Writing Clear Business Communication: In-House Training
This program is about learning about the writing process and covers the full spectrum of documents used when corresponding in the workplace. The ability to write effectively comes naturally to some people, but for the vast majority, it is a task often approached with a mixture of trepidation and dread.
Effective writing seldom, if ever, 'magically materializes' on the spot. In reality, it is most often the product of planning, writing, and rewriting. This is why writing is called a process; it must go through a series of steps before it is clear and complete.
This program is about learning about the writing process and covers the full spectrum of documents used when corresponding in the workplace. The ability to write effectively comes naturally to some people, but for the vast majority, it is a task often approached with a mixture of trepidation and dread. However, the ability to communicate in the written word, for whatever purpose, is an important part of our working and personal lives and can have a direct impact on our ability to persuade, gain commitment or agreement and enhance understanding. Good writing sounds like talking on paper, which is why this program is focused on getting the message across and achieving the desired results using the 'keep it simple and direct' approach.
What you Will Learn
At the end of this program, you will be able to:
Write effective e-mails, letters, memos, and reports
Clearly articulate the message
Achieve desired results from correspondence
Organize content for maximum impact
Format for enhanced understanding
Choose the appropriate communication medium for each document
Revise documents to increase clarity and impact
Foundations Concepts
Business writing as a form of professional communication
How business writing compares to other forms of writing
Characteristics of good business writing
Challenges with business writing
The Project Environment
Business writing in the project environment
The concept of art, science, and optics of business writing
Art
Economy
Precision
Action
Music
Personality
Science
Purpose, simple, compound, and complex sentence structures
Techniques to engage the reader
Point of view: tone, attitude, and humor
Organization: opening, body, and closing
Support and coherence
Optics
Visual optics
Sound optics
Feel optics
Effective optics
Efficient optics
Email
Formal vs. informal emails
Suggestions for improving email communication
Instant and text messaging
Reports
Common types of reports created
Formatting of reports
Guidelines for meeting minutes
Contracts
Types of contracts
Common agreements
Procurement documents
Templates, Forms, and Checklists
Templates
Forms
Checklists
Other Formatting
Good Documentation Practices
Good documentation practices
Data integrity in business communication