Contents

• This paper answers the following questions -
• Question 1:
• What are the three ways that memos and letters differ?
• Question 2:
• Why should memos be direct?
• Question 3:
• What are bullets, and why would you use them in a memo?
• Question 4:
• Why should you be careful about using humor in memos?
• Question 5:
• Decide whether to send a memo or a letter for each of the following situations. “Memo” or “Letter” to indicate your choice.
• Part A
• Circle
• a) You are a manager. You want to inform your group of the agenda for an upcoming
• projectstatusmeeting. (Memo Letter)
• b) You work for Beta Software, Inc. You met a potential customer at a recent computer show. You want to remind this person that you met, and tell her a little more about your products. (MemoLetter)
• c) You are writing a 150-page five-year plan for your department. You need to tell someone in the desktop publishing department at your company about a design change in the document. (Memo Letter )
• (40%)
• ©Al Tareeqah Management Studies - 2018
• 3
• Part B
• 1. Memo to Request Information. (25%)
• (50%)
• Situation: You are employees in a company and have decided to do a paper on the working habits of the people in the company where you work part-time as a receptionist. You are particularly interested in knowing whether the employees often work overtime, whether they often take longer lunch breaks, and how they feel about management. Write a memo requesting that the employees fill in a short questionnaire which is attached to your memo.
• Writing Guideline: Discuss the answers to the following questions with your partner:
• A. What is the information you need? _________________________________________________________
• _________________________________________________________ B. Whatotherquestionsdoyouwantanswered?
• _________________________________________________________
• C. Whydoyouneedtheinformation? __________________________________________________________
• D. When do you need it? _________________________________________________________
• E. Doyouhaveaform? _________________________________________________________
• F. What is the incentive for the reader to cooperate? _________________________________________________________
• Procedure: Read the situation below; then, write a memo using the writing guideline.
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• Now, write out the memo, paying attention to verb forms, sentence structure, spelling and punctuation.
• TO: FROM: DATE: SUBJECT: BODY :
• ________________________
• ________________________
• ________________________
• _________________________________________________________
• _________________________________________________________
• _________________________________________________________
• 2. Memo to Apologize. ( 25%)
• Procedure: Read the situation below; then, write a memo using the writing guideline.
• Situation: You are responsible for the technical support service at the company you work for. One of the accountants at the company has asked you to set up an overhead projector in the conference room on Thursday afternoon. You have asked your assistant to take care of this. Thursday morning, while you’re at a showroom, your assistant calls in to say that he won’t be in the office today because of an illness in the family. Thursday afternoon the accountant comes to see you and is furious. You immediately set up the equipment she requires and then go back to your office to write a memo of apology.
• Writing Guideline: Discuss your answers to the following questions:
• A. What positive action will you have to take to make sure that this situation won’t reoccur? ______________________________________________________________________
• B. How are you going to apologize to the accountant? ______________________________________________________________________
• C. Briefly, yet as completely as possible, explain how the mistake happened. ______________________________________________________________________
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• 5
• D. What can you say that will make the accountant feel good? ______________________________________________________________________
• E. Once more, assure the reader that this won’t happen again. ______________________________________________________________________
• Now, write out the memo, paying attention to verb forms, sentence structure, spelling and punctuation:
• TO: FROM: DATE: SUBJECT: BODY :
• ________________________
• ________________________
• ________________________
• _________________________________________________________
• _________________________________________________________
• _________________________________________________________

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