and the past-time viewpoint. Is it incorrect to have different tenses in the same report? Give examples to make your point.
> You are writing a report on the progress of your local cable company’s efforts to increase the sales of five of its products through different advertising media: print and online newspapers and magazines, television, radio, email, and social media. Plan
> Jim’s boss asked him to investigate why sales for the last quarter were low. Jim interviewed one of the sales managers about the problem, and she complained that the new people didn’t know how to sell. Jim then wrote a report in which he identified the n
> What are three ways that Microsoft Word’s Styles feature makes report writing more efficient?
> What are the basic ethical guidelines for conducting business research? Why are such guidelines important?
> What is scaling? What is the difference between rating and ranking?
> Explain the difference between closed-ended and open-ended survey questions.
> “Any fundraising or sales message that is longer than a page won’t be read.” Discuss this statement.
> What does it mean to use the you-viewpoint in persuasive requests and sales messages?
> Give examples of negative announcements that would be appropriately written in the direct order.
> Negative announcements usually need to include much more than the announcement. Explain.
> Discuss situations where the following email forms of an order acknowledgment would be preferred: form message and a special message.
> “If common business phrases apply to a situation, why not use them? Rubber stamps save time, and in business time is money. Plus, people are used to these expressions.”
> In what way, if any, could using the you-viewpoint when writing to someone you don’t like (for example, someone who has complained unreasonably about something) be justified?
> Why are brochures important business documents?
> Discuss this comment: “Using the you-viewpoint is ethically shady since the real purpose of business communication is to advance the writer or speaker’s goals. Your communication should be honest about that.”
> Describe and illustrate the three main transitional devices.
> Style experts advise against monotonous-sounding writing—that is, writing that has a droning, “blah-blah” effect when read aloud. What advice in this chapter might help you avoid this kind of style?
> What are the principal causes of lack of unity in sentences?
> “I have placed every visual near the place I write about it. The reader can see the visual without any additional help from me. It just doesn’t make sense to direct the reader’s attention to the visuals with words.” Evaluate this comment.
> What information goes in the header for page 2 and subsequent pages in memo and letter reports?
> What are three ways that the format for a business letter differs from the format for a business memo?
> Imagine that a customer has written to complain about the lack of attention that she received when visiting a paint store. The manager’s responding letter explains why the sales staff was so busy, offers to make a special appointment with the customer to
> You work for a mail-order business, and you’re writing to tell the customer that the item he wants is not only out of stock but also discontinued. How might you use the three ways of de-emphasizing negative news in your message?
> Because it was easier to do, a report writer prepared each of the visuals on a full page. Some of these visuals were extremely complex; some were very simple. Comment on this practice.
> How will technology continue to affect business writing?
> Give examples of data that are suited for presentation in three dimensions.
> Discuss the techniques that may be used to show quantitative differences between areas on a statistical map.
> For the past 20 years, Professor Clark Kupenheimer has required that his students include five visuals in the long, formal report he assigns. Evaluate this requirement.
> A report has five maps, four tables, one chart, one diagram, and one photograph. How would you number these visuals?
> “If there’s no definitive solution, then all ways of handling a business communication problem are equally good.” Using the discussion of business communication problem solving in this chapter, explain why this statement is false.
> What are the four basic principles of document design? Why is it important that you observe these principles when writing business documents?
> Describe ways in which the writing process might be recursive.
> Why do you think employers value transferable skills more highly now than in the past? What changes in business over the last 20 years or so might account for this change?
> Distinguish between the print résumé and the electronic résumé. When would each be most appropriate?
