Off and Running
You are now ready to put what you have learned from this book into practice. Use this section as a review guide:
CHAPTER 1.
COMMUNICATING CLEARLY IN WRITING
- The ability to write well is essential to advancing your managerial career.
- Research and planning is the first step to crafting a well-written message.
- Whether you are writing a brief e-mail or formal business report, correct grammar, accurate language, and good manners are critical.
- Clarity and simplicity are the cornerstone of good writing. Buzzwords and jargon should be eliminated.
- Understanding whom you are writing for and why you are writing—to inform or to persuade—helps target written communications more effectively.
- Revising and editing are the last—but most crucial—steps in the writing process.
CHAPTER 2.
DIGITAL COMMUNICATION
- Business e-mails should be treated with the same care as other forms of written communication: attention to details and grammar is paramount.
- The rules of e-mail etiquette are simple: be courteous, reply to e-mails promptly, err on the side of a formal tone, limit use of abbreviations, double-check spelling of recipients and their addresses.
- E-mail and instant messaging should be used only for company business; employees should be discouraged from sending and receiving personal or inappropriate e-mails at work.
CHAPTER 3.
PRECISION ON PAPER
- Internal memorandums, or memos, are brief documents used to impart information within a select group of people.
- Memos consist of a heading—date, recipients, sender, and subject line—and a body of text.
- All business letters are formal by nature and are generally written either to notify, request, respond, or persuade.
- An effective business letter is well structured—with a proper greeting, body of text and closing—and correctly formatted (either in block format or modified block format).
- Reports are formal, lengthy documents drafted to inform readers, apprise them of a current situation, or recommend actions.
- A credible report is characterized by objectivity and reliance on facts.
- Recorded meeting minutes should be free of persuasion, opinion, or analysis, and should be accurate, succinct, and straightforward.
CHAPTER 4.
ORAL COMMUNICATION
- It is essential for managers to cultivate good speaking skills.
- Nonverbal cues, such as your gestures, facial expressions, and posture, express what your words might not.
- The best form of nonverbal communication is to listen attentively.
- At no time are communication skills more critical than when you are giving feedback to an employee.
- Answering the phone and leaving voice-mail messages requires politeness and professionalism at all times.
- The key to oral presentations is thorough preparation. Write, revise, and practice your script.