· Evaluate your own business writing in terms of the eight areas outlined by Adams (2013). Where do you need to focus to improve your business reports?
After reading the article I think my largest area for improvement is step 3: Write your first draft quickly. The article states that, “it’s best to barrel through a draft without waiting for inspiration or perfecting as you go” (Adams, 2013). I find that I spend time revising my words and ideas as I write and often lose my next point. I get to a point in a business email where I forget what I planned for my next idea. By writing my first draft faster I would ideally be able to get all my thoughts written, even if not in complete sentences, before forgetting them. When I write a research paper, I found writing an outline first to be successful for me. The idea of writing the first draft of a business email or memo quickly is similar to writing an outline.
· Do the same type of evaluation for the writing of others in your company or industry. Where do you think others need to focus to improve business reports?
Something that I find really bothers me, but may not be the most common mistake, is not understanding your readers. If I have a long email in front of me and I can’t stay focused on what the person is trying to say I will sometimes close and move on, never getting to the point they were trying to make. In addition to being brief and not wasting time, we focus a lot on not using abbreviations unless necessary and you are sure everyone understands them. There are many abbreviations that have multiple meanings and others that are not very common, using an abbreviation that someone does not know can completely change the message the writer is trying to make.
· React to Julie Sweet's decision to ban corporate memos at Accenture. Do you think this is something that would work at your place of business? Explain.
I found the decision interesting. I like the out-of-the-box thinking but also wonder if there could be a happy middle ground. Where I work executive leadership communicates in many ways, including scripted emails, pre-recorded videos, and face-to-face presentations. There are instances I may have enough time to skim through an email and, if it applies, read it at a later time. If the same information was in a video format the only option is to watch the entire video. There are other topics that it may be safer for a lawyer pre-approved memo. I may worry that someone would go off script and say something they should not. Albeit, these are probably just a small percentage of the memos that are sent. The one thing I can definitely get behind is the quote from Julie Sweet, “it is very hard to transform your culture and your workforce to be a relevant company in the digital world if all of your processes are stuck in the traditional world” (Ward, 2016) I just disagree with taking it too far by “banning” anything.
References:
Adams, S. (2013, January). 8 Keys to better business writing. Forbes. Retrieved from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2013/01/18/8-keys-to-better-business-writing/#4dfaac21261e
Ward, M. (2016, November). The CEO of a $14 billion business explains why she banned corporate memos. CNBC. Retrieved from: https://www.cnbc.com/2016/11/28/ceo-of-a-14-billion-business-banned-corporate-memos.html
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PeerReviewforAmyFowlerDB4.docx
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