Solutions Manual for Essentials of Business Communication 12th Edition by Mary Ellen Guffey & Loew

SOLUTION MANUAL

SOLUTION MANUAL

Part 1: BUSINESS COMMUNICATION IN THE INFORMATION AGE. Chapter

1. Thriving in a Digital, Social, and Mobile Workplace.

Part 2: THE WRITING PROCESS IN THE DIGITAL ERA. Chapter

2. Planning Business Messages.

Chapter

3. Organizing and Drafting Business Messages.

Chapter

4. Revising Business Messages.

Part 3: WORKPLACE COMMUNICATION. Chapter

5. Short Workplace Messages and Digital Media.

Chapter

6. Positive and Neutral Messages.

Chapter

7. Bad-News Messages.

Chapter

8. Persuasive Messages.

Part 4: BUSINESS REPORTS AND PROPOSALS—BEST PRACTICES. Chapter

9. Informal Reports.

Chapter

10. Proposals and Formal Reports.

Part 5: PROFESSIONALISM, TEAMWORK, MEETINGS, AND SPEAKING SKILLS. Chapter Meetings.

11. Professionalism at Work: Business Etiquette, Ethics, Teamwork, and

Chapter

12. Business Presentations. Part 6: EMPLOYMENT COMMUNICATION.

Chapter

13. The Job Search, Resumes, and Cover Messages.

Chapter

14. Interviewing and Following Up.

CHAPTER 1 SOLUTIONS Succeeding in the Social and Mobile Workplace Critical Thinking Discussion Guide Note: Solutions to Chapter Review questions 1-10 appear in the Annotated Instructor’s Edition.

11.

What could be the career fallout for someone who is unwilling or unable to train to become a better communicator? Can workers today be successful if their writing is and remains poor? (L.O. 1) Each of us probably knows at least one example of a highly successful dyslexic person or a poor writer who is admired and thrives in the world of work. However, such cases are the exception rather than the rule. Surveys of employers find over and over again that woefully unprepared young job applicants will fall behind in their careers and not be promoted if they are even hired in the first place.

12.

Why do executives and managers spend more time listening than do workers?

(L.O. 2) Before they can make decisions, executives must listen to feedback from supervisors, specialists, and others. They must also listen to their bosses—boards of directors and owners—as well as to customers, especially when handling serious complaints. Minds are like parachutes; they work well only when open. All three levels of workers should have good listening skills; but because the decisions coming from executives may be more critical, their listening skills should perhaps be most highly developed.

13.

What arguments could you give for or against the idea that body language is a science with principles that can be interpreted accurately by specialists? (L.O. 3) Although few would argue that body language does send silent messages, no scientific principles have evolved explaining exactly what those messages mean. Most researchers agree that nonverbal cues contain much information, but specifically what those cues mean is unknown. In Nonverbal Communication, authors Hickson and Stacks wrote, “The nonverbal message by itself may be ambiguous; in almost every instance it needs the verbal message to complete the process of communication.”

[Madison, WI: WCB Brown & Benchmark, 1993, p. 8.] Julius Fast, author of the precedent-setting Body Language, stated that “nonverbal language is partly instinctive, partly taught, and partly imitative.” [New York: Pocket Books, 1970, p. 14.] But it is not a science with principles that always hold true.

14.

Imagine that businesspeople from a high-context culture (e.g., Japan or China) meet their counterparts from a low-context culture (the United States) for the first time to negotiate and sign a manufacturing contract. What could go wrong? How about conflicting perceptions of time? (L.O. 4)

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Misunderstandings are almost assured if both sides are not aware of their diverging perceptions and willing to accommodate each other. A businessperson who prefers directness and relies mainly on precise written information (low context) will be impatient with a businessperson who avoids saying no, seemingly doesn’t get to the point, or communicates in what appear to be ambiguous messages (high context). Moreover, the person raised in a low-context culture will expect a quick decision and is “ready to do business,” whereas the member of a high-context culture will want to consult with other managers, and the group may say yes only after lengthy deliberations. In turn, because low-context communicators may be perceived as pushy and rude, their foreign counterparts may not want to do business with them. As for time orientation, Americans tend to live by the clock. Time is a commodity that can be spent or wasted. Punctuality is a generally accepted virtue. In other parts of the world, time is not such a high priority and is kept approximately at best. Smart negotiators can test Americans’ patience and throw them off balance simply by strategically dragging out negotiations.

15.

It is quite natural to favor one’s own country over a foreign one. To what extent can ethnocentrism be considered a normal reaction, and when could it become destructive and unproductive? Provide examples to support your answer. (L.O. 5) The love of country can express itself in healthy patriotic sentiment or in potentially hateful jingoism or nationalism. Ethnocentrism can be defined as putting one’s own culture first and making it central to one’s world. Most Americans would probably describe themselves as patriotic. This means recognizing the great accomplishments of one’s country of origin and being proud of them without, however, dismissing other countries contemptuously and viewing the rest of the world as inferior. Ethnocentrism turns into a negative trait once closed-mindedness or even hatred of other cultures sets in. The key is openness, tolerance, and empathy.

Activities and Cases 1.1 Introduce Yourself (L.O. 1) This e-mail or memo is an excellent way to assess students’ skills and, at the same time, get to know them. Don’t grade this assignment, but be sure to write a friendly comment on all papers or send friendly e-mail replies to demonstrate that you have an interest in them as students and as individuals. You may want to use the profile function in your institution’s learning-management system to have students create professional profiles covering the information requested or additional information you may want to gather. This assignment may be revisited later in the term to practice professional online presence (e.g., in a LinkedIn profile) when you cover employment communication. If you are tech savvy and teach smaller classes, you may want to try introductions by tweet in 140 characters or fewer. These messages might include a tiny URL taking the recipient to a profile, website, or other virtual location. More information about using LinkedIn is provided in Chapter 13.

1.2 Small-Group Presentation: Introduce Team Members (L.O. 1, 2) Decide whether you wish each student to (a) interview a group member and introduce that person to the group or (b) introduce himself or herself to the class. Class size may help you decide.

Encourage students to consider this a casual introduction. However, it is a good opportunity for students to not only learn about each other but also start to develop the skill of speaking in front of a group. .

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This informal oral assignment induces students to become aware of their employability skills.

You could make it more structured by asking them to record in writing the information they learn in the interview to create a short biographical sketch. The main purpose of this assignment is to encourage students to start thinking about presenting themselves well on professional social media platforms such as LinkedIn and in other forums of public opinion.

If students are not on LinkedIn yet, impress upon them that it’s about time they created an account! Many students are now urged to join LinkedIn in high school.

1.3 Social Media Inventory (L.O. 1, 3, 4) The generalization that young people today are digital natives and as such must all be extremely tech savvy may not apply to all students, not even the millennials among them. Taking stock of students’ social media and technology use can be important for getting to know the class and its members’ preparedness. Assign the inventory activity to small groups or collect written responses from individuals if you fear that students might hesitate to admit that they do not fit the stereotype of the hyperconnected contemporary and do not own the latest electronics, particularly given that gadgets tend to be expensive. You may also want to ask about attitudes: how important are smartphones and staying connected with friends via text or Facebook to the students? Do they see any disadvantages in being connected nonstop?

1.4 Soft Skills: Personal Strengths Inventory (L.O. 1) Your students should submit a list of four categories of soft skills. Encourage them to frame statements that will be useful when they prepare a résumé later in the course. For example, under “Thinking and problem solving,” a student might write, “Learned new spreadsheet program and prepared cost projection for remodeling office,” or “Learn new software applications quickly and with little training.”

1.5 Rating Your Listening Skills (L.O. 2) This quiz focuses on good listening techniques as presented in the textbook. Although some of the answers are obvious, an interactive quiz presents an alternative learning mode that can pique student interest and reinforce good habits.

1.6 Listening: An In-Person or Virtual Social Media Interview (L.O. 2) The answers will vary. Students could brainstorm and discuss their interview questions in class or prepare questions at home. Then they could approach their interviewees in person, by phone, by email, or via LinkedIn or Facebook. A special word of caution when contacting professionals on LinkedIn: Warn students not to relentlessly pursue random strangers, but to work from within their own established LinkedIn circle of professional acquaintances or their acquaintances’ contacts. This assignment could be done orally or in writing (e-mail, memo) individually, in small groups, or in class. The task could be expanded to a group oral presentation or written report.

1.7 Listening and Nonverbal Cues: Skills Required in Various Careers (L.O. 2, 3) Student teams should generate lists of listening and nonverbal cues that include some of the following: good eye contact, avoiding being distracted by others, not interrupting, taking notes, paraphrasing instructions, asking pertinent questions in a nonthreatening manner, leaning forward, and showing empathy and compassion. Critical listening involves judging and evaluating what you are hearing. Discriminative listening is necessary when you must identify main ideas and understand an argument. Teams should generate cues and behaviors to reflect these forms of listening in relation to the professional roles they are analyzing. .

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1.8 Nonverbal Communication: How Do You Come Across? (L.O. 3) Answers will vary. Ask students to review the aspects of nonverbal behavior discussed in this chapter and to focus on specific cues. Remind the class to look for aspects of professionalism, such as a straight but not rigid posture, and steady yet not staring eye contact. Students might observe slouching, playing with pens and pencils, or nervous gestures such as tugging at necklaces and ears, or running fingers through hair.

1.9 Nonverbal Communication: Reading Body Language (L.O. 3) These body movements do not necessarily mean the same thing when used by different individuals. Remember that to a certain degree nonverbal communication can be culture or subculture specific, and context always plays a major role in the interpretation of this type of communication. Students may have other interpretations, but these body movements can be construed to mean the following: a. Whistling, wringing hands: nervous or fearful b. Bowed posture, twiddling thumbs: bored c. Steepled hands, sprawling sitting position: contemplative or relaxed d. Rubbing hand through hair: frustrated or nervous e. Open hands, unbuttoned coat: relaxed f.

Wringing hands, tugging ears: upset or nervous 1.10 Nonverbal Communication: How Best to Signal I Messed Up (L.O. 3) This is a good exercise for teams. Suggest that team members take turns demonstrating each of the nonverbal messages. They should then discuss how effective each would be. Of course, some would be quite dangerous if they require taking your hands off the steering wheel. Be sure to discuss with students the difficulty of cultural implications. Although a gesture might be effective in one country, it might not work in another.

1.11 Nonverbal Communication: Signals Sent by Casual Attire (L.O. 3) This activity can be expanded into a research paper topic. A variation on this activity relies on student experiences. Instead of conducting interviews in the community, they can conduct a forum among students who work, asking them to comment on casual-dress policies in the jobs they have had.

1.12 Nonverbal Communication: Gestures From Around the World (L.O. 3, 4) Students should be able to find a number of gestures and their meanings discussed at various websites. Here is one example: “The fingertip kiss, in which the tips of the thumb and fingers are kissed and quickly moved forward away from the face, is a sign of affection and may be used as a greeting in Sicily and Portugal. The fingertip kiss is not used often in Italy and the British Isles, but it is common in France, Germany, Greece, and Spain to signify praise.”

[See Martin, J., & Chaney, L. 2006. Global business etiquette. Westport, CT: Praeger, p.

53.]

1.13 Intercultural Communication: Watching Those Pesky Idioms (L.O. 4) a. thinking out of the box having creative, unconventional ideas b. bottleneck a slowdown or congestion c. connect the dots being able to see a relationship between discrete features d. hell on wheels an extremely difficult person e. drop the ball handle things badly, make a mistake f. get your act together get more organized .

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g. stay the course h. in the limelight i. low on the totem pole

pursue a goal regardless of obstacles at the center of attention the last person in a chain of command, least important

1.14 Intercultural Communication: Probing Cultural Stereotypes (L.O. 4, 5) This activity drives home the limiting nature of stereotypes, even positive ones. Very few of us are comfortable representing our entire culture, although others may perceive and designate us as “ambassadors” of our countries of origin. Students may find some stereotypes flattering, but most will recognize that they are ambivalent at best. Few Jewish students, for example, would enjoy being called good with money because it’s an old anti-Semitic prejudice couched in positive language. Likewise, being seen as a Latin lover is a mixed blessing, and not all Asian students are studious and nerdy. Students should also recognize that we may be amused by positive and even negative stereotypes leveled at others, but we may react with less humor once the barbs of prejudice are pointed at us.

1.15 Intercultural Communication: Negotiating Diversity in Job Interviews (L.O. 4, 5) Role-playing relies on a solid knowledge of the workplace and interviewing techniques. If role-playing is too advanced for students, a discussion of differences between the interviewer and interviewee and how they could be bridged might be productive. In the first example, students should recognize the preconceived notions that come with gender expectations. A female boss interviewing a male assistant is still in a minority. a. Students should recognize that explicit references to gender roles would be inappropriate and that the sex of the applicant has no bearing on the qualifications for the job. b. Any questions about the candidate’s national origin should be avoided unless the interviewee volunteers such information. If the accent does not hinder communication, only the skills, experience, and ability of the candidate should be considered. c. In the last decade, turbans and other religious symbols have been perceived negatively because some Americans associate them with radical Muslims and even terrorists. Yet in a job interview, turbans and other forms of religious garb should not be addressed, nor should they be considered relevant to the hiring decision. d. Age discrimination against people over forty is outlawed in the United States. Any question making age a factor in the hiring process would be illegal and should be avoided. Questions should be kept relevant, referring solely to the requirements of the job posting. e. Disability cannot and should not be used against the candidate applying for the job. The interviewer could put the candidate at ease by extending common courtesy to him or her and making sure to speak with the person at eye level. Patronizing behavior should be avoided.

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Communication Workshop: Technology Exploring Career Prospects in Your Field With LinkedIn This first Communication Workshop encourages students to visit LinkedIn and potentially similar social media networks and job boards, such as Indeed or CareerBuilder. The goal is to motivate students early in the semester to recognize the value of this course in developing the communication skills that many job placement advertisements require.

Students should become familiar with using Internet job-search tools, LinkedIn in particular.

This activity takes them through the steps of locating positions in their career fields. They should find three advertisements and print them. They should analyze the skills required, tasks to be performed, and salary ranges for the listed jobs. You may ask them to discuss these findings in groups or submit them in a report.

Alternatively, student teams could be asked to examine other popular job boards, such as CollegeGrad and Monster. Besides the largest professional networking site, LinkedIn, Glassdoor is potentially eye-opening as it offers accurate salary estimates and anonymous reviews from within organizations, written by current or former employees.

Because students sometimes need gentle nudging to go beyond what is assigned, direct them to LinkedIn’s Learning tab; Monster’s Resumes, Jobs, and Career Resources links, which offer a wealth of job-related information; or the popular iPQ Career Planner app. A simple Google search yields links to websites and news articles that also provide jobseeking advice.

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CHAPTER 1

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to provide students with an overview of business communication in the digital age. First, we explain how communication and critical thinking skills fuel career success in a digital, mobile, and social workplace. Next, we emphasize the importance of building recession-proof and future-ready skills, exploring the creative problem-solving process, the dangers of disinformation, and the skills that employers seek. Then, we explore the trends and challenges in the information age workplace. We look at significant workplace changes including a sharing economy, work-life balance, global competition, shrinking management layers, and an increased use of teams. We also explore technology-enabled remote work and how these flexible work environments and a diverse workforce are creating dramatic changes in how and where we work today. Additionally, we explain how to compare and contrast internal and external functions of communication, formal and informal forms of communication, and oral and written communication. Finally, we identify the goals of ethical business communicators and provide practical guidelines for making ethical decisions and addressing wrongdoing in the workplace.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5

Describe how communication skills can fuel career success in an uncertain world of work.

Identify the powerful interpersonal traits and capabilities that are considered twentyfirst-century skills.

List significant trends affecting business communication in today’s information age workplace.

Describe communication channels in organizations and their media richness.

Explain the importance of being an ethical business communicator.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • •

To familiarize students with current workplace trends, prepared a timely and relevant new opening case addressing companies that have adopted the four-day workweek.

Rewrote substantial sections of the chapter to reflect the pervasive influence of transformational technologies shaping business today and prepare students for the age of AI and automation.

• • • • • • •

Presented state-of-the-art research showing the importance of communication and other interpersonal skills in a job market that will require that humans collaborate with and complement AI tools.

Emphasized the need for critical thinking in the age of automation along with discernment in the face of disinformation, deep fakes, and other threats to business, society, and democracy itself.

Boosted the coverage of technology-enabled remote work, whether executed by people with hybrid schedules or by digital nomads, to preview a future that will demand superior communication skills.

Devoted much attention to disruptive technologies—particularly AI and ChatGPT—and the changing nature of post-pandemic work (The Great Resignation, quiet quitting) to expose students to significant workplace trends.

Introduced hot-button topics such as DEI and ESG, both efforts to achieve greater equity and inclusion, as well as protect the environment and improve governance in the workplace of the future.

Updated the coverage of ethics, introducing the latest examples of corporate malfeasance and showing that Americans want change and are less inclined to overlook executives’ ethical lapses.

Created relevant, pedagogically sound end-of-chapter activities, some of which feature tasks to be completed with the help of ChatGPT and show how students can use this AI tool effectively.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 1. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Thriving in an Ever-Changing Workplace With Communication Skills (L.O. 1.1, PPT Slides 3–7, DISC: Purpose; Communication evolution) a. At a time of unprecedented economic, political, and technological change, future-proof occupations require communication, creativity, and specialized knowledge. b. Soft skills/emotional intelligence – powerful social and interpersonal skills c. Interpersonal skills/professional skills – a combination of communication, critical thinking, dependability, and time management skills d. This important skill set is most likely to protect workers from being replaced by machines in the age of automation.

e. Communication skills—reading, listening, nonverbal, speaking, and writing skills—are critical to effective job placement, performance, career advancement, and organizational success. f.

Employers often rank communication skills among the most requested competencies.

In one study of job postings, written and oral communication ranked first among the five most desirable attributes in job seekers.

g. On average, 44 percent of the labor force were able to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many still do. In such a hyperconnected environment, communication skills are critical, particularly as communication technology advances.

(Figure 1.1) h. Communication skills must be learned because we are not born with the ability to read, listen, speak, and write effectively.

I.

Building Twenty-First-Century Skills (L.O. 1.2, PPT Slides 8–17 DISC: Communication evolution; Theory application) a. Knowledge workers are individuals who are paid for their education and their ability to learn. Information workers work with information and technology. Both knowledge and information workers deal with symbols: words, figures, and data. b. In an age of fake news, information literacy and a critical-thinking mindset become increasingly important in order to accurately evaluate new information and avoid the dangers of both misinformation and disinformation. c. Nearly three out of four jobs involve mind work, with management and employees often working together to solve business problems, regardless of whether an employee works in m-commerce, e-commerce, or brick-and-mortar commerce. d. The Osborn-Parnes Creative Problem-Solving Process illustrates critical thinking and competent decision making. Understanding the problem is essential and must come first. (Figure 1.2) e. Careers today may resemble a corporate lattice, a workplace framework that is more intricate, open, fluid, and interconnected than a corporate career ladder. f.

How well employees communicate and protect their brand may determine how successful they will be. In the networked environment of the digital era, employees must carefully manage and guard their office and online reputations.

g. Employers seek employees who meet the employer’s fundamental criteria, including having the required major and course work. GPA is still a distinguishing factor, but fewer employers screen candidates by grades. h. Students are adequately trained for entry-level jobs but not equipped for advancement.

Promotable candidates excel oral communication, critical thinking, ethical judgment,

teamwork, independent work, self-motivation, writing, and real-world application of learning. (Figure 1.3) i.

II.

College graduates with bachelor’s degrees earn more than twice as much as high school dropouts and are almost three times less likely to be unemployed. College degrees provide access to the highest-paying and fastest-growing careers. College can prepare you with both technical skills and interpersonal skills. (Figure 1.4)

Trends and Challenges in the Information Age Workplace (L.O.1.3, PPT Slides 18–28, DISC: Communication evolution; Cultural imperatives; Teamwork) a. The most disruptive technology of the last two decades is AI, and the AI-enabled automation of routine tasks is well underway in many workplaces. b. Experts estimate that automation will create more jobs than it will displace and is expected to generate more wealth than the Internet did. c. By the mid-2030s, about 44 percent of workers with low education levels will be threatened by automation, with displaced labor competing for low-skill work, driving down wages. Upskilling and reskilling will make workers more versatile. d. Technology has led to a sharing economy, an economic model in which individuals rent or borrow assets owned by others through disrupting services such as Uber, Lyft, Bird, Lime, Vrbo, and Airbnb.

However, even their most avid users are learning that their go-to technologies also come with significant downsides—for example, data breaches, invasion of privacy, identity theft, manipulation, and disinformation, as Figure 1.5 illustrates. e. The changing nature of work caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has caused many workers to reevaluate their priorities, resulting in The Great Resignation and quiet quitting. f.

Another profound pandemic-induced shift has been termed by Deloitte consultants as “the end of jobs,” wherein work and workforce decisions are based on skills rather than formal job titles or degrees. Many executives believe that work is increasingly transcending functional boundaries. A growing sector of the labor market relies on independent contractors doing short-term work, creating what is known as the gig economy.

g. Another trend that accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic is the virtual office.

Teleworkers reside near the corporate office but have flexible remote working arrangements, requiring only a smartphone, laptop, and Internet connection. Similarly, a digital nomad is a remote worker who often travels to exotic locales for extended periods while continuing to remain connected and productive. Some remote workers resort to coworking, while digital nomads may benefit from co-living. h. Figure 1.6 illustrates many common office and communication technologies you will find in today’s workplace.

i.

Despite hybrid work offering increased flexibility, Americans still put in the longest hours compared to workers in most European countries. For Americans, it seems that the line between work and leisure has become increasingly blurry.

j.

New communication technologies, free-trade agreements, falling transportation costs, and saturated local markets have encouraged companies to enter emerging markets around the world, leading to the rise of a global middle class. Globalization, however, has had negative outcomes as well, such as the devastation of U.S. manufacturing and a strained global supply chain. k. Many traditional U.S. companies generate more profit abroad than at home. However, doing business in faraway countries means dealing with people who may be different than you; successful communication in new markets, therefore, requires the development of new skills and attitudes, including cultural awareness, flexibility, and patience. l. In response to intense global competition and other pressures, innovative businesses have for years been cutting costs and flattening their management hierarchies. This flattening means fewer layers of management separate decision makers from line workers, shorter lines of communication, faster decision making, quick response to market changes, cost savings, and efficiency. Hierarchies can provide clarity and direction and minimize “interaction fatigue,” where executives become too accessible. m. Tech firms and start-ups tend to gravitate toward a bossless organizational structure.

Flatter organizations require proficient communication skills in every employee. n. The complex and unpredictable challenges in today’s workplace require rapid changes in course and greater flexibility, leading to new strategies such as teaming and ad hoc teams. The independent workforce is also growing, offering flexibility to workers and employers, leading to a gig economy, where free agents are hired on a project basis or do other short-term, independent work. o. The U.S. workforce is becoming increasingly diverse, and a diverse work environment requires new attitudes and skills. The racial and ethnic makeup of the United States is projected to change and diversify further, with the population of non-Hispanic whites expected to drop from 59 percent in 2022 to 53 percent by 2035. (Figure 1.7) p. In addition to increasing racial and ethnic diversity, the workforce is experiencing a steep rise in older workers. By 2031, the number of workers aged fifty-five and older will have grown to a quarter of the labor force, almost double the number in 2000. q. Communicating in this diverse work environment requires new attitudes and skills. To address these needs, innovative organizations have embraced diversity, equity, and inclusion, three values underpinning the effort to hire and support employees of different races, ethnicities, religions, abilities, genders, and sexual orientations.

Ethics Check: Interaction Fatigue Answer: The CEO complained because he may have felt that the question was too personal or trivial; it was not work related. The boss may have felt communication overload. A flattened

management structure implies an egalitarian relationship between top management and rank-andfile workers. It suggests an informality that may confuse workers because it appears to erase boundaries that perhaps should be respected. This is why young workers must develop emotional intelligence, so that they can avoid faux pas attributable to misreading social cues.

III.

Communication Channels in Organizations and Media Richness (L.O. 1.4, PPT Slides 29– 39, DISC: Communication evolution; Asynchronous messaging; Synchronous messaging; Purpose) a. Social media and flatter hierarchies are causing a major shift away from one-sided, slow forms of communication to interactive, instant, and less paper-based communication. b. Speeding up the flow of communication in organizations are e-mail, instant messaging (IM), chat, collaboration platforms, texting, blogs, live conferencing, and interacting with social media such as Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, and LinkedIn. c. Mobility has revolutionized the way we communicate on the job. Internet access is nearly ever present, whether provided by cell phone companies or wireless networks. d. The revolution in mobile communication includes smartphones, tablets, notebooks, and wearable technology such as the Apple Watch and activity trackers. Of the 8 billion people worldwide, about 7.33 billion are mobile device users who own 17 billion smart electronic gadgets. e. Figure 1.8 shows a side-by-side comparison between the traditional one-directional business communication model and today’s hyperconnected, many-to-many social media communication model. f.

Internal communication – exchanging ideas and messages with superiors, coworkers, and subordinates. External communication – exchanges with customers, suppliers, the government, the public, etc. E-mail is the most common method for both internal and external communication.

g. Backchannel communication (simultaneous electronic background conversation during a conference presentation, lecture, or entertainment program) can pose the risk of information leaks. h. Business communicators must be able to choose from a wide range of communication channels the one most suitable to get the job done—that is, most likely to elicit the desired outcome. Daft and Lengel’s media richness theory and the concept of social presence are particularly useful for evaluating the effectiveness of old and new media in a given situation. i.

Communicators should choose the richest medium necessary to communicate the message with as little ambiguity as possible. Face-to-face conversations are the richest channel and best for complex organizational issues. Reports are the leanest channel and best for sharing large amounts of data internally or externally. (Figure 1.9)

j.

Social presence has come to mean the degree to which people are engaged online and ready to connect with others. Social presence is greater in synchronous communication (live chat, IM) than in asynchronous communication that is rather impersonal (e-mail, forum post).

k. Official information typically flows in three directions: downward, upward, and horizontally. (Figure 1.10) l.

Formal channels of communication generally follow an organization’s hierarchy of command. Information flowing downward moves from executives at the top of the organization through the management level to lower-level employees. Downward communication includes policies, procedures, directives, job plans, mission goals, and motivation.

m. Figure 1.11 summarizes common barriers to the open flow of communication within organizations. n. To improve the downward flow of information, many companies are reengineering themselves into small operating units and work teams and sharing organizational information through intranet postings and announcements, e-mail, meetings, videos, podcasts, company publications, and other channels. o. To improve the upward flow of information, some companies are hiring communication coaches to train employees, asking employees to report customer complaints, encouraging regular staff meetings, cultivating an environment of trust, and offering incentive programs that encourage employees to collect and share valuable feedback. p. To improve horizontal communication, companies are training employees in teamwork and communication technologies, establishing reward systems based on team achievements, and encouraging full participation in team functions. q. The grapevine can be a powerful, pervasive source of information, accounting for as much as two-thirds of an employee’s information. Studies demonstrate that the grapevine can be nearly 80 percent accurate, but it flows haphazardly. Through formal and informal channels of communication, smart companies keep employees and the public informed. Companies that monitor social media are better able to correct inaccuracies and misconceptions in online discussions. r.

Managers can use the grapevine productively by respecting their employees’ desire to know and inviting their opinions, communicating often through formal channels, sharing bad news along with the good, monitoring the grapevine, using influential employees to help spread information, and acting promptly to correct misinformation.

Ethics Check: Heard it Through the Grapevine Aside from the advantages and the general accuracy of the office grapevine, participating in this informal communication channel can spell trouble. Meaning can be distorted, and even colleagues we trust may mangle our words or reveal a secret with which we entrusted them.

On the other hand, savvy workers are able to work the grapevine to their advantage by purposely leaking their work-related accomplishments. Similarly, by tapping into the grapevine, they may be able indirectly to expose a coworker who clearly did wrong. Although honesty generally is the best policy, sometimes directness is not the smartest option.

IV.

Business Ethics Needed More Than Ever (L.O. 1.5, PPT Slides 40–47, DISC: Ethics and morals; Personal, corporate, legal, and ethical responsibilities) a. Ethics refers to conventional standards of right and wrong that prescribe what people should do. These standards usually consist of rights, obligations, and benefits to society. b. Figure 1.12 reveals the results of a global ethics study. The survey concludes that strong workplace cultures prioritizing ethics suffer fewer lapses, but the number of such workplaces remains stagnant. c. Most people believe ethical standards go beyond following the law. Many ethical dilemmas have no right answer, but one solution is often better than another. d. Figure 1.13 illustrates the influences that factor into ethical decision-making within the context of individual, family and loved ones, workplace, community, and society. e. Ethical communicators do the following: abide by the law; tell the truth; label opinions; are objective; communicate clearly; use inclusive language; and give credit. f.

When choosing the tools for doing the right thing, ethical communicators should analyze the issues, evaluate their choices, and then act responsibly.

g. Ethical communicators always start with one question: Is an action legal? If the answer is “no,” they do not proceed. h. Traditionally, it has been argued that the best advice in ethical matters is contained in the Golden Rule: Treat others the way you wish to be treated. However, more recently, author Tony Alessandra proposed the Platinum Rule: “Treat others as they wish to be treated.” i.

Figure 1.14 may help communicators resolve most ethical dilemmas: Is the action legal? Would you do it if you were on the opposite side? Can you rule out a better alternative? Would a trusted advisor agree? Would family, friends, employer, or coworkers approve?

Ethics Check: What’s the Harm In Fibs, Slight Stretches, and Half-Truths?

Answers will vary. Experts suggest the following guidelines: Be kind. Brutal honesty can be selfish. A well-intended lie can be merciful when there are no long-term consequences. Consider the timing. The truth is best avoided when the other person cannot make any changes at the moment. Provide reassurance. Sometimes people are not asking for honesty but may be fishing for a compliment to feel better. Learn a person’s general preference for the truth. Know the

target’s tolerance for the truth before a situation involving potential lying emerges. Examine your own motivation. Do you want to make the other person really feel better or do you want something in return, say, a gift or affection? Don’t lie if the truth is likely to come out. Don’t praise a poor presentation when other team members are likely to offer more sincere critiques. Be honest if you want someone to change. It’s best not to overlook a high-stakes issue such as substance abuse or other unhealthy behaviors to prevent embarrassment or dodge an argument.

Remember the Golden Rule. Ponder whether you would want to be on the receiving end of the lie you are about to tell. [Source: Bernstein, E. (2017, June 5). When Is it OK to Lie? The Wall Street Journal.]

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as wholeclass discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Communication and Career Success (L.O. 1.1) Duration: 20 minutes. a. All this talk about interpersonal skills and future-proofing your career may make you nervous, especially if your communication skills are shaky. b. Do you think workers today can be successful if they lack communication skills and write poorly? i. Answer: Each of us probably knows at least one example of a highly successful dyslexic person or a poor writer who is admired and thrives in the world of work.

However, such cases are the exception rather than the rule. Surveys of employers find over and over again that woefully unprepared young job applicants fall behind in their careers and are not promoted if they are even hired in the first place. The workforce of the future will depend on interpersonal skills to find and keep meaningful employment as automation will gobble up entire industries. The good news is that writing and communication skills can be learned and honed.

2. Discussion: Technology and Critical Thinking (Chat About It Topic 3, L.O. 1.2) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Some experts believe that although computer technology is improving our lives in many ways, it might be impairing our ability to think critically by putting answers at our fingertips. b. What do you think? i. Answer: Student answers will vary. With answers available at any time with a quick search, it can be easy to become lax in exercising critical thinking skills. However, the avalanche of information that engulfs us daily and the varied search responses returned to our queries both require a careful evaluation of all sources critically; not all news outlets were created equal. The key ability to accurately evaluate new

information is a hallmark of information literacy. A questioning, critical-thinking mindset is an important interpersonal skill in any profession and one that should be mindfully practiced.

3. Discussion: Guarding Your Credibility (L.O. 1.2) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Sharing various digital media impulsively can lead to embarrassment and worse. b. Have you or has someone you know ever regretted posting a comment, photo, or other media online? i. Answer: Student answers will vary. Some students may be too embarrassed to admit to serious blunders on the Internet, whereas others may be willing to share.

Ask students how such slip-ups could affect their chances of finding employment.

You could also discuss the permanence of our data and the so-called right to be forgotten that the Europeans have asserted against Google and other Internet search giants. The concept means that people wish to not be haunted by their indiscretions practically forever.

4. Discussion: Work-Life Balance (L.O. 1.3) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Despite laws dictating a 40-hour workweek, many young Chinese tech workers work the dreaded 9-9-6 schedule: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week. b. How do you feel about work-life balance? c. What effects on your health and personal life do you anticipate? i. Answer: Student answers will vary. Most students are probably aware that being constantly tethered to their jobs with smart mobile technology comes at a price. A potential overreach by the office is the dark side of convenience and 24/7 connectedness facilitated by smart devices. The distinction between work and leisure is becoming blurry, and workers are expected to be always on duty. The concept of time off will most likely shift. Businesses with a global reach are always on and never sleep. Depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, and other negative effects of constant stress have been reported. Some companies are setting boundaries and establishing a culture that allows for disconnecting and recharging. Work-life imbalance continues to be a hot topic.

5. Discussion: Lean Media Channels and Tone (L.O. 1.4,) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Critics complain that texting and instant messaging lead to textspeak, poor writing characterized by acronyms, abbreviations, and emoticons. Others have claimed that emoji help supply important missing cues in lean media channels that are “toneless” otherwise. b. What do you think? i. Answer: The author of The Atlantic article cites a sociolinguist who says that emoticons and emoji are revolutionizing language and add intention to a statement in e-mail, a lean medium. Business communicator Will Schwalbe is quoted as saying that in the absence of tone in e-mail and other lean media, people read

negative tone into it. Emoticons make for a more cheerful, friendly communication, Schwalbe says. A Scandinavian study has found that emoticons reduce negative interpretations. In addition, even work e-mail is becoming more casual and emoticons more acceptable. However, a career coach cautions that emoticons and emoji should not be used with superiors or clients. Warn students that they will not find uniform acceptance when using nonstandard expressions of this kind. Young office workers need to consider their audience.

6. Discussion: The Golden Rule vs. The Platinum Rule (L.O. 1.5) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Author and entrepreneur Dave Kerpen believes that doing unto others as we would want done to us is insufficient. He prefers the Platinum Rule: Do unto others as they would want done to them. “The Golden Rule, as great as it is, has limitations, since all people and all situations are different. When you follow the Platinum Rule, however, you can be sure you’re actually doing what the other person wants done and assure yourself of a better outcome.” b. Do you agree? c. Why does Kerpen think the Platinum Rule beats the Golden Rule? i. Answer: The Golden Rule is an ancient moral principle; therefore, it may feel odd that someone would question it. However, Kerpen—and Tony Alessandra before him—proposes shifting the perspective from the self to the other. Instead of judging others by our own needs, he suggests that we focus on what the other person wants. He admits that it’s a lot harder to put ourselves into someone else’s shoes, but he believes that understanding someone else’s perspective is more powerful in business as in life than imposing one’s own needs and wants onto others. A possible critique of Kerpen’s and Alessandra’s approach is that it’s impractical and perhaps occasionally impossible to know what other people may want done unto them. We tend to know our own minds better than those of others, and the Golden Rule accounts for that.

CASE STUDY The following are questions posted within the text and possible answers.

Case Study: “You Do You Fridays”: Will the Four-Day Workweek Catch On? (Part 1) In this case study, students will evaluate the idea of a four-day work week. As an effect of the pandemic, when employees were permitted to work from home, people began to reconsider what they wanted out of their job. Considering experiences of companies who offer four-day work weeks, or even just reduced hours, have the students answer the questions provided. a. Answers will vary. Research studying remote work and the pilot studies assessing a four-day schedule show that employees are happier and, therefore, more productive,

even when working fewer hours. In addition, employers participating in the trials have reported higher revenues, 38 percent on average.

Crowdfunding site Kickstarter, a participant in one of the trials, considers the condensed workweek a “true win-win” and released this statement: “The 4-day week has been transformative for our business and our people. Staff are more focused, more engaged and more dedicated, helping us hit our goals better than before” [Cooban, A. (2022, November 30). Global 4-day week pilot was a huge success, organizers say. CNN Business.] b. Answers will vary. Some workers opt to catch up on work, run errands, go shopping, clean their homes, pursue athletic activities and hobbies, spend time with family or friends, or just relax. c. Only office workers, i.e., the white-collar workforce, can work remotely. As we have seen during the pandemic, essential “front-line” workers did not have such an option; often they risked infection and were subjected to heightened pressure and stress.

As for the four-day workweek, this model could benefit a greater number of workers.

Office work, service professions, but also manufacturing could run on a four-day schedule. This model is attractive to workers so long as they receive the same pay as they would for a five-day workweek. Hourly workers would lose out, however. They only get paid for the time worked and may depend on overtime pay to make ends meet. Existing income inequality would most likely increase.

One potential disadvantage of a compressed workweek—when 40 hours are squeezed into four days—is that it could lead to greater stress due to the grueling hours packed into the four workdays. Ideally, employees would work fewer total hours.

Internationally, the trend toward working fewer hours per week is old hat. German steelworkers and autoworkers, for example, have benefited from a 35-hour workweek for decades, which is not unheard of in the European Union. On Fridays very few Europeans work after 12 or 2 pm and disengage fully from work until Monday morning, yet their productivity exceeds that of American workers. At the time of this writing, the United States was only the 8th most productive country in the world measured by GDP per hour worked after Ireland (at No. 1), Luxembourg, Denmark, Belgium, Norway, Switzerland, and France [Most productive countries 2023. World Population Review].

Case Study: “You Do You Fridays”: Will the Four-Day Workweek Catch On? (Part 2) Have students team up and discuss the questions presented regarding how a four-day work week can be done successfully.

Answers will vary. Students will have most of the common arguments at their fingertips when they review the Zooming In scenario in this chapter. Additional research may not be needed but could be assigned. The task requires the synthesis of the information and persuasion, not simply a summary or bullet points. This is why a collaboration with a chatbot such as ChatGPT will only help at the initial stages of the assignment.

A ChatGPT prompt about the pros and cons of a four-day workweek yielded usable bullet points describing the advantages and disadvantages of a condensed workweek.

However, the items are general and vague—a typical shortcoming of ChatGPT—and even if prompted to provide references, the bot frequently “hallucinates,” i.e., it invents nonexistent sources.

Pros of a four-day workweek: • Increased productivity: With a shorter workweek, employees may feel more motivated to get their work done in a shorter amount of time, leading to increased productivity.

• Improved work-life balance: Employees have more time for personal activities and responsibilities, which can lead to reduced stress and improved mental health.

• Higher job satisfaction: Employees who have more free time to pursue their personal interests and spend time with family and friends are often more satisfied with their jobs.

• Lower costs: A shorter workweek may result in lower overhead costs for employers, such as electricity, heating, and maintenance expenses.

• Reduced carbon footprint: With fewer days commuting to work, a four-day workweek can also result in lower carbon emissions and a smaller environmental impact.

Cons of a four-day workweek: • Reduced work hours may lead to reduced income: For employees paid on an hourly basis or who earn overtime pay, a shorter workweek may mean a reduction in income.

• Difficulty in meeting deadlines: Some employees may find it difficult to complete their work in a shorter amount of time, leading to missed deadlines and lower productivity.

• Potential for longer workdays: Employees may need to work longer hours each day to complete their work within the shorter workweek, which can lead to increased fatigue and burnout.

• Limited availability for customers: With a shorter workweek, businesses may have limited availability for customers, which could impact sales and customer satisfaction.

• Difficulty in implementing: It may be challenging for some organizations to transition to a four-day workweek, especially those in industries that require continuous operations.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. This question is designed to stimulate students’ ability to analyze and interpret data. The careful readers among them might conclude that the shift could be due to the changes wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Zooming with a remote workforce highlighted the need for team skills. Naturally, teamwork and virtual meetings require communication skills as a matter of course, but it seems likely that employers were hyperfocused on team skills under the sway of their recent experience with fully remote work—not to mention that they still named communication skills among the ten most desirable qualities they are seeking in job applicants.

As for GPA, employers may have had to lower their expectations because extreme staff shortages left them no choice but to expand their search to include wider talent pools—ones they would have overlooked in previous years. In a tight job market, job seekers have the upper hand. Also, because the future job market will depend much more on skills than on specific roles, employers may discover that by focusing mostly on traditional education and work histories—including criteria such as GPA—they may not find the most talented individuals and instead miss many nontraditional potential hires.

2. Answers will vary, but most students are probably aware that being constantly tethered to their jobs with smart mobile technology comes at a price. A potential overreach by the office is the dark side of convenience and 24/7 connectedness facilitated by smart mobile devices.

The distinction between work and leisure is becoming blurry, and workers are expected to be always on duty. The whole concept of time off seems to have shifted, though, not least because many workers have adjusted their priorities after the pandemic.

Businesses with a global reach are always on and never sleep, according to experts.

Depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, and other negative effects of constant stress have been reported. Some companies, like Exos in this chapter, are setting boundaries and establishing a culture that allows for disconnecting and recharging. The work-life imbalance will continue to be a hot topic.

Astute students might wonder about the irony that a presumably communist country such as China would subject its tech workers to harrowing 72-hour weeks, 32 hours above the putative legal limit, while the (capitalist) social market economies of western Europe offer their workforces a tremendous work-life balance, generous paid time off, and other benefits.

3. Answers will vary. The lawsuits filed by school districts will need to determine any legal liability of social media companies. The tech firms defend themselves by listing what they say are many features designed to prevent excessive use of their platforms by minors. Meta says it provides 30 such tools. TikTok points to parental controls that can regulate privacy, screen time, and the content their kids consume.

This litigation is a notable example of how difficult it is to prove causality vs. correlation. The courts will have to parse this dilemma. Some opponents of the lawsuits have invoked the need for parental supervision. They believe it’s wrong to blame the companies; instead, they call on parents to set the necessary limits on social media and screen use.

4. The author of The Atlantic article cites a sociolinguist who says that emoticons and emoji are revolutionizing language and add intention to a statement in e-mail, a lean medium.

Business communicator Will Schwalbe believes that in the absence of tone in e-mail and other lean media, people read negative tone into it. Emoticons make for a more cheerful, friendly communication, Schwalbe says.

A Scandinavian study has found that emoticons reduce negative interpretations. In addition, even work e-mail is becoming more casual and emoticons more acceptable. However, a career coach cautions that emoticons and emoji should not be used with superiors or clients. Warn students that they will not find uniform acceptance when using nonstandard expressions of this kind. New-hires need to consider their audience.

5. The Golden Rule is an ancient moral principle; therefore, it may feel odd that someone would question it. However, Kerpen—and Tony Alessandra before him—proposes shifting the perspective from the self to the other. Instead of judging others by our own needs, he suggests that we focus on what the other person wants. He admits that it’s a lot harder to put ourselves into someone else’s shoes, but he believes that understanding someone else’s perspective is more powerful in business as in life than imposing one’s own needs and wants onto others. A possible critique of Kerpen’s and Alessandra’s approach is that it’s impractical and perhaps occasionally impossible to know what other people may want done unto them. We tend to know our own minds better than those of others and the Golden Rule accounts for that.

In the view of one medical researcher, Harvey M. Chochinov, in patient care the principle of “consider doing unto patients as they would want done unto themselves” likewise seems more appropriate than treating patients as we would want to be treated in similar circumstances. He says that “when patients’ lived experiences and outlooks deviate substantively from our own, we stop being a reliable barometer of their needs, values, and goals” [Chochinov, H. M. (2022, June). The platinum rule: A new standard for personcentered care. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 25(6), 854-856. https://doi.org/10.1089/jpm.2022.0075]

ACTIVITIES Below are possible answers to the activities found on pages 36-41 of the textbook.

1.1 Will Your Future Job Soon Be Replaced by Generative AI? (L.O. 1–3)

Answers will vary. This assignment may be useful to students because it forces them to consider specific roles in their field and the various responsibilities they will entail—from the vantage point of potential automation. As it is, students tend to have hazy ideas about their putative careers, in terms of specific job functions, skills needed, and even pay.

Interestingly, the employers polled by Resume Builder want job applicants with ChatGPT skills. This is why students should be encouraged to try AI tools and become familiar with their strengths and weaknesses. Experts believe that today’s students need to acquire AIproof skills in college—critical and analytical thinking among them. Part of such competencies is being able to evaluate the pros and cons of new technology.

Undoubtedly generative AI will be able to assist businesses by taking over routine and repetitive tasks. It may help writers with drafting documents, for example. On the other hand, ChatGPT has disappointed users with incorrect and made-up responses, even fake references. Because large language models scrape the Internet for data and mirror society’s input, ChatGPT has at times provided responses considered racist and exhibited the so-called “pale male bias” supposedly owing to programmers who tend to be white males.

Making this assignment itself ChatGPT-safe means requiring that it be specific, personalized, and current. At this point ChatGPT is “current” with data available up until 2021. Individualized tasks are most likely to yield authentic student work.

1.2 AI: Chatting With ChatGPT to Decode Specialized Language (L.O. 1-3) The assignment allows students to practice their prompting skills when collaborating with ChatGPT. Students may also sharpen their awareness of academic prose, contracts, and other dense copy. Language and style issues are addressed in Chapters 4-6. ChatGPT can be helpful in “translating” difficult passages such as incomprehensible legalese or parts of peer-reviewed journal articles. Students could be asked to try out all kinds of challenging text and experiment with prompts.

Below is a simple example showing how the AI bot can be asked to decipher the difficult passage and then refine its answers.

The following text from template generator Termly’s website was provided to ChatGPT with a prompt: Turn the following passage into normal prose: "IN NO EVENT SHALL COMPANY OR ITS DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFIT, LOST REVENUE, LOSS OF DATA, OR OTHER DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE OR COMPANY SERVICES, EVEN IF COMPANY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES." ChatGPT returned a clearer, less legalistic paraphrase:

The above passage essentially states that the company, along with its directors, employees, and agents, will not be held liable for any damages that may arise from your use of their website or services, whether direct or indirect. This includes any kind of damages, such as lost profits, revenue, data, or any other damage that may be incurred.

Even if the company has been made aware of the possibility of such damages, they will not be held responsible for them.

To refine the outcome, the following request followed: Can you simplify and summarize your version?

In summary, the passage means that the company and its employees will not be held responsible for any damage that may arise from your use of their website or services, even if they were aware of the potential harm. This includes all kinds of damage, and the company cannot be held liable for any loss of profit, revenue, or data.

And finally, the last prompt: Shorter, please.

The company is not responsible for any harm or damage caused by your use of their website or services, even if they knew it could happen.

1.3 Diversity: The Great Harm of the “Great Breakup” (L.O. 3) Answers will vary, but students may come up with some of the following insights. Ask them to provide sources if they borrowed ideas.

Greater gender equity benefits organizations in several ways: • Matching customer base and diverse employees: Consumers and employees want to do business with people who look like them.

• Innovation and creativity: Different backgrounds and perspectives facilitate innovative ideas; problems can be approached in unique and creative ways providing better solutions.

• Better decision making: Unique perspectives and competencies join together to form more informed decisions.

• Improved customer service: Greater understanding of diverse customers as well as their needs and preferences leads to better customer relations.

• Increased employee engagement and retention: Workers who feel valued and supported stay with the company longer if it maintains an inclusive culture.

• Social responsibility: It’s the right thing to do. Companies have an obligation to reflect the communities they serve.

• Greater emotional intelligence: Organizations that forego female executives who have crucial attributes of leadership will miss out on key talent, a strategic mistake amidst persistent labor shortages.

Potential countermeasures include: •

• • •

Experiment with “returnships,” i.e., programs that help make jobs more attractive to women leaders who have quit and bring them back to midlevel or senior roles, as the LeanIn.Org/McKinsey report suggests. (Companies that have tried returnships include Amazon and Goldman Sachs.) Some women executives forego big paychecks and walk away; others downshift to less demanding jobs or switch industries.

Provide greater flexibility and control over work schedules, e.g., expand remote work to help women leaders square their career ambitions with the obligations in their personal lives.

Offer gender-neutral paid leave (i.e., include all genders), equal pay, and childcare.

Remove obstacles at the entry level to manager step. The so-called “broken rung” is still holding women back and is narrowing the talent pipeline, according to LeanIn.Org/McKinsey.

Students could also be asked to review the LeanIn.Org/McKinsey report Women in the Workforce 2022 and analyze two case studies cited in it of companies that have made strides toward greater gender diversity: Intuit and Citi.

1.4 Fact Checking: How to Spot Fake News (L.O. 1, 2, 5) The simplest yet still useful task is to prompt students to visit one or all fact-checking sites and peruse their most recent posts. Among the current topics, students could then select a relevant business-related story. If students decide they want to use search terms, they may need guidance in correctly inputting search terms or their browsing may end in frustration. Ask them to pick a current topic, for example, “Silicon Valley Bank Collapse” and run it through one or several fact checkers.

The sites will focus on the facts and debunk rumors. Snopes, for example, features “5 Stories About Inflation and the Cost-of-Living Crisis,” a subject that might interest students.

Snopes has also made available a helpful guide, “A Collection of Tips for Combating Online Misinformation Like a Pro.” A shout-out to college and public librarians is in order. Tirelessly they compile resources to help library patrons with their research and separate the wheat from the chaff. We found the website of the university libraries at the University of Colorado, Boulder particularly helpful. Their research guides at https://www.colorado.edu/libraries have been invaluable.

Discussing the funding of fact checkers could present a teachable moment. Following the money is often revealing of biases and untrustworthiness.

1.5 Remote and Flexible Work Opportunities (L.O. 1, 3) FlexJobs claims to “hand-screen” the jobs it lists on its platform. The offerings range from entry-level to executive positions and encompass more than fifty career categories.

Students can get a pretty good idea about the types of remote jobs available without purchasing a subscription.

Personal views of remote work will vary; not all business disciplines lend themselves equally to employment with distributed companies. Most of the talent sought-after and suited for remote work is recruited from among IT professionals, software developers, designers, finance experts, and project managers. However, FlexJobs lists pre-screened positions from many additional job categories, for example, accounting, advertising, customer service, engineering, human services, manufacturing, retail, and sales, as well as jobs for writers, artists, and translators.

1.6 Analyzing 21st-Century Skills (L.O. 1, 2) Answers will vary. This assignment offers many options. Aside from the questions listed, students could be asked early on whether they are surprised by any of Iowa’s “universal constructs.” Are some more self-evident than others? For example, under Flexibility and Adaptability, what does “17) meet the challenges of new roles, paradigms and environments, “19) balance one’s core beliefs and the appropriate reaction to change,” or “20) respond to dissonance in productive ways,” mean? How could we illustrate “9) combine seemingly unrelated ideas into something new” and “10) think divergently”? The most astute participants with well-developed critical-thinking skills may conclude that, unlike technical skills, interpersonal or professional skills are more elusive and difficult to measure.

A Capgemini and LinkedIn study claims that more than half of global organizations believe “the talent gap in soft digital skills is more pronounced than in hard digital skills” and that it impedes their digital transformation. [Beach, G. (2018, June 26). Hard-pressed by soft skills, CIOs face talent challenge. CIO Journal.]

Focusing on the language of Iowa Core may present a teachable moment. Students could be asked to identify the main intended audience and secondary audiences based on style and word choice—knowing that the principles were compiled by Iowa’s Department of Education. The intended audience may have been the general public, although some words and phrases could be considered jargon (paradigms and environments, dissonance, divergently, and more). A proper challenge for advanced classes could be asking students to rewrite the rather abstract Iowa core by distilling its essence for the workplace and describe it in concise, concrete business prose—preferably after studying Chapter 6.

1.7 Technology: Screen Time Check (L.O. 1–4) Findings will vary. The generalization that young people today are digital natives and as such must all be extremely tech savvy may not apply equally to all students, not even the

millennials among them. Taking stock of students’ social media and technology use can be important for getting to know the class and its members’ preparedness.

Assign the inventory activity to small groups or collect written responses from individuals if you fear that students might hesitate to admit that they do not fit the stereotype of the hyperconnected contemporary and do not own the latest electronics, particularly given that gadgets tend to be expensive. You may also want to ask about attitudes: how important are smartphones and staying connected with friends via text, chat, Instagram, or TikTok to the students? Do they find any disadvantages in being connected nonstop? Would they surrender all smart electronic devices for a day (for a week)?

Screen Time and Digital Wellbeing are helpful in establishing totals per day and a more nuanced idea of usage per app. Time spent looking up reference tools and reading, for example, may be less harmful than time spent binge watching, texting, and posting on social media. Recent studies claim that American adults spend between five to more than ten hours daily interacting with their screens. The high estimates include PCs, tablets, video game consoles, TVs, radios, and DVRs. Parents may be setting a poor example for their kids.

As for surrendering smartphones for a day or—horribile dictu—for a week, this topic can trigger lively debates. Test students’ emotional dependency on their smart devices and their anxiety about losing them by asking for how much money they would be willing to part with their gadgets for a predetermined time. In our experience, young people would not accept even reasonably high sums for temporarily relinquishing their phones.

1.8 Critical Thinking: Analyzing an Opening Case Scenario (L.O. 1–5) This activity takes place over the entire semester. Student teams have a choice of 1 of the 16 two-part case studies in the textbook. Each team must fully research the company, industry, or issue featured in the case study using outside resources, answer the questions presented, and prepare and deliver a group presentation about the company.

This excellent long-term project helps students develop critical thinking, teamwork, research, writing, presentation, and other important interpersonal and professional skills.

Also, the assignment is safe from ChatGPT—for now—because it is specific and most scenarios rely on sources published after 2021, this particular bot’s cut-off year.

1.9 Interpersonal Skills: Introductions (L.O. 1, 2) This e-mail or memo is an excellent way to assess students’ writing skills and, at the same time, get to know them. Don’t grade this assignment but be sure to write a friendly comment on all submissions or in all e-mail replies to demonstrate that you have an interest in them as students and as individuals.

You may want to use the profile function in your institution’s learning-management system to request that students create a professional profile covering the information requested or additional information you may want to gather. This assignment may be revisited later in the term to practice professional online presence (e.g., in a LinkedIn profile) when you

cover employment communication. You may want to try introductions by tweet in 280 characters or fewer. These messages might include a tiny URL taking the recipient to a profile, website, or other virtual location. More information about using LinkedIn is provided in Chapter 15.

1.10 Interpersonal Skills: Introduce Your Team (L.O. 1, 2) Decide whether you wish your class to (a) interview a group member and introduce that person to the group or (b) have class members introduce themselves to the entire class.

Class size may help you decide. Encourage students to consider this a casual introduction. However, it is a good opportunity for students to not only learn about each other but also start to develop the skills needed to speak in front of a group.

The informal oral assignment induces students to start thinking about their employability skills. It could be more structured by asking students to write the information they find out in the interview to create a short biographical sketch. The purpose is to have students start thinking about their presentation of themselves and others on professional social media sites such as LinkedIn. If students are not on LinkedIn yet, explain to them that it’s about time they set up an account and created at least a basic profile!

1.11 Communication Skills: What Employers Want (L.O. 1–3) Students may work in groups or individually on this project. Consider grouping them by their majors. Provide poster board and glue sticks for each group to mount their job posts.

In a lab, a computer with a projector could display the results summarized on digital slides in PowerPoint or similar presentation software. You may want to have a spokesperson from each group come to the front of the classroom to report the group’s findings.

1.12 Writing Skills: So You Think You Won’t Have to Write? (L.O. 1–3) a. ChatGPT and other bots will write most routine messages for me.

This is true to an extent. Very likely, successive versions of ChatGPT and other AIpowered tools will become increasingly sophisticated. They already can be used for first-draft writing of straightforward, routine messages. However, just as Grammarly does not guarantee a flawless document and in fact requires a competent human to select from the options the program offers, writers shouldn’t expect that bots will independently and entirely write documents of any complexity and specificity for them. b. I can use forms and templates for most messages.

Books and computer programs can provide dozens of ready-made letters or pattern paragraphs for which businesspeople merely fill in the blanks. When these letters are appropriate and well written, they can be useful time-savers. Often, however, such letters are poorly written and ill-suited for specific situations. Most messages demand that writers create their own original thoughts and adapt them to each new context.

c. Technical writers do most of the real writing on the job.

Some companies employ technical writers to prepare manuals, documentation, and public documents, such as annual reports. Rarely, however, do these specialists write everyday messages (internal reports, letters, e-mails, memos) for employees. d. Today’s sophisticated software programs can fix any of my writing mistakes.

Today’s AI-powered style-, grammar-, and spell-checkers are wonderful aids to business writers. They can highlight selected trouble areas and suggest revisions.

What they can’t do, though, is organize and write the document and ensure its total accuracy. These tools are also not capable of catching all errors, especially commonly confused words and punctuation. e. Secretaries will clean up my writing problems.

In the current work world of tightened, optimized budgets, only a few upper-level executives still have secretaries or administrative assistants who type their messages.

Most managers and executives now write their own e-mails, memos, and letters. They certainly chat, text, and post their own short messages. f.

Because I'm in a technical field, I will work with numbers, not words.

Estimates suggest that nearly 90 percent of all business messages involve written communication. Conducting business in any field—even in technical and specialized areas such as information technology, accounting, engineering, marketing, and hotel management—involves some writing. Tech giant Google found that its best teams were interdisciplinary and benefited from collaborators with strong interpersonal skills.

Billionaire investor Mark Cuban predicted that within a decade, liberal arts degrees would be worth more than traditional programming degrees because liberal arts majors learned to think and collaborate—and write. Moreover, when individuals are promoted, their writing and speaking tasks increase.

g. No one really writes anymore. They just text and send e-mails.

Everyone writes in today’s workplace—and probably more than people ever did in the past. In professional workplaces, e-mail has become the most important communication channel. Slack is the preferred short messaging channel in many companies. Texting is less important, but it has its professional applications.

Regardless, all messages sent in the workplace must be businesslike and effective.

This means they should be clear, concise, courteous, complete, and correct. They are real writing and require more skill and preparation than texts to friends. What’s more, as companies grow larger and become less cohesive, the written word increases in importance. Because fewer people are working side by side, written messages replace face-to-face conversation. Workers who can craft clear messages will be most successful.

1.13 Speaking or Writing: Explore Media Richness (L.O. 4) a. A face-to-face meeting is the most appropriate option in this scenario. In-person meetings are suitable for addressing sensitive issues, generating new ideas, building trust, strengthening relationships, and interpreting body language as well as facial expressions. Participation, encouragement, and engagement are also easier to prompt in person. Meeting virtually by Zoom or Teams is the second-best option, but it’s not as rich as a face-to-face meeting, particularly one that deals with a sensitive issue. b. Text or e-mail, possibly call your division sales manager, if it’s not going to disrupt the meeting, depending on the importance of the meeting and your role in it. As a junior member of the team, you would want to call to provide immediate feedback, adjust to the audience, and deliver your message quickly. A telephone call is not as rich a medium as a face-to-face encounter but comes closer than a text message or e-mail in conveying positive emotion and a personal approach. c. Calling is unwise because it’s only 5 a.m. Pacific time (PST), and your questions— while time sensitive—are not urgent. If the queries are not too involved and lengthy, you could send an e-mail; otherwise, a brief message simply requesting that your colleague call you back seems sufficient. You could phone a little later, at 8:30 or 9 a.m. PST. i. If you and your collaborator share an application that allows instant messaging or live chatting (e.g., Slack, Skype for Business, Teams) set your status to available to signal your readiness and to see when your collaborator goes online. Before you do so, however, check your company’s policies on appropriate Internet, e-mail, and social media use. If you have your colleague’s cell phone number, texting at 8:30 or 9 a.m. Pacific time to ask for a callback is also an option. d. Policies flowing downward from management to subordinates should be written. They produce a permanent record, are economical, promote comprehension and recall, allow precise and uniform expression, and give the audience flexibility in when and how to receive the content. Although Harmon has two employees in mind, they should not be singled out. The policy should be directed to all employees, most likely in an email or intranet post. e. When an immediate answer is required, the message should be delivered orally, by telephone, possibly by text. In this instance, you may need to follow up with additional questions. If the matter is particularly urgent, a face-to-face visit may be necessary as long as it is feasible and the person is nearby (i.e., in-house). Oral communication provides immediate feedback, can be adjusted to the audience, can be delivered quickly, supplies nonverbal cues, may create a warm, personal feeling, and can make a big impact. The message is traveling horizontally between coworkers.

f.

Messages as traumatic as termination should always be delivered in person—one-onone or with a limited number of participants. Oral communication provides immediate feedback, can be adjusted to the audience, supplies nonverbal cues, and shows greater compassion than a written message. Firing people by e-mail or text message is contemptuous and cowardly.

g. Responding to an upset customer should always be done orally, if possible. The best procedure is to first call the customer and explain what happened. Oral communication allows you to show sympathy, apologize, and suggest possible alternate solutions.

After the telephone call, it’s wise to follow up with a written message confirming what was said. In most cases e-mail would be the channel of choice, although in particularly grievous cases, when formality is desired, a business letter sent by mail may be more appropriate. The written message clarifies the situation, creates a permanent record, promotes comprehension and recall, and generates goodwill. h. Explaining a committee’s findings should be done in a written report traveling upward.

Such a report provides a permanent record and is convenient to distribute. It provides precise and uniform expression. However, such a report lacks the richness and immediacy of oral communication and cannot be adjusted to respond to the receiver’s comments or questions. Depending on the context, a face-to-face briefing to management with visuals (slideshows) may be called for. Slide decks also provide a record, albeit a less formal one than traditional reports.

1.14 Employees’ Attitudes Toward Workplace Ethics (L.O. 5) The International Survey of Employees will probably spark a lively discussion about workplace behavior. To protect the guilty and to avoid putting individuals on the spot, a classroom discussion should probably be general, focusing on unethical behaviors, not on the students’ individual responses, unless they decide to share their attitudes publicly.

Alternatively, you may choose to examine the study with your students without surveying their responses. Evaluating the questionable workplace behaviors alone, with the Five Questions to Guide Ethical Decisions could be an invaluable teachable moment for your students. Naturally, the discussion can be held asynchronously on your institution’s LMS. [See image on the next page.]

1.15 Doing the Right Thing: Resolving Ethical Dilemmas (L.O. 5) Students’ responses will vary, of course. They should apply each question from the “tools for doing the right thing” list and explain their answers in relation to the dilemma.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False. Should you contact your vacationing coworker with a work question? Certainly not! Everyone deserves a vacation. Find your information elsewhere. It’s also

considerate to avoid sending text messages or e-mail requests that demand immediate responses after working hours. If at all possible, wait until regular business hours.

2. False. Never sign anyone’s name to a document without permission. No matter how harmless it seems, you never know how risky it could be for you.

3. True. Much depends on the relationship with your manager, but generally you can observe a common e-mail rule: Respond to e-mails within 24 hours. It’s reasonable to set boundaries on your free time. By the way, if you are a manager or boss, don’t send demanding e-mails or text messages to employees on weekends or after hours.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Research by consulting firm McKinsey Global Institute suggests that to thrive in a labor market that is automated, digital, and dynamic, every employee will need “a foundational set of power skills.” These power skills are (1) adding value to automated systems and intelligent machines, (2) operating in a digital environment, and (2) continually adapting to new ways of working and new technologies.1 How can workers prepare for this workplace of the future?

Topic 2: When interviewed by LinkedIn, beauty and lifestyle executive Adeela Hussain Johnson argued: “Racial diversity, culture diversity, thought diversity. It’s what helps challenge people, helps people think differently and innovate.” How might diversity benefit teams and workplaces more broadly? Can you think of examples supporting this assertion?

Topic 3: Do you think that always being plugged in can erode performance, as some executives have claimed in a survey? One business leader pointed out that major scientific breakthroughs occurred outside the laboratory when the scientist was engaged in a mundane task—or took time for a nap.

Topic 4: Companies such as Disney in Florida have been criticized for their political and social advocacy, for example, for their focus on diversity and inclusion, antiracism, sustainability, and other hot topics. Banks have been condemned for embracing ESG investing (environmental, social, and governance issues). Should businesses stay out of politics or might they in turn anger stakeholders who demand that they do take a stand?

Topic 5: Should college education in the United States be free as it is in many parts of Europe? Should tuition debt be forgiven? Advocates of tuition-free higher education and debt forgiveness say both are an investment in the future of our society. Opponents argue that expecting American taxpayers to shoulder the cost to benefit a privileged few is unfair.

1 Dondi, M., Klier, J., Panier, F., & Schubert, J. (2021, June 25). Defining the skills citizens will need in the future

world of work. McKinsey & Company, p. 2. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

Standard Writing Rubric Criteria Content

Organization and Clarity

Research

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points

References/Works Cited

Grammar and Spelling

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 2 Zooming In Critical Thinking Answers •

What is meant by the term culture fit, and why is it beneficial for both employer and employee?

A company culture, or its personality, includes its corporate values, ethics, mission, and work environment. For employers, a good culture fit is an employee who exhibits the values, outlook, and behavior of the organization and can therefore be expected to be productive in that culture. For an employee, a good culture fit leads to job satisfaction and productivity.

•

What individual behaviors lead to effective teams?

Highly effective team members are committed to a common outcome and attain it by adopting a positive attitude. Individuals in successful teams share information and listen carefully when others speak. Teams work best when members include everyone present, even silent ones, and encourage a warm, supportive climate by praising and agreeing with others.

•

What factors unique to virtual teams contribute to their success?

Virtual teams must coordinate their work and complete their tasks across time and geographic zones.

Whether virtual teams collaborate on a project basis or regularly, they benefit from tech savvy, soft skills, and diversity.

Ethics Check Answers Members Riding Team’s Coattails Nonparticipating team members tend to be the most common complaint among students about teamwork.

Establish clear ground rules for dealing with flaky group members, but leave the handling of such situations to the team members themselves, so that they learn how to deal with difficult participants. A gradual approach should be encouraged ranging from warnings to action that is more serious. For instance, a smart policy is to allow the team to “fire” a noncompliant member who then has to work on another project by himself or herself. Gauging the state of the collaboration by asking students to fill out a confidential teamwork evaluation form is also helpful. Finally, the larger the student team, the greater the likelihood that someone will ride on the group’s coattails. Hence, it’s a good idea to limit team size to three or four members. From the beginning, emphasize to students who form teams of three, for example, that each person’s responsibility for the final document is 300 percent, not 33.3 percent.

Unresponsive Team Member Students should enjoy this discussion because it is a common problem when students work as part of a small team in a classroom to complete a problem. Have them brainstorm about this problem in small groups and report their conclusions to the entire class. Having this discussion early in the semester can help to avoid similar problems during the remainder of the semester.

Impressing Your Instructor Even if told repeatedly, students often don’t make the connection between behavioral guidelines they read about in their textbooks and their own practice in the classroom. They also tend to forget that they

are being watched and evaluated as they will be in the workplace. Although the classroom is a training ground simulating the workplace, it ought to be taken seriously as a professional environment. Naturally, this means that you need to lead by example.

Critical Thinking Answers 1. Have you ever been surprised at how you came across to others or misread another person’s feelings?

It is very likely and, indeed, human that students have experienced moments when they had no idea they ruffled someone’s feathers, came across in a way that didn’t mesh with their self-image, or felt wronged because someone else misread their intentions. Andrea Kay, author and career expert, advises workers to pay close attention to their own emotions, ask how they come across, and be attentive to others: “Being more aware of your own and others’ feelings will help you say the right words or take the best action.” [Graves, J. A. 2013, January 15. 25 career mistakes to banish for 2013. U.S. News & World Report.] It may surprise students, however, how important these interpersonal and, yes, intrapersonal skills are to career success. Young job seekers tend to focus on the obvious aspects of their job search and typical workplace skills. Yet maturity and the ability to read others take time to develop and may require some frustrating lessons along the way.

2. Evaluate the humorous analogy between the murder of a famous Roman emperor and the deadening effect of meetings.

The author of this article critical of meetings uses humor to mock meetings, which are almost universally disliked. He opens his article with this rather incongruous comparison between a momentous historical event, the assassination of mighty Julius Caesar in ancient Rome, and mundane meetings. The humor in part stems from the obviously absurd analogy; at the same time, most detractors of unproductive meetings will smile at the exaggeration and identify with the underlying sentiment. Some of the humor also arises from the author’s clever use of language: Julius Caesar’s momentous dictatorial power grab is described as the emperor’s failing to obtain the opinion of the Senate. The violent response to Caesar’s coup is rendered jocularly as the senators’ “wishing to express their unhappiness with his vocational aspirations.”

3. Why do executives and managers spend more time listening than do workers?

Before they can make decisions, executives must listen to feedback from supervisors, specialists, and others. They also listen to their bosses—boards of directors and owners—and they might also need to listen to customers, especially when handling serious complaints. Minds are like parachutes; they work well only when open. All three levels of workers should have good listening skills; but because the decisions coming from executives’ listening may be more critical, their skills should perhaps be most highly developed.

4. What arguments could you give for or against the idea that body language is a science with principles that specialists can interpret accurately?

Although few would argue that body language does send silent messages, no scientific principles have evolved explaining exactly what those messages mean. Most researchers agree that nonverbal cues contain much information, but specifically what those cues mean is unknown. Authors Hickson and Stacks said, “The nonverbal message by itself may be ambiguous; in almost every instance it needs the verbal message to complete the process of communication.” [1993. Nonverbal communication. Dubuque, IA: Brown and Benchmark, p. 8.] Julius Fast, author of the precedent-setting Body Language, stated that “nonverbal language is partly instinctive, partly taught and partly imitative.” [1971. New York: Pocket Books, p. 14.] But it is not a science with principles that always hold true. Most communicators tend to believe nonverbal messages over verbal messages when the messages are in conflict. The Chinese have

a profound proverb: Be wary of the man whose belly does not move when he laughs. People who are sincerely laughing show it with their entire bodies, not just their faces.

5. Ethical Issue: Should you (a) keep your mouth shut, (b) try to persuade the team to adopt Plan A, (c) explain why you believe Plan A is a better plan, (d) tell the VP and all present that Plan B is not your idea, or (e) discuss one or two points you can agree on in Plan B? Here is the answer provided in the Ferguson book Professional Ethics and Etiquette, 2nd edition: Option (e) is the answer most acceptable to professionals with team experience: As a team player, you are primarily responsible to your teammates. Voice your opinions tactfully and fully in team meetings; however, once the team adopts a plan of action, you too own the plan and need to support the team. The author concludes: “When you become part of a team, your responsibilities shift. The team’s success becomes more important than your personal success.” [2004. New York: Ferguson Publishing, pp. 5051.]

Zooming In Solution Your Turn: Applying Your Skills at Lyft Student responses should include the components that make face-to-face meetings productive: determining a purpose, selecting participants, using a digital calendar app for scheduling, and distributing an agenda and other information. As for the element of fun, students might mention having hot pink drinks or snacks, wearing various Lyft branded items, or bringing in a pet. You may be surprised at how creative your students are!

Activities Solutions 2.1 Reaching Group Decisions: Majority, Consensus, or What?

More than one strategy may be appropriate for these situations. Following are recommendations: a. Minority (committee decision) b. Majority would work, but consensus would be better. c. Majority d. Authority rule with discussion e. Consensus f. Majority g. Minority h. Majority would work, but consensus would be better.

2.2 Resolving Workplace Conflicts: Apply a Plan Students should apply the following six-step procedure: (1) Listen to each person's position. (2) Understand the other's point of view. Ask questions and paraphrase what you hear. (3) Show a concern for the relationship. Show an understanding of the other person's situation and needs. (4) Look for common ground. Look for a solution to which both sides can agree. (5) Invent new problem-solving options, if necessary. (6) Reach an agreement based on what's fair. Encourage students to role-play two or more of the scenarios.

2.3 Soft Skills: Personal Strengths Inventory Your students should submit a list of four categories of soft skills. Encourage them to frame statements that will be useful when they prepare a résumé later in the course. For example, under Thinking and

problem solving, a student might write, Learned new spreadsheet program and prepared cost projection for remodeling office, or Learn new software applications quickly and with little training.

2.4 Soft Skills: Which Competencies Are Most Desirable?

Students should find a range of soft skills mentioned, including oral and written communication skills and team skills. But they will also find a combination of soft skills and character traits such as must be able to coordinate communications and work with staff, customers, vendors, independent contractors, writers, and designers; must provide daily project-management coordination across multiple project-related activities; must be a self-starter, highly motivated, well organized, and detail oriented; and must work well in a diverse environment.

2.5 Meeting Malaise: Beyond Contempt Answers will vary, but most will support the advice provided in this book. John Hollon admits that “structured, tightly focused meetings with a clear purpose and goal can serve a business purpose.” [2007, November 5. Meeting malaise. Workforce Management, p. 58.] He acknowledges that meetings can be “a road map to focus the participants on what needs to get done.” Another author advises leaders to get out of the way and keep meetings to a minimum: “Go through your calendar. If you find a group meeting that is solely for your benefit, cancel it. This will signal to your team members that you value their time and that they should value it, too. If you aren’t sure about the meeting’s value, announce that you are going to miss it once and see what happens. If the meeting doesn’t take place, you have your answer.” [Tolany, B. 2012, March 27. 3 quick questions to help readers get out of the way. Smartblog on Leadership.]

2.6 Stand-Up Meetings: Keeping Business Meetings Short and Sweet Answers will vary. Students may come up with creative methods to ensure turn-taking and participation by instituting a system of sanctions and rewards. They may realize that not all companies or industries may be able or willing to hold supershort daily stand-up meetings. Rather, this type of extremely short meeting seems most suitable for highly creative, design- and tech-heavy occupations that enjoy a great deal of independence. Conversely, following the military example, tightly run, somewhat authoritarian organizations might do well with standing meetings. As for punishing tardiness and other transgressions, it appears that small penalties such as paying $1 into an office coffee kitty or being subjected to a mildly humiliating or unflattering activity such as singing a corny song would suffice. You could try stand-up meetings at the beginning of class to capture students’ attention when making important announcements or giving instructions.]

2.7 Virtual Meetings: Improving Distance Meeting Buy-In a. Setting a more reasonable start time for the Seattle office would have shown courtesy to the West Coast participants. b. Asking participants to log on early may have helped to avoid the delay in starting the meeting. c. Reminding participants of ground rules such as turning off or muting all phones and not checking email during the meeting may have encouraged participants to focus and be more involved. d. Using interactivity may have prevented group members from losing interest. A technique such as round-robin would have elicited more active participation and discouraged multitasking on the other end. e. Distributing materials prior to the meeting would have given participants the opportunity to prepare questions and be more involved during the session.

2.8 Virtual Meetings: Connecting by Skype to Clarify an Order This simulation should proceed smoothly as long as each participating student has created a Skype account and downloaded the Skype connection software or app. Students could be asked to create or be

given brief scripts, each defining the individual participant’s role and motivation. This should help them assume Mr. Been’s and his caller’s personas. The script could also include instructions detailing the botched order and its correct version. Each participating student should create or receive his or her own script, thus allowing parties to respond spontaneously and realistically to each other. One conversation partner should step outside and converse by Skype in a quiet area to minimize interference and noise.

With the right software, Skype conversations can be recorded and reviewed. Information about Paramount Fitness products is available on the company website. After the Web conference, the class should discuss the interaction between the partners. For added interest, additional players with various tasks could be added to create a multiuser teleconference with or without video.

2.9 Listening: An In-Person or Virtual Social Media Interview The answers will vary. Students could brainstorm and discuss their interview questions in class or prepare questions at home. Then they could approach their interviewee in person, by phone, by e-mail, or via LinkedIn or Facebook. A special word of caution when contacting professionals on LinkedIn: Warn students not to relentlessly pursue random strangers, but to work from within their own established LinkedIn circles of professional acquaintances or, in turn, their acquaintances’ contacts. This assignment could be done orally or in writing (e-mail, memo) and individually, in small groups, or in class. The task could be expanded to a group oral presentation or written report.

2.10 Nonverbal Communication: Body Language The body movements do not necessarily mean the same thing when used by different individuals. member that to a certain degree nonverbal communication can be culture or subculture specific, and context always plays a major role when interpreting this type of communication. Students may have other interpretations, but these body movements can be construed to mean the following: a. b. c. d. e. f.

Whistling, wringing hands: nervous or fearful Bowed posture, twiddling thumbs: bored Steepled hands, sprawling sitting position: contemplative or relaxed Rubbing hand through hair: frustrated or nervous Open hands, unbuttoned coat: relaxed Wringing hands, tugging ears: upset or nervous

2.11 Nonverbal Communication: Signals Sent by Casual Attire This activity can be expanded into a research paper topic. A variation on this activity relies on student experiences. Instead of conducting interviews in the community, they can conduct a forum among students who work, asking them to comment on casual-dress policies in the jobs they have had. Figure 7.1 in Chapter 7 also relates to casual dress.

2.12 The Silent Language of Tattoos: How Much Self-Expression on the Job? The wisdom of permanent body adornment aside, most people would probably still agree that it is unwise to risk rejection when applying for a job simply for the sake of showing off a tattoo. Even young people may agree that it may be opportune sometimes to conceal tattoos and piercings that can be hidden. The discussion could be interesting if students manifest strong opinions for openly and proudly wearing their body art or, conversely, against doing so. You may want to conduct a poll, openly or anonymously, to find out whether the statistics in your class match the findings of the Pew study. Also, you could ask whether students perceive any limits to the types of tattoos most Americans would accept. How do they view inked decorations that are, for instance, very large, carry an obscene or otherwise controversial message, or appear on the neck and the face? Can students safely rely on a generational change that will eventually render the concern about tattoos in the workplace moot? A discussion of body ink and piercings on the job could lead to a debate about other forms of self-expression in the workplace and the snap judgments by others we are risking when we insist on sending strong nonverbal messages.

2.13 Nonverbal Communication Around the World Students should be able to find a number of gestures and their meanings discussed at various websites.

Here is one example: "The fingertip kiss, in which the tips of the thumb and fingers are kissed and quickly moved forward away from the face, is a sign of affection and may be used as a greeting in Sicily and Portugal. The fingertip kiss is not used often in Italy and the British Isles, but it is common in France, Germany, Greece, and Spain to signify praise." [Martin, J., & Chaney, L. 2006. Global business etiquette.

Westport, CT: Praeger, p. 53.]

2.14 Business Etiquette: Breaking the Smartphone Habit in Meetings a. Short policy statement: In using a smartphone or other wireless device, be professional.

Respect others. b. More complete policy: • Turn your smartphone off or on vibrate. Keep it off the meeting table.

• • • • • • • •

Don’t look at it during a meeting or conversation.

Don’t respond to a call, e-mail, or text during a meeting or conversation.

If you are expecting an important call, let the person or meeting facilitator know in advance.

Leave the room if you must take a call or respond to an e-mail.

Shut the door quietly when you exit and enter the room.

Apologize if you do interrupt the meeting.

Use your e-mail out-of-office assistant, and change your voice message to let people know you are not available.

Post a sign if the organization has a no-cell-phone area or zone.

[Based on Harr, M., n.d. Smart phone etiquette—How smart are you? Ezinearticles.com.]

Another source suggests three general strategies to minimize disruptions from mobile devices in meetings: 1. Start at the top. When the most important people in the meeting room put their phones away, others are inclined to do the same.

2. Set expectations. Explicit instructions requesting smartphones to be put away—with information on where and when to check for messages—puts everyone on the same page.

3. Schedule frequent breaks. When meeting participants know they will be able to check messages every 45 minutes to an hour, they are more willing to put their phones away.

[O’Brien Coffey, J. 2011, September. How to manage smartphones at meetings. Executive Travel Magazine.]

CHAPTER 2

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explain the communication process and the factors that influence the successful transmission of meaning from sender to receiver. First, we review the steps in the communication process and potential barriers that may inhibit communication. Next, we explore the goals of business writers and review the three phases of the writing process: prewriting, drafting, and revising. Additionally, we discuss how to analyze your purpose and profile your audience as a communicator in order to tailor your message and choose the best communication channel. Then, we review expert writing techniques that improve business messages. Finally, we investigate the purpose of collaborative workplace writing and the tools that facilitate it.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following objectives are addressed in this chapter: 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5

List the steps in the communication process.

Describe the three phases of the writing process.

Identify how to select the best communication channel for your audience.

Discuss writing techniques that help writers adapt to their audiences.

Explain how team writing is done in the workplace.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • • •

• •

•

Introduced new opening case that demonstrates the high cost of miscommunication and the role communication breakdowns play in marine accidents.

Replaced most before-and-after examples in the chapter body to provide students with upto-date content.

Addressed inclusivity in the section Avoiding Biased and Offensive Language to introduce students to new norms in pronoun use by gender-nonconforming, nonbinary, or trans people.

Prepared new Reality Checks illustrating the importance of word choice to avoid greenwashing and disability bias.

Added new critical-thinking questions covering the American Psychological Association’s General Principles for Reducing Bias as well as the merits of abbreviations to sharpen students’ awareness of word choice and usage.

Replaced most of the end-of-chapter exercises, the Document for Analysis, as well as the Grammar and Mechanics exercise.

•

Created nearly 50 percent new end-of-chapter exercises and activities so that students have fresh opportunities to apply the skills taught in this chapter.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 4. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Understanding the Communication Process (L.O. 4.1, PPT Slides 3–12, DISC: Patterns; Communication evolution) a. Communication – the transmission of information and meaning from a sender to a receiver b. Communication occurs when an idea travels from one person to another through a circular process. This process is only successful when both the sender and receiver understand the process and how to make it work. (Figure 4.1) c. Communication begins when a sender has an idea. i.

Ideas may be influenced by mood, frame of reference, background, culture, the situation or context, and other factors. ii.

Success is possible when the sender knows the purpose and expected response. d. The sender then encodes the idea. i.

Encoding – converting the idea into words or gestures that will convey meaning. ii.

Skilled communicators use familiar, concrete words to avoid misunderstanding. iii.

Be alert to the receiver’s communication skills, attitudes, background, experiences, and culture. iv.

International messages require even more caution. e. The sender then selects a communication channel and transmits the message. i.

Channel – the medium over which the message travels (computer, smartphone, social network, letter, report, picture, spoken word, fax, etc.) ii.

Noise – anything that interrupts the transmission of a message in the communication process (weak Internet signal, sloppy formatting and typos, annoyance a receiver feels when dealing with too many messages, etc.) iii.

Today’s receivers are often overloaded with incoming messages and distractions.

f.

Next, the receiver decodes the message. i.

Receiver – the individual for whom the message is intended. ii.

Decoding – translating the message from its symbol form into meaning. iii.

Communication takes place only when the receiver successfully decodes (understands the intended meaning of) the message. iv.

Decoding can be disrupted by: (1) Lack of attention, bias against sender, competing messages (internal disruptions) (2) Loud sounds, illegible words (external disruptions) (3) Misunderstood words or emotional reactions to terms (semantic obstacles) v.

Successful decoding is more likely to be achieved when the receiver creates a receptive environment and ignores distractions. g. Feedback then returns to the sender. i.

Feedback – the verbal and nonverbal responses of the receiver ii.

Feedback can be improved by: (1) Asking questions such as “Am I making myself clear?”

(2) Appropriately timing the delivery of the message (sender) (3) Providing only as much information as the receiver can handle (sender) (4) Providing clear and complete feedback (receiver) iii.

Senders should encourage feedback, as it is a vital part of the communication process. iv.

The best feedback is descriptive rather than evaluative. h. Communication barriers that may disrupt the process include bypassing, differing frames of reference, weak language skills, or distractions. i.

Bypassing – when people miss each other with their meanings, attaching different meanings to words. ii.

Frame of reference – the lens through which everything you see and feel in the world is translated (formed by a combination of your experiences, education, culture, expectations, personality, and other elements). iii.

No matter how extraordinary the idea is, it won’t be understood or fully appreciated unless the communicators have solid language skills. iv.

Distractions can be emotional, physical, or digital. What’s more, everincreasing digital distractions continue to reduce attention spans and disrupt the communication process. i. Follow these tips to overcome communication obstacles: i.

Recognize the process is sensitive and susceptible to breakdown. ii.

Anticipate problems in encoding, transmitting, and decoding a message. iii.

Focus on the receiver’s environment and frame of reference. iv.

Arrange your ideas logically and use words precisely. v.

Listen. vi.

Encourage useful feedback.

II.

Applying the 3-x-3 Writing Process to Business Messages (L.O. 4.2, PPT Slides 13–20, DISC: Purpose) a. Business writers should have three primary goals: i.

To be purposeful: The goal should be to solve problems and convey information. Each message should have a strategy. ii.

To be economical: Try to present ideas clearly but concisely, recognizing that length is not rewarded. iii.

To be audience oriented: Look at the problem from the perspective of the audience. b. Preparing purposeful, concise, and audience-centered messages requires a systematic plan and practice. c. The 3-x-3 writing process breaks the entire task into three phases: prewriting, drafting, and revising. (Figure 4.2) i.

Prewriting: (1) Analyze audience and purpose.

(2) Anticipate audience reaction.

(3) Adapt message to its audience. ii.

Drafting: (1) Research data and background information.

(2) Organize your message.

(3) Draft first version. iii.

Revising: (1) Edit for clarity, concision, tone, and readability.

(2) Proofread.

(3) Evaluate effectiveness of message. d. The steps in the writing process may be rearranged, abbreviated, or repeated. e. The time you spend on each phase varies depending upon: i.

The complexity of the problem ii.

Your purpose iii.

The audience iv.

Your schedule f. On average, you should expect to spend about 25 percent of your time prewriting, 25 percent drafting, and 50 percent revising. (Figure 4.3)

Ethics Check: Greenwashing Helped by Vague Slogans?

Realistic students will recognize that purchased essays prevent them from developing the skills they are paying to be taught. Their tuition provides an instructor to tutor them in learning to write. Those who simply purchase essays and homework are missing the guidance they could have received. What’s valuable about drafting essays and doing homework is that students have a safe space to practice and struggle. Feedback helps them improve. No pain, no gain!

III.

Analyzing and Anticipating the Audience (L.O. 4.3, PPT Slides 21–26, DISC: Audience) a. When analyzing your purpose, ask yourself two questions: Why am I sending this message? What do I hope to achieve?

b. Messages may have both primary and secondary purposes: i.

Primary purpose: To inform and to persuade ii.

Secondary purpose: To promote goodwill c. Informational messages – explain procedures, announce meetings, answer questions, and transmit findings d. Persuasive messages – attempt to sell products, convince managers, motivate employees, and win over customers e. Follow these suggestions to anticipate and profile the audience: i.

Imagine the characteristics of your receiver.

(1) What is the reader or listener like?

(2) How will that person react to the message?

(3) Remember that your receivers will be thinking, “What’s in it for me?” (WIIFM) ii.

Tailor your words to your audience. iii.

Consider both primary and secondary receivers. f. Profiling your audience is a pivotal step in the writing process. (Figure 4.4) g. In order to tailor a message to the audience profile, ask these questions: i.

What language is appropriate? ii.

Are specialized technical terms appropriate? iii.

Does the background need to be explained? iv.

Should your tone be formal or informal? v.

Is a secondary audience/receiver likely to receive your message? h. The channel you choose depends on: i.

Available technology ii.

Importance of the message iii.

Amount and speed of feedback and interactivity required iv.

Necessity of a permanent record v.

Cost of the channel vi.

Degree of formality desired vii.

Confidentiality and sensitivity of the message viii.

Receiver’s preference and level of technical expertise i. Also consider the richness of the channel; a richer medium enables the sender to provide more verbal and visual cues as well as to tailor the message to the audience.

Ethics Check: The Easy Way Out: Buying Essays Online Realistic students will recognize that purchased essays prevent them from developing the skills they are paying to be taught. Their tuition provides an instructor to tutor them in learning to write. Those who simply purchase essays and homework are missing the guidance they could have received. What’s valuable about drafting essays and doing homework is that students have a safe space to practice and struggle. Feedback helps them improve. No pain, no gain!

IV.

Adapting Writing Techniques to Your Audience (L.O. 4.4, PPT Slides 27–39, DISC: Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. Adaptation is the process of creating a message that suits the audience.

b. Skilled communicators employ expert writing techniques (listed below and illustrated in the two versions of an e-mail shown as Model Document 4.1). i.

Focus on audience benefits ii.

Adopt the “you” view iii.

Be conversational but professional iv.

Present ideas positively v.

Express courtesy vi.

Use bias-free language vii.

Prefer plain language and familiar words viii.

Use precise, vigorous words c. “To be good, it ought to have a tendency to benefit the reader.” – Ben Franklin d. “You” view – emphasize second-person pronouns (you, yours) instead of firstperson pronouns (I/we, us, our) e. Avoid the passive voice (“You will be given”) and use the active voice (“We will give you”). f. The goal should be a warm, friendly tone that sounds professional. g. Keep your messages professional and do not use texting-style abbreviations, slang, sentence fragments, and chitchat. h. Avoid unprofessional diction. (Figure 4.5) i. Positive language improves the clarity, tone, and effectiveness of a message. j. Avoid words like complaint, criticism, defective, failed, mistake, and neglected. k. Be sure to express courtesy: don’t be rude, avoid words that sound demanding, and use good manners. l. Soften the tone of your message by using words like please and thank you. m. Avoid gender, age, and disability biased language by following these tips: i.

Use plural nouns and pronouns or choose gender-free words. ii.

Specify age only when relevant and avoid expressions that are demeaning. iii.

Avoid patronizing references. iv.

Do not refer to an individual’s disability unless it is relevant and avoid terms that stigmatize disabled individuals. v.

Bias-free communication is achieved through awareness and commitment to not exclude, stereotype, or offend. n. Avoid jargon (technical or specialized terms within a field), and instead use plain language and familiar words. o. Use precise, vigorous words: Strong verbs and concrete nouns give receivers more information and keep them interested.

Ethics Check: How Far Would You Go for a Free Meal?

As the scenario suggests, parents were using their children as props to potentially win a prize.

Some people will surely find this practice tacky, while others may see no harm in using a name that is not demeaning and unlikely to cause the child to be bullied in school and suffer later in life. Some consumers have gone much farther than giving a child an unusual name. As devoted fans of brands, they had company logos tattooed on their body to receive free food [Lamour, J.

(2022, July 15). Brands offer free food to those who get their logos tattooed. These people actually did it. Today].

V.

Collaborating on Team Projects (L.O. 4.5, PPT Slides 40–45, DISC: Teamwork) a. Team writing is often necessary for the following: i.

Big projects ii.

Projects with short deadlines iii.

Projects that require the expertise or consensus of many people b. Team-written documents provide the following benefits: i.

Produce a better product ii.

Help socialize members iii.

Lead to learning of organization’s values and procedures iv.

Break down functional barriers v.

Improve both formal and informal chains of communication vi.

Generate buy-in c. Team-written documents may be divided as follows (Figure 4.6): i.

Phase 1 (Prewriting) (1) Group develops procedures and identifies purpose, audience, content, organization, and design.

(2) Assignments are made to individual team members. ii.

Phase 2 (Drafting) (1) Members work individually to conduct research, organize findings, and compose a first draft. iii.

Phase 3 (Revising) (1) Members work together to synthesize drafts and offer suggestions for revision.

(2) Final formatting and proofreading d. Sharing the entire writing process means that all team members contribute their skills during the three phases. e. Using the following tools can improve efficiency in team writing and collaboration: i.

Microsoft 365 ii.

Slack iii.

Asana iv.

Trello v.

Google Workspace with Docs and Drive vi.

Dropbox or Box vii.

Track Changes and other tools in Microsoft Word f. To edit team-written documents without making enemies, follow these tips: i.

Begin remarks with a positive statement. What can you praise? ii.

Do you understand the writer’s purpose? If not, be specific in explaining what you don’t understand. iii.

Is the material logically organized? If not, how could it be improved? iv.

What suggestions can you make to improve specific ideas or sections? v.

Make polite statements such as I would suggest …, You might consider …, and How about doing this …

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists)–they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: The Image of Bad Writing (L.O. 4.1–4.4) Duration: 15 minutes. a. A wise observer once said that bad writing makes smart people look stupid. b. Do you agree or disagree? Why? i. Answer: Bad writing conveys the impression that the writer is uneducated, uncaring, unintelligent, or all three. In business, bad writing not only makes the writer look stupid but also leads to misunderstandings, missed profits, and lost jobs.

2. Discussion: The Case for Plain Language (L.O. 4.4) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Have you ever read something complex and blamed yourself for not understanding it? Fergal McGovern, CEO of VisibleThread, argues that it’s not your fault, particularly if the subject is investing. He blames turgid and dense writing. He thinks that even complex ideas can be expressed in natural, plain language. b. Do you agree? If so, how can writers do this? i. Answer: Writers can avoid dense and ponderous language by using familiar words, short sentences, and hard-to-understand jargon. To be more effective—regardless of the content area—writers must be aware of their audience and tailor the expression to its level of comprehension and experience.

3. Discussion: The Case for Short, Familiar, Simple Words (L.O. 4.4) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Experts agree that by substituting everyday, familiar words for unfamiliar ones, you help your audience comprehend your ideas more quickly. b. Why should business writers strive to use short, familiar, simple words? Does this dumb down business messages? i. Answer: Using short, familiar, simple words increases the likelihood that business messages will be understood. When writers do not try to impress readers and listeners with their extensive vocabularies or broad knowledge, their messages are more likely to make sense. The goal is to be clear—not pompous.

4. Discussion: Team Project Freeloaders (L.O. 4.5) Duration: 20 minutes. a. After a workplace project was completed, you were rightfully upset. You and two other team members did all the work, but two freeloaders are sharing in the credit. This probably wouldn’t have happened in college team assignments. b. Should you report the freeloaders to the manager?

i. Answer: In college team assignments, members of the project are often graded on their contributions. Fellow team members evaluate the contribution of each other, and this assessment is discussed as part of the assignment. Confidential evaluations of fellow team members for the instructor’s eyes only as well as brief periodic progress reports reveal any trouble the group is experiencing. But in the workplace, such assessment is rarely done. If one complains, that person will appear to be a whiner, and whistleblowers today often suffer retaliation. Is it worth it? This experience might be considered a valuable learning lesson. In accepting future team assignments, team members would demand more transparency.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: When Miscommunication Kills: Marine Accidents (Part 1): In this case study, students will read an overview of the dangers of miscommunication between ships on the water, some with deadly consequences. They are then asked to answer a series of critical thinking questions. a. What type of misunderstandings or communication breakdowns have you encountered in your experience? How serious were they, and could they have been prevented?

Answer: Answers will vary. However, most students should be able to draw on incidents of more or less serious miscommunication in their lives. Students could be prompted to consider wrong assumptions like the ones in the Zooming In scenario or misunderstandings based on attributing different meanings to a word or phrase (bypassing). b. Technology has changed the way people read, McGovern contends. Today’s readers have short attention spans and gather information by skim reading. Why is readability particularly important for online readers who are reading quickly to find information?

Answer: Life on a container ship, for instance, with its isolation and sometimes dreary routine, is draining. Mariners keep four-hour watches three times a day and are exhausted much of the time. As one blogger puts it, “studies have revealed that in most cases, it is an overworked tired and somewhat disoriented crew that fails to make the right decision which may be as small as pulling the correct lever” [MI News Network.

(2019, September 8). The relation between human error and marine industry. Marine Insight.]

The machinery on modern ships is increasingly sophisticated and requires continuous training, which may not be provided to a sufficient extent. Safety training may also be

neglected. Last, language barriers may impede understanding of such training and complex systems on board. c. Marine engineer Raunek Kantharia, author of the Marine Insight blog, writes that “there is always a cold war between the engine and deck officers.” He attributes miscommunication and other human errors to “ego” playing out between crew and bridge officers.i<FN_SUP> What does this mean? How does this information affect your understanding of the marine accidents described here?

Answer: Raunek Kantharia’s cold war analogy illustrates potential tensions between the engine room and the bridge. It means that miscommunication could partly be caused by emotional and psychological barriers. Dangerous communication failure could also result from the power differential between crew and officers. Both parties are indispensable to the running of a marine vessel, but both believe that their contribution is the most important. It is not surprising, then, that clear, direct communication might suffer under such circumstances. As is the case on many construction sites, crews at sea may also miscommunicate because of insufficient linguistic comprehension and lack of a shared language.

Case Study: When Miscommunication Kills: Marine Accidents (Part 2): In this case study, students will research other incidents of miscommunication in a dangerous industry and identify which types of miscommunication occurred, as well as possible methods to prevent the same issues from happening in the future.

Answer: This small assignment could be deployed as a conversation starter about the need for clear communication and the price of miscommunication in business. Students could be asked to share their incidents in small groups and look for similarities among the cases. They might want to identify which communication barriers discussed in the chapter could have contributed to the communication breakdown.

Later, perhaps in a classroom setting, students might be prompted to propose remedies.

How could costly and grave incidents be reduced or eliminated entirely? In the maritime context chosen here, remedies would be needed to overcome the divide (power differential) between the deck officers and the engine crew—an emotional barrier to communication. Another urgent improvement could focus on selecting crews that share a common language and have a reasonable command of the language. Improving working conditions aboard to eliminate fatigue and sleep deprivation would go a long way toward preventing human error and miscommunication. Of course, cost is a factor in both of these remedies.

The task could also be used as an introduction to efficient Internet searches to show how varying search terms yield different hits. Students might be asked to share their search phrases or experiment with using quotation marks around key phrases. A brief discussion of suitable sources could be another early lesson in Internet research.

This 100-word task could serve as a basis for a larger research project, for which students could study an industry and focus on the role miscommunication has played in

it. Naturally, you could also assign a business case illustrating the dangers of miscommunication that's longer than 100 words and perhaps requires a critical analysis.

Example of a 100-word summary A Wrong Turn: Communication Breakdown on a Ship in New Zealand Human error—frequently in the form of miscommunication—causes 75-96 percent of maritime accidents resulting in over $1.6 billion in losses.(1) In early 2016, the cruise ship Azamara Quest ran aground at the entrance of a channel in New Zealand known for its strong currents and a difficult tight turn. Although the accident caused no injuries to passengers and crew, and the vessel sustained only minor damage, New Zealand investigators concluded that miscommunication between the harbor pilot and master (captain) caused the grounding. Bypassing was the culprit as the bridge team and the pilot failed to share the details about how the first tight turn would be executed. (2) Sources: (1) Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. (2019, June). Shipping safety—Human error comes in many forms.

Retrieved from https://www.agcs.allianz.com/news-and-insights/expert-risk-articles/human-errorshipping-safety.html (2) Pilot, master miscommunication led to cruise ship ground in New Zealand. (2018, May 3). gCaptain.com.

Retrieved from https://gcaptain.com/pilot-master-miscommunication-led-to-cruise-ship-grounding-innew-zealand

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. Depending on the company culture and your relationship with your supervisor, a message potentially traveling up to your manager’s boss would require a more formal tone. Sidebar topics irrelevant to the main message and likely confusing to your secondary audience would need to be deleted. Grievances should perhaps be toned down a bit because your boss’s boss may not know the context, and you wouldn’t want to be perceived as a “whiner.” You might want to provide more background information to your secondary audience and be more specific in areas with which your boss’s supervisor may be unfamiliar.

2. The authors of this text argue that the basic elements of communication have not changed as a result of digital transmission. More messages are being transmitted faster, farther, and more cheaply than ever. Successful communication still requires the transmission of meaning from source to receiver. However, others might contend that communication has profoundly changed as a result of new technologies. In response, everyone acknowledges that e-mail and micromessaging media have shortened

messages and response times. In addition, the communication process has changed from unidirectional to multidirectional. Yet, to be successful, communication still requires that meaning be transferred effectively—regardless of the media involved.

3. Following a writing process is helpful for messages of any length. Although short messages take less time, following a systematic process helps communicators avoid writer’s block and the necessity of starting over once they get to the end of the message and realize what they were trying to say.

Analyzing your purpose, thinking about your audience, collecting information, organizing your ideas, composing carefully, and revising a message before sending it will always result in an improved product. Following the process also saves time in the long run.

4. The first two abbreviations (FYI and ASAP), found in many e-mails, are acceptable in the workplace because most business writers understand their meaning. The other five are informal, and many consider them unprofessional. When business writers rely on shortcuts such as ur (your/you’re), they may be perceived as clueless, lazy, or immature.

Using such abbreviations in messages to friends, of course, is perfectly acceptable. But in the workplace, it’s more professional to stick to accepted abbreviations or avoid using them in the first place.

5. In the Seventh Edition of the APA Manual of Style, the American Psychological Association (APA) is suggesting that writers respect the language people use to describe themselves and to accept that language changes over time. The APA recommends asking study participants or their advocates which designations they prefer to avoid stigmatizing them. The idea behind these recommendations is that writers ought to acknowledge all people’s individuality and humanity. Writers are to show sensitivity when choosing labels. Such awareness prevents hurting marginalized groups and reduces unconscious bias.

WRITING IMPROVEMENT EXERCISES 4.1 Audience Benefits and the “You” View (L.O. 4) a. To prevent you from losing money in double-endorsed check transactions, our credit union now cashes only single-endorsed checks. b. To have your bulk orders processed more quickly and efficiently, please fill out your business customer information on our website. c. You can help us reduce our company’s environmental impact by printing out only your most important documents and use Dropbox to store files instead. d. To enable you to plan your summer vacation, please complete the leave survey on the intranet and return it by March 31.

e. You can enjoy customized team training in your own offices, thus saving travel expenses and precious employee time away from the office. f. Now you can motivate fans to share, like, and subscribe to your content with an exciting new app called NumberOneFan. g. To offer you a more seamless user experience, the company communication system will be down on Friday afternoon to undergo major software upgrades.

4.2 Conversational but Professional (L.O. 4) a. We’re pleased that we will be able to participate in the Make-A-Wish Foundation drive. b. By the way, Angie was pretty upset when the head of accounting accused her of lying on her expense report. c. Please send the laser cutting machine model number so that we can ship your order. d. Your shipment was sent August 14. e. Hi, Aram. Please persuade Elsa to take over the budget forecasting. f. He didn’t have the nerve to criticize her to her face.

4.3 Positive and Courteous Expression (L.O. 4) a. Employees may now use TeleMessage, our enterprise messaging solution that offers compliance and security far superior to conventional messaging such as WhatsApp. b. When our CPA confirms that your work is complete, we will authorize payment of your consultant’s fee. c. Customers are eligible for the 25 percent discount when they provide the discount code at the time of purchase. d. Plans for the new health center will move forward as soon as the community gives full support. e. As soon as I finish the two large research tasks already assigned, I will begin work on the new task you are asking me to complete. f. We are sending you a replacement blade for your food processor. Please read page 18 of your operator’s manual to review how to attach this blade to give you the best possible performance.

4.4 Bias-Free Language (L.O. 4) a. The company retreat in Jackson Hole provides entertaining activities for the spouses (or guests) of executives. b. International Care House hired Andre Miller for the position of staff accountant. c. All employees must wear their ID badge in the building. OR: Every employee must wear an ID badge in the building.

d. Serving on the panel are a veterinarian, a CPA, two businesspeople, and a doctor. e. A nurse is responsible for patients’ medications and must ensure that each doctor receives patient notes before rounds. f. Jim Thorne has arthritis, but it rarely interferes with his work.

4.5 Plain Language and Familiar Words (L.O. 4) a. b. c. d.

As you suggested, we will ask our agent.

In talking with the chief executive, I learned that you plan to end our contract.

The salary we are offering matches the pay of other managers.

Civil Service exams were once required for federal government jobs, but they were phased out after antidiscrimination laws were passed. e. Did your car’s braking problem appear before or after our recall? f. After the robbery, officials questioned tellers, but the bank did not begin new safety procedures.

4.6 Precise, Vigorous Words (L.O. 4) a. Government economists predict that the unemployment rate will stabilize next year. b. Although international trade can generate new profits and lower costs, it also introduces a higher level of complexity and risk. c. Our operations manager demanded a 30 percent reduction in staff travel expenditures. d. Our chief financial officer said that we must reduce overtime hours to balance the budget. e. The vast number of consumers with smartphones provides an indicator of market saturation for this product category. f. The World Bank sees international trade a vital tool for decreasing poverty.

ACTIVITIES 4.7 Document for Analysis: Revising a Negative and Unprofessional E-Mail (L.O. 4, 5) To: All Staff From: Denise Gill <dgill@gould-enterprises.com> Cc: Subject: Acknowledging Revised E-Mail and Internet Policy Attached: Revised E-Mail and Internet Policy

Effective immediately we will be applying a revised policy covering e-mail and Internet use.

This e-policy allows you to continue using e-mail and the Internet for work-related business and for essential personal messages.

Our IT managers tell me that our bandwidth is seriously compromised as a result of employee gaming, shopping, chatting, and streaming video. These activities are definitely not work-related and should not be enjoyed during work hours to begin with.

We would like very much to continue to offer the privilege of e-mail use for limited personal messages. Likewise work-related Internet searches are legitimate. To retain the privileges, and to be sure you can download your work-related documents and messages quickly, please do not use company computers for anything other than necessary work tasks.

Attached is our Revised E-Mail and Internet Policy. Please read the attached e-policy and acknowledge your agreement with the policy by signing securely in DocuSign. You will receive a separate e-mail containing a link to DocuSign. Please respond by June 1, so that we can continue to offer e-mail and Internet access to all employees on an honor system basis instead of being forced to resort to monitoring software.

Your name Your contact information 4.8 Channel Selection: Various Business Audiences (L.O. 3) a. Don’t even think about texting him! Although it might relieve your responsibility, texting business message after hours is bad manners although working from home has blurred the line between work and leisure. Writing after hours forces the receiver to answer immediately or to remember the message the next day. A better channel is e-mail during working hours, which enables you to follow up if necessary. Some e-mail programs allow you to schedule a time for the e-mail to be sent. b. When considerable information and data are to be conveyed, the best channel is a report or slide deck that might be delivered both in writing and in a group meeting, face-to-face or virtually. c. When persuasion is required and you are located near the receiver, a face-to-face conversation is best because it is considered the richest of channels. d. The sales manager could send a group text or instant message to check whether the sales reps are available. Sending an e-mail is also possible, but it may not be answered immediately. e. If you wish to dispute the charge, write a letter because it provides a written record of correspondence sent outside of your organization. As far as settling your debt is concerned, IRS now offers payment options online. You could pay the penalty on the IRS website. f. A file hosting service such as Dropbox, iCloud, or Microsoft OneDrive is among the simplest tools that allow users to maintain digital files and provide a shared place in the cloud where team members can add, remove, and edit content. Tech enterprises in particular use wikis and other secure repositories of documentation.

4.9 Analyzing Audiences (L.O. 3) a. The primary reader will probably be a busy human resources director, an educated, experienced individual who may be deluged with applications. Because the job is advertised, you would expect the reader to be neutral or positive toward your cover e-mail.

Because your relationship is professional, your tone should be formal, yet friendly. b. b. You will probably be most successful if you schedule an appointment with your boss to discuss your idea personally. The primary audience is your boss, who may not know of many sustainability efforts and recycling options possible at the office. You should be prepared with facts and possibly with a handout that you could leave. A secondary audience would be employees who might receive the boss’s message. They will need background information. You might volunteer to draft a message to employees including tips. c. The audience will be all municipal water users, with a wide range of language abilities represented. The audience knows little about the technicalities of water chemistry and delivery. You would use plain English, adopt a conversational yet professional tone, and show courtesy. You would consider having versions of your message translated into various languages represented in your community. d. The primary reader is your manager, but a secondary reader may be your supervisor’s manager, if further approval is sought. The relationship is both personal and professional.

Since your manager probably has no knowledge of the IT systems networking workshop, you would want to describe the class in detail and explain why your proposal would benefit both the company and you. e. A targeted audience of executives means that you have some expectations about their income, education, status, and interests. You can use language that educated readers would understand. Because readers probably know little about shared ownership of real estate, you will have to provide persuasive arguments and data. You might expect to have to overcome a negative response.

4.10 Tracing the Plain Language Movement (L.O. 4) This assignment can be completed individually or in a group. Students will discover a great deal of information online about the Plain Writing/Plain Language movement and its governmental act, The Plain Writing Act. Some interesting quotations from the symposium might make their way into the student report: • • •

“Don’t make readers wander through the crap in your mind,” advised Karl Gude, professor and author.

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough,” said Albert Einstein, who was quoted by many at the symposium.

The absence of plain language “. . . keeps citizens from getting the government benefits and services they’re entitled to,” said Congressman Bruce Braley.

Students should report that the Plain Writing Act requires federal agencies to write “clear Government communication that the public can understand and use.” It emphasizes the importance of establishing a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. It might be argued that plain language is a civil right in that it requires government agencies to use language that can be comprehended by the citizens it governs. It is a citizen’s constitutional right to clear communication related to any federal benefit or service, filing taxes, or document explaining how to comply with government regulations.

Some of the benefits of plain language are that it makes documents more understandable and reduces the risk of miscommunication and misunderstanding. It reduces the time necessary to read and understand documents, and it reduces costs because clear messages require less follow-up. It improves access to justice and enables consumers to make more informed decisions. Some of the plain language rules are as follows: (a) write in the active voice, (b) keep it short, (c) use personal pronouns, (d) write in a visually appealing style, (e) be concise, (f) use graphics and tables, (g) use parallel phrasing, (h) avoid unnecessary qualifiers, and (i) avoid negative constructions. Point out that students will be learning how to apply many of these writing techniques in Chapters 5 and 6

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False. First, don’t shout to anyone over the top of cubicles. Second, don’t eavesdrop on conversations. Third, never give advice to a coworker about information you overheard on any call. It’s difficult working in close surroundings, but try to observe others’ privacy and personal space.

2. False. It’s not wise to take even short personal calls at work. Before doing so, learn what your organization’s policy is. Tell your friends and family your work hours, cautioning them not to call. Remember that how you act at work sends a message about your professionalism.

3. False. Among the most offensive people in open offices are speaker freakers, those who take their calls with speaker on. This practice is especially disruptive in open offices or those with cubicles. If you must have your hands free, get a headset.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: What kinds of technology are typical of the workplaces you know? What channels do supervisors and employees typically use to communicate? Are some more suitable than others? Share their advantages and disadvantages from experience.

Topic 2: After searching an alumni database, you decide to e-mail a professional who is working in the career you hope to enter. Your goal in writing this professional is to obtain firsthand information about this person’s career and to receive career advice. However, you know nothing about this person. How could you profile the receiver to help you shape your message? What audience benefits could you use to persuade the receiver? What channel would you choose to deliver your message? What tone would you use?

Topic 3: List and analyze the steps you followed to write a document before you started this course. Based on what you are learning in this course, which steps were effective? Which were ineffective? How will you change your approach to writing?

Topic 4: Have you ever tried to make your writing longer than it needed to be just to meet a required word or page count? Author David Silverman claims that students learn to overwrite in the hope that at least some of their sentences hit the mark. He says that in the workplace, grads must unlearn writing as if they were paid by the word. Do you agree with his view?

Topic 5: Consider your most recent team project. What did the team do that resulted in an efficient working process and a successful product, or an inefficient working process and an unsuccessful product?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points Etiquette

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 3

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explain how to carry out the second phase of the writing process: researching, organizing, and drafting. First, we define research (formal and informal) and discuss how it helps shape a sender’s message. Next, we explore techniques for generating ideas, such as brainstorming, brainwriting, mind mapping, and crowdsourcing.

Additionally, we cover how to organize ideas in order to show relationships, covering both direct and indirect strategies based upon anticipated audience response. Then, we explain how to add interest and variety with four basic sentence types and discuss the three common sentence faults communicators should avoid. Next, we demonstrate methods for emphasizing ideas using active and passive voice, developing parallelism, and correctly placing modifiers. Finally, we cover how to build well-organized paragraphs.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following objectives are addressed in this chapter: 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6

Compare two forms of research used to begin drafting, Phase 2 of the 3-x-3 writing process.

List techniques that help writers generate ideas to solve problems.

Explain methods for organizing ideas to show relationships.

Describe how to write effective sentences.

Name four techniques for effective writing.

Demonstrate how to create well-organized paragraphs.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • • • • • •

Created a new opening case featuring casual attire phenomenon Untuckit to show students how a startup might generate ideas and handle research and marketing planning.

Presented new research showing that conventional brainstorming is not as productive as brainwriting, a method allowing for quiet contemplation in writing before participants share their ideas with a group.

Provided new Reality Checks highlighting key aspects of the chapter from the point of view of business practitioners.

Replaced most before-and-after examples in the chapter text with fresh items to reflect contemporary business topics.

Created nearly 100 percent new Writing Improvement Exercises so that instructors have brand-new activities for students to reinforce and apply their skills.

Added all-new Grammar and Mechanics and Workplace Etiquette IQ exercises to round out students’ opportunities for practice in these important areas.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 5. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Drafting Messages Begins With Research (L.O. 5.1, PPT Slides 3–6, DISC: Purpose; Audience) a. The 3-x-3 writing process involves three phases. (Figure 5.1) b. This chapter focuses on the second phase: researching, organizing, and drafting. c. Research – collecting information about a certain topic d. Information collected through research helps shape the sender’s message. e. Careful writers collect information that answers several questions: i.

What does the receiver need to know about this topic? ii.

What is the receiver to do? iii.

How is the receiver to do it? iv.

When must the receiver do it? v.

What will happen if the receiver doesn’t do it? f.

Informal Research: Many routine tasks—such as drafting e-mails, memos, letters, informational reports, and oral presentations—require information that you can collect informally.

g. Informal research methods: i.

Explore your company’s files. ii.

Chat with the boss. iii.

Interview the target audience. iv.

Create an informal survey. h. Formal Research: Information for long reports and proposals may be obtained through formal research using primary or secondary sources. i.

II.

Formal research methods: i.

Primary sources: firsthand experiences such as surveys, interviews, observation, and experimentation ii.

Secondary sources: reading what others have experienced or observed and written about in books, magazines, journals, and online resources

Generating Ideas to Innovate and Solve Problems (L.O. 5.2, PPT Slides 7–9, DISC: Purpose; Theory application)

a. Brainstorming – the spontaneous contribution of ideas from members of a group with an emphasis on quantity and not quality i.

Process begins with a leader who defines the problem to be solved.

That person then acts as facilitator. ii.

Some groups set a goal, such as a minimum of 100 ideas. iii.

The purpose is to set opinions aside and think freely. iv.

Studies suggest that brainstorms cause ideas to converge and groups to think more alike. b. Brainwriting – independently writing down ideas first in order to generate more diverse ideas in greater numbers c. Mind mapping – a process for generating and sorting ideas emphasizing visual concepts (Figure 5.2) i.

A single concept is drawn as an image in the center of a blank page with associated words and images branching out to show the relationship between the ideas and the central concept. ii.

Initially used to convey ideas visually, mind mapping tools now enable managers to visualize the workflow of an entire project. d. Crowdsourcing – the practice of requesting ideas or services online from unknown crowd members rather than from traditional employees or contractors i.

Crowdsourcing is an inexpensive way to build brand awareness and solve problems. ii.

Some long-term crowdsourcing efforts seek to solve social issues and problems through meaningful input and collaboration.

III.

Organizing Ideas to Show Relationships (L.O. 5.3, PPT Slides 10–15, DISC: Rhetorical considerations; Audience; Purpose; Patterns) a. Skilled writers group similar items together and then place ideas in a strategic sequence that helps the reader understand relationships and accept the writer’s views. b. Two simple techniques can help writers organize data: the scratch list and the outline. c. Messages may be composed from scratch lists if they are simple enough. d. Most writers organize ideas into a hierarchy first, such as an outline.

(Model Document 5.1) e. How ideas are grouped into components depends on the topic and channel of communication. f.

Business documents contain typical components arranged in traditional strategies. (Figure 5.3) i.

An e-mail, memo, or letter is generally organized with an opening, body, and closing.

ii. iii. iv.

v.

A procedure would contain a sequence of steps for the receiver to follow.

An informational report usually includes an introduction, facts, and a summary.

An analytical report includes an introduction or problem statement, followed by facts and findings, conclusions, and recommendations (if requested).

A proposal includes an introduction, a proposed solution, staffing considerations, a schedule and/or associated costs, and an authorization request.

g. After collecting data and generating ideas, writers must organize their information. h. The strategy you select is determined by how you expect the audience to react to the message. (Figure 5.4) i.

Direct strategy – the main idea comes first, followed by details, explanation, or evidence (a) Use the direct strategy when you expect the reader to be pleased, mildly interested, or neutral. ii.

Indirect strategy – the main idea follows the details, explanation, and evidence (a) Use the indirect strategy when you expect the audience to be uninterested, unwilling, displeased, or hostile. (b) The indirect approach works well with three kinds of messages: (a) bad news, (b) ideas that require persuasion, and (c) sensitive news, particularly when being transmitted to supervisors. i.

j.

Frontloading (getting to the main idea quickly) has three advantages: i.

Saves the reader’s time ii.

Sets a proper frame of mind iii.

Reduces frustration Advantages of the indirect strategy include: i.

Respects the feelings of the audience ii.

Facilitates a fair hearing iii.

Minimizes a negative reaction

Ethics Check: Do I and We Messages Resonate More?

Much depends on the intention of the executive. Some executives may naturally speak in firstperson terms (I look ahead to the next quarter, and I am very optimistic about our future.)

However, if the executive has been coached to include first-person pronouns, it could be considered manipulative and unethical. Audiences are very good at detecting insincerity; they prefer authenticity even if the speaker reveals serious flaws.

When a person uses first-person pronouns, do you feel that that individual is more directly connected to the facts being discussed and, therefore, more responsible for the actions of an organization? Do you trust that individual more?

IV.

Writing a First Draft With Effective Sentences (L.O. 5.4, PPT Slides 16–22, DISC: Standard English; Rhetorical considerations; Patterns) a. To avoid monotony and to add spark to their writing, communicators should vary their sentence types, choosing from one of the following: simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex. b. Simple sentence – contains one complete thought (independent clause) with a subject and predicate verb (Example: Our company lacked a social media presence.) c. Compound sentence – contains two complete but related thoughts; may be joined by a conjunction, semicolon, or conjunctive adverb (however, consequently, therefore) • Our company lacked a social media presence, and it hired a specialist.

• Our company lacked a social media presence; it hired a specialist.

• Our company lacked a social media presence; consequently, it hired a specialist. d. Complex sentence – contains an independent clause and a dependent clause (Example: Because our company lacked a social media presence, it hired a specialist.) e. Compound-complex sentence – contains at least two independent clauses and one dependent clause (Example: Because our company lacked a social media presence, it hired a specialist; however, our brand required time to build.) f.

Communicators should avoid these three common sentence faults: i.

Fragment – a broken-off part of a complex sentence ii.

Run-on (fused) sentence – a sentence with two independent clauses without a conjunction or semicolon iii.

Comma splice – two independent clauses joined (spliced together) with a comma

g. Reader comprehension drops as sentences become longer, so follow these tips: i.

Construct sentences that average 20 words. ii.

Consider the relationship between sentence length and comprehension. iii.

Target a balance between longer and shorter sentences.

V.

Applying Four Effective Writing Techniques (L.O. 5.5, PPT Slides 23–36, DISC: Standard English; Patterns; Rhetorical considerations) a. Without verbal and nonverbal clues, when writing, you must rely on other ways to inform readers about which ideas are more important than others.

b. Emphasis in writing can be achieved visually and stylistically. c. To emphasize an idea in print, a writer may use any of the following visual devices: i.

Underlining ii.

Italics and boldface iii.

Font changes iv.

All caps v.

Dashes vi.

Tabulation vii.

Other means, including the arrangement of space, color, lines, boxes, columns, titles, headings, and subheadings d. To achieve emphasis through style: i.

Use vivid words. ii.

Label the main idea. iii.

Place the important idea first or last in the sentence. iv.

Place the important idea in a simple sentence or in an independent clause. e. To de-emphasize an idea, such as bad news, try one of the following stylistic devices: i.

Use general words. ii.

Place the bad news in a dependent clause. iii.

Choose the active and passive voice strategically.

(1) Active-voice sentences are more direct because they reveal the performer immediately.

(2) Passive voice is useful to emphasize an action rather than a person, de-emphasize negative news, and conceal the doer of an action. iv.

Active voice example: Our CPA made a serious error in the budget. v.

Passive voice example: A serious error was made in the budget. f.

Parallelism – sentences written so their parts are balanced, or parallel i.

Writers should use similar structure to express similar ideas, matching nouns with nouns, verbs with verbs, and clauses with clauses.

g. Communicators should also avoid dangling and misplaced modifiers: i.

Dangling modifier – when the word or phrase the modifier describes is missing from its sentence (“After working 12 hours straight, the report was finally finished.”) ii.

Misplaced modifier – when the word or phrase the modifier describes is not close enough to be clear (“Firefighters rescued a dog from a burning car that had a broken leg.”) iii.

Try this trick for detecting and fixing many dangling modifiers: Ask the question Who? or What? after any introductory phrase. The words

immediately following should tell the reader who or what is performing the action.

VI.

Building Well-Organized Paragraphs (L.O. 5.6, PPT Slides 37–45, DISC: Patterns; Rhetorical considerations; Purpose; Audience) a. Paragraph – a group of sentences about one idea b. Topic sentence – expresses the primary idea of the paragraph; often, but not always, comes first in a paragraph c. Supporting sentence – illustrates, explains, or strengthens the primary idea d. Limiting sentence – opposes the primary idea by suggesting a negative or contrasting thought; may precede or follow the topic sentence e. Topic, supporting, and limiting sentences may be arranged in three classic paragraph plans: direct, pivoting, and indirect. Each of these plans has a specific function. f.

The direct paragraph plan: i.

Direct paragraph plan – used to define, classify, illustrate, or describe ii.

Begins with topic sentence, followed by supporting sentences iii.

Clarifies the subject immediately iv.

Strengthens and amplifies main idea with supporting ideas

g. The pivoting paragraph plan: i.

Pivoting paragraph plan – useful to compare and contrast ii.

Starts with a limiting sentence that offers a contrasting or negative idea, followed by the topic sentence iii.

Emphasizes turn in direction with an obvious but or however h. The indirect paragraph plan: i.

Indirect paragraph plan – useful to explain and persuade ii.

Begins with supporting sentences and concludes with topic sentence iii.

Builds rationale or foundation before revealing big idea iv.

Explains reasons and then draws conclusion from them v.

Works well for describing causes followed by an effect i.

Paragraphs are coherent when ideas relate to each other—that is, when the ideas stick together and when one idea logically leads to the next.

j.

To build coherence: i.

Sustain the key idea by repeating a key expression or use a similar one throughout a paragraph. ii.

Dovetail sentences – when an idea at the end of one connects with an idea at the beginning of the next iii.

Use familiar pronouns (we, they, he, she, it) and demonstrative pronouns

iv.

(this, that, these, those) to build continuity. (These often require a noun to make meaning clear.)

Employ transitional expressions, which signal that a train of thought is moving forward, being developed, and possibly detouring or ending.

(Figure 5.5)

k. Although no rule regulates the length of paragraphs, business writers recognize that short paragraphs are more attractive and readable than longer ones. l. Paragraphs with six or fewer lines look inviting, while solid chunks of text appear overwhelming. m. If a topic can’t be covered in eight or fewer printed lines, consider breaking it up into small segments.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: College Graduate Preparedness (L.O. 5.1–5.5) Duration: 15 minutes. a. A survey from PayScale, the compensation data software website, revealed a surprising gap in perception between managers and new grads. “Overall, the majority of workers (87 percent) feel well prepared (immediately or within 3 months) for their job upon graduation from college. In contrast, only about half of managers (50 percent) feel that employees who recently graduated from college are well prepared for the workforce.” The skill most lacking, said the managers, was writing proficiency. b. What could explain this gap in perception between managers and new grads? i. Answer: The gap might be explained by a difference in standards.

Students have been graded on their work according to academic standards. It could very well be that employers have different and perhaps higher standards. Students have an opportunity to rewrite some assignments, but on the job this permissive attitude doesn’t exist.

Additionally, academic assignments often focus on how the writer feels rather than requiring clear organization and presentation of data. ii. Critics of such studies as that of PayScale contend that managers frequently do not know how to judge “writing proficiency.” Managers may think that a misspelled or mistyped word reveals poor language skills.

However, employers have a right to expect college graduates to be well trained.

iii. Commenting on the PayScale report, Dan Schawbel, research director at Future Workplace, said, “Graduates need strong communication and problem-solving skills if they want to interview well and succeed in the workplace, because effective writing, speaking and critical thinking enables you to accomplish business goals and get ahead. No working day will be complete without writing an email or tackling a new challenge, so the sooner you develop these skills, the more employable you will become.” [PayScale. (2016, May 17). Leveling up: How to win in the skills economy.]

2. Discussion: Bad Writing Wastes Valuable Time (L.O. 5.1–5.5) Duration: 15 minutes. a. How can bad writing waste a businessperson’s time? A researcher asked that question of workers who read business material an average of 25 hours per week (about half of which was e-mail). b. What writing flaws do you think they named? i. Answer: Of the 547 businesspeople interviewed in this study, 81 percent reported that what they read was frequently ineffective because it was (a) too long, (b) poorly organized, (c) unclear, (d) filled with jargon, and (e) imprecise. c. Should new employees be trained in writing effectively on the job? i. Answer: The author of the study claimed that “entry-level employees get little training in how to write in a brief, clear, and incisive way. Instead, they’re immersed in first-draft emails from their managers, poorly edited reports, and jargon-filled employee manuals.” Rarely are new employees given any training in writing. Students taking this course, however, will receive definite training in how to avoid all of these writing faults.

3. Discussion: Selecting an Organizational Strategy (L.O. 5.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. In order to effectively organize ideas, communicators should first analyze their audience. b. Why is audience analysis so important in the selection of the direct or indirect strategy of organization for a business message? i. Answer: Audience analysis is important because it helps the writer decide whether the receiver will react positively or negatively to the message.

Help your students develop the habit of always thinking of the audience first. Ask them to put themselves in the place of the receiver. If Lisa, who sits in the first row, were receiving this message, how would she feel? If the news is going to upset her, it might be better to break it softly. Most business messages, of course, are not sensitive and should be handled directly. But occasionally, especially with bad news, the indirect method may work better.

4. Discussion: Ethics and the Passive Voice (L.O. 5.5) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Now that you have studied the active and passive voice, what do you think when someone in government or business says, “Mistakes were made”? b. Is it unethical to use the passive voice to avoid specifics? i. Answer: By using the passive voice in the familiar statement “Mistakes were made,” the speaker or writer is avoiding responsibility by refusing to identify who or what caused the mistakes. Politicians and business executives often use the passive voice when they don’t want to reveal what happened or who was to blame. However, most people would consider it unethical to cover up wrongdoing or mistakes by using the passive voice.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: The “Great Untucking”: A Ludicrously Obvious Idea (Part 1): In this case study, students will learn about the beginning of the clothing business “UNTUCKit” – a casual clothing business that focuses on business casual shirts to be worn untucked. Students will then be directed to answer a set of questions. a. What is Chris Riccobono’s and Aaron Sanandres’s attitude toward starting a business, and what does luck have to do with it?

Answer: Both founders have been resilient. Starting a business with little money and while working full-time requires commitment and sacrifice. They also exhibited a certain adventurousness and openness to risk bucking conventional financing and the trappings of typical start-ups. Their persistence and good instincts paid off when they refused to change the Untuckit name and chose to retain control by not seeking out venture capital.

Going against conventional wisdom can be risky and lead to failure. On the other hand, both men were careful enough to start deliberately and keep their day jobs. They didn’t rush into opening their first retail shop. Still, Untuckit succeeded against considerable odds.

Chris Riccobono dreamed of starting a business years before he launched Untuckit. He was waiting for the right idea to strike. Visiting Las Vegas with friends, he wore a shirt that was too small but felt comfortable worn untucked. The idea for a business was born.

Riccobono brought Aaron Sanandres on board because he needed help. He knew almost nothing about apparel and making shirts. Both men were lucky because most businesses with inexperienced founders fail. Riccobono admits in interviews that he was fortunate because the quality of the first shirts was underwhelming. He believes that had Untuckit grown faster, it may have gone out of business for that very reason. [Conner, C.

S. (2021, November 1). How an idea nobody believed in led to 8 million shirts and 88 stores for retail phenomenon UNTUCKit. Entrepreneur.]

Another auspicious factor is recognizing opportunity, for example, good timing, for Untuckit. The launch of the company coincided with a strong trend toward “casualization” [Gallagher, J. (2018, August 29). Please, men of the world, tuck in your shirts. The Wall Street Journal]. Untuckit met with an enthusiastic and untapped demand for shirts that could be worn with their tails loosely draped over the pants but not look like tents. b. What kinds of research did the two business partners conduct, and could they have done more to improve their chances of success?

Answer: Not all information for making decisions is available through research. The beginnings of Untuckit evoke the trial-and-error method, not systematic research. On the other hand, both Riccobono and Sanandres had earned master’s degrees in business from Columbia; therefore, it is safe to assume that they had a general grounding in entrepreneurship. But they knew little about the apparel industry and the fine points of making the kind of shirt they had envisioned—as Riccobono found out when he met with manufacturers in the New York Fashion District [Conner, C. S. (2021, November 1). How an idea nobody believed in led to 8 million shirts and 88 stores for retail phenomenon Untuckit. Entrepreneur].

Even the pattern designers Riccobono and Sanandres hired experienced a learning curve before being able to supply the best fit for a shirt that would have the perfect length and look good while untucked. Riccobono recalls: “No one in the business ever thought much about shirt length,” he said in an interview. “It was, ‘Who cares?’ But with Untuckit, shirt length, down to the millimeter, was the whole point. If it’s too long, it’s like any shirt. And if it’s too short, it looks ridiculous” [Williams, A. (2017, July 10). Untuckit strikes a chord with self-explanatory men’s wear. The New York Times]. But subsequently the entrepreneurs deployed focus groups and sophisticated data analytics to measure the performance of the many marketing channels they were using. In an interview with a business publication, Untuckit CEO Aaron Sanandres emphasized the importance of analytics: “There’s so much data and you can never use too much” [Kelly, C. (2018, August 1). How Untuckit fine-tuned its TV advertising and cut cost-perresponse by 30%. Marketing Dive].

The early phase of the Untuckit business can be characterized as primary research at best. Perhaps the two cofounders could have first studied the industry before jumping into manufacturing. A trial-and-error approach doesn’t always end well. c. “Like prep-schoolers liberated after the bell, men are letting their shirt tails fly everywhere now. (It’s one thing to untuck at a clam bake in Nantucket but quite another to do so for an M.B.A. meetup at the Tuck School of Business.) Suits may be going the way of the dodo and sneakers may be infiltrating the cubicle, but can a man at least deign to tuck in his shirt on weekdays? Apparently not. The threat of an Untucked Nation

has been rising for over a decade.” Is Jacob Gallagher, a strong critic of the untucked look, writing for The Wall Street Journal, serious and what are some of the striking features of his style?

Answer: The excerpt is taken from a tongue-in-cheek opinion piece in the Style/Fashion section of The Wall Street Journal. Jacob Gallagher writes with mock outrage (and probably a modicum of genuine consternation) about the “general casualization of the workplace” and untucked shirts in particular.

Savvy students should recognize a tell-tale word choice suggesting a humorous or satirical treatment of the subject (see words underlined below). Comical images, funny analogies, and over-the-top exaggerations abound: prep-schoolers liberated after the bell; shirts that fly everywhere; suits may be going the way of the dodo; and sneakers may be infiltrating the cubicle. The funniest feature is the internal rhymes within the parenthesis: untuck at a clam bake in Nantucket and M.B.A. meetup at the Tuck School of Business. Furthermore, conjuring up quite hyperbolically “the threat of an Untucked Nation” has a comical ring to it [Gallagher, J. (2018, August 29). Please, men of the world, tuck in your shirts. The Wall Street Journal].

Case Study: The “Great Untucking”: A Ludicrously Obvious Idea (Part 2): In this case study, students will apply their skills at Untuckit. They should familiarize themselves with the company’s website and products, then apply skills learned in Chapter 3 on intercultural communication to discuss business opportunities.

Answer: Answers will vary. Students don’t need to engage in substantial research.

Rather, they could be encouraged to build only on the information provided in the scenario. They could be asked to relate this information to their knowledge of intercultural communication, honed in Chapter 3. The task could start out as a group discussion.

To date, Untuckit has expanded only into English-speaking countries (Canada and the United Kingdom), two countries with similar, casual cultures. Other logical strategic choices requiring very little “retooling” might include New Zealand and Australia next— English-speaking countries with informal cultures. However, replicating the Untuckit success in countries where other languages are spoken, and work cultures are more formal could prove much more difficult. In such countries untucked shirts might need to be marketed as leisure wear, not as office-worthy attire.

Changing the product, i.e., making formal dress shirts to be tucked in, is not feasible and therefore not an option. After all, the untucked shirt is a trademark or unique selling point of Untuckit. Expanding the product range, on the other hand, is worth discussing. After all, the company already offers a women’s collection and sells men’s outerwear (vests and light jackets), sweaters, sport coats, and more. However, localizing the product range specifically to fit an overseas market could backfire by diluting the brand and adding unsustainable costs. Also, the high-quality, wrinkle-free fabrics are not cheap, leading to prices of $99 per shirt. This price point might be too high in emerging markets.

Furthermore, sizing in Asian markets is markedly different from sizes customary in North America and Europe.

Consideration of new territories should include weather and climate. The shirts and thin outerwear are unsuitable for cold climates, at least not during cooler seasons. In very hot and humid climates, the type of fabric used matters in order for wearers to feel comfortable. Colors and patterns should also be critically examined. Not all cultures might equally appreciate plaid shirts, for example. Cultures also vary in their perception of certain colors and the meaning they ascribe to them.

Students could recommend a marketing plan and a communication strategy. Market research seems indispensable to establishing the attitudes and preferences in the target country or culture. Negative perceptions would need to be gauged, for example, that (1) untucked shirts look “messy” when the wearer sits down at work and the garment devolves into a “chaos of wrinkles,” and (2) the look is inelegant, lazy, evoking Sunday afternoon, “living in squalor” or cramming for exams in college [Gallagher, J. (2018, August 29). Please, men of the world, tuck in your shirts. The Wall Street Journal].

Physical stores, even no-frills shops, are costly to establish and maintain. Starting an ecommerce site first in the country of choice, adapted to its language and style conventions, might be a helpful recommendation before launching brick-and-mortar stores. Even so, building an e-commerce site is not without its challenges and requires a sizable investment, especially in countries where a simple translation or adaptation of existing sites is not possible.

Another option before expanding into unfamiliar territory might be to seek local partnerships. Think Tata Consumer Products and Starbucks Corporation teaming up in India, forming a highly successful 50:50 joint venture branded Starbucks “A Tata Alliance.”

A general challenge is changing taste. Although unlikely at this time, it is possible that the pendulum will swing back to a more tailored, tucked-in look in the future, even in the ultra-casual United States. Fashion trends are notoriously fickle.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. Although this quote is not among the newest jeremiads decrying our dependency on the virtual realm, it may work as a useful starting point for guided critical thinking. The analysis could start with the source: How “renowned” or reputable is The Financial Times? Who reads the famously pink-hued hard-copy newspaper? It is a British daily focusing on business and economics, owned by Nikkei, a Japanese holding company.

The Media Bias/Fact Check website ranks the newspaper as “least biased,” “high” in factual reporting, and dead center politically. The Financial Times is The Wall Street Journal’s main rival but reaches 11 percent more senior financial readership.

Having established credibility, we might focus on the meaning of shallow pleasures.

Students could be asked about their understanding of the phrase and encouraged to name shallow pleasures they recognize (they might name watching TikTok videos, casual texting with friends, or another activity leading to near-instant gratification. They could be prompted to examine the claim that most of what is valuable in life requires a fair bit of time and effort.

Again, this statement requires some contemplation. Students could probably name a few examples of laborious pursuits: learning a language, learning to play a musical instrument, or acquiring other skills that need time to grow (going to the gym, strengthening the body, etc.). The writer then expands the simile that shallow pleasures are the digital equivalent of cheap milk chocolate—safe if consumed in small quantities but potentially dangerous when overindulged.

Like eating chocolate, the consumption of social media must be limited, or it ceases to be wholesome and “nourishing,” the author suggests. Perceptive students could question the simile itself but perhaps recognize the humor in the exaggeration as the Internet is likened to cheap milk chocolate, much like Forrest Gump’s mother’s endearing but of course simplistic conviction that Life is like a box of chocolate. You never know what you’re gonna get.

After closely analyzing the passage, students could then discuss the premise that social media and the Internet should be enjoyed in limited quantities. Answers will vary, but perhaps a passionate gamer will come forward and mention the obsessive quality of computer games, or someone will admit to having been sucked into the proverbial rabbit hole of YouTube cat videos and TikTok dance clips. Last, the Surgeon General’s recent warning about the harmful effects of social media on children and teenagers could be introduced and discussed as well.

2. Business readers in the United States want to grasp the main idea immediately. Short sentences and paragraphs convey ideas quickly and are more readable than longer ones. In addition, today’s short-form messages (e-mail, texts, social media posts, etc.) are training communicators to be brief. That does not mean, however, that good writing techniques should be ignored. On the contrary, busy people often just skim a message.

If it’s jumbled or can’t be scanned quickly, the reader might be displeased. In addition, misunderstandings may occur.

3. Of the 547 businesspeople interviewed in the research study, 81 percent reported that what they read was frequently ineffective because it was (a) too long, (b) poorly organized, (c) unclear, (d) filled with jargon, and I imprecise. The author of the study claimed that “entry-level employees get little training in how to write in a brief, clear, and incisive way. Instead, they’re immersed in first-draft emails from their managers, poorly edited reports, and jargon-filled employee manuals.” Rarely are new employees given any training in writing. Students taking this course, however, will receive definite training in how to avoid all of these writing faults.

4. Morris Vaughan doubts that sentence length is a reliable criterion by which to assess readability and makes the following three compelling points: The main problem with sentence length as a measure of readability is that it’s so easy to find contradictory examples. A short sentence may not be more readable than a long one; there are too many other factors at work. A well-written long sentence will be significantly more understandable than a poorly-written short one.

Another issue is that there is no good way to define the threshold between “short” and “long.” There is no “magic number” beyond which readability declines for all readers.

Finally, it’s not even that easy to measure sentence length, especially when considering multiple-sentence passages. A paragraph with one 60-word sentence and nine eightword sentences has the same average sentence length as a paragraph with 10 13-word sentences. Is the former more readable because it has shorter sentences? Or is the latter more readable because it has no long sentences? [Vaughan, M. (n.d.). Why not sentence length? Words by a Pro.] The issue with Vaughan’s view is his blanket dismissal of readability statistics such as the Flesch Reading Ease and the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level. The exhortation to “learn your craft” is not helpful to a novice. Budding writers need all the help they can get.

Readability statistics and the advice to keep sentences short and sweet are useful tools.

Learning the craft takes years of practice until writers know which rules they can safely break.

5. All good writers practice empathy. Because the indirect pattern is used when receivers will be uninterested, unwilling, displeased, or hostile toward the message, they certainly will not be pleased to receive the communication. Although the writer may not be able to give them exactly what they want, the writer may have alternatives that will partially satisfy them. Encouraging receivers to read and understand the entire message is important under these circumstances. Beginning with an explanation followed by alternatives is not manipulative; when bad news is involved, this indirectness shows courtesy and consideration. Delaying the main idea is not unethical unless the intent is to deceive.

WRITING IMPROVEMENT EXERCISES 5.1 Sentence Types (L.O. 3) a. b. c. d. e. f.

1 – simple sentence 2 – compound sentence 2 – compound sentence 3 – complex sentence 4 – compound-complex sentence 3 – complex sentence

5.2 Sentence Faults (L.O. 3) a. Fragment. Revision: Because in the past PepsiCo signed several spokespeople who caused controversy, lately the company has not signed any celebrities to endorse its products. b. Fragment. Revision: Soda sales have lost their fizz to look relatively flat in recent years as consumers prefer caffeinated and low-calorie alternatives. c. Comma splice. Sierra Mist was briefly rebranded as Mist Twst; however, later PepsiCo returned to the old name. OR, start a new sentence with However. d. Run-on. Revision: Bubbly soda drink Fanta is known for being made with five percent fruit juice; it comes in a variety of flavors. OR: Bubbly soda drink Fanta is known for being made with five percent fruit juice. It comes in a variety of flavors. e. Comma splice. Revision: The original Mountain Dew recipe was developed in 1940; a revised formula still in use today entered the market in 1958. OR: The original Mountain Dew recipe was developed in 1940. A revised formula still in use today entered the market in 1958. f. Fragment. Revision: Coca-Cola’s taste seems to derive from a vanilla and cinnamon flavored formula which remains a highly guarded secret.

5.3 Emphasis (L.O. 4) a. b. c. d. e. f. g.

1. Sentence 1 emphasizes with vivid words the attractiveness of Dublin to businesses.]

2. Sentence 2 labels the important idea.]

2. Sentence 2 places the important idea first so that it is not lost in other verbiage.]

1. Sentence 1 places the important idea in a simple sentence and uses specifics.]

2. Sentence 2 puts the US senators first in the sentence instead of last.]

1. Sentence 1 puts the important idea first in a simple sentence.]

2. Sentence 2 is more emphatic because it uses a vertical list, which is a mechanical means of emphasizing ideas. Although a vertical list takes up more space, it is sometimes worth the space because it makes the information stand out. Students will learn more about using lists for emphasis later in the book.]

5.4 Active Voice (L.O. 4) a. A major Canadian pension manager had been forced to completely write off a cryptocurrency investment the pension fund had only recently made.

b. Investors must exercise due diligence to minimize risk from new, potentially volatile financial vehicles such as crypto. c. Hilary Allen, a law professor at American University, raised concerns about the risks of crypto. d. Analysts and investors perceived FTX’s ventures as more responsible, more established players than most other members of the crypto industry. e. Investors gave the troubled trading platform FTX close to $2 billion because its charismatic youthful founder and CEO charmed them. f. In the spring a 2008-style financial crisis shook the crypto market.

5.5 Passive Voice (L.O. 4) a. The platform was built under rushed and less-than-ideal circumstances. b. The flaws in the company’s code were not detected and thus network security was compromised. c. Investors were defrauded [by the Theranos CEO]. d. Refunds are issued only for the cost of the flight in the form of credit for future travel; seat and business class upgrades are excluded. e. The fifty biggest unsecured creditors are owed more than $3 billion [by the crypto trading platform].

5.6 Parallelism (L.O. 4) a. Training seminars must be stimulating and challenging. b. Parents complain that young people today are obsessed with playing video games, taking selfies, and constantly watching TikTok videos. c. Our newest hire has started using Slack and learning coworkers’ names. d. Recent graduates are seeking jobs that are financially rewarding and career-advancing. e. Our new Zoom network allows employees to meet customers for training, hold Web meetings, and collaborate within virtual teams. f. The grant application asks for the following information: funds required for employee salaries, expected equipment spending, and the length of the project.

5.7 Dangling and Misplaced Modifiers (L.O. 4) a. While driving to the interview, Jeff realized that the car’s tire suddenly blew up. b. Taking a slow-moving bus instead, Jeff was watching the passengers waiting at the stop. c. While interviewing applicants, candidates are often asked questions about their qualifications. OR: When interviewing applicants, recruiters often ask questions about candidates’ qualifications. d. During the exhausting interview, Jeff found sitting on the couch in the recruiter’s office uncomfortable. e. After leaving the interview and walking to the parking lot, Jeff learned that the bus home was delayed. f. Walking into the company headquarters, the visitors thought the soaring ceilings were breathtaking.

5.8 Disneyland Park: Lots of Rules (L.O. 4) A positive version of Disneyland rules: • • • • • • • • • •

Vendors need to obtain prior written approval to sell or display goods and services.

Only guests younger than age 14 may wear costumes in our theme parks.

To board an attraction, children under age 14 must be accompanied by a person age 14 or older.

All persons under age 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. at the Downtown Disney District.

Quiet hours at the hotels of the Disneyland Resort are from 11:00 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Only tripods or monopod stands that fit inside a standard backpack or measure less than 6’ (182 cm) can be used in the theme park.

Photography, videotaping, or recording of any kind for commercial purposes is only allowed with prior written approval.

Guests are requested to show common courtesy to fellow Guests and our Cast Members by not using profanity or engaging in unsafe, illegal, disruptive, or offensive behavior.

Only service animals (i.e., dogs) are allowed in the park and the resort grounds.

Guests are asked to keep sidewalks, entrances, driveways, patios, vestibules, stairways, corridors, halls, or landings free from obstructions.

5.9 Organizing Paragraph Sentences (L.O. 5) a. 4 b. 6 c. 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8 5.10 Building a Coherent Paragraph (L.O. 5) You can place two types of fraud alerts on your credit report to notify your creditors: an initial alert and an extended alert. Request an initial fraud alert if you suspect that you may have been a victim of identity theft. This initial fraud alert stays on your credit report for at least 90 days. The extended fraud alert, on the other hand, is appropriate if you have documents proving that you have already been a victim of identity theft. The extended fraud alert stays on your credit report for seven years. To initiate one of the two fraud alerts, you can call the toll-free fraud number of any of the three national credit reporting agencies. Once you have requested an alert with one credit reporting agency, your request will automatically be sent to the other two agencies.

5.11 Revising a Data Breach Paragraph (L.O. 5) Note: Many possible revisions may be appropriate for the following paragraph.

On January 29 Andiant Health discovered that sophisticated cyber attackers had breached our IT system. The criminal hackers obtained personal consumer information of current and past health plan members. Their illicit activity may have occurred over the course of several weeks; however, we have no evidence that sensitive medical or financial information was

obtained. As soon as we discovered the attack, we contacted law enforcement agencies and have been fully cooperating with the FBI’s investigation.

5.12 Developing a Coherent Paragraph (L.O. 5) Buying a new or used car can be challenging. You have two payment options: pay in full or finance over time. To get the best deal, shop around. Compare offers and try to negotiate the best deal. If you are a first-time buyer—or if your credit isn't great—be cautious about special financing offers. Financing increases the total cost of the car because you are also paying for the cost of credit. If you agree to financing that carries a high interest rate, you may be taking a big risk. Selling the car before the loan expires may result in your having less than you need to pay off the loan. If money is tight, consider paying cash for a less expensive car than the one you first wanted.

5.13 Revising an Incoherent Paragraph A number of high-level positions are available to current employees. These positions are in production, marketing, and administrative support. To view the positions and their qualifications and job descriptions, go to the company intranet. If you are interested, come to the Human Resources Department. Many of the jobs are now open; therefore, you should apply immediately. Interviews must be scheduled within the next two weeks.

ACTIVITIES 5.14 Document for Analysis: Fixing Flawed E-Mail Dangling modifiers: Sentences 3, 11, 17 Passive voice: Sentences 1, 4, 5, 11, 12, 13, 17 Fragments: Sentences 8, 14, 16 Revision To: Craig.Garza@spectrum.com From: Brook Clayton <bclayton@omnigym.com> Subject: Expanding Your Workouts at OmniGym Dear Mr. Garza, 1

You probably chose OmniGym here in Houston because it is one of the top-rated gyms in Texas. 2Our principal goal has always been making your workouts productive. 3To continue to provide you with the best equipment and programs, we need your feedback.

4

OmniGym provides an outstanding program with quality equipment and excellent trainers.

However, we could give more individual attention to our customers if we could extend our peak usage time. 6You have probably noticed that attendance at the gym increases from 4 5

p.m. to 8 p.m. 7We wish it were possible to accommodate all our customers on their favorite equipment during those hours. 8Although we can’t stretch an hour, 9we would like to make better use of the time between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. 10If more members came later, the gym would have less crush from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

11

To encourage you to stay later, the owners are considering adding security cameras for our parking area. 12We may also add cameras for some inside facilities. 13We have given this matter considerable thought, 14although OmniGym has never previously had an incident that endangered a member.

15

Please follow the link below to an online questionnaire. 16Which will give us instant feedback about scheduling your workouts. 17By completing this questionnaire, you will help us schedule workouts and training sessions to give you exactly the equipment and trainers you prefer.

Cordially,

5.14

Brainstorming: Solving a Problem on Campus

Students will probably have no trouble finding a problem to analyze. Encourage them to think it through. This topic could be expanded into a report or proposal for later chapters in the book. This step involves preparing an outline, not writing the entire report.

5.15 Brainstorming: Outlining a Problem at Work Students develop their organizing skills in preparing an outline that describes a problem at work and a possible solution. This topic could be expanded into a report or proposal in later chapters.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. Answer: False. No matter how hip a company may seem, inviting new coworkers to connect on social media is fraught with risk. It’s best to wait until you know the company culture and even safer to keep work and leisure separate. Friending supervisors and managers in particular could give your bosses too much insight into your personal life.

2. Answer: False. Always refrain from yelling; just because you can’t hear the person on the other end doesn’t mean the caller can’t hear you. Besides, the people around you will not appreciate having to listen to a noisy phone call.

3. Answer: False. The person facing you should always take precedence over an incoming text. Only in very urgent situations would it seem appropriate to excuse yourself to read the message in the presence of another person.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Freshly minted undergraduate and graduate students often have to acknowledge their college’s honor code by signing an academic integrity statement. They vow to withstand the lure of plagiarism. How effective may such integrity statements be in combating cheating? In how far may they prevent misconduct?

Topic 2: Some critics strongly dislike crowdfunding projects, such as requesting funds to pay for college tuition. They say crowdfunding is essentially begging. What is your opinion?

Would you ask strangers for money?

Topic 3: Guy Trebay, writing for The New York Times, welcomes the changes upending traditional dress codes due to remote work, but he believes that more formal attire has advantages, too: “Most obviously, clothes can be used to distinguish work time from leisure.

They can also be used to telegraph authority or respect. An obvious example of this is Mr. Zuckerberg testifying before Congress in a suit and not his usual hoodie. I’m not saying a necktie made the Facebook chief more persuasive. But his rehearsed contrition did play a bit more credibly when he wasn’t dressed like the guy who mows your lawn.” Do you agree?

Discuss formal attire and credibility.

Topic 4: Some writers have trouble writing the opening sentence of a message.

Occasionally, a quotation makes for an appropriate opening. Assume that you need to motivate an employee to achieve more at work. Find a famous quotation online about motivation that might be an appropriate opening for such a message. In addition, write a sentence that would effectively transition from this opening.

Topic 5: In your opinion, how many business managers know what a comma splice is? If some managers don’t know what a comma splice is, then is it critical that you avoid comma splices in your writing? Should you call them out and explain what a comma splice is?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Contribution Quality

Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Etiquette

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 4

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to help students understand how to effectively revise business messages during Phase 3 of the 3-x-3 writing process. First, we review techniques that achieve conciseness. Next, we explore ways to simplify and clarify business messages. Additionally, we explain how to enhance readability through document design. Next, we provide proofreading techniques for both routine and complex documents. Finally, we cover how to evaluate business messages in order to judge their effectiveness.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following objectives are addressed in this chapter: 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5

Explain the goals of revision, such as conciseness, in Phase 3 of the writing process.

Name techniques that can help writers simplify and clarify business messages.

Explain how to improve readability with effective document design.

Describe proofreading techniques allowing writers to catch errors in both routine and complex business documents.

Analyze a business message to evaluate its effectiveness.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

• • •

• • •

Presented a new opening case highlighting the editing and proofing tool Grammarly to demonstrate its utility as well as limitations to help students understand that they ultimately need to be able to judge the correctness of their copy.

Maintained emphasis on the importance of taking time to revise messages for conciseness and clarity despite today’s 24/7 work culture.

Replaced most before/after examples in the text with contemporary topics to provide students with relatable content.

Introduced two For the Record photo essays. One concisely discusses buzzwords to alert students to overtly fashionable yet overused, distracting expressions that might hinder comprehension. The other photo essay shows that bad writing can be expensive.

Continued coverage of social media and microblogging writing techniques so that readers hone their skills in expressing ideas concisely but correctly.

Provided new examples of customer service posts that model for readers appropriate messaging techniques.

Added several new Reality Checks to feature insights by business practitioners and other experts to highlight and reinforce chapter content.

•

Enriched the end-of-chapter activities with 100 percent new Writing Improvement Exercises to give students up-to-date opportunities to perfect their revision and editing skills.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 6. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Revising: Applying Phase 3 of the Writing Process (L.O. 6.1, PPT Slides 3–10, DISC: Standard English, Rhetorical considerations) a. The final phase of the 3-x-3 writing process focuses on editing, proofreading, and evaluating. b. Editing – improving the content and sentence structure of your message c. Proofreading – correcting grammar, spelling, punctuation, format, and mechanics d. Evaluating – analyzing whether your message achieves its purpose e. Sloppy messages often lead to a lack of productivity. f.

Composition tools such as Grammarly can make revision easier but are far from perfect. If writers are vigilant and exercise good judgment, Grammarly and other AI-powered assistants can be tremendously helpful.

g. Many professional writers write the first draft quickly and then revise extensively, while other writers prefer to revise as they go. h. To revise for conciseness: i.

Slash wordy expressions. (Figure 6.1) ii.

Purge long lead-ins. iii.

Drop unnecessary there is/are and it is/was fillers. iv.

Cut redundancies. v.

Eliminate empty words. vi.

Draft concise posts for social media networks. i.

Businesses use microblogging––short messages, images, and video links exchanged on social media networks––to build connections with target audiences, hear what’s being said about them, make announcements, promote goodwill, and sell their products.

j.

Regardless of what microblogging platform you choose, conciseness is critical.

II.

k. Microblogging posts are most effective when they: i.

Include only main ideas focused on useful information. ii.

Choose descriptive but short words. iii.

Include personalized messages, if possible. iv.

Strive for conciseness, clarity, and correctness over several draft versions.

Ensuring Message Clarity (L.O. 6.2, PPT Slides 11–20, DISC: Standard English; Rhetorical considerations) a. A clear message is one that is immediately understood. (Figure 6.2) b. Improve the clarity of your writing by: i.

Applying the KISS (Keep It Short and Simple) formula. ii.

Dumping trite business phrases. iii.

Cutting clichés and buzzwords. iv.

Rescuing buried verbs. v.

Restraining exuberance. vi.

III.

Choosing precise words.

Improving Readability With Strategic Document Design (L.O. 6.3, PPT Slides 21–27, DISC: Rhetorical considerations) c. White space – empty space on a page d. To make white space work for you: i.

Use headings. ii.

Add bulleted or numbered lists. iii.

Set effective margins. iv.

Write short sentences (20 or fewer words). v.

Use short paragraphs (8 or fewer printed lines). e. Margins–– the white space on the left, right, top, and bottom of a block of type–– define the reading area, provide important visual relief, and enhance readability. f.

Justified – when letter and word-spacing is adjusted so that lines are aligned at both left and right margins

g. Ragged right – when the right margin is unjustified h. Tips for effective margins and text alignment: i.

Set margins at 1 to 1.5 inches. ii.

Use left-justified text and ragged-right margins without justification for the body of your text. iii.

Centered text can be appropriate for headings and short announcements, but not for complete messages. i.

Tips for selecting appropriate typefaces include:

i.

ii.

iii. iv. v. j.

Serif typefaces have small features at the ends of strokes and are used for body text; the most common serif typeface is Times New Roman. Serif typefaces suggest tradition, maturity, and formality.

Sans serif typefaces have clean characters and are used for material that does not require continuous reading (headings, signs); popular sans serif typefaces include Arial, Calibri, and Helvetica.

Choose one of the happy fonts such as Comic Sans for less formal messages or special decorative effects.

Generally, use no more than two typefaces within one document.

A wide range of typefaces, as shown in Figure 6.3, is available for various purposes.

A specific style within a typeface family is known as a font. Font styles are a mechanical means of adding emphasis to your words. i.

All caps, small caps, and bold fonts are useful for headings, subheadings, and single words or short phrases. ii.

All caps should never be used for long stretches of text. iii.

Boldface, italics, and underlining call attention to important points and terms. iv.

Body text should use 10- to 12-point type.

k. Lists provide high skim value (readers can browse quickly and grasp main ideas). l.

Use these techniques to make your lists look professional: i.

Numbered lists: Use for items that represent a sequence or reflect a numbering system. ii.

Bulleted lists: Use to highlight items that don’t necessarily show a chronology. iii.

Capitalization: Capitalize the initial word of each line. iv.

Punctuation: Add end punctuation only if the listed items are complete sentences. v.

Parallelism: Make all the lines consistent; for example, start each with a verb.

m. Headings – group similar material together and help the reader separate major ideas from details while providing a quick preview or review n. Main headings, subheadings, and category headings can improve readability in e-mails, memos, and letters as well as reports. (Model Document 6.1) For the Record: The Iron Imperative Against Costly Bad Writing Students may suggest examples involving the small print in contracts and agreements. They may also be reminded that, for example, on the Internet, most Web surfers simply click “I accept” on terms of use without ever reading them—sometimes inviting spam or allowing their personal data to be shared with third parties. Careless writing also wastes time in the workplace when recipients cannot be sure they understood the intent of a message.

IV.

Catching Errors With Careful Proofreading (L.O. 6.4, PPT Slides 28–32, DISC: Rhetorical considerations; Theory application) a. Documents with errors affect your credibility and the success of your organization. (Figure 6.4) b. What to watch for in proofreading: i.

Spelling: Use spell-checker, but don’t rely on it completely. ii.

Grammar: Use grammar-checker, but be aware that it is not always correct. iii.

Punctuation: Double-check use of commas, semicolons, and colons. iv.

Names and numbers: Compare names and numbers with their sources and verify names of individuals receiving the message. v.

Format: Ensure document looks balanced on the page, formatting is consistent, and standard document formats are used. c. How to proofread routine documents: i.

Use the down arrow on your computer to reveal one line at a time or read from a printed copy. ii.

Look for typos and misspellings. iii.

Search for easily confused words such as to/too and then/than. iv.

Read for missing words and inconsistencies. v.

Use standard proofreading marks (included in Figure 6.1 and Appendix C).

vi.

For collaborative projects, find online document editors in Google Docs, Teams, or Dropbox.

d. How to proofread complex documents: i.

Print a double-spaced copy and set it aside for at least a day before starting. ii.

Allow adequate time to proofread carefully. iii.

Be prepared to find errors. iv.

Read the message at least twice—once for word meanings and once for grammar and mechanics. v.

Reduce your reading speed. vi.

Enlist a proofreading buddy. vii.

Use standard proofreading marks to indicate changes. viii.

Change the appearance of the text you are reading by printing on different-colored paper, changing the font and linespacing, enlarging the page view, or changing the background color.

Ethics Check: How Much Help is Fair?

The line must be drawn at rewriting the original copy. Well-trained tutors know the difference between gentle, competent guidance and assuming control over the tutee’s paper. Students

also needs to take responsibility for their writing and should want to learn from each writing center visit instead of seeking quick fixes. In the workplace you can expect prompt and creative responses to feedback and text modifications. Writers cannot hide behind their collaborators but must share the responsibility for the final product.

V.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Your Message (L.O. 6.5, PPT Slides 33–34, DISC: Theory application) e. To evaluate the effectiveness of a message, try asking these questions: i.

Is it polished and clear enough to convince the reader that you are worth listening to? ii.

How successful will this message be? iii.

Does it say what you want it to? iv.

Will it achieve your purpose? v.

How will you know whether it succeeds? f.

Encourage the receiver to respond to your message and use that feedback to improve your communication technique in the future.

g. Although any criticism is painful, try not to be defensive. Consider feedback as valuable advice tailored to your writing weaknesses––and strengths.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as wholeclass discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class. (Discussion: Good Writing in the Age of E-mail (L.O. 6.1–6.5) Duration: 10 minutes. a. A blogger has asserted that e-mail has made good writing more difficult to achieve because it invites hitting Send before you have thought through, organized, reviewed, and even rewritten your message. b. Do you agree that good writing has become more difficult because of e-mail? i. Answer: Some might argue that e-mail has made the process easier because it’s so simple to dash off a message without thinking too hard about it. However, that is precisely the problem. Good writing requires thought, as well as revision. Celebrated author James Michener, who wrote more than 40 books, said, “I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an

excellent rewriter.” Especially in business writing, clear messages take time to create and even more time to revise.

1. Discussion: Making the Time to Revise (L.O. 6.1–6.5) Duration: 10 minutes. a. In this hurry-up era of e-mailing, messaging, and tweeting, the idea of stopping to revise a message seems counterproductive. What? Stop to proofread and edit?

Crazy idea! No time! b. In this digital era of rapid communication, how can you justify the time it takes to stop and revise a message? i. Answer: It doesn’t matter how quickly a person responds or what channel is used for communication. Taking the time to revise to deliver a careful message is necessary for many reasons. It respects the reader; sloppy messages send the nonverbal message that the writer doesn’t think the recipient is important enough to clean up the writing. Careless messages also create frustration, reduce productivity, and kill the writer’s credibility.

Even short messages require a quick reading before printing or sending.

Writers save themselves embarrassment and miscommunication by taking the time to revise and proofread. A member of Congress had a staff member retype a letter cowritten by two parents’ organizations. The letter urged Congress to vote against school voucher programs for the District of Columbia. The original was fine, but the new version was riddled with grammatical errors and typos. In explaining the lapse, a spokeswoman explained that it was an issue of haste and proofreading.

2. Discussion: Using Clear and Concise Writing (L.O. 6.2) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Assume you have started a new job in which you respond to customers by using boilerplate (previously constructed) paragraphs. Some of them contain clichés such as pursuant to your request and in accordance with your wishes. Other paragraphs are wordy and violate the principle of using concise and clear writing that you have learned. b. What should you do? i. Answer: The best plan probably is to use the paragraphs until your credibility with superiors has been established. Then you could volunteer to help revise the paragraphs to make them more concise and readable.

3. Discussion: Conveying Warmth and Enthusiasm (L.O. 6.3) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Most users of e-mail recognize that digital communication is undergoing exclamation-point inflation. When one female manager recently attempted to go without using exclamation points for one month, she found it difficult and time consuming to create ways to convey warmth and enthusiasm without them. She also found that messages without them prompted responses such as, “Are you

mad at me?” Linguist and communication guru Deborah Tannen has found that “women (and men) expect emphasis and enthusiasm from other women, frequently in the form of exclamations or all-caps type.” b. What could managers do to convey warmth and enthusiasm without resorting to exclamation points and all caps in messages? i. Answer: In workplace messages, warmth and enthusiasm can be conveyed by the choice of words and the ideas expressed. Doing so, however, takes more effort than popping in exclamation points. In conveying audible messages, warmth and enthusiasm can be expressed by using the telephone or speaking face to face. c. Why do you think it is particularly important for female managers to convey warmth in their “boss messages”? i. Answer: Female managers may have to work harder to appear warm because their “boss messages” may sound cold and unfriendly without the social smile of an exclamation point. “Male bosses who write in blunt, terse prose aren’t noticed much, but women bosses tread a thin line. Too few softeners like exclamation points, and they’re viewed as hard and unfeeling; too many, and they lack gravitas.” One manager remarked, “Just ask women bosses, for whom routine emails can become complex calculations about warmth, likability, and authority. Better to conclude an email with ‘Thanks!’” [Waller, N. (2018, October 23). I’m not mad. I’m just not using exclamation points. The Wall Street Journal, p. R7.]

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Grammarly: Useful but Imperfect (Part 1): In this case study, students will read about the creation and purpose of Grammarly. Advantages and disadvantages are discussed.

Students will also be directed to answer a few questions reflecting on what they read. a. At what step of the writing process might Grammarly and other potential AI writing assistants be most helpful? i. The consensus seems to be that Grammarly and other automated written corrective feedback (AWCF) tools are most useful during revision, the third step in the 3-x-3 writing process. Most people use it as a final check for errors and inconsistencies [Moore, B. (2020, July 16). Grammarly review. PC Magazine]. Checking while writing, although possible with Grammarly and in MS Word, can be distracting. b. Grammarly does not work offline. What risks might arise from Grammarly users’ uploading their documents to the cloud?

i. Privacy and data security should be foremost on any Internet user’s mind. Giving a browser plugin access to what people type online comes with an inherent risk.

Several years ago a vulnerability was discovered that could have leaked users’ data such as documents, logs, and history. Fortunately, Grammarly was able to fix the bug swiftly. However, any traffic online, any cloud storage, exposes us to potential hacker attacks. It goes without saying that proofing particularly sensitive documents on Grammarly might not be worth the risk. Why is a writing process helpful in developing a presentation of new ideas? c. One user sums up the utility of Grammarly as follows: “[I]t’s not that it’s transformed my prose. I just find it helpful as a sort of linguistic Jiminy Cricket that watches me at work, steers me in the right direction, and points out when I slip up.” What is the Grammarly user saying? Explain the meaning of linguistic Jiminy Cricket and what the reference says about the user’s tone. i. People in North America who tend to be steeped in Disney lore would understand the reference to Pinocchio’s sidekick, the well-dressed cricket. The Blue Fairy designated Jiminy Cricket as Pinocchio’s “conscience.” In the context of writing, Grammarly is humorously characterized as the linguistic equivalent of a guardian watching over the writer. Even if someone is not familiar with the Disney character, the context evoked in the quotation helps explain the reference.

Case Study: Grammarly: Useful but Imperfect (Part 2): In this case study, students will test the accuracy of Grammarly’s services through the free trial option. They are to save a copy to share with the class and instructor along with a summary of their observations. i. Results will vary but expect a fair amount of annotation in the demo reports students will provide. It’s important to provide some guidance to students as they attempt to interpret their results. A small group activity could precede a discussion of the entire class.

Grammarly addresses vocabulary diversity, rare words, and sentence as well as word length. It even has a plagiarism checker. The last page of the demo report features a list of all flagged errors and suggested changes in assorted colors. The types of error are clearly labeled.

The most impressive results are those that evaluate tone and audience engagement. AI has made strides toward recognizing patterns that identify these complex features of written documents. After perusing and discussing their reports, students will be ready to identify strengths as well areas that may require closer attention. Students could then summarize their results and write up insights from their Grammarly experience in a memo or a post on your LMS. What follows is a trio of collages composed of Grammarly results after the submission of a sample document. The three slides show the Grammarly interface with the feedback. If you wish to test Grammarly’s capabilities, submit a text of your own. Incidentally, the spelling and grammar checker in Microsoft Word has also come a long way. If you run your document through it, the software likewise provides a score and various categories of “refinement.” Comparing the results of a Grammarly check with those rendered by a

Microsoft Word editor could be useful. Likewise, this exercise would lend itself to a general discussion of correctness and the perception of error.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. Yes, of course, messages can be too short. Although conciseness is valued, messages must be clear. Also, they should not be curt or abrupt. If extra verbiage is needed to explain or sound friendlier, then a message should be longer. Persuasive and sales messages are necessarily longer than routine business memos and e-mails. Messages should be as long as necessary to be clear and effective.

2. It doesn’t matter how quickly a person responds or what channel is used for communication. Taking the time to revise to deliver a careful message is necessary for many reasons. It respects the reader; sloppy messages send the nonverbal message that the writer doesn’t think the recipient is important enough to clean up the writing. Careless messages also create frustration, reduce productivity, and destroy the writer’s credibility.

Even short messages require a quick reading before printing or sending. Writers save themselves embarrassment and miscommunication by taking the time to revise and proofread. A member of Congress had a staff member retype a letter cowritten by two parents’ organizations. The letter urged Congress to vote against school voucher programs for the District of Columbia. The original was fine, but the new version was riddled with grammatical errors and typos. In explaining the lapse, a spokeswoman explained that it was an issue of haste and proofreading.

3. Although listing items in bulleted or enumerated lists does improve readability, excessive use of such lists thwarts other business writing goals. Business writing must be purposeful, goal oriented, and conversational. Achieving a friendly, conversational tone is difficult or impossible in a bulleted list. It’s also difficult to be persuasive or to convey a “you” view in lists. Bulleted lists are valuable to improve skim value, but they are appropriate only when used occasionally in presenting related ideas. Used excessively, they begin to look like laundry lists and turn off readers.

4. It doesn’t matter whether it was fair. You made mistakes, and those mistakes obscured the excellent work you did. Take the criticism graciously and promise to be more careful in proofreading in the future. This is a good lesson in the need for excellent proofreading.

No matter how outstanding your research was, it was overlooked because of a few careless mistakes. No matter how small, a few mistakes can cast doubt on the entire project. Resolve not to let this happen again.

5. Adrien is in a difficult, sensitive position and needs to be cautious about handling this situation. All options involve risk. She could edit the article without mentioning it. She could also ask the CEO for permission to revise the article, but this action could anger her

boss and endanger her position. She could seek the advice of one of the vice presidents, but both of them seem to be protecting the status quo. If her interim position will last only a short time longer, she could take the easy way out and ignore the article, allowing her successor to handle this situation. However, ignoring the article is the least acceptable option because it makes Adrien look less competent and unable to make difficult decisions.

ACTIVITIES 6.1 Wordy Expressions (L.O. 1) a. Normally, we would probably buy a larger building; however, because the economic outlook has dimmed, we cannot. b. We cannot complete the report now because we have encountered difficulties in our research and lost a collaborator to serious illness. c. Because our tax and regulatory policies hamper a return of manufacturing to the United States, they should be reformed. d. Although forced shutdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic caused huge job losses in manufacturing, 63 percent of executives polled by Deloitte are optimistic about the future. e. Rarely do the new names of merged corporations signal clearly what the companies do.

6.2 Long Lead-Ins (L.O. 1) a. b. c. d. e.

We will observe Friday after Thanksgiving as a holiday.

I received your e-mail and attachments.

Your homeowner’s insurance policy will expire on November 30.

Incorrect address labels cause most of the shipping errors.

Employees who lose laptops endanger company security. OR: Lost laptops endanger company security.

6.3 There is/are and it is/was Fillers (L.O. 1) a. The CEO first needs to consider our plan. b. Too many people are dying while taking dangerous selfies. c. Today’s password manager apps can automatically generate and store strong passwords. d. Our Information Technology manager told us that keystroke-logging devices gather information typed on a computer, including passwords. e. The HR manager complained that many employees did not return the health surveys, and noncompliance would delay new health insurance plans.

6.4 Redundancies (L.O. 1) a. Some of the funniest TikTok videos combine clips from movies or TV to produce comedic masterpieces and memes.

b. Because the proposals are identical, we don’t need to check each of them [OR: all of them]. c. Our supervisor requested that team members working from home return to the office. d. The manager repeated his warning that large files must be backed up. e. The entire team agreed that all office walls be painted beige.

6.5 Empty Words (L.O. 1) a. Normally, we try to write all clients about their investments regardless of the amount they invested. b. Did you know that our budget has a deficit of about $1 million? c. The client scheduled the pitch meeting for 3 p.m. d. I will sign the contract immediately. e. Because of the surprising response, the company expanded gift program.

6.6 Clear, Precise Words (L.O. 2) a. Lilyana complained that the Universal film Space Cats she edited lacked humor and originality. b. A realtor told me that the tiny Cambria beach home would be listed for sale on July 1. c. SpaceX engineers are recruited from the most prestigious colleges and universities. OR: SpaceX recruits engineers from the most prestigious colleges and universities. d. Computer science students don’t have to worry about finding well-paying jobs after graduation. e. The human resources director at Tornos International e-mailed us about moving the diversity training seminar from June 16 to June 23.

6.7 Trite Business Phrases (L.O. 2) a. b. c. d. e.

We will gladly send the original copies in a separate mailing.

As you requested, we are returning your funds immediately.

Enclosed is a check for $900. OR: We enclosed a check for $900.

As you requested, we will no longer send you marketing e-mails and promotional offers.

If you need help, please call us. OR: Please call us if you need help.

6.8 Clichés, Slang, Buzzwords, and Wordiness (L.O. 2) a. As usual, our main competitor has made an underhanded claim that is unfair to us [OR: devious, false, undeserved]. b. Although our last pitch meeting failed, we believe that our new presentation will succeed. c. To motivate manufacturing and distribution to save resources, we need to think creatively. d. To motivate manufacturing and distribution to save resources, we need to think creatively. e. If you review the budget section, you will see that it addresses curbing costs on expedited shipping.

6.9 Buried Verbs and Zombie Nouns (L.O. 2) a. We must agree on a location before we can authorize purchasing a property. b. Ms. Ramos proposed to officially appraise the value of the commercial property we were considering. c. At its next meeting, the board of directors will discuss the hostile takeover. d. In much of modern machining, computers operate mills, lathes, and other cutting machines [OR: control the operation of]. e. The power plant management has not acted on the planned reactor shutdown yet. f. Before funding a new business idea, venture capitalists must determine the viability of their potential investment.

6.10 Lists, Bullets, and Headings (L.O. 3) a. Withdrawing money from an ATM is a quick and convenient way to access your money, especially during a cash emergency. To use an ATM safely, follow a few procedures: i.

Only use ATMs situated in well-lit and busy areas, particularly after nightfall. ii.

Observe your surroundings and leave if you see suspicious people. iii.

Check the cash machine to be sure it has no false fronts or anything doubtful. iv.

Protect your PIN by placing your hand over the keypad to act as a shield. v.

Use a challenging PIN with more than four letters or numbers. b. Unadvertised or “hidden” jobs may make up as much as 80 to 85 percent of unfilled openings, according to Fred Coon, a licensed employment agent. To uncover hidden jobs, Coon offers some tips: • Join industry groups. Associations, chambers of commerce, or Toastmasters are excellent ways to make contacts before you need them.

• Talk to insiders. Insights from those already in the industry can help you learn how to best chart your career path.

• Search company websites. Many companies post openings only on their corporate websites. c. A high-powered MBA program costs hundreds of dollars an hour. Our program covers the same information: • Entrepreneurship tips • Starting a business • Writing a business plan • Business taxes • Marketing feasibility studies • Employment benefits plans d. Many people want to improve their credit scores. Here are four simple tips for doing so: • Fix mistakes. Check your credit at least once a year, and dispute any errors.

• Pay on time. At least 35 percent of your score is based on your payment history.

• Lower your balances. Keep your personal credit balances as low as possible.

The less you are using, the better your score will be.

• Keep older accounts. By maintaining older accounts, you show stability and have a longer history to share.

6.11 Responding to Customer Tweets in Less Than 280 Characters (L.O. 1) a. @_taylorste We do! Check out and sign up for Piece of the Pie Rewards here: [The social media manager added a hyperlink that is rendered as an image with the company logo and the heading “Domino’s Pizza, Order Online.”] [74 characters plus hyperlink] b. JetBlue responded to the first complaint as follows: @alannasavage We understand how frustrating delays can be and sincerely apologize for the inconvenience. Please send us a DM with your confirmation code and full name as it appears on the reservation. We’ll take a closer look. [Tweet includes a graphic with a hyperlink labeled “Send us a private message.”] [211 characters] The angrier follow-up tweet received this answer from JetBlue: @alannasavage Although we understand your concerns, the flight was reviewed by our System Operations team and the compensation issued is in accordance with our Customer Bill of Rights. Follow this link https://bit.ly/3557QSk to learn more. [224 characters.]

JetBlue tweeted this response to another, equally unhappy passenger: @SWazcinator5 We apologize for any frustration you’ve experienced. All flight disruptions are reviewed for compensation according to our Customer Bill of Rights. If yours qualifies, you’ll receive an email within five days. c. @justinmpetito Hi! This is Lisa in the Delta Baggage Service Center. We apologize that your baggage was mishandled during your recent travel. Please DM your bag tag number and your name. [185 characters] d. @jasonbradshaw No problem! I looked up a couple that might work for you. Salon Plush salonplush.com and Via Dolce Salon seem to have some good reviews viadolcesalon.com I hope this helps! [192 characters] e. @kendallina Is it just the wireless connection? Can you plug directly into the model and see if hard wire works?” [114 characters]

6.12 Document for Analysis: PowerPoint Webinar (L.O. 1−5) Revision To: Jase Richmond <jrichmond@spiratech.com> From: Dominic Navarro <dnavarro@spiratech.com> Subject: How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint Jase,

As you requested, I attended a refresher webinar about presentation techniques. You suggested that I might learn advanced tips to share with other staff members, especially those who use PowerPoint. The host, Alana Petty, made several important points in an entertaining presentation she called “Death by PowerPoint.” Our staff members might consider the following tips to sharpen our PowerPoint skills: • • • •

Create the message, not the slide, first. Only after preparing the entire script should you think about how to illustrate it.

Prepare slides with short lines. Slides should have only four to six words per line.

Short lines encourage people to listen to the speaker and not read the slide.

Don’t put everything on the slide. If presenters put too much on the slide, the audience will be reading Item C while the speaker are still talking about Item A. Think in terms of headlines. What is the main point? What does it mean to the audience?

Please let me know whether you want me to elaborate on these points after the next staff meeting.

Dominic [Full contact information] Weaknesses • • • • • • •

Begins with long lead-in (This message is being written because).

Includes trite expression (pursuant to your request).

Suffers from wordy fillers (there might be and There were several points).

Includes empty words (on the subject of and of an important nature).

Converts verbs into nouns (give consideration to) and (to make an illustration).

Fails to use bulleted list with category headings to improve readability for four items.

Concludes with cliché (do not hesitate to), redundancy (elaborate and expand), and wordy, unclear expression (subsequent to).

6.13 Document for Analysis: Building Security Inquiry (L.O. 1–5) Revision To: Edward Yang <eyang@ontrade.com> From: Francis Middleton <fmiddleton@codefense.com> Subject: Making Your Business Safer Dear Mr. Yang: At your request, I am sending you the attached materials about improving security in your business. To boost your after-hours security, you should first decide what assets must be

protected. You are probably concerned about your electronic equipment and company data.

Because we assume you will want to protect both equipment and data, we suggest the following three steps to deter crime: 1. Install defensive lighting. Our lighting expert can custom design both outside and inside lighting.

2. Post security signs. Amateur thieves are often deterred by signs on windows and doors.

3. Install motion alarms. These sensors cover protected areas. The sensors can activate bells, sirens, or lights, thus scaring off intruders.

After reading the enclosed materials, please call me at (385) 000-0000 to discuss further protecting your business.

Sincerely, Francis Middleton Weaknesses • • • • • • • •

Says the obvious (We have received your request for information).

Uses trite business phrase (as per your request).

Fails to use conversational language (the undersigned).

Transforms verbs into nouns (improvement of security instead of improving security; make a decision instead of decide; make a recommendation instead of recommend; obtain protection instead of protect).

Uses wordy phrases (due to the fact that, because of the fact that).

Suffers from redundancies (first and foremost, last and final).

Fails to express conciseness (in all probability instead of probably; areas that are to be protected instead of protected areas; initiate a verbal discussion instead of discuss).

Fails to use familiar words (contemplate instead of think).

6.14 Document for Analysis: Manager’s Malware Warning (L.O. 1-5) Revision To: Staff From: Derek Mills <dmills@wilcox-franklin.com> Subject: Four Tips for Avoiding Ransomware and Other Malware Because ransomware attacks against high-profile organizations are booming, please consider the following four cybersecurity tips to prevent malicious hackers from taking our IT system hostage and extorting money from us:

Tip 1: Improve password security. Complex passwords are among the best defenses against cybercrime. You can make network access more secure by doing the following: • Use strong passwords. Create a strong password for each device or account. Long passwords are more secure. Consider using simple sentences as passphrases.

• Subscribe to a password manager. Password manager applications safely store logins and passwords to all your accounts in the cloud. They can also identify weak or repeated passwords.

• Choose multi-factor authentication, if available. Multi-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security in addition to your login and password. It consists of an access code or PIN, a token or ID card, or a biometric fingerprint.

• Select your security questions carefully. Use private information about yourself that only you would know. Answers that anyone can find on social media or facts everyone knows about you can help cybercriminals guess your password.

Tip 2: Access only secure networks. Use Internet connections you can trust, such as your home network, but use WPA3 encryption for your Wi-Fi access. Public networks are not secure enough, allowing bad actors to intercept your data. On open networks protect yourself with a firewall, antivirus software, or a virtual private network (VPN).

Tip 3: Keep your personal electronic device software current. Manufacturers issue updates as vulnerabilities in their products emerge. Set up your devices to receive automatic updates. Never download obscure third-party software from unknown vendors.

Tip 4: Be wary of suspicious e-mails. The goal of phishing e-mail is to gain information about you, steal your money, or install malware on your devices.

Finally, if an e-mail looks suspicious, please use Shift Delete to erase it permanently. I hope these tips are useful to you and will protect us all from ransom attacks. For specific questions, please contact our IT specialists.

Derek M. [Full contact information] Weaknesses • • • • • •

Includes a meaningless subject line.

Begins with long lead-in (I am sending this message because) and an awkwardly long quotation instead of a brief definition of ransomware.

Repeats obvious information (extra safe security, open and freely accessible networks, improve and enhance).

Fails to convert that clause to concise adjective (networks that are public instead of public networks).

Includes wordy there is filler (there are hackers that instead of hackers use ransomware).

Uses empty words (in all probability instead of probably or most likely) and other wordiness.

•

Displays excessive exuberance and uses slang (incredibly important, fave gizmos, fishy, rear their ugly head and double exclamation points at the end of the message).

6.15 How Much Writing Will Your Future Career Require? (L.O. 1–5) This activity could be one of the best possible for convincing students that communication and writing in particular are very important to their future success. Be sure to have students either present their findings orally or write a detailed memo or e-mail message. You will be amazed how businesspeople reaffirm everything you have said to students. Once students have interviewed professionals who have reaffirmed the importance of communication, they may have an even stronger desire to master writing. To save students frustration, you could keep a list of businesspeople who are willing to be interviewed—perhaps your acquaintances or contacts affiliated with your business school.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False. The pandemic may be over, but office workers are still wary of touching hands.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, handshaking was common in American workplaces.

Anyone could initiate a handshake, regardless of rank or status, in the office. The pandemic led to fist bumps or elbow touching to avoid the handshake. This behavior still persists; workers shake hands much less. Health professionals applaud the demise of handshaking because it was suited to transfer all kinds of viral or bacterial infections from one person to another, particularly in the cold season.

You may have encountered rules that may persist in some cultures but are generally considered outdated in the United States: In social situations, men were expected to wait until a woman extended her hand for a handshake. At work it was considered proper to wait for higher ranking individuals to extend their hand to subordinates. In our more egalitarian times, such rules are no longer observed.

2. True. Even in contemporary open offices, workers like to maintain healthy boundaries.

Although cubicles do not afford employees much privacy, most office workers consider them their “territory.” You wouldn’t dream of checking that absent person’s smartphone on the desk, would you? Similarly, a clear line must be drawn at removing items from someone’s purse or briefcase, even if the document is visible. And what if it isn’t the report you need, after all? Rummaging through someone’s briefcase is never acceptable.

Return to your spot in the office and text or e-mail your co-worker to ask about a good time for retrieving the report. On a side note, you never know who is watching. Your

colleagues could get the wrong idea if they saw you reaching into your collaborator’s briefcase.

3. False. Do not expect to be good buddies with your boss, regardless of any similarity in age or personality. Realize that your boss is in charge. Be friendly at business functions, but don’t strive to socialize outside of business hours.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Think about your own speaking and writing. Do you recognize some favorite redundancies that you use in spoken or written messages? When did you realize that you could be more concise and precise by eliminating these expressions?

Topic 2: The playwright August Wilson has said, “The simpler you say it, the more eloquent it is.” The late Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg offered this advice to writers: “Never use four words when three will do.” Is Wilson’s statement counterintuitive––how can simple expression be impressive? Aren’t academic writers encouraged to write elaborate prose? Why is Justice Ginsburg so frugal with her words?

Topic 3: What proofreading tasks can you safely ask a proofreading buddy to perform?

What if that person is not a skilled writer?

Topic 4: French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal is said to have excused himself wittily for the extravagant length of one of his letters by saying he had not the time to make it shorter. Cicero, John Locke, Benjamin Franklin, Henry David Thoreau, Woodrow Wilson, and many other authors have made similar clever remarks when referring to the time it takes to write concisely. How do these remarks relate to the process of revision?

Topic 5: Are you a good proofreader? Is it easier to find other people’s errors than your own? Why? What are you good at finding? What do you frequently miss?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 5

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore short forms of workplace communication, familiarizing students with workplace technologies and best practices that save time, reduce blunders, and boost credibility. First, we cover the usage, structure, and format of e-mails and memos in the digital era workplace. Next, we examine the liabilities of best practices of workplace messaging and texting. Then, we cover the professional applications of and standards of business podcasts. Additionally, we cover how businesses use blogs to connect with internal and external audiences. Finally, we discuss how to navigate internal and external social media networks within business organizations and explore current business uses of generative AI.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5

Discuss professional communication with e-mails and memos in the digital-era workplace.

Describe best practices and liabilities of workplace messaging and texting.

Identify professional uses of business podcasts.

Explain how businesses use blogs for storytelling to connect with external and internal audiences.

Discuss business organizations’ external and internal social media practices.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • •

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Refocused opening case featuring cybersecurity firm Averon to drive home to students the dangers of lax digital security and ill-conceived e-mails on the job.

Rewrote large sections of the chapter to reflect many new trends in contemporary communication technology, including ChatGPT, digital overload, Slack etiquette, the TikTok controversy, the development of wearables, and the liability burden of work messaging for companies.

Introduced a discussion of generative AI and the business uses of the technology to help students understand how this revolutionary technology is changing the workplace.

Added coverage of the dark side of social media to give students opportunities to reflect on the many risks arising from social networking, e.g., cyberbullying, disinformation, and threats to privacy.

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Shown persuasively by citing recent and relevant sources that e-mail remains the main channel of communication in today’s workplace, despite the rise of workplace messaging and collaboration apps.

Devised a new Plugged In feature advising students on keeping their data safe with VPNs, password managers, passwordless authentication, multi-factor authentication, and protections from a new pervasive iPhone scam.

Presented thought-provoking critical-thinking topics such as the recent Surgeon General’s warning about the effects of social media on youth mental health, the fallout from the loss of “gatekeepers” in media and publishing, or the potential risks of generative AI and the IoT, when smart home components can be hijacked by hackers.

Created end-of-chapter activity that involves the use of ChatGPT to create a fair digital media policy thus demonstrating to students how thoughtful prompting and astute editing can legitimately (as long as allowed in students’ colleges and universities) help them learn writing constructively with AI.

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CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 7. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Communicating in the Digital Age With E-Mails and Memos (L.O. 7.1, PPT Slides 3–16, DISC: Communication evolution; Synchronous messaging; Syn./Asyn. choice) a. New technologies are transforming the way we exchange information and conduct business. i.

Social media have transformed communication from one-on-one conversations to one-to-many transmissions. ii.

The distinction between online and offline is becoming blurry as our virtual and real-life connectedness intertwine. iii.

Communicators are increasingly switching to mobile devices; desktop computers are being replaced by laptops, smartphones, and tablets. iv.

Data and applications are now stored in the cloud instead of on individual devices. v.

Virtual private networks (VPNs) offer secure access to organizations’ information from any location in the world that provides an Internet connection. b. E-mail is still going strong 50 years later. i.

Most business messages are now e-mail based.

ii.

E-mail mostly replaced paper memos for internal communication and letters for external audiences. iii.

Professional protocol differs from messaging practices for text, chat, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, etc. iv.

E-mail is still heavily used for marketing. v.

Useful statistics include: (a) Fifty years after the first e-mail was sent, traffic grows 4 percent a year worldwide. (b) Four billion global users exchange 320 billion e-mails (125 billion related to business) daily. (c) Office workers receive an average of 120 messages per day. vi.

Common complaints about e-mail include the following: (a) Messages can be confusing and poorly written. (b) Dealing with e-mail is time consuming. (c) The volume of workplace messages can be overwhelming. (d) Many messages are unnecessary. (e) Overuse of Reply All wastes time. (f) E-mail can lead to the pressure of being available 24/7. vii.

It’s important to consider the permanence of digital messages. (a) E-mail should be used only when appropriate. (b) Short, informal messages may be sent via text, instant messenger, or chat. (c) E-mail is effective for well-organized and longer content, messages to multiple recipients, or where content must be archived. c. To compose a professional e-mail, follow these guidelines (Model Document 7.1): i.

Draft a compelling but concise subject line. ii.

Include a greeting. iii.

Organize the body for readability and tone. iv.

Close effectively. d. To keep your inbox in check, follow these tips: i.

Check your e-mail at set times. ii.

Turn off audio and visual alerts to avoid distraction. iii.

Agree on a schedule with your boss and share it with your colleagues. iv.

Apply the two-minute rule and schedule time-consuming e-mail on your calendar instead. v.

Take one of five steps right away after reading an e-mail: delete, delegate, respond, defer, or do. e. Use down-editing to reply efficiently. i.

Down-editing – inserting your responses into parts of the incoming message (a) Delete message headers, signature, and other unnecessary parts. (b) Include only the parts to which you are responding. (c) Identify your responses with your initials.

(d) Format your responses with a different color for easy reading.

Better e-mail can be achieved by applying best practices to your communications. (Figure 7.1) g. Use interoffice memos for important internal messages that: i.

Are too long for e-mail, ii.

Require a permanent record, iii.

Demand formality, or iv.

Inform employees without access to e-mail. h. Memos function better as permanent records because e-mails may be cumbersome to store and may contain a long thread of confusing replies. E-mails may also change the origination date whenever the file is accessed. i. Memos and e-mails are similar in that they both: i.

Convey nonsensitive information; ii.

Are organized with the main idea first; iii.

Have guide words calling for a subject line, a dateline, and the identifications of sender and receiver; iv.

Can be organized with headings, bulleted lists, and enumerated items; and v.

End with action items, deadlines, a summary, and a closing thought. j. Model Document 7.2 illustrates how interoffice memos are formatted and how they can be created to improve readability with lists and white space. k. Use this checklist for professional e-mail and memos: i.

Subject line (a) Summarize the central idea. (b) Include labels if appropriate. (c) Avoid empty or ambiguous words. ii.

Opening (a) State the purpose for writing. (b) Highlight questions. (c) Supply information directly. iii.

Body (a) Explain details. (b) Enhance readability. (c) Apply document design. (d) Be cautious. iv.

Closing (a) Request action. (b) Provide a goodwill statement or a closing thought. (c) Avoid cliché endings.

Ethics Check: Bcc: Sneaky and Rude?

Today’s writers should use Cc (carbon copy) to openly reveal all recipients of a message.

Violating this practice can become quite risky in the workplace if, for example, one of the hidden recipients accidentally reveals knowledge of the content transmitted in the e-mail. Such lapses could lead to embarrassment or worse. f.

At least one etiquette pundit has likened the use of Bcc to having a phone conversation on speakerphone while not telling the person at the other end that others are in the room. However, the expert argues that using Bcc to veil the identity of the copied contacts from each other—if they don’t know each other—to keep their e-mail private is legitimate and proper. The sender’s motive is key, she claims. [Kallos, J. (2020, January 23). Is BCC: Impolite and sneaky?

Business Email Etiquette.] Sending a mass e-mail almost requires Bcc to avoid a huge discussion or prevent the use of reply all among recipients.

II. Messaging and Texting at Work (L.O. 7.2, PPT Slides 17–26, DISC: Communication evolution; Synchronous messaging) a. Instant messaging – enables two or more individuals to communicate in real time by exchanging brief text-based messages i.

Live, online chats with company representatives or AI-powered chat bots handle routine customer inquiries. b. Text messaging – popular means for exchanging brief messages in real time, usually via smartphone i.

Texting requires a short messaging service (SMS) supplied by a wireless service provider. A rich communication service (RCS) can enable advanced features such as multimedia-enhanced, customizable texts. c. Fueled by online security and legal compliance concerns, large enterprises have bundled multiple communication and collaboration functions behind corporate firewalls. (Figure 7.2) d. One benefit of bundling various channels is presence functionality. e. The benefits of instant messaging and texting include: i.

Real-time communication ii.

Quick decision making iii.

Effective collaboration for dispersed workforces iv.

Dissemination of time-sensitive information v.

Customer engagement (Figure 7.3) f. There are also risks associated with messaging apps and texting. i.

Can be an unnecessary distraction ii.

Security concerns regarding privileged information and company records g. Consider compliance requirements and security concerns: i.

Must meet SEC and other regulatory body requirements ii.

Oversight can be overwhelming and burdensome and lead to employees ignoring protocol. iii.

Companies are susceptible to phishing, viruses, and malware. h. Be aware of the liability burden, as accidents due to distraction and harassment expose employers to expensive legal liability. i. Best practices for instant messaging and texting include the following: i.

Comply with company policies and don’t disclose sensitive information. ii.

Avoid harassment and discriminatory content. iii.

Be aware of the appropriateness and security of content. iv.

Don’t damage your reputation or your employer’s.

III.

v.

Don’t text or chat while driving. vi.

Organize business and personal contact lists separately. vii.

Avoid chitchat, slang, jargon, and abbreviations. viii.

Keep presence status up to date. ix.

Use good grammar and proper spelling. j. While texting can be quick and unobtrusive, it is important to use proper etiquette. i.

Effective alternative to a phone call or e-mail ii.

Used for quick and routine messages iii.

Follow considerate and professional etiquette guidelines (Figure 7.4) k. All major technology companies now provide instant messaging solutions. Slack remains a popular team message app (18 million daily users), though Microsoft Teams has jumped far ahead (270 million daily users). i.

The upside: (a) Declutters e-mail inboxes while increasing camaraderie and collaboration (b) Praised for its intuitive interface and seamless integration with productivity tools (c) Enables employers to securely monitor, log, and archive all communication ii.

The downside: (a) Can be a workplace distraction and may intrude on home life (b) Informality can be “an incubator for misbehavior.” l. Slack etiquette includes the following: i.

Don’t use slang or acronyms with swear words in them. ii.

Avoid talking about sensitive or personal topics. iii.

Think twice about arguing and don’t bully others. iv.

Compliment your coworkers. v.

Curb the emojis. vi.

Use miscellaneous channels to make friends. vii.

Adjust your tone to your audience. viii.

Pause notifications to focus.

Making Podcasts Work for Business (L.O. 7.3, PPT Slides 27–32, DISC: Communication evolution) a. The growth in smartphone use and other technological advances have boosted the reach and popularity of podcasting. i.

Podcasts – digital audio programs resembling radio shows (the words broadcasting and iPod combined to create the word podcast) ii.

Distributed regularly – daily, weekly, monthly iii.

Played via Web browser or mobile app iv.

Can cover topics as diverse as news, politics, business, sports, popular culture, and self-help v.

May be pre-recorded or live

vi.

IV.

Unlike watching a video, listening to a podcast allows busy professionals to learn, keep informed, and be entertained while maximizing their limited time on their commute or in the gym. b. Corporations and other businesses: i.

Offer independence from social media algorithms and diversification of media channels ii.

Modest investment required attractive to businesses iii.

Used internally to inform, engage, and train staff iv.

Can replace costly teleconferences and offer on-demand consumption c. Entrepreneurs and enterprising individuals: i.

Well-known businesspeople, TV personalities, and celebrities attract listeners. (Figure 7.5) ii.

Entrepreneurs can sell their own success stories. iii.

May be combined with self-help books and blogs d. News and media organizations: i.

Often distribute several podcast series ii.

Capitalize on high-value production equipment, technical and journalistic expertise e. Education podcasts: i.

Used by some educators to facilitate accessible learning for auditory learners and students with disabilities ii.

Creates a portable archive of lessons to consume anytime and anywhere iii. iTunes U and Open University (among others) provide learning resources across a wide array of subjects. iv.

PlayerFM aggregates podcasts for ease of discoverability. f. Can podcasts make money, and do they last? i.

Podcasts with sizable audiences attract advertisers. ii.

Sponsors pay podcasters for product endorsements. iii.

Disclosure of promotion deals is important in establishing trust. iv.

Most companies and brands also maintain video channels as part of their overall media strategy.

Telling Stories With Blogs and News Sites (L.O. 7.4, PPT Slides 33–39, DISC: Communication evolution) a. Companies can use blogs and news sites to tell stories. i.

Keep customers, employees, and the public informed ii.

Accumulate widely dispersed, vast audience iii.

Shape a brand story in a longer narrative format iv.

Direct interaction with readers has mostly migrated to social media. v.

Transition from blog (a website or social media platform with generally well-crafted articles or commentaries) to narrative posts in News or Stories sections of corporate websites. b. Public relations and customer relations: i.

Provide up-to-date company information to the media, employees, and the public

ii.

V.

Tech companies rely heavily on blogs to highlight new technologies or sustainability efforts. iii.

Monetization through advertising, while quirky blogs can drive traffic and increase sales iv.

Influencers (loyal fans with a large social media following) drive traffic and sales. v.

Brand ambassadors are compensated when they evangelize (advocate) for brands. c. Engagement and viral marketing: i.

Engagement wanes as new generation of content creators utilizes other outlets. ii.

Marketers still strive for the rapid spread of messages online through viral marketing, but this is difficult to orchestrate. iii.

Large companies use social media experts to monitor posts about their organizations and products. d. Online communities: i.

Loyal followers are drawn by product updates, offers, freebies, and other news. e. Internal communication and recruiting: i.

Virtual teams keep on track by staying in touch and sharing updates. ii.

Internal corporate blogs archive company knowledge. iii.

Public-facing blogs mirror company culture for recruiting employees. iv.

Requiring users to register in order to enable commenting allows greater control over the narrative. f. These seven tips can help you master blogging: i.

Craft a catchy but concise title. ii.

Ace the opening paragraph. iii.

Provide details in the body. iv.

Consider visuals. v.

Include calls to action. vi.

Edit and proofread. vii.

Respond to posts respectfully. g. The five journalistic Ws can and should be applied to blog creation. (Figure 7.6) Navigating Social Networking for Business (L.O. 7.5, PPT Slides 40–56, DISC: Communication evolution) a. Social media enables businesses to connect with customers and employees, share company news, promote goods and services, and exchange ideas. b. According to a survey of 505 U.S. employers, 98 percent check their job candidates’ online presence, and almost 80 percent have rejected candidates based on their social media content. c. Approximately 70 percent of American adults use some type of social media. i.

YouTube: 81 percent ii.

Facebook: 69 percent iii.

Instagram: 40 percent iv.

Pinterest: 30 percent

v. vi. vii. viii.

d.

e.

f.

g.

h. i.

j.

LinkedIn: 30 percent Snapchat, X, WhatsApp: 25 percent each TikTok: 21 percent Among 18- to 29-year-olds, Instagram (71 percent), Snapchat (65 percent), and TikTok (50 percent) rule.

Where businesses go social: i.

85 percent of Fortune 500 companies are now on Facebook, down 10 percent likely due to COVID-19. ii.

89 percent are on X. iii.

78 percent (but 100 percent of the top ten corporations) have an active YouTube presence. iv.

64 percent of the largest companies use Instagram, down 9 points from the previous year. v.

Only 8 percent of corporations have established a presence on TikTok even though it was the most downloaded app of 2021 and boasts more than 1 billion global users. vi.

TikTok influencers wield much clout on the platform, though U.S. authorities suspect it of delivering American user data to the Chinese government.

On Facebook, the top three product brands with the most fans are Facebook itself (183 million monthly active users), Samsung (162 million MAU), and CocaCola (107 million MAU). (Figure 7.7) Enterprise social networking sites mirror those of social media sites but are securely located behind corporate firewalls. i.

Ultimate goal is greater employee engagement and productivity ii.

May combine many functions, such as project management, organizational profiles, up-to-the-minute microblogging updates, crowdsourcing tools, task management, content storage, and forums Nimble damage control and responding to grievances: i.

Quickly respond to disasters and prepare for future disaster needs ii.

Use social analytics to track grievances posted on social media in order to respond quickly, restoring goodwill Connecting dispersed workers: i.

Match up and connect dispersed workers ii.

Share ideas and collaborate around the globe in real time Crowdsourcing employees to achieve buy-in: i.

Use incentives to motivate employees to solve business problems ii.

Solicit employee feedback Businesses vary in their approaches to personal social media use. i.

Content shared by employees achieves greater engagement and resharing than typical brand channels do. ii.

Authentic promotion and improved morale is often weighed against the risk of oversharing and confidential information leaks. iii.

36 percent of U.S. employers block social media at work, though efforts are easily circumvented.

iv.

45 percent of companies have no social media policy for their employees. k. Guidelines for safe social networking include (Figure 7.8): i.

Establish boundaries. ii.

Distrust privacy settings. iii.

Rein in your friends. iv.

Beware friending. v.

Expect the unexpected. l. Dos: i.

Learn your company’s rules. ii.

Avoid sending personal e-mail, IM, or texts from work machines and devices. iii.

Separate work and personal data. iv.

Be careful when blogging or posting on social networking sites. v.

Keep sensitive information private. vi.

Stay away from pornography, sexually explicit jokes, and inappropriate screen savers. m. Don’ts: i.

Don’t spread rumors, gossip, and negative, defamatory comments. ii.

Don’t download and share cartoons, video clips, photos, and art. iii.

Don’t open unfamiliar attachments. iv.

Don’t download free software and utilities to company machines. v.

Don’t store your music and photos on a company machine (or server), and don’t watch streaming videos. vi.

Don’t share files and avoid file-sharing services. n. Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is based on algorithms trained on vast amounts of data that can produce new content, including text, images, media, code, music, or speech when prompted. o. According to IBM, 31 percent of U.S. companies are already using AI, and 43 percent are exploring applications of AI. p. Business uses for generative AI include: i.

Content creation ii.

Design and creativity iii.

Personalization and recommendation iv.

Virtual assistants and chatbots v.

Data augmentation and simulation vi.

Optimization and automation q. Much controversy has centered on the ethics and risks of AI. Its inventors–– Microsoft, OpenAI, and others––have called for “responsible AI” and have urged Congress for tighter regulations. r. More than 1,000 researchers and industry leaders support a six-month moratorium in the deployment of AI, citing “profound risks to society and humanity.” s. There is a dark side of technology and social media. t. Privacy fears:

i. ii.

Location services allow users to be tracked with pinpoint precision.

Personal data exist indefinitely in the cloud and may end up in the dark Web. iii.

Wearable devices (such as heart rate monitors and skin response sensors) track vital signs, exercise frequency, and lifestyle patterns. iv.

Artificial intelligence and facial recognition technology pose worrisome privacy concerns. u. Disinformation and election tampering: i.

Echo chambers (like-minded individuals who confirm existing views) result in polarization and make people vulnerable to misinformation. ii.

False news stories and targeted disinformation by bot armies confuse the public and threaten to undermine democratic institutions. v. Deepfakes, doctored video and audio: i.

A post-truth era (objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief) brings need for critical thinking. ii.

Advances in AI permit sophisticated disinformation such as deepfakes (manipulated video footage to make people seem to say or do something they did not do). iii.

Voices can be successfully “cloned” so that they are indistinguishable from the original speaker. iv.

Could be weaponized before an election or threaten national security. w. Incivility, trolling, and cyberbullying: i.

Trolls (users who fake their identity, provoke skirmishes, and disrupt discussions on social media) thrive on denigrating others. ii.

Users face threats of violence, doxing (public shaming and harassment), and troll armies. iii.

Cyberbullying is a particularly devastating form of online harassment through the sharing of embarrassing information online, persistent messaging, and other digital nastiness. x. Data security concerns include the following: i.

Spyware ii.

Ransomware iii.

Phishing iv.

Data breaches v.

Romance scammers vi.

Bot accounts vii.

Hacking viii.

Vulnerabilities in smart devices y. The adoption of VPNs is spreading, adding a layer of security by shielding browsing activity, and more people prefer browsers that don’t track them, such as DuckDuckGo. Ethics Check: A Costly Online Pricing Error

A company does not have to honor an innocent mistake, such as an obvious typo or misprint resulting in a glaring error in pricing. Businesses make mistakes, and they generally shouldn’t have to bankrupt themselves to take responsibility for posted errors. Legally, advertisements and other promotional materials are generally considered invitations to bargain and are not contracts. A few consumers take advantage of costly mistakes and hope to extract some benefit from them.

However, using strikingly low prices and declaring them erroneous to generate publicity and viral buzz is a deceptive practice. Internet posts suggest consensus that repeated incidents represent deceptive intent, whereas an occasional error is most likely innocent. Companies react in different ways to potentially expensive blunders. The immediacy and speed of today’s media heighten the problem of erroneous advertising. Someone is going to notice the mistake and can potentially broadcast it within seconds to thousands, even millions, of people.

No doubt incurring a substantial loss, Cathay Pacific nevertheless generously honored the advertised fare, as did Singapore Airlines in 2014 and Hong Kong Airlines in 2018. Most businesses more or less politely refuse to grant the price advertised in error.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Social Media Are a Trap (L.O. 7.5) Duration: 30 minutes. a. The eminent sociologist Zygmunt Bauman had this to say about social media: “Most people use social media not to unite, not to open their horizons wider, but on the contrary, to cut themselves a comfort zone where the only sounds they hear are the echoes of their own voice, where the only things they see are the reflections of their own face. Social media are very useful, they provide pleasure, but they are a trap.” b. Do you agree? c. Why or why not? d. How do you use social media networks? i. Answer: Many of our Critical Thinking questions and our ethics situations could be staged as student debates. Such debates generate considerable engagement and create greater comprehension and retention than do mere class discussions. Answers to this Critical Thinking question will vary as students may be inclined to share their online experience and

describe uses of the Internet and social media. Some are likely to concur that social media foster living in a bubble (the echo chamber) and enable a narcissistic preoccupation with the self, most notably manifest in the ubiquitous selfie. The late Zygmunt Bauman was convinced that “social media don’t teach us to dialogue because it is so easy to avoid controversy.” Instead, he believed that “real dialogue” means talking to people who don’t believe the same things we do. Bauman argued that social media alleviate the modern human’s feelings of loneliness and abandonment, but because users can control their network by easily adding and removing friends, they fail to develop social skills needed offline. [De Querol, R. (2016, January 25). Zygmunt Bauman: Social media are a trap. El País (in English).]

2. Discussion: The Last Great Unowned Technology (L.O. 7.1) Duration: 30 minutes. a. You have seen that e-mail is not universally loved although it seems to be experiencing a noticeable comeback, despite the advent of real-time chat apps, texting, and other workplace short-form messaging. “Email is the last great unowned technology,” said the Harvard law professor Jonathan Zittrain, “and by unowned, I mean there is no CEO of email … it’s just a shared hallucination that works.” Others believe that e-mail, though much maligned, “is still a cornerstone of the open web.” b. Interpret these statements. What points are they making, about openness in particular? i. Answer: This Critical Thinking question is testing students’ ability to do a close reading of a short text. Students should focus on words and phrases such as unowned, no CEO of e-mail, and open web. E-mail knows no equivalent to Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg, or Jack Dorsey. Although it is rendered by hardware and software, e-mail itself is fast, cheap, and discreet. It is decentralized and can’t really be owned or censored by anyone, at least not in countries that are liberal democracies. Shared hallucination may refer to the fact that visible, physical networks of cables, countless computer servers, and other connected hardware exist; however, e-mail seems to be an idea, intangible and invisible—not so much an apparatus. ii. The fundamental idea underpinning these quotations is a free and open Internet as a vast and largely unregulated democratic space that’s potentially shared by all users equally. An associated principle is net neutrality, the idea that all content online is to remain unrestricted by service providers who cannot favor or block websites or services. This should get students thinking about privileges they may be taking for granted, such as who controls their access to the Internet (an evershrinking group of service providers) and the choices they have online in terms of programming and their participation in social media. The original idea of a free, decentralized Internet has given way to a space dominated

by large companies, “Big Tech,” that wield concentrated power—think Amazon, Google, or Facebook—mainly by selling digital advertising. They collect and sell user data in exchange for the “free” use of their network resources. Interested students could explore information provided by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), an international nonprofit organization promoting digital rights since 1990.

3. Discussion: When Technology Becomes Invasive (L.O. 7.5) Duration: 40 minutes. a. Consider the potential impact of gamification and wearable devices on your career. b. How do you feel about the tracking of employees and the monitoring of your vital functions on the job and outside the workplace? c. Can you think of other vulnerable technologies? d. What advice would you give someone who is not sure how to handle invasive technologies that may threaten privacy and security? i. Answer: Student answers will vary. Ask how many students wear a Fitbit device, a smart watch, or a similar wearable device. Do they feel any discomfort about producing so much data that could be misused or lessen their chances of finding a job? Some students may seem unperturbed by the developments that are transforming the workplace today. Others may use the familiar argument that they have nothing to hide. One author offered this advice for dealing with threats to our privacy: “The best we can do is use some common sense when it comes to sharing or posting stuff that is personally identifiable information … and teach our family the importance of discretion.” [Burns McBeth, C. (2015, March 5). Big data or Big Brother? Forbes.] Being prudent and guarding one’s credibility and professional image are more important than ever. Also, it’s worth pointing out that employees in the United States have far fewer privacy rights at work than they do in their personal lives. ii. Some research suggests that gamification is not optimal for motivating workers because competition and games create an external reason for competing such as winning a prize or improving one’s status, not pursuing a higher purpose, such as attaining a meaningful goal. [Fowler, S. (2014, November 26). What Maslow’s hierarchy won’t tell you about motivation. Harvard Business Review.] Gamification may seem like fun, but students need to realize that they are always on display when engaging on social media, even internal ones, and appearing on leaderboards. Some people are not comfortable with relentless competition or the fact that it is public. Most thoughtful students realize the enormous vulnerabilities of our connectedness and may express fear of the relentless daily data collection about each of us in cyberspace and offline.

iii. The latest threat to privacy is software used to detect workers’ mood as it combs through e-mail and Slack messages. Touted as a means to productivity, retention, and greater satisfaction on the job, the sentimenttracking technology could easily become invasive. [Cutter, C., & Feintzeig, R. (2020, March 7). The Wall Street Journal.] iv. An additional example of a vulnerability involving technology is smart, connected vehicles. The federal government is pushing for the development of vehicle-to-vehicle communication in the hope of reducing the 30,000 annual traffic deaths in the United States.

4. Discussion: NSFW (L.O. 7.2) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Text messaging in a business setting can be highly efficient and effective when done right. b. Are conversational Internet acronyms and slang—such as AFAIK, G2G, HIFW, ICYMI, and NSFW—as well as all-lowercase writing acceptable in e-mail, texting, or instant messaging for business? i. Answer: Like other electronic messages, instant messages and texts may have secondary, unintended audiences potentially years later. Don’t include abbreviations that are unprofessional, inappropriate, and confusing. They do not save time if someone has to stop and think about what they mean. Like e-mail, instant messages and texts produce a permanent record and could tarnish a reputation. It is true, however, that in the relaxed Slack or X community, the tone is markedly more colloquial and informal than the language in professional on-the-job e-mail. The best advice is to observe first and then adapt to the office culture. ii. AFAIK = As far as I know; G2G or GTG = Got to go; HIFW = How I feel when …; ICYMI = In case you missed it (typically used when sharing content that’s not most current); NSFW = Not safe for work.

5. Discussion: The Ethics of Employing Botnets in Business (L.O. 7.5) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Some marketers and individuals aspiring to becoming influencers employ Internet bots—automated applications that run simple, repetitive tasks on the Internet—to inflate the number of likes and fans online. So-called bot networks (botnets) operate large numbers of fake accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and X. A rental agency based in Washington, D.C., went from two fans to almost 15,000 within a few days. b. How do you feel about companies and their brands pretending they have actual traffic on their sites and buying likes? i. Answer: Most upstanding marketers and Internet users find the practice unethical. They point out that it violates the terms of use on platforms such as Instagram. Answers from students indicating their attitudes

toward fake likes may vary. However, social networking from a marketing standpoint is about establishing relationships between brands and customers. Relationships are based on trust and authenticity. Fans of a brand want to feel that they are insiders who know more than those who do not follow the brand or company. They form communities around brands, provided that those are well managed and honest. Deceitful practices jeopardize this trust and invite a backlash once the dishonesty is discovered. As for why some businesses adopt fraudulent schemes, the motivations may vary, too; however, businesses are trying to “monetize” their social media presence, and they hope that traffic will create buzz and draw more followers to their sites. Fans, they hope, will turn into leads and eventually into buying customers. If we ask who gets hurt, the answer is both—the customers who rely on the sites they love and who trust that the feedback is real, as well as the businesses that are risking having their dishonesty discovered.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Cybersecurity Firm on a Mission to “Restore Sanity in Online Identity” (Part 1): In this case study, students will read a description of Averon, the start-up that developed the world’s first fully automatic and ultra-secure mobile identity and verification standard that works on Wi-Fi and LTE. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions.

How do you feel about log-in credentials and cybersecurity? How do you handle your passwords, and do you believe they are safe? Have you ever been hacked?

Answers will vary. Students may be able to share stories about cumbersome and annoying log-in procedures and weak passwords. Some of them may have experienced hijacking of one or more of their social media and e-mail accounts. Yet others may not appreciate the full extent of the dangers lurking online, likely to increase as our society becomes ever more connected, for example, as smart homes spread and hackable networks manage refrigerator restocking, thermostats, door locks, security cameras, and more.

After studying teamwork in Chapter 2, you may be able to reflect on the purposes of Averon’s offsite meetings. What effects might such periodic all-staff gatherings in upscale hotels have for a small, dispersed team?

Calling an all-hands meeting in the pleasant environment of a resort hotel serves to foster team spirit and reward hard work, aside from the primary purpose of holding business meetings with a dispersed team. Averon is small enough so that its 16 team members form

a close-knit group. The participants are treated to gourmet meals and visits to local attractions and events. Averon has a special long-term arrangement with the Hyatt Hotels Corporation. One of Averon’s prominent team members, Chief Creative Director Taro Gold, is a best-selling author, angel investor, and start-up cofounder, who also enjoyed a successful career as a singer-songwriter in Japan. While there, he lived at a Hyatt hotel in Tokyo. Hyatt expressed its appreciation by granting Taro lifelong privileges and discounts when he and now his company stay at a Hyatt property anywhere in the world.

Wendell Brown, Averon founder and CEO, believes in team building: “An African proverb says: ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together,’” he explains and adds, “You must cultivate a unified, happy dynamic of teamwork, one where everyone has a chance to thrive and shine.” [Brooks, S. (2018, April 20). Business leader interview with Wendell Brown—CEO at Averon. Enterprise Times.]

Why are businesses and other organizations eager to introduce passwordless authentication?

Businesses are eager to reduce the “friction” (i.e., the difficulty or complications) customers face when they log on to a merchant’s website or app. This is why companies are increasingly switching to passwordless authentication. The advantages are many. The main benefit is greater security. Businesses don’t have to worry about poorly chosen passwords, leaks of personal information, and frustration over forgotten passwords. Passwordless authentication also allows users to switch effortlessly between devices to gain seamless access. Third, without passwords, consumers deal with fewer steps in order to complete a transaction [Ben-Meir, K. (2023, February 15). The benefits of passwordless authentication and how to choose the right method. Forbes].

Moreover, every time a new hacking scandal erupts, consumers lose trust in the companies with which they do business. Another aspect is compliance. Far-reaching European legislation, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), mandates that companies introduce two-factor authentication to safeguard consumers’ security and privacy. Other provisions include the “right to be forgotten,” data breach reporting within 72 hours, stronger consumer consent, and high penalties. Even U.S. companies without direct E.U. ties that market their products and services on the Internet may under certain circumstances be bound by the strict rules of the GDPR. The Fast Identity Online (FIDO) Alliance has formed to develop passwordless authentication technology standards. Apple introduced a passkey and Google is developing passwordless authentication for Android. Passkeys can’t be guessed or shared between users. They thwart phishing attacks because they are unique to the sites for which they were created. But most important, such private keys can’t be stolen during a data breach from a company server. Until these measures are universally adopted, users need to

protect themselves with multi-factor authentication and a password manager to store unique passwords [Key, K. (2023, January 24). Passwordless authentication: What it is and why you need it ASAP. PCMag].

Case Study: Case Study: Cybersecurity Firm on a Mission to “Restore Sanity in Online Identity” (Part 2): In this case study, students will read a description of an e-mail mishap that took place at Averon. Students will take on the role of a member of a team of summer interns who are on their first day in Averon’s San Francisco office. Break students into groups of two or three and have them complete the assignment as a team. You may wish to have students present their work to the class or submit their responses electronically.

Students should write an e-mail or memo using the direct strategy because the supervisor has specifically asked for the document. Any of the following would be suitable to include: • • • • • • • • • • • •

Anything of a proprietary nature regarding company strategy or products Bigoted remarks about race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, weight, age, nationality, or religion Comments both negative and positive about the appearance or attractiveness of a coworker Confession that you plan to call in sick Content that requires the phrase Delete after reading Discussion of an evening of partying or drunkenness/drug use Grievance with another employee or manager Invitations to a party that not all colleagues are invited to Language anyone might find offensive Negative comments about the job, the employer, another employee, or the workplace News that you’re looking for another job Sarcastic comments about individuals or the employer

If the students decide to write a memo, they should attach it to a brief cover e-mail or simply share the guidelines with Mark in a well-organized direct e-mail message that puts the news first. E-mail would be the channel for routine messages, whereas chat apps would be used for more time-sensitive or urgent notifications. A popular communication channel on the go is Facebook Messenger. With international audiences, Facebook-owned WhatsApp is the preferred app for messaging or phoning, not least because it’s encrypted and thus offers greater privacy and security. The advantage of these apps is that aside from real-time or asynchronous chat, both function on Wi-Fi—a plus in regions without cellphone reception.

Wi-Fi is much more common even in very remote areas. If the signal is strong enough, users can make a phone or video call on Messenger. Skype or Facetime are also useful, so long as the connection is fast enough, something that’s rare in the far reaches of South

America or Africa. Due to bandwidth concerns, team meetings at Averon typically take the form of audio conferences; occasionally Zoom meetings are conducted.

Astute classes may question the security of using SIM cards in smartphones as unique identification to replace typical log-in credentials. What if the devices are stolen or lost?

Wendell Brown, the CEO of Averon, has answers. He recommends always to secure mobile devices with a strong password or a biometric security lock. Devices should be set to automatically erase, he says, after more than ten failed authentication attempts.

Furthermore, people should use encryption for data storage on external media, for example, a micro-SD card, if used. Tools such as Apple’s Find My iPhone, Samsung’s Find My Mobile, or Google’s Find my Device can locate, remotely lock, or erase the smartphone contents.

Our expensive smartphones are central to our lives today and need to be handled with utmost care. Students could be tasked with researching other means of protecting the precious information residing in their smartphones, for example, by activating Screen Time and blocking passcode and account changes.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. Answers will vary, but students may have strong views of such negative assessments although some might sheepishly acknowledge that they spend “a lot” of time online. It is true that the AI that TikTok uses is phenomenally effective in keeping users engaged for longer periods of time than the competitors are. Instead of tracking users the way the other social networks do, TikTok has created algorithms that are extremely well tailored to the individual’s previous likes and dislikes, delivering the perfect content to each person. This makes it hard for the individual to break away from the never-ending customized content.

Whether this extreme engagement rises to the level of “addiction” to opium is going to be hotly debated among students. However, supporting the addictive quality of social networking, a survey of teenagers found that more than one-third of girls aged 11-15 admitted to feeling “addicted” to certain social media and reported that it would be a struggle to give up social networking [Surgeon General issues new advisory about effects social media use has on youth mental health. (2023, May 23). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services].

Be it as it may, the fact that people spend the longest amount of time on TikTok does suggest that the AI algorithms have something to do with it. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek

Murthy is concerned not only about the potentially harmful content young people may view online but also about the prolonged exposure to social media that may cause symptoms of depression and anxiety, particularly in teenagers spending more than three hours a day on the platforms.

The excessive use of social media such as TikTok displaces important activities such as sleep and physical activity. Some young people spend more than 3.5 hours a day on social media. These facts would suggest that the Surgeon General’s advisory is serious indeed. Dr. Murthy would not issue such a warning if social media use were not a worrisome trend on a massive scale. According to a Bloomberg analysis, TikTok is the “most addictive social app by time spent per month” [Huang, Z. (2022, June 23). TikTok turns on the money machine. Bloomberg].

2. This critical-thinking question is testing students’ ability to do a close reading of a short text. Students should focus on words and phrases such as unowned, no CEO of e-mail, and open web. E-mail knows no equivalent to Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg, or Jack Dorsey. Although it is rendered using hardware and software, e-mail itself is fast, cheap, and discreet. It is decentralized and can’t really be owned or censored by anyone, at least not in countries that are liberal democracies. Shared hallucination may refer to the fact that visible, physical networks of cables, countless computer servers, and other connected hardware exist; however, e-mail seems to be an idea, intangible and invisible—not so much an apparatus.

The fundamental idea underpinning these quotations is a free and open Internet as a vast and largely unregulated democratic space that’s potentially shared by all users equally. An associated principle is net neutrality, the idea that all content online is to remain unrestricted by service providers who are not allowed to favor or block websites or services. This concept should get students thinking about privileges they may be taking for granted, such as who controls their access to the Internet (an ever-shrinking group of service providers) and the choices they have online in terms of programming and their participation in social media. The original idea of a free, decentralized Internet has given way to a space dominated by large companies, “Big Tech,” that wield concentrated power—think Amazon, Google, Apple, or Meta (Facebook)—mainly by selling digital advertising. They collect and sell user data in exchange for the “free” use of their network resources. Interested students could explore information provided by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), an international nonprofit organization promoting digital rights since 1990.

3. Among the benefits are the following: Social media have democratized access to media.

Artists can turn to their audiences directly and promote their music on the Web, as U2 and smaller indie bands have done. Enterprising individuals can turn to the crowd for funding their business ventures. Filmmakers have appealed to potential audiences for

donations to make films that Hollywood studios rejected. Aspiring writers can self-publish their novels. In short, anyone can tell a story online.

The chief complaint about social media is their unreliability, especially with breaking news or during an unfolding crisis. Immediately after the deadly terrorist attack in Paris that killed 130 people, users circulated photos on X and other social media that claimed to be up-to-the-minute images from Paris when in reality they depicted other, past events.

Rumors and falsehoods spread at lightning speed and are being amplified a millionfold every time big news breaks. Traditional gatekeepers kept reprehensible, despicable, horrifying, and illegal content away from the public, yet the Internet today is a free-for-all.

Reputable news sources such as the BBC, National Public Radio, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal are vying for listeners and viewers pressured by everlessening advertising revenues. Their costly information, vetted and corroborated, must compete with hearsay and shrill opinion—even deliberate misinformation in the form of fake news.

While traditional news outlets may have 4 million paying subscribers, as The New York Times does, some Internet influencers may be able to reach much larger audiences, as many as 10 to 20 times more. Readers, listeners, and viewers must be ever vigilant and critical. Responsible consumers of news are flocking to reputable fact checkers to debunk half-truths and outright lies.

4. Like other electronic messages, instant messages and texts may have secondary, unintended audiences potentially years later. Don't include abbreviations that are unprofessional, inappropriate, and confusing. They do not save time if someone has to stop and think about what they mean. Like e-mail, instant messages and texts produce a permanent record and could tarnish a reputation. It is true, however, that in the relaxed Slack or X community, the tone is markedly more colloquial and informal than the language in professional on-the-job e-mail. The best advice is to observe first and then adapt to the office culture.

For the record, here is a translation of Internet acronyms: AFAIK = As far as I know; G2G or GTG = Got to go; HIFW = How I feel when…; ICYMI = In case you missed it.

Typically used when sharing content that’s not most current; NSFW = Not safe for work.

5. The convenience of automated home technology comes at a price in these areas: a. As more devices become interconnected through IoT, privacy breaches are more likely. Devices equipped with cameras, microphones, or sensors may collect personal information and transmit it over the network. If not properly secured, this data can be intercepted, accessed by unauthorized individuals, or even leaked online, compromising privacy. b. IoT devices often collect and record sensitive data, including personal information and usage patterns. If these devices are not adequately protected, they can become targets for hackers and cybercriminals. Weak security can lead to unauthorized

access, identity theft, or even the infiltration of other connected devices within the network. c. IoT devices from various manufacturers each have their own security protocols. This lack of standardization can create vulnerabilities, making uniform security practices across all devices impossible. As a result, some devices may be more susceptible to attacks than others or lack essential security features. d. AI-powered devices, including smart home technology, may collect and share data with third parties for various purposes such as product improvement, targeted advertising, or analytics. However, if the data sharing is not transparent or if proper consent options are lacking, sensitive information can end up in the hands of unauthorized parties or be used for unintended purposes. e. AI algorithms used in IoT devices can raise ethical concerns related to data usage, algorithm bias, and discrimination. AI systems can inadvertently reinforce existing biases, leading to discrimination in areas such as facial recognition. Additionally, the large-scale collection of personal data through IoT devices can raise questions about user consent, data ownership, and the potential for surveillance.

WRITING IMPROVEMENT EXERCISES Message Openers and Subject Lines (L.O. 1) 1. Subject line: Hackers Are Using ChatGPT to Spread Malware on Facebook 2. Subject line: Studying the Decline of Customer Checking Accounts 3. Subject line: Introducing New Instant Messaging Procedures Bulleted and Numbered Lists (L.O. 1) 1. Ahead of official legislation, the U.S. government has drafted an AI Bill of Rights that outlines Americans’ specific rights to and protections from artificial intelligence: • Safeguards against faulty or unsafe AI systems • Protection from discriminatory AI or algorithms • Data privacy and security when dealing with AI • Disclosure of interactions with an AI system • Ability to opt out of experiences that employ AI 2. In granting loans to customers, follow these steps: 1. Announce approval of the loan.

2. Specify the loan’s terms and limits.

3. Discuss the importance of timely payments.

4. Provide a phone number for assistance.

3. Crime prevention and safety measures are just as important at work as they are at home, says the National Crime Prevention Council. Some important tips for preventing crime and improving workplace safety include the following: • Change locks before you move into a new office.

• Report immediately all doors, windows, and locks that are not working.

• Leave some interior lights on even when the business is closed.

• Illuminate dark places around the building by adding lighting and trimming shrubs.

ACTIVITIES 7.1 Document for Analysis: Wordy, Woeful E-Mail (Obj. 1) Weaknesses: • Starts indirectly with an explanation instead of the main idea.

• Could include a friendlier opening.

• Suffers from long lead-ins (this is to inform you that, in view of the fact that) and other wordiness.

• Does not provide helpful subject line.

• Sounds negative (forbidden to hire, avoid making bad decisions, should not have to urge you to attend).

• Fails to present dates and rooms in a list that could improve readability.

• Does not emphasize “you” view.

• Gives commands instead of making polite requests (Mark your calendars, you must examine).

• Fails to include an end date for returning the rankings.

Revision: To: Department Managers From: Mellanie Mankin <mmankin@rockstudios.com> Subject: Interviewing Five Employment Candidates Good morning, department managers, Because we are now authorized to hire new employees, we have scheduled five promising candidates who can help you with your team projects. They are scheduled for interviews on the following dates: May 6 May 9 May 13

9 a.m.

10 a.m.

9 a.m.

Conference Room Office 22 Conference Room

To prepare for the meetings, please study the candidates’ attached résumés. Send me your ranking lists before May 1 so that we can work together to hire the top people you select.

Mellanie Mankin, Manager [full contact information] 7.2 Document for Analysis: Information E-Mail—Tips for Video Conferencing Weaknesses a. Fails to include a meaningful subject line that summarizes the main idea. b. Assumes the recipient is a married woman (Mrs.). In business, women are typically addressed as Ms. to stop calling attention to their marital status. Mareli is generally a woman’s name, but writers should not make assumptions about the recipient’s gender.

Using just the first name or the full name without an honorific is preferable. c. Does not organize the information for easy reading and comprehension. The five tips should be bulleted with bold headings. d. Suffers from wordiness (provide some help instead of help; first and foremost); needless repetition (preparing and working up), and inappropriate tone (Ick!). e. Creates a fragment (Such as the start time, audio information, and the agenda). f. Makes spelling/grammar errors (Here’s five tips instead of Here are five tips; advise instead of advice; its good instead of it’s good; don’t move things when your instead of you’re). g. Does not end with a closing thought and the offer of a comprehensive list of dos and don’ts.

Revision To:Mareli Barajas <mbarajas@trevipublications.com> From:

Bailey Owens <bowens@a-z-conferencing.com>

Subject:

Tips for Effective Videoconferencing

Dear Mareli Barajas: OR: Dear Mareli: I appreciate this opportunity to help with the networking manual that you are preparing about teleconferencing for Trevi Publications.

Virtual meetings became a necessity as an alternative to on-site meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic. You asked me to provide brief advice for video conferencing. Here are eight concise tips that your coworkers may find helpful: •

Plan ahead. Well before the meeting, notify all participants of the date, time, and duration of the conference. Provide log-ins and passwords. Apps such as Zoom will allow you send e-mail invitations automatically.

• • • •

• • •

Prepare documents. Distribute necessary documents by e-mail or get ready to share them onscreen during the meeting.

Guard the meeting credentials. Password-protect your meeting to avoid meeting crashers who “Zoom-bomb,” that is, hijack your conference.

Test your camera. Before you admit the other participants to the meeting, check your camera to make sure it works properly. Activate it when it’s time to begin.

Look professional. Although some people like to wear pajama bottoms or shorts with their suit jacket, experts don’t recommend it. People who dress the part will feel like the professionals they are. However, overdressing is unnecessary. Business casual suffices.

Mute your microphone. When you are not speaking, silence your microphone. There’s nothing worse than hearing barking dogs, side conversations, or, even worse, toilets flushing during a videoconference.

Sound good. Play with positioning your microphone, speakers, or headphones to get the best sound. Avoid fidgeting, shuffling papers, eating, or moving things while you are speaking.

Use a waiting room to control admission. Start your video meeting 10 minutes early but let the participants first assemble in the virtual waiting room until it’s time to start.

Web conferencing eliminates the need for working on-site or traveling to meetings, which is especially effective during a global pandemic and for dispersed teams. If you would like a more extensive list of dos and don’ts for video conferencing, I would be happy to provide it in time for your deadline.

Bailey Bailey Owens | A-Z Conferencing and IT | bowens@a-z-conferencing.com

7.3 Document for Analysis: Live Chat With an Auto Dealer Rep (L.O. 2) The flaws in this chat are many. Just to name a few, Emery is unprofessional, too informal, folksy, and chatty. Instead of showing the customer respect, the representative asks inappropriate questions or makes improper comments—for example, by inquiring about Mr. Kim’s name and country of origin or by making a contemptuous remark when the customer asks about fuel efficiency. In fact, the rep all but ignores the customer’s question about the electric BMW i4. Instead, Emery flat out advises against buying that car.

The rep’s entries are full of typing mistakes and colloquialisms or slang. Unsuited as they are in any customer service situation, they are particularly unlikely to be understood by a customer with limited English skills. The informality of the rep would probably annoy most customers inquiring about luxury cars by live chat. As a dealer rep, Emery must tolerate the customers’ quirks and mistakes, but should represent his employer better by producing

professional, courteous, friendly, and largely error-free replies. The revision could be done in class as a short exercise or sent by e-mail, as appropriate.

7.4 Instant Messaging: Live Chat Training at JetAvia Airlines (L.O. 2) Representative 1 exhibits extreme carelessness; this is the superbly laid-back type.

Representative 2 sounds pompous, formal, and uncaring because much of this person’s messaging relies on clichés. The key to a good online conversation is to be helpful and professional while sounding human and authentic. Representative 3 strikes a good balance between the two extreme sample chats. A possible revision follows.

Discussion: Representative 1

Representative 2

Representative 3

Adopts a very casual tone and types carelessly throughout. Offers an unprofessional greeting.

Uses millennial slang (perf for “perfect”).

The tone is stuffy, overly formal. The rep doesn’t sound like a real human being. The writing is grammatically correct, but wordy, stilted, and awkward.

The rep strikes the right tone.

After exchanging a pleasantry, gets to the point, wishing to be helpful.

Responds testily and too casually to the angry customer. Keeps typing badly. Punctuates erratically.

Doesn’t ask for an exact description of the problem.

Sounds scripted and stuffy.

Provides long-winded replies.

Keeps calm despite the customer’s agitation. Tries to understand the problem.

Offers to complete the booking.

Seems distracted by another open chat window.

Amateurishly shows surprise at the customer’s award miles.

Sounds robotic and aloof instead of showing genuine empathy. Use of “we” makes the rep sound bombastic.

Is not fazed by the customer’s frustration; overlooks errors and an angry tone; appears empathetic.

Uses more millennial slang.

Is not compassionate enough. Seems to turn against his own employer.

Offers to solve the problem offline and to contact the customer. Suggests the customer share the negative

Uses jargon, escalate for “seeking help from a supervisor.” Uses tired clichés and customer service lingo. Offers to solve the problem offline and to contact the customer. Suggests the customer share the negative

Is mindful of the customer’s time. Consistently maintains a warm, compassionate tone.

Offers to solve the problem offline and to contact the customer. Suggests the customer share the negative experience with the chief

experience with the chief technology officer on X or WhatsApp.

experience with the chief technology officer on X or WhatsApp.

technology officer on X or WhatsApp.

Possible Revision: Representative 3 Rep: Hello, Jace, thank you for calling JetAvia Airlines. How are you doing?

Jace: Hi, I’m okay.

Rep: I’m glad to hear that. How may I help you today?

Jace: Your award-travel system sucks!! I’m so tired of wasting time on your website!

Rep: I’m sorry to hear that, Jace. We have been having some service disruptions. What happened?

Jace: What happened is that I keep getting an error message just before I click Purchase. I tried many times.

Jace: What point are award miles when they can’t be redeemed??

Rep: Please describe how the error occurs. If all fails, I will try to make the booking for you and will waive the live booking fee.

Jace: I am planning a business trip to London with some of my 500k frequent flyer miles. Whenever I choose the itinierary, fill in payment information for the taxes etc, hit Purchase and an Error !!! pops up. I can’t finish the booking. So annoying! Who has the time??

Rep: Any visitor to our SuperMileage site is tracked. I can see your attempted booking. Please let me try to make the reservation for you. [Pause] Rep: I understand your frustration, Jace. I wasn’t able to complete the booking on our new system, not even on the old one.

Jace: Why on earth do you roll out something that’s full of bugs, why waste my time??

Rep: Jace, I don’t want to keep you online needlessly. Let me try to fix this. You will not incur any live booking fees. I will call you as soon as I am able to complete your booking. I will send you a confirmation e-mail or text if you prefer. In it you will find a link to our new customer service X and WhatsApp accounts. Please describe your experience there. Our CTO set up the social media accounts to receive feedback about the new computer system. He wants to hear from customers like you.

Jace: Okay. That’s a relief. Thanks. I’ll be awaiting your call and e-mail.

Rep: Is there anything else I can do for you at this time?

Jace: No, gotta run! Bye Rep: I will be in touch soon. Have a good day!

7.5 Instant Messaging: Developing Professional Real-Time Chat Skills (L.O. 2) This activity can also be accomplished with the help of the chat function in Blackboard or Moodle, but the messaging tools mentioned in the activity (Slack, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Google Chat, or Skype) are more versatile and sophisticated or have a more pleasant interface.

It’s important that all students download the same app because not all of the software works together. Once students have installed the software on their computers or smartphones and signed in, distribute their tasks. Various options are possible. Two or three students could role-play while the rest of the class is logged in and watching. The chat dialogue could be projected on a screen, if available.

Students could also take turns responding to hypothetical business situations. You could assign specific roles, such as a customer who has a question about a product. This individual will message a customer service representative, who will need to improvise, showing professional courtesy. Therefore, only minimal notes, scripts, or instructions should be provided.

A question-and-answer session could serve as a group activity involving the whole class.

The session could rely on a business scenario in this textbook or a business article assigned to the class. The leader—either you or a student volunteer—fields questions from all loggedin participants. The leader must maintain order and ensure turn-taking. The participants must wait their turns and ask professional, relevant questions. Other one-on-one or group scenarios are also possible. The log of the chat session can be saved and downloaded for subsequent analysis.

7.6 Podcasting: Analyzing a Business Podcast Series (L.O. 3) Answers will vary. Most likely students will find some of the information in the chapter validated as they analyze their chosen podcasts. E-mail responses to this assignment would enable students to respond to the assignment more fully and in greater detail. However, practicing writing professional social media posts, for example, on a platform such as LinkedIn, or reposting a very concise yet informative message is also a valuable skill.

Summarizing is often not students’ strong suit, and this activity may provide playful practice.

You could follow the elaborate directions for Activity 7.7 or keep the posts simple; ask to have them sent in e-mails, short messages, projected in the classroom or printed out to be evaluated by peers—without listing names, of course.

7.7 Podcasting: Examining a Podcast Episode (L.O. 3) Both Laura Adams and Mignon Fogarty are pros. Laura Adams’s show currently lists 750 episodes while Mignon Fogerty’s show is closing in 925 episodes; both provide competent advice on popular topics. One key feature is the hosts’ dynamic delivery and upbeat music.

E-mail responses to this assignment would enable students to respond to the assignment more fully and in greater detail. However, practicing professional texting or posting by making the messages very concise yet informative is also a valuable skill. Summarizing is often not students’ strong suit, and this activity may provide playful practice.

If you are understandably reluctant to give away your cell phone number, create a Google Voice account, which will provide you with a phone number you can give out and access online or forward to your home phone or cell phone without disclosing your smartphone number. If you don’t like forwarding, Google Voice can also be set up to send you text or email messages alerting you to a text or voice mail message left on the Google Voice website or app. Alternatively, consider asking the students to text to your e-mail address.

As for the style used in the podcasts in the Quick and Dirty Tips series, they clearly appeal to young people because they are irreverent and funny, although they do provide valuable advice.

Example of a post or brief text message: The APR for a credit card, mortgage, or personal loan is based on your credit rating and income. Good credit scores and income history will get you the lowest rates. Rates vary from lender to lender; always shop and compare at least three quotes.

(Excerpted from Money Girl, who is discussing credit card APR and how to obtain the best rates; using your favorite browser, search for Quick and Dirty Tips: What Is Credit Card APR? for more information.)

I love you. You are the object of my affection and my sentence. It’s like a Valentine’s Day card and grammar mnemonic all rolled into one.

(Excerpted from Grammar Girl, who is attempting a quick-and-dirty definition of the object of a sentence; using your favorite browser, search for Who Versus Whom.)

7.8 Blogging: Reviewing Corporate Blogs (L.O. 4) This assignment allows for a variety of activities. Students could evaluate a blog verbally or in writing—in memo form, by e-mail, or as a blog entry. Additionally, Blackboard, another course-management site, or a Facebook page dedicated to the course could be used to

post the student reviews for feedback and comment by the class. Just the three phrases listed in the task yield several leads guiding students to corporate or CEO blogs.

On SlideShare, which is searchable, students can peruse slide decks and presentations about companies and executives who blog, allowing them to locate a suitable corporate blog. If student researchers encounter dead links to old sites, encourage them to search with keywords and phrases.

CEO blogging, once quite the rage, has diminished perhaps because careful writing requires time and discipline, and one must have something compelling to say—at least once or twice a month. A few viable CEO blogs persist: Penny Herscher, The Grassy Road or her more recent travel blog Rapt Roaming Kevin Roberts, KR Connect Blog, “One From the Heart” Bill Gates, Gates Notes Tricia Scott, The Female CEO Shonda Rhimes, Shondaland 7.9 Blogging: Writing a Blog Post (L.O. 4) This assignment is purposely limited to a recent survey or study to ensure academic honesty and discourage copying from the Internet or, yes, using ChatGPT to summarize or write the post for students. The added benefit is that students will become acquainted with reliable sources of many useful statistics, not only for AI-themed subjects.

The blog post could be assigned as a persuasive or informative message; however, by its very nature, a professional blog is a platform for well-supported opinion. Although the rules for crediting sources are more relaxed on the Internet than they are in academic writing, it is customary to link to the originator of a study or survey and to credit the organization by name. When in doubt about the originality of students’ writing, a simple string search in a browser of your choice can quickly tell you whether your suspicions are warranted. At your discretion, you could direct students to the section on paraphrasing and plagiarism in Chapter 11.

7.10 Blogging: Learning From the Best (L.O. 4) Answers will vary. As an alternative to a blog entry, students could be asked to analyze in a memo or an e-mail the blogs of the professional bloggers they visited. Students could also research a specific topic to blog about or to write off the cuff, but within the constraints of professional best practices. Some of the information messages in this textbook could be assigned as internal blog entries, composed in MS Word but formatted as blogs in narrow columns or saved as Web pages.

7.11 Epic Social Media Blunders (L.O. 5) Answers will vary, but here are a few possibilities: a. Sending hate posts about the boss. The difference between venting around the water cooler or over lunch to a close friend and trumpeting to the world one’s dislike for a

b.

c.

b.

c.

superior could not be more obvious. X messages can be forwarded (reposted) and find their way to unintended recipients. Even deleted posts can continue their zombie existence in screen grabs on someone else’s X feed.

Lying to the boss and bragging about it. Although lying to the boss may be woefully common, broadcasting it to one’s followers on X is risky. The Internet as a whole and X too, of course, make it easy to track people, and lies have a way of emerging most unexpectedly.

Romancing the boss (kissing and telling). Even if the indiscreet X user had a private profile, a contact could easily repost the message and make it retrievable. Besides, amorous relationships between superiors and subordinates are frowned on in many companies because they could open the businesses up to sexual harassment lawsuits. Also, the boss could be tracking the tattletale on X and would probably not appreciate the leaking of the affair.

Announcing the desire to quit. The wish to quit may come true, but prematurely so and not according to plan. If you hate your job, complain to your pet or vent with your friends over dinner, but don’t shout it out on X. Smart workers leave a workplace on good terms knowing that they may need references. They do not burn bridges, especially publicly.

Blocking your boss. Preventing the boss from viewing your profile is no guarantee that he or she won’t receive your hateful missives through another source. Suzana Flores, the author of Facehooked: How Facebook Affects Our Emotions, Relationships, and Lives knows that “privacy on social media networks is an illusion.” She says that “it’s normal for people to seek validation, but it’s the public nature of these sites that gets them in trouble.” [Rapacon, S. (2016, February 5). How using social media can get you fired. CNBC.]

7.12 Social Media: Digital Detox? (L.O. 5) Answers will vary, but most students will probably agree that they would consider it a hardship to relinquish their smartphones even for a day. In an early University of Maryland, College Park, study, students felt that giving up their smartphones was the hardest part of being media free for a full day. They felt less strongly about forgoing television. Some felt out of sorts as a result of not being able to listen to music all day on their devices. A few selected sound bites from the student blogs in the Maryland study hint at the tremendous change communication technology has wrought on millennials: Email is the only kind of mail I’ve ever sent; I have received 40 texts in the last 15 minutes; I always text and drive; I have more TV channels memorized than math formulas; I only use newspapers to clean my windows.

A related problem to explore is Internet gaming addiction, which is most prevalent in Asian countries. But several much-publicized deaths in the United States have also revealed obsessive playing of World of Warcraft and other hugely popular games. In Asia the problem is serious enough that the governments of South Korea, China, and Taiwan have set up Internet addiction treatment centers.

7.13 Social Media: Following Top-Rated CEOs (L.O. 5) The answers will vary, of course. Perceptive students may recognize that the public image a business leader presents on social media may not match how that person is viewed internally by employees and managers.

This assignment offers several potential angles. If the team option is chosen, members could divide the task of studying one CEO across multiple social media platforms, reviewing several years’ worth of posts, and tracing the evolution of that executive’s digital evolution. Or every member of a team could cover one CEO each and compare notes before presenting the main themes uncovered in their research either orally or in writing.

Even if the Brunswick Connected Leadership report is no longer available on the Internet, other CEOs could be chosen on Comparably and Glassdoor or simply by examining Fortune’s various rankings, e.g., Fortune 500, Most Powerful Women, Change the World, World’s Most Admired Companies, or World’s 50 Greatest Leaders—a ranking encompassing not only business leaders but also inspiring luminaries in other disciplines.

Students could be asked to focus on executives who are women and people of color.

Learning about Comparably and Glassdoor early on will help students once they start their job search. Before interviewing, they will benefit from insiders’ perspectives and what they reveal about the corporate culture of prospective companies. Glassdoor also allows users to search for salary information by job title.

7.14 Generative AI: Prompting ChatGPT to Argue for a Fair Digital Media Below is one of the responses to a prompt asking ChatGPT to argue for a social and digital media policy at work. Note that the chat bot produces adequate, grammatically correct prose, and some useful if very general arguments. It’s important to show students the inadequacy of the current AI tools while teaching them to use them effectively, maximizing their current potential.

The more refined the prompting, the better the output of the AI. Students might want to experiment with such refining. ChatGPT can certainly be used as a starting point for drafting a work document or, in this case, an assignment, but it requires rigorous editing, mainly for wordiness and clichés. Students may want to review the editing advice in Chapter 6. Some possible edits are shown in the document below.

Subject: Embracing the Power of Social and Digital Media at Work Hi [Recipient’s Name], Hope you’re doing well! I wanted to talk to you about an idea that I believe could benefit our organization. I think it’s time We may want to reconsidered our policy on social media and digital media use during work hours. Rather than dismissing them as distractions, I believe these platforms can actually boost productivity, improve employee engagement, and enhance our brand promotion efforts.

Social media and digital media have become an integral part of our lives, both personally and professionally. By allowing controlled access [= define?] to these platforms, we would acknowledge the changing communication landscape and empower employees to utilize use them effectively. They can foster collaboration, knowledge sharing, and networking opportunities among colleagues and industry professionals, ultimately increasing productivity.

Moreover, social media platforms are powerful marketing and customer engagement tools. Allowing employees to access these platforms during work hours helps them stay up-to-date with industry trends, gather market insights, and connect with customers and stakeholders in real-time. By nurturing a digitally savvy workforce, we can adapt, innovate, and remain competitive in today’s digital world.

In addition to productivity and brand promotion, embracing social media and digital media can positively impact affect employee engagement. When employees feel trusted and empowered to use these platforms responsibly, they exhibit higher job satisfaction. [=A human writer would produce evidence, statistics, etc.] It Responsible use [= ?] also creates a sense of community, encourages informal knowledge exchange, and provides an outlet for creativity and personal expression.

To address concerns about productivity and distractions, we can implement set clear guidelines. These guidelines will outline appropriate times and durations for use, usage encourage employees to allocate time for these activities during breaks, and emphasize the importance of balancing personal and professional responsibilities. [= adress remote work?] By setting expectations and providing guidance, we can minimize abuse and ensure responsible use usage.

In conclusion, I strongly believe that Embracing social media and digital media at work can bring significant benefits to our organization, They can such as enhanced productivity, foster employee engagement, and effectively promote promotion of our brand. in the digital realm. By implementing developing clear guidelines, we can strike a balance between responsible media use usage and achieving our business objectives.

I kindly request you to Please consider this proposal and initiate a discussion on let’s discuss how we can move forward in implementing create a policy that embraces acknowledges the potential of social media and digital media in our workplace. If you need more information or would like to discuss this further, I’m here and eager to participate.

Thanks for your time and consideration.

Best regards, [Your Name] [Your Position/Department] [Your Contact Information]

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. True. This is likely the most legitimate use of the Bcc field. Business communicators should opt for transparency and enter recipients to be copied in the Cc field, where all addressees ought to be listed. However, whenever you e-mail people whose contact information you have a duty Key-6 І Key to Test Your Workplace Etiquette Awareness to protect, copy and paste their e-mail addresses into the Bcc field. This way you are shielding their privacy.

2. False. First of all, do not use one password for multiple accounts. Sharing your password is not advisable either. Your colleague may forget your password too and writing it down is risky as well because the password might fall into the wrong hands. Use a password manager or at least set up multi factor authentication.

2. False. Send friend requests or invitations to follow only once. Do not badger coworkers, least of all your boss, by doubling down and sending multiple messages via different channels. Also, most circumspect workers would rather not friend the boss, certainly not be the first to extend the invitation.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Critics worry that the launch of ChatGPT, the AI bot that caused a sensation and now has an estimated 100 million monthly users, triggered a dangerous race to release competing AI tools (Bard and new Bing) with unknown consequences for society. Industry insiders and researchers penned an open letter demanding a pause in the development of AI––a technology even its developers don’t entirely understand. Italy has outlawed ChatGPT. Regulators in Europe are threatening to intervene. What are the risks of releasing a complex technology prematurely?

Topic 2: Smart-connected work clothes of the future may include “mood sweaters” with skin sensors and LED-equipped collars that will change color based on wearers’ feelings. Some believe such tell-tale clothes will help with nonverbal communication and team building.

Can you imagine any drawbacks to color displays of your mood at the office?

Topic 3: Describe a time when you should have had a face-to-face meeting instead of sending a text message or an e-mail. Why would the face-to-face meeting have been better?

Topic 4: In one failed gamification effort, United Airlines planned to end bonuses rewarding at least a third of its 80,000 employees and replace them with a sweepstakes.

Approximately 1,400 eligible workers have won valuable prizes such as Mercedes sedans, vacations, and cash. Why would United workers rebel online and scuttle the plan? Why might United prefer a lottery?

Topic 5: Reply All is a feature that has tripped up many workers, including the former CEO of Spirit Airlines, Ben Baldanza. After a customer complaint was forwarded to him, Baldanza wrote back to customer service: “We owe him nothing as far as I’m concerned.

Let him tell the world how bad we are. He’s never flown with us before anyway and will be back when we save him a penny.” The CEO failed to notice that (1) he accidentally hit Reply All and (2) the frustrated traveler had been copied on the e-mail. Bad press followed.

How could this incident have been avoided? Have you experienced similar mishaps?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Organization and Clarity

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Grammar and Spelling

The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 6

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore the positive and neutral messages that most workplace communications convey. First, we explain how to apply the 3-x-3 writing process to positive and neutral messages. Next, we cover how to compose direct messages that make requests, respond to inquiries via any channel, and deliver step-by-step instructions. Additionally, we explore how to effectively and appropriately make direct claims and voice complaints, including those posted online. Then, we cover how to create adjustment messages in order to restore customers’ trust and promote further business. Finally, we cover how to compose messages that convey kindness and goodwill.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5

Apply the 3-x-3 writing process to routine e-mails, memos, and business letters.

Write direct messages that make requests, respond to inquiries, and deliver step-bystep instructions.

Prepare messages that make direct claims and voice complaints.

Create adjustment messages that restore customers’ trust and promote further business.

Compose special messages that convey kindness and goodwill.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

• • •

•

Created a new opening scenario that presents Reign Ventures, a small venture capital company supporting women- and minority-led startups, the example and courage of which will inspire students.

Wrote new For the Record feature about T-Mobile, illustrating an important concept— responding to data breaches.

Described contemporary uses of business letters to provide guidance about when hard-copy correspondence is appropriate in the digital era.

Significantly updated a Plugged In feature that explains the relevance of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to U.S. businesses to stimulate critical thinking about data privacy.

Introduced brand-new Workplace Etiquette Awareness scenarios to expose students to behavior dos and don’ts on the job.

•

Provided engaging contemporary end-of-chapter scenarios—Fighting Phishing at First Federal, Greenwashing in Sustainable Investing, Making TikTok Videos, and Revising a Wordy ChatGPT Announcement—that reinforce chapter content and allow students to apply their critical-thinking and editing skills.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 8. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

The Writing Process for Routine Messages (L.O. 8.1, PPT Slides 3–8, DISC: Patterns; Audience; Purpose; Rhetorical considerations) a. Positive messages – routine requests, replies, and goodwill b. Bad-news or negative messages – delivery of refusals or bad news c. Persuasive messages – communications that persuade, including sales pitches d. Channels used for positive messages include e-mail, memos, letters, and social media. e. Routine, neutral, and positive messages make up the bulk of workplace communication. f. Phase 1: Analyzing, anticipating, and adapting i. Do I really need to write this e-mail, memo, or letter? ii. Why am I writing? iii. How will the reader react? iv. What channel should I use? v. How can I save my reader’s time? g. In certain situations, letters are still the preferred channel of communication for delivering message outside an organization to suppliers, government agencies, other businesses, and customers. (Model Document 8.1) i.

Encourage feedback, project a favorable image, promote future business, or signal formality ii.

May garner more attention than an e-mail iii.

Use business letters when you need to: (a) Provide a permanent record (b) Ensure confidentiality (c) Indicate formality (d) Deliver persuasive, well-considered messages h. Phase 2: Researching, organizing, and drafting i.

Check files, gather documentation, and prepare your message. ii.

Jot down notes or make a scratch list for short messages.

iii.

Use outlining techniques for longer documents that require formal research. iv.

Group similar information together, keeping paragraphs short. v.

Back each topic sentence up with details and evidence. vi.

Plan for revision. i. Phase 3: Editing, proofreading, and evaluating i.

Is the message clear? ii.

Is the message correct? iii.

Did you plan for feedback? iv.

Will this message achieve its purpose?

Ethics Check: Is Quitting per E-Mail Okay?

E-mail is ideal for many announcements, but it is inappropriate for something as serious as resigning a position. Such an announcement deserves a face-to-face talk followed by a formal resignation letter or e-mail that confirms the last day of employment and expresses appreciation for the opportunities given. A resignation letter strives to leave a good impression. With their hasty e-mail, Eden is burning bridges, making positive letters of reference unlikely in the future.

This said, in circumstances when quitting in person is impossible, an e-mail may the employee’s only option. Career experts cite three such circumstances: (a) a family emergency that requires an immediate resignation and departure, (b) remote workers who cannot come to the office, and (c) an abusive boss or a hostile workplace. In the latter case, e-mail may be the safest option, not least because the worker most likely can’t expect a favorable reference anyway [Doyle, A. (2020, January 18). How to resign from your job via email. The Balance Careers].

II. Routine Request, Response, and Instruction Messages (L.O. 8.2, PPT Slides 9–20, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. When writing requests, follow these guidelines (Model Document 8.2): i.

Subject line: Use an informative subject line that summarizes the purpose. ii.

Salutation: Include the recipient’s full name so as not to assume gender. iii.

Opening: Start with the main idea. Use a question or polite command.

Avoid explanations or justifications. iv.

Body: The body should provide necessary details in a clear manner.

Organize ideas and frame requests logically. Focus on the benefits to the reader. v.

Closing: The closing should courteously tell the reader what needs to be done. Set an end date and explain why, when appropriate. Avoid clichéd endings and show appreciation with a fresh phrase. b. When responding to requests, following these guidelines (Model Document 8.3): i.

Subject line: Refer to previous correspondence and/or summarize the message. ii.

Opening: Be direct. Deliver the information the reader wants in the first sentence. Announce good news promptly. iii.

Body: Supply explanations and further information. Check facts and figures carefully. Be aware that e-mail can become an enforceable document. Promote your organization and products.

iv.

c.

d.

e.

f.

g. h. i.

j.

Closing: Provide specific details to help the reader if further action is required. Be cordial. Avoid clichéd endings.

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), companies must notify their customers promptly of data breaches and use simple language instead of hiding behind small print and legalese.

Also embedded in the GDPR is the right to be forgotten, or the right to erasure, which dictates that people have the right to access their own digital personal data and request its deletion.

It’s important to react appropriately to customer comments on social media. i.

Vocal individuals can start a firestorm of criticism or be powerful brand ambassadors for certain products. ii.

Companies use guidelines developed by social media experts for strategic decision making depending upon the situation. iii.

Businesses’ responses should benefit customers, prevent the issue from snowballing, and shine a positive light on their organization. iv.

A social media response flowchart can help employees make strategic decisions about social media post responses. (Figure 8.1) v.

Reviews provide an opportunity to improve a company’s products or services. vi.

Real-time customer feedback can be used to clear bottlenecks, expose product flaws, and improve operating instructions.

Businesses can be ready to respond swiftly to social media comments and complaints by adopting the following best practices (Figure 8.2): i.

Be positive. ii.

Be transparent. iii.

Be honest. iv.

Be timely. v.

Be helpful.

It’s also important to remember that not every snarky comment on social media merits a response.

Instruction messages should clearly explain how to complete a task.

To create step-by-step instructions, follow these guidelines: i.

Use plain English and familiar words. ii.

The most effective way to list directions is to use command language, which is known as the imperative mood. Imperative mood differs from the indicative mood in that it requests an action while the indicative mood describes a statement. iii.

Divide the instructions into steps and list them in the order in which they are to be carried out. iv.

Arrange the items vertically with numbers. v.

Begin each step with an action verb using the imperative mood.

When revising a message delivering instructions, follow these guidelines (Model Document 8.4): i.

Be sure the message starts with the main idea and emphasizes any benefits to the reader.

ii.

Be sure the steps are itemized and numbered, with parallel construction. iii.

Be sure you’ve used an appropriate tone and revise language that appears to give orders. iv.

Be sure you have not made accusations or assigned blame.

Ethics Check: Telling the Truth Joe Girard made it into the Guinness Book of Records for selling the most cars in one year. Yet he emphasized conducting sales fairly and truthfully. In his blog he posted many articles on selling and success, but many of these pieces discuss honesty, integrity, commitment, and a positive attitude.

In a noisy and sometimes nasty social media world that allows disinformation and false news stories to stand next to fact-based reporting, the notion of protecting one’s integrity, always telling the truth, and keeping one’s word may seem outdated. However, business cannot exist without trust and integrity. Think Amazon, eBay, or any other e-commerce platform. Customers pay for a product and expect that it will arrive promptly and intact. They rightly expect that they can return a defective product and receive a refund. Ethical businesspeople understand that selling needs to be a fair exchange—a solid product or service for reasonable compensation. A good reputation takes long to build, but it’s easy to damage it with just one serious misstep, such as lying. This applies to businesses as well as individuals.

Students may want to discuss whether truth is an absolute value, as Joe Girard seems to suggest when he calls it sacred. Of course, he does allow for so-called white lies that in some situations may be the kind thing to do to spare someone’s feelings. A definition of white lies could be useful. When can we justify the small lies we tell every day to soften the blow that truth may represent? In one of his articles, Girard recounts his own white lie when he complimented parents on their child’s appearance when in reality the kid looked ordinary and scruffy to him. Of course, one very effective alternative to telling white lies is—silence!

It may be useful to examine Joe Girard’s passionate language: his anger when he witnesses deceit or his feeling of being violated when someone lies to him.

Ethics Check: Can Customer Reviews Be Trusted?

Much is at stake. Amazon is a top e-commerce site, and its prominent position has triggered a race to game the platform’s systems. More than half of all Internet product searches start on Amazon. For vendors, landing among the top ten search results is a boon for business. At a time when our social media are inundated with falsehoods and disinformation, distortions in ecommerce are likely to further erode public trust [Dwoskin, E., & Timberg, C. (2018, April 23).

How merchants use Facebook to flood Amazon with fake reviews. The Washington Post].

Fake or manipulated reviews are harmful because they may mislead customers to the point of buying poorly made products. One study claims that most consumers (76 percent) believe reviews on the Internet as much as they trust personal recommendations from friends and family. Before buying, the average consumer reads 10 reviews, and 91 percent of shoppers are more likely to use a business if it has positive reviews [Trust and influence on online reviews.

(2019). BrightLocal].

Amazon merchants, on the other hand, who play by the rules are at a disadvantage when ratings are artificially inflated by fake reviews. Statista shows lower numbers, ranging between 19 and 25 percent of respondents trusting reviews on the Internet as much as personal recommendations [Clement, J. (2020, January 9). Do you trust online customer reviews as much as personal recommendations? Statista]. This discrepancy in numbers illustrates the importance of knowing the size and composition of the statistical sample and how the questions were asked.

To fight back against bogus reviews, Amazon uses AI to analyze the behavior of customers banned from reviewing; software algorithms also scrape the platform for suspicious patterns among reviews and reviewers. Amazon is hardly alone with this authenticity problem. The BrightLocal consumer study mentioned above also revealed that a quarter of customers who were asked to leave feedback for local businesses were offered discounts, gifts, or cash in return.

The more fundamental trouble with online reviews is that customers vent on social media only in extreme cases, either when very happy or when truly displeased. Therefore, even authentic reviews may not represent a true sample of majority views.

III. Direct Claims and Complaints (L.O. 8.3, PPT Slides 21–30, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. When you as a customer must write to identify or correct a wrong, the message is called a claim. b. Claims may be written as letters or made via telephone, e-mail, or social media. c. A direct approach is used for straightforward claims, where the receiver is expected to readily agree. d. With direct claims, state a clear claim in the opening. i.

Open with a compliment, a point of agreement, a statement of the problem, a brief review of action taken to resolve the problem, or a clear statement of the action you want. ii.

State the remedy immediately when it is obvious. iii.

Explain your goal when the remedy is less obvious. e. To support a claim, follow these guidelines: i.

Use the body to explain the problem and justify your request. ii.

Provide necessary details so the issue can be corrected. iii.

Avoid becoming angry or trying to fix blame. iv.

State facts logically, objectively, and unemotionally. v.

Include copies of pertinent documents, but don’t send originals. vi.

Cite the names of any individuals you corresponded with and the details of those interactions. f. Conclude a direct claim with an action request. i.

End with a courteous statement that summarizes your action request. ii.

Act promptly, as delayed claims are difficult to verify and appear less important. iii.

Be sure to save a copy of your paper or electronic claim. g. Follow these guidelines to complete the message and revise it (Model Document 8.5): i.

Be sure your subject line is informative and respectful.

ii. iii. iv.

Be sure the requested action is stated clearly and simply.

Be sure the situation is explained objectively.

Be sure you’ve used a friendly and neutral tone while documenting the facts. v.

Be sure your request is summarized courteously. h. Social media experts advise consumers to exhaust all other options for claims and complaints with the company before venting online. i.

Don’t post vicious, irrational complaints just to let off steam. ii.

Think about whether people you respect and prospective employers would approve. iii.

Understand that businesses can sue individuals for negative comments. iv.

Social listening – data gathering to improve business strategy and customer service by analyzing online chatter on social media platforms v.

Remember that a well-written online complaint may be useful to other consumers. i. When writing online reviews and complaints, follow these guidelines (Figure 8.3): i.

Establish your credibility. ii.

Consider the permanence of the Internet. iii.

Check posting rules. iv.

Accept offers to help. v.

Provide balanced reviews. vi.

Refuse payment for favorable critiques.

Ethics Check: Wardrobing: Wear, Instagram, Return?

Wardrobing is a type of return fraud, and retailers are employing technology to flag shoppers who return merchandise frequently. Most American and British people would probably agree that such practices are unethical and wrong. Competition is tough, and consumers have high expectations of retailers; this may explain their generous return policies. In his book Catalyst: How to Change Anyone’s Mind, Wharton professor Jonah Berger explains that generous return policies increase profits (p. 185).

When a writer for the UK newspaper The Guardian took to the streets of London, she didn’t find anyone who would cop to wardrobing. On the contrary, the young people she interviewed stated that they try to buy fewer clothes and purchase from thrift shops to reduce waste and their carbon footprint [Kale, S. (2019, September 18). One in five of us do it, but is “wardrobing” ever acceptable? The Guardian].

However, statistics tell a different story: On average approximately 20 percent of shoppers admit they are returning used items, costing U.K. retailers the equivalent of $1.75 billion. The numbers are staggering, though, among young age groups: 43 percent of 16- to 24-year-olds and 39 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds admit to dishonest returns [Whelan, G. (2019, September 18). Drapers]. As for Diesel’s humorous ad campaign, the retailer may have realized that draconian enforcement measures are not an option. Instead, by using humor and a dash of shaming, Diesel may have hoped the perpetrators would realize that the practice is detrimental to all consumers. Thoughtful students will realize that if more shoppers resorted to abuse, the policies would have to be changed or prices raised to offset the losses to retailers.

One researcher blames social media, Instagram in particular, for the rise of wardrobing: “More items become single-wear . . . because everybody has seen you in it,” says Susan Scafidi, a Fordham University law professor specializing in fashion. High-end retailers such as Bloomingdale’s have introduced plastic tags that are too big to disguise in order to prevent wardrobing.

Russell Winnard, director of Young Money, a charity in the U.K., blames fast fashion for an increase in the unethical practice: “Young people are under immense pressure at the moment with online retail outlets making it easier for them to buy products immediately and worry about how they are going to pay for them later,” he says. “Buy now pay later options are available on almost all major clothing retailers. It is becoming much easier for young people to click and buy without thinking of the consequences.” The more sustainable thing to do is buying less and better quality [Winchester, L. (2021, November 11). Money talk: “Is it ever ok to wear an item and then return it back to the shop? Mirror].

IV. Adjustment Messages (L.O. 8.4, PPT Slides 31–37, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. Adjustments are favorable responses to a claim. b. Favorable adjustments are made for two reasons. i.

Consumers are protected by contractual and tort law for recovery of damages. ii.

An organization desires to satisfy customers and retain their business. c. Adjustment messages have three goals. i.

Rectifying the wrong, if one exists ii.

Regaining the confidence of the customer iii.

Promoting further business d. When writing an adjustment message, present good news immediately, do not use a grudging tone or express anger, and avoid halfhearted or reluctant responses. (Model Document 8.6) e. Use the body to explain how you are complying with the claim. i.

Seek to regain the customer’s confidence. ii.

Explain what changes have been made or how a product will be improved. iii.

Include rational and sincere explanations. iv.

Avoid emphasizing negative words, keeping the message positive and upbeat. f. Whether to apologize is debatable. i.

Attorneys discourage apologies, while judges and juries look on apologies favorably. ii.

Thirty-six U.S. states have passed apology laws that allow expression of regret without fear of liability. iii.

Some business writing experts advise against apologies; however, if apologizing seems natural, do so. iv.

People appreciate sincere apologies, so avoid mechanical or insinceresounding stock phrases.

v.

V.

The primary focus of an adjustment message is on how you are complying with the request, how the problem occurred, and how you are working to prevent its recurrence. g. When using sensitive language for adjustment messages: i.

Don’t use negative words. ii.

Don’t blame customers—even when they may be at fault. iii.

Don’t blame individuals or departments within your organization; it’s unprofessional. iv.

Don’t make unrealistic promises; you can’t guarantee that the situation will never recur. h. Use the closing to express confidence that the problem has been resolved. i.

Articulate your appreciation. ii.

End positively and promote continued business relations. iii.

Refer to your desire to be of service and to satisfy customers.

Goodwill Messages (L.O. 8.5, PPT Slides 38–44, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. The five Ss of goodwill messages: i. Selfless—Focus on the receiver and not the sender. ii. Specific—Personalize the message and be sure to verify names and other facts. iii. Sincere—Show genuine feelings through your words with conversational language. iv. Spontaneous—Keep the message fresh and enthusiastic and avoid canned phrases. v. Short—Try to accomplish your purpose in just a few sentences, focusing on remembering the individual. b. Letters of appreciation may be written to customers for their orders, to hosts for their hospitality, to individuals for kindnesses, to employees for a job well done, and especially to customers who complain––after all, customer gripes can be opportunities to turn “complaints into compliments.” i.

To express thanks for a gift, tell the receiver what the gift means to you using sincere, simple statements. ii.

To send thanks for a favor, explain the importance of the gesture to you.

(Model Document 8.7) iii.

To extend thanks for hospitality, guests should send a note complimenting fine food, charming surroundings, warm hospitality, and good company. iv.

Recognizing specific employee contributions makes the recipient feel appreciated. c. Always respond to notes of congratulations and other goodwill messages. i.

Avoid minimizing your achievements or suggesting the sender is exaggerating your good qualities. ii.

Keep responses to congratulations short and simple. iii.

Acknowledge praise using simple words to convey your appreciation. d. Follow these guidelines for expressing sympathy and sending condolences:

i.

Personal notes are more meaningful than commercial sympathy cards. ii.

Refer to the death or misfortune sensitively. iii.

Praise the deceased in a personal way. iv.

Offer assistance without going into excessive detail. v.

End on a reassuring, forward-looking note. e. Guidelines for using e-mail for goodwill messages include the following: i.

E-mail is acceptable if you frequently communicate with the receiver through that channel and if you’re sure the note will not be lost. ii.

E-mail is a fast and nonintrusive way to show your feelings, but immediately follow with a handwritten note. iii.

E-mail messages may be quickly gone and forgotten, while handwritten notes can be savored.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Why the GDPR Matters (L.O. 8.4) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Whenever you navigate to any website today, you will see pop-ups forcing you to accept cookies and agree to or reject certain uses of your data. Most people don’t bother to read the provisions, but they are written in relatively plain language. Users can select options restricting cookies, ad tracking, and storing of their identifiable data. American companies rushed to comply with the strict European privacy law General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) even before it was enacted in 2018. b. Why does the GDPR matter in the United States, and why is it serious business? i. Answer: The GDPR matters in the United States because the Internet is global, and many U.S. companies collect or use EU residents’ data and partner with EU-based companies. Many American tech companies have European headquarters, mostly in Ireland. Violations of the GDPR could lead to fines as high as 20 million euros or 4 percent of global revenue, whichever is higher. For example, Facebook could be on the hook for $1.7 billion, if convicted in a current probe. ii. In the United States, the California Consumer Privacy Act is one of the toughest in the nation. Critics worry that such strict regulations will stifle small businesses that cannot afford the high cost of compliance or

penalties should they violate the legal provisions. Opponents also warn that the GDPR and similar laws have unintended consequences and will drive even more advertising revenue to Internet giants such as Google and Facebook because advertisers can trust that these corporations will be GDPR compliant. [Based on Kostov, N., & Schechner, S. (2019, June 17). GDPR has been a boon for Google and Facebook. The Wall Street Journal; Satariano, A. (2018, May 6). What the G.D.P.R., Europe’s tough new data law, means for you. The New York Times.]

2. Discussion: The Unique Expression of a Letter (L.O. 8.1) Duration: 10 minutes. a. A writer compared letters and social media posts: “What is special about a letter is the time that is taken in creating a letter—that someone went to the trouble of finding a piece of paper, sitting down, crafting their thoughts, putting them on paper, and that they created this document really just for me. A letter is a very singular expression, it’s a unique document, and for that reason, to get it in the mail feels almost like a gift. … It’s a piece of paper that I can feel. … There’s a physical connection.” b. How might these observations apply to business letters? i. Answer: In her book Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Celebrating the Joys of Letter Writing, Connecticut-based author Nina Sankovitch movingly traces the history of letter writing, why it’s important, and what makes a good letter. She stresses the privacy, even intimacy, and uniqueness of letters.

She speaks about the personal and deliberate nature of letter writing: letters create a connection between two people in an age of surveillance and diminishing privacy. Letters also give us time, space, and permanence, whereas the expectation of social media is immediacy, instant responses, and fleeting communication. c. What other special traits can you identify? i. Answer: Business letters are confidential. They are less likely than electronic media to be intercepted, misdirected, forwarded, retrieved, or otherwise inspected by unintended recipients. Also, business letters presented on company stationery carry a sense of formality and importance not possible with e-mail. They look important. Business letters are necessary when the situation calls for a permanent record. Although businesses are eager to connect with customers on social media, they continue to give letters to customers a high priority because these messages also encourage product feedback, project a favorable image of the organization, and promote future business.

3. Discussion: Keeping Your Cool (L.O. 8.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. When supporting a claim, it’s important to state facts logically, objectively, and unemotionally.

b. Why is it smart to keep your cool when making a claim, and how should you go about it? i. Answer: Avoid becoming angry or trying to fix blame. Bear in mind that the person reading your message is seldom responsible for the problem.

Instead, state the facts logically, objectively, and unemotionally; let the reader decide on the causes. In the body of a claim message, explain the problem and justify your request. Provide the necessary details so that the difficulty can be corrected without further correspondence. Some people believe that by being very vocal and rude, they are more likely to get their way; however, incivility breeds ill will. As the saying goes, you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

4. Discussion: SLAPP Laws (L.O. 8.3) Duration: 15 minutes. a. In this chapter you learned that some businesses have used so-called SLAPP laws to sue consumers for writing negative reviews on the Internet. The acronym stands for Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation. Opponents consider such lawsuits frivolous and believe they threaten the public’s free speech rights under the First Amendment. Therefore, 29 states currently have anti-SLAPP laws allowing early dismissal of meritless lawsuits brought to intimidate and silence reviewers and other public critics. b. Is trying to silence reviewers on social media fair, or are businesses within their rights to protect from illegitimate damaging complaints? i. Answer: Student answers will vary, but most students probably realize that fewer people are willing to write honest critical reviews if they may have to defend themselves against lawsuits. The public that overwhelmingly relies on consumer reviews before making purchases may be deceived if honest opinions were no longer ensured. Consumers would probably want to reserve the right to write authentic, truthful reviews. On the other hand, organizations and professionals are sometimes taking desperate steps to defend themselves against retaliatory and unfair reviews that may genuinely hurt their business interest. They may sue for libel, if the lawsuit has merit and is not just intended to chill free speech rights. SLAPP laws, on the other hand, lack probable cause; they are designed to harass and silence opposition, needlessly forcing critics to pay astronomical sums on their legal defense.

Anti-SLAPP statutes were enacted in 29 U.S. states to defend subjects of frivolous and retaliatory litigation by allowing early dismissal and helping defendants to be reimbursed for their legal fees.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Giving Back – Reign Ventures Supports Women- and Minority-Led Startups (Part 1) In this case study, students will read about the creation of Reign Ventures, a women- and minority-led tech startup, aimed at providing financial assistance to other women and minorities beginning their own businesses. Students will be directed to answer the critical thinking questions. a. What message does Monique Idlett-Mosley’s career path and success send to other women and particularly people of color? i. Monique Idlett-Mosley’s journey serves as an inspiration, demonstrating that by working together, supporting one another, and demanding change, women can achieve extraordinary results. Because Idlett-Mosely overcame many challenges and prevailed, her story can inspire women from disadvantaged backgrounds to persist. In addition, Rein Ventures now seeks to make entrepreneurship easier for those who follow in the founders’ footsteps. b. How would you explain that of $330 billion venture funds, only $6.4 billion financed women-led startups and that angel investors gave more money to women’s ventures that had a male cofounder? i. Because it’s statistically nearly impossible that only 2 percent of women in the United States would pitch startup projects worthy of venture capital, sexism seems to be at play here. The evidence for this assumption is that women entrepreneurs receive almost 16 percent more seed money if they team up with a male cofounder. Angel investors reluctant to fund women-led startups are signaling that startups run by men are more worthy and seemingly carry a lower risk of failure. The funding gap is perpetuated by a sexist system that doesn’t want to take a chance on “untried” nontraditional businesspeople (who are not white, not male) and, as a result, fewer women and people of color receive the opportunity to prove that entrepreneurs of all stripes can be successful. It’s a vicious circle that people like Monique Idlett-Mosley seek to break.

After all, investing always involves risk; passing on a startup because the founder doesn’t fit the stereotype of an entrepreneur can lead to substantial lost opportunities and propagates the current lopsided world of venture capital funding. Aside from male privilege, some critics blame banks for not doing more to fund women- and minority-led startups. A third factor cited includes the lack of social capital because women and people from underserved communities are not able to raise early-stage startup funds from friends and family [Aichholz, N. (2022, March 17). The challenge in getting funding for women and minority-owned businesses, and how to solve them. Entrepreneur]. c. Explain the meaning of Reign Ventures’s goal of “challenging prevailing narratives.”

i. To “challenge prevailing narratives” means to question the commonly accepted or dominant beliefs, stories, or perspectives that exist within a particular context or society. Prevailing narratives are the widely held ideas, explanations, or interpretations that shape our understanding of various issues, events, or groups of people.

Challenging these narratives involves critically examining the established norms, assumptions, and biases that underpin them. It often entails bringing attention to alternative viewpoints, marginalized voices, or overlooked aspects of a topic or situation. By doing so, individuals or groups aim to broaden the discourse, promote a more inclusive and diverse understanding, and create space for new perspectives to be considered.

In the context of entrepreneurship among people from underserved communities, challenging prevailing narratives means to show that women and people of color can be successful and deserve funding and support. It also means breaking free from the notion that a typical entrepreneur is white and male. Rewriting the prevailing narrative means showing that diversity in business and society is an asset. Reign Ventures’ objective is to challenge traditional notions of entrepreneurship, provide opportunities, and help nontraditional entrepreneurs prove themselves.

Case Study: Giving Back – Reign Ventures Supports Women- and Minority-Led Startups (Part 2): In this case study, students will learn more about Reign Ventures and examine its business practices. The instructor will set guidelines on an assignment, or research “kidpreneurs” and write about them – child prodigies creating their own businesses.

Answers will vary. Below is one potential solution—an e-mail summarizing the amazing story of Mikaila Ulmer, who built a thriving business on lemonade that also led her to passionate honeybee advocacy. By the time she turned 11, Mikaila jetted to international gatherings and became a sought-after speaker. At one such conference, she introduced President Obama. Students will find other examples of successful social entrepreneurs.

To avoid bot-generated output, you could limit the choices of kidpreneurs and require specific detail. Most ChatGPT-generated answers at this point may be of passing literacy but they also come with characteristic wordiness and abstract vagueness.

Asking the students to relate their findings to their own goals or experiences will further ensure that they did the thinking that underpins thoughtful writing. Using an AI bot for drafting, on the other hand, is becoming increasingly common in many workplaces.

Subject: Inspiring Young Entrepreneur Creates Buzz with Me & the Bees Lemonade Dear [Recipient’s Name],

You asked us to share an inspiring story with you about a young “kidpreneur.” I chose Mikaila Ulmer from Austin, Texas, and her successful venture, Me & the Bees Lemonade.

At the age of 4, Mikaila was stung by two bees in one week, which initially made her afraid of the insects. To help her overcome her fear, her parents encouraged Mikaila to learn about bees and their vital role in our ecosystem as well as about the unfortunate decline of bee populations.

Her great-grandmother Helen sent her a 1940s cookbook containing her favorite recipe for flaxseed lemonade that included honey. Driven by her newfound knowledge and a desire to make a difference, Mikaila developed Me & the Bees Lemonade. Infused with flaxseed and mint, this refreshing beverage is primarily sweetened with honey sourced from local honeybees.

What sets Mikaila apart is her dedication to giving back. For every bottle sold, she donates a percentage of the profits to organizations working towards the conservation of bees, including the Texas beekeepers’ association.

Initially selling her lemonade at a local pizzeria in 2009, Mikaila’s entrepreneurial journey took a significant leap when she showcased her product at a local Whole Foods store, which eventually started carrying Me & the Bees Lemonade throughout its southeast region. Amazingly, at a mere 9 years of age, Mikaila won Shark Tank, which further boosted her exposure and success.

When she was 11, she introduced President Barack Obama at a major international conference. She spoke before Congress on youth entrepreneurship.

While still just a teenager, she has received many awards and is a sought-after speaker at summits and corporate gatherings around the globe.

Mikaila leads workshops about bee conservation and social entrepreneurship and has published her first book, Bee Fearless: Dream Like a Kid. Mikaila offers valuable advice to future business tycoons: be a social entrepreneur who aims to solve real-world problems. Instead of solely pursuing profit, create a business that addresses a need in society and aligns with your passion. By combining passion and purpose, the journey becomes more enjoyable and fulfilling.

Mikaila Ulmer’s story demonstrates the incredible impact young individuals can make when they harness their passion and dedication. Her commitment to the environment and social responsibility is remarkable, and her success with Me & the Bees Lemonade serves as an inspiration to entrepreneurs young and old.

Sincerely, [Your Name]

Based on: Mikaila Ulmer: Social entrepreneur, bee ambassador, author, educator and student. (2023). Me & the Bees Lemonade. Retrieved from https://www.meandthebees.com; Shandrow, K. L. (2016, August 4). 11 successful kid entrepreneurs keeping their eyes on the prize. Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. Answers will vary. Some students might defend the right to write honest, authentic online reviews on which so many consumer today depend to make a buying decision. Others may recognize that organizations and professionals are sometimes taking desperate steps to defend themselves against arbitrary and unfair reviews that may genuinely hurt their business interests. The Consumer Review Fairness Act was not adopted federally.

It was aiming to void non-disparagement clauses—most commonly known in separation agreements that departing employees often must sign—to protect consumers from terms of service that force them, most often without their knowledge, to sign away their free speech right to talk about their consumer experience.

As before, though, businesses could request that false or defamatory reviews be removed. Whether this action would resolve the problem of dishonest reviewing online is a big question. After all, because business and profits are at stake, sometimes companies resort to questionable tactics to boost their online reputation—for example, by buying likes. And some consumers choose to retaliate for what they perceive as unfair treatment. Discerning students might recognize that those of us who read and depend on reviews (80 to 90 percent of online shoppers!) cannot fully trust that those posts are necessarily truthful or real—a healthy attitude toward other Internet sources as well.

From the point of view of a business that may become the target of frivolous, unfair, or even vicious criticism online, nondisparagement clauses may seem like a possible line of defence or deterrent. However, the courts generally consider nondisparagement clauses unenforceable.

2. The GDPR matters in the United States because the Internet is global, and many U.S. companies collect or use E.U. residents’ data and partner with E.U.-based companies.

Many American tech companies have European headquarters, mostly in Ireland.

Violations of the GDPR could lead to fines of up to 4 percent of global revenue. For example, Meta (Facebook) was convicted and fined $1.3 billion but could have been on the hook for $4.7 billion. Amazon and other multinational companies have been the target of probes under the GDPR and substantial penalties were levied against them.

In the United States, the California Consumer Privacy Act is one of the toughest in the nation. Critics worry that such strict regulations will stifle small businesses that cannot

afford the high cost of compliance or penalties should they violate the legal provisions.

Opponents also warn that the GDPR and similar laws have unintended consequences and will drive even more advertising revenue to Internet giants such as Google and Facebook because advertisers can trust that these corporations will be GDPR compliant.

[Based on Kostov, N., & Schechner, S. (2019, June 17). GDPR has been a boon for Google and Facebook. The Wall Street Journal; Satariano, A. (2018, May 6). What the G.D.P.R., Europe’s tough new data law, means for you. The New York Times).

3. The simplest answer is perhaps that it’s the right thing to do by the standards of polite society and a workplace that values decorum. But because students are learning the conventions of the world of work, it might be useful to point out the indirect benefits of being courteous and thanking others for kindnesses received. Goodwill messages are attempts to reach out and connect; they foster professional and personal bonds. Most would agree that ignoring notes of congratulations and most other goodwill messages is like failing to say You're welcome when someone says Thank you. Responses to notes of congratulations should be short, simple, and free of false humility. Writers should not minimize their achievements with comments that suggest that they don't deserve the praise or that the sender is exaggerating their good qualities.

4. Avoid becoming angry or trying to fix blame. Bear in mind that the person reading your message is seldom responsible for the problem. Instead, state the facts logically, objectively, and unemotionally; let the reader decide on the causes. In the body of a claim message, explain the problem and justify your request. Provide the necessary details so that the difficulty can be corrected without further correspondence. Some people believe that by being very vocal and rude, they are more likely to get their way; however, incivility breeds ill will. As the saying goes, you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

5. A goodwill letter is not meant to dispute erroneous reporting; rather, its purpose is to address negative blemishes on accounts that have already been paid. With an otherwise good credit history, a person might be able to stop negative reporting about a few late payments. Such a letter identifies the account for which an update is sought, briefly discusses the otherwise positive payment history, explains why the payments were late, and requests a “goodwill adjustment.” A letter is much more credible and effective than a phone call because low-level representatives may not have the power to execute changes. Even if a higher-up is available for a phone conversation, approval is not guaranteed. Of course, a letter is not automatically going to achieve positive results, but its formality and the opportunity for formulating a thoughtful request make it more likely to succeed. In addition, unlike e-mail, such a letter is confidential and can be sent by certified mail with return receipt.

WRITING IMPROVEMENT EXERCISES 8.1 Message Openers and Subject Lines (L.O. 1, 2, 3) 1. Answer: a. Subject line: Questions About Your Voice-Recognition Software 2. Answer: a. Subject line: Introducing Kristi Bostock, Our New HR Manager

3. Answer: b. Subject line: Inquiring About Becoming A Green Living Spaces Affiliate 4. Answer: b. Subject line: Sending Replacement Mesa/Boogie BQ6 Amplifier Tubes by Prepaid Express 8.2 Bulleted and Numbered Lists (L.O. 1-4) 1.

2.

3.

You can avoid frustration and produce excellent digital prints by following three steps: 1. Calibrate your screen using the Datacolor Spyder X. 2. Edit your image so that it looks natural and balanced.

3. Configure your printer and select the correct paper type.

Our attorney recommends the following steps to avoid sexual harassment litigation: • Written policy. Establish a clear policy prohibiting sexual harassment within our organization.

• Training. Provide training sessions for supervisors regarding a proper work environment.

• Complaint procedure. Create an official procedure to hear complaints and investigate Surfboards made from the wood of Paulownia trees have the same properties as conventional boards but offer a significantly improved carbon footprint. Some of the advantages of organic boards result from the unique properties of Paulownia trees: • Renewable resource that can grow 10 to 20 feet in a single year and mature within 10 years • Lightweight and warp resistant wood—perfect for kite boards and other products, including musical instruments • Drought tolerance and carbon-capture properties, offering benefits in offsetting CO2 emissions and combating global warming

8.3 Social Media Posts: Watch Out! (L.O. 1–5) a. The 3-second GIF selling Dove body wash was removed within a day from Facebook with a statement by the company admitting it “missed the mark”: This did not represent the diversity of real beauty which is something Dove is passionate about and is core to our beliefs, and it should not have happened. We apologize deeply and sincerely for the offense that it has caused and do not condone any activity or imagery that insults any audience.

In past campaigns, Dove represented physical beauty in many manifestations showing women of various ethnicities and age groups. But this ad backfired because it struck many viewers as insensitive and Eurocentric in its beauty norms, as though it were “whitewashing” the African American model. b. Someone writing for the fast-food giant inserted a placeholder, and the social media post was published prematurely, before text and a link to the discounted offer could be inserted. Oops! Although it’s a minor miss, the incident reinforces the wisdom of carefully

checking before hitting post or send. Interestingly, the tweet engendered mostly goodnatured mocking from thousands of Twitter users and may have heightened the attention people paid to it. c. Once the hilarity subsides, students will recognize the potential for major embarrassment when the incorrect files are attached to a message. They may imagine with horror the kinds of files and media they may be storing on their computers and mobile devices. The lesson here is to exercise care when applying for a job and attaching important application documents. d. This is a funny example driving home the importance of correct spelling and carefully checking that spelling—particularly on items where it can’t be changed. Some customers may not care that their flowerpots say Brid, glad that the containers were inexpensive, or they may even display the pots for giggles to see if anyone notices.

8.5 Writing Clear Instructions (L.O. 2) a. If you don’t have a TikTok account yet, install the app and sign up. Follow these ten steps to create a TikTok video: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Explore and Get Inspired: Tap the “Discover” or “For You” tab.

Decide on Content: Create a lip-sync, dance, comedy skit, beauty tutorial, DIY project.

Tap the “+” Button: Tap the “+” button at the bottom of the screen to start making your video.

Choose Video Duration: Record a short 15-second video, a 30-second video, or the full 60 seconds.

Add Effects and Filters: Enhance your video; experiment with various effects and filters.

Record Your Video: Tap and hold the record button to start recording in one take or pause and resume as needed.

Edit Your Video: Use the built-in editing tools to trim the video, add text, stickers, sound effects, or background music; adjust the volume levels and apply transitions.

Add Captions and Hashtags: Write a catchy caption for your video and add relevant hashtags to reach a wider audience.

Choose Privacy Settings: Decide whether you want your video to be public or visible to your friends only.

Post and Share Your Video: Tap the “Next” button and then “Post.” Follow accounts, like and comment on videos, and participate in trending challenges.

Explore different video styles and enjoy the process of creating content for this popular social media platform. a. Social listening is important and can be handled effectively by following these guidelines: 1.

Always respond and do so quickly.

2.

Prepare an official response for major concerns or inquiries.

3.

Find out what people are saying about you, even if they don’t know you’re listening.

4.

Listen to your competition too.

5.

Track every mention.

6.

Be friendly and personable.

7.

Be consistent with responses.

8.

Coordinate responses with executives and others visible on social media.

9.

Hang out where your customers are.

10.

Measure the effectiveness of your social media response. b. To customize your Zoom background on your desktop or laptop app, do the following: 1.

In the Zoom app, click your profile in the top right corner, and click Settings.

2.

On the menu to the left, click Virtual Background.

3.

Select one of the default options provided by Zoom by clicking an image or the green screen.

4.

To upload your own photo to use as background, click the + icon on the Virtual Background page next to Choose Virtual Background.

5.

With the help of the pop-up window, review and select your favorite photo to upload.

6.

Once you click your selected photo, it will appear alongside the stock images as an option to choose from.

7.

To remove any photos you upload, tap the X in their top left corner.

8.

Experiment with a beauty filter to soften your features during a Zoom session. c. Here are five tips for getting and keeping good credit: • Get a gas store card. Gas cards are easier to obtain than regular credit cards, and they establish a credit history as you make small payments in full and on time.

• Always pay your bills on time. Delinquencies have a big negative effect on your credit score.

• Pay down your credit card balances. Consider taking a loan from a family member or friend if necessary.

• Don’t close unused credit card accounts. Canceling a card can actually lower your score.

• Never max out your credit cards. Try to keep your balances below 30 percent of your credit limit.

ACTIVITIES 8.6 Document for Analysis: Direct Message—Revise Wordy ChatGPT Announcement (L.O. 1, 2) Weaknesses • • • • •

Uses a lengthy subject line.

Chooses an odd salutation (Dear Financial Firm Workers) Fails to open with the main idea.

Is wordy and repetitious (seek clarification from; As financial professionals, it is our collective responsibility).

Opts for “big words” that hamper comprehension.

• •

Employs clichés (We hope this email finds you well, We would like to bring your attention to, and Thank you for your attention and cooperation.)

Concludes with empty commonplaces and vague references (the last three paragraphs: an important milestone in our journey towards a low carbon environment; Let us embrace this opportunity, etc.)

Revision Subject: New Rules Against Greewashing in Sustainable Investing Dear Analysts and Fund Managers, Important new regulations in the European Union (EU) financial markets will affect our work and the services we provide. The Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) aims to combat “greenwashing” in the sustainable finance industry. The new rules require fund managers to evaluate and disclose the environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) features of financial products.

Who is affected: The SFDR applies to all financial-market participants and advisers within the EU, as well as foreigners who market products to EU investors. Fund managers must collect and report specific ESG data and disclose how investments in ESG characteristics may diminish investor returns but also how investments may in fact make climate change worse.

Why the SFDR: The main objective of the SFDR is to address greenwashing in the booming ESG market, which is projected to reach over $53 trillion by 2025. Growing demand for sustainable investments has given rise to products claiming to be environmentally friendly.

Unfortunately, because misrepresentation was rampant, the SFDR was passed to enforce greater transparency and accountability through enhanced disclosures.

How the SFDR works: Under the SFDR, funds are classified into three categories. Article 8 funds actively promote environmental or social characteristics whereas Article 9 funds have sustainable investment as their objective. Both categories are subject to higher standards of disclosure. On the other hand, Article 6 funds are those in which the manager does not consider ESG risks relevant to investment decisions or returns. However, managers of Article 6 funds must provide an explanation for this classification.

Why we must comply: Because we do business in the EU, we must familiarize ourselves with the SFDR and its requirements. Compliance with these regulations is not only a legal obligation but also a way to build trust with clients and investors. By adhering to the SFDR, we can demonstrate our commitment to responsible investing and contribute to the EU’s broader goal of redirecting capital toward sustainable businesses.

What’s next: We encourage you to review the SFDR guidelines and direct any questions to your supervisors or compliance officers. We will soon provide training opportunities to delve into the details of the new provisions. Together, we can make a positive impact in the financial industry and contribute to a more sustainable future.

Best regards,

8.7 Document for Analysis: Direct Request—Locating an Accessible Venue (L.O. 2) Weaknesses • • • • • • •

Uses a meaningless subject line.

Violates etiquette by addressing the recipient on a first-name basis.

Fails to open with the main idea.

Presents details and questions in a rambling, haphazard manner instead of an orderly list of parallel points.

Reduces readability and turns off the reader with a dense block of solid print.

Includes at least one fragment.

Fails to conclude with appropriate thanks, a goodwill statement, and an end date.

Revision To: Libby.Rosario@fourseasonsno.com From: Cecilia Noble <cnoble@gmail.com Subject: Is the Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans Fully Accessible?

Bcc: Mariyah Suarez; Yesenia Karpenko; Phillip Kelly; India Rowe Dear Ms. Rosario: Your centrally located premier hotel has been selected as a possible venue for an upcoming Accessibility For All (AFA) conference in New Orleans next fall. An important part of our planning is making sure the venue we select enables all attendees to participate fully.

Please answer the following questions to help us make our decision.

• • • • •

Listening systems. Does the Four Seasons Hotel provide assistive listening systems such as the induction-loop system that bypasses acoustical conditions and delivers sound directly to listeners?

Parking. Does the hotel have level parking nearby with drop-off available close to the building?

Restrooms. Are ADA restrooms available on the meeting room floors?

Service animals. Do you provide a comfortable space for service animals to rest during an event? What about accessible nearby toileting and watering facilities?

Electrical outlets. Are ample electrical outlets available in meeting rooms that will accommodate laptops, adaptive devices, and other electronics?

Thanks for responding by e-mail before January 15 so that we can make our decision for the fall conference. We are eager to learn whether it will be possible to hold our conference at the highly recommended Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans.

Best wishes, Cecilia Noble AFA Fall Conference, New Orleans

8.8 Document for Analysis: Direct Request—Patient Privacy at Risk (L.O. 2) Weaknesses a. b. c. d. e. f.

Fails to use a meaningful subject line and includes a dated salutation.

Opens with an explanation instead of a direct request.

Presents information haphazardly; the document looks like an unrevised first draft.

Should have set the questions in a bulleted list and organized them logically.

Uses wordy expressions, such as I am writing this message to ask . . . and to make notification instead of to notify.

Does not close with an end date and telephone number.

Revision To: lbgamble@securitypros.com From: Marley Tanner, MD <marley.tanner@valleyinternist.com> Subject: How to Protect Patient Data in Small Medical Practice Dear Mr. Gamble: Please help me better understand how to protect patients’ medical information. As a physician with an internist partner in a small medical practice, I am concerned about patient data breaches.

Your website is promising but a bit overwhelming. I have a few specific questions to ask about your services. My practice may already have experienced a security breach, and I’m seeking answers to the following questions: • • • •

Are you experienced in working with small medical firms?

If a breach has occurred, how do you investigate the incident?

Do you provide guidance in notifying affected patients, and are you discreet about such notifications?

If you discover that laws have been broken, are you obligated to report them to law enforcement agencies?

As you can see, I have many sensitive questions. I would like to talk confidentially with someone in your firm within the next two days. Please call me at (619) 000-0000 to arrange a time that is convenient for both of us. I am most likely to be available after surgery between 4 and 6 p.m. weekdays.

Marley Tanner, MD [Full contact information]

8.9 Document for Analysis: Direct Response—Answers to Patient Privacy Query (L.O. 2) Weaknesses a. Begins weakly with an obvious and unnecessary statement instead of expressing appreciation for the inquiry and conveying confidence that Security Pros can help solve the writer’s problems. b. Fails to organize answers to questions in a logical order. c. Does not see the opportunity to use down-editing (copying the recipient’s questions and inserting answers in a different color). d. Creates a negative tone by mentioning that the government may be warned of a security infraction instead of putting this bad news in a subordinate clause followed by the good news (Although we are obligated to report wrongdoing, this is rarely necessary). e. Does not express ideas with parallel construction (how to properly handle, store, and the processing of). f. Fails to close with an action statement about when the writer will call.

Revision To: Marley Tanner, MD <marley.tanner@valleyinternist.com> From: lmgamble@securitypros.com Subject: Answering Your Questions and Scheduling a Call on March 19 Dear Dr. Tanner: We appreciate your interest in Security Pros. We are confident that we can offer you expert guidance in the areas of cyber security, data breach response, and incident analysis solutions.

You are smart to seek advice in protecting patient data. Although you may have limited resources, even the smallest firm will benefit from basic security awareness training in the proper handling, storing, and processing of patient health information.

Let me respond to your specific questions. See my answers in italics: • • • •

Are you experienced in working with small medical firms?

Yes, we have worked with many small medical firms and have been able to address their specific needs.

If a breach has occurred, how do you investigate the incident?

We are experienced at investigating incidents, analyzing clues, and quickly and defensively uncovering critical information.

Do you provide guidance in notifying affected patients, and are you discreet about such notifications?

We deliver discreet, prompt, and customized breach notifications.

If you discover that laws have been broken, are you obligated to report them to law enforcement agencies?

Although we are obligated to report wrongdoing, this is rarely necessary.

May I call you on March 19 at 4:30 p.m.? At that time I can provide more extensive answers to your questions. Please rest assured that Security Pros can help you investigate and control any data breach incidents.

Lamont Broderick Gamble [Full contact information]

8.10 Responding to Social Media Posts (L.O. 2) a. HomeEats responded within 16 hours with this post: Hi Kianna! We’re so glad you like the Pumpkin Yippee Pie mix but sorry that your local store is sold out. It looks as though many of our stores will have stock available. Please call us at 888.000.0000, and we can get you to the next closest store that has stock available! Thank you! This reply does not have any apparent negatives. The pros: The brand reaches out to provide unsolicited advice to a user who shares her frustration about her inability to find a product that she loves. This effort paid off. Kianna posted this enthusiastic reply: Thank you so much!! Ah the power of social networking! I love it. I just got off the phone and the Savannah, Ga location is holding 2 for me! Thank you!!! b. The company responded very promptly: Hi Landon, unfortunately you ordered an item that needs to be shipped ground. We are terribly sorry that you were not notified in advance. The pros of this reply: The response is personal and addresses the writer by name. The explanation is humble and apologetic. The cons: Because direct contact information (e-mail, link, or telephone number) is not provided, the consumer cannot pursue the complaint further if more problems arise. Landon could have used more specific language (things) and paid more attention to punctuation. c. Yes, the company did respond to this positive message to demonstrate that it is listening to consumers and to reinforce the positive feelings of this devoted customer: That’s a great story, Mr. Washington. It’s hard for us to imagine that you’ve been shopping at Nonchalant Wearhouse for only 6 years. Immediately Shamar replied: Well, I did manage to struggle into a suit or two before Nonchalant. I must somehow get you a picture of a vintage Nonchalant Wearhouse hat I have made by Locke and Co. in England – forties I think. It fits me perfectly. Within an hour Nonchalant Wearhouse wrote back: That would be lovely and most appreciated, sir. Send away to facebook@nonchalantwearhouse.com. Another positive feature of this exchange: The brand is true to its stylish image and addresses Shamar by his last name and sir. The personal responses also include direct contact information inviting the user to share a photograph and his positive feelings about the brand. d. Did SafeChoice take this tempting opportunity and fire a cheap shot at the competition? No. The insurer replied graciously about two hours after Mylee’s message was posted: While filing a claim is never fun, and we are glad you are okay, we are happy to hear that the process was a smooth one for you. Thanks for being a policyholder, Mylee! The reply is personal and prompt. The brand shows concern for the user of the Facebook page and keeps a positive emphasis on its wall.

e. Requests must be answered and preferably quickly. Encore at Wynn Las Vegas wrote back two hours later: “Our lagoon pool and hot tubs are open year round… and heated of course!” The benefit of this answer is the relatively quick response with exactly the information Reece needed. The drawback of this answer: The resort missed the opportunity to provide an even more valuable customer experience. A potential guest could have become a confirmed reservation had a link to the booking website been provided. Attentive students will notice that opened in Reece’s message should be open.

8.11 Direct Request: Planning a Winter Retreat in Whistler, British Columbia (L.O. 2) To: Denise O’Handley <dohandley@westinresortandspa.com From: [Your Name] Subject: Requesting Information About Potential Conference and Facilities for 80 Guests Dear Ms. O’Handley: Can Westin Resort and Spa provide 40 rooms accommodating about 80 guests for either December 10-14, 2024, or January 14-18, 2025?

My company will be hosting a four-day combination sales conference/vacation/retreat for 45 of our marketing and media professionals with their spouses or partners. Please answer the following questions to help us choose a suitable resort: •

What are the room rates and room sizes? Is there any discount for groups or for corporate customers?

• Do you have two conference rooms available that would hold 20 people each?

We would need these rooms for one and a half days. What is the size and cost of these rooms?

• Do the conference rooms have audiovisual and computer facilities as well as reliable Internet access?

• Do you have facilities for us to host a banquet for 80 people one evening?

• What leisure activities are available for the families of our staff in Whistler and environs?

• What skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports options are available to groups?

• Can you arrange tours to any of the nearby national parks?

• How would our group travel to Whistler from Vancouver Airport?

Your answers to these questions before September 1 will help me make a complete presentation to our CEO, who is eager to select a spectacular resort for this conference and retreat.

Sincerely, Direct Request: Philanthropy and Puppies (L. O. 2)

Current date Ms. Madelyn Park Northwest Guide Dogs 2282 Baseline Road Boulder, CO 80303 Dear Ms. Park: Please answer some questions regarding Northwest Guide Dogs’ program for volunteers to raise puppies for guide dog training.

My company is interested in extending its community outreach program, and we want to explore the possibility of providing volunteers. We are excited about the possibility and have a number of questions.

1.

Does Northwest Guide Dogs have any programs that encourage corporate sponsors to provide volunteers?

2.

If no programs are currently available, would Northwest Guide Dogs be interested in pursuing the possibility?

3.

Do puppy raisers require any special training and if yes, do you provide such training?

4.

Do Northwest Guide puppies require special food?

5.

Can a person be gone during the day and still raise a Northwest Guide puppy?

6.

Who pays for a puppy’s food and other expenses?

We are exceedingly interested in an opportunity to develop a corporate program encouraging volunteers to become Northwest Guide puppy raisers. We admire this excellent program that enriches the lives of people with vision impairments and helps them travel safely and confidently.

Your answers to these questions before June 1 will enable me to bring the matter to our next board meeting. You may write to me at the above address or send an e-mail to yourname@yourdomain.com.

Sincerely,

8.13 Direct Response: Sandy Point Sails Answers a Bad Yelp Review (L.O. 2) Charles’s options are many, but not all are equally wise. He could respond on Yelp, which gives businesses the opportunity to address poor reviews. He could write Skyla an e-mail or call her. What really happened was that Charles decided to call the customer. He left messages on both her mobile phone and her home phone. In both messages Charles apologized for not getting back to Skyla, explained how busy he was, and reported that his

administrative assistant had been sick. He offered to expedite the work Skyla wanted to have done.

Skyla was pleased about the message and decided to change her Yelp review. She wrote an update explaining her change of heart. Calling the customer was very effective in this case because it showed a personal touch. Writing a Yelp response would most likely not have been as effective. If students decide that Charles should call the customer, they could write a potential script for him. Following is an e-mail solution.

To: skyla.david@outlook.com From:

charles_henry@sandypointsails.com

Subject:

Your Recent Request for an Estimate

Dear Skyla: You have every right to be disappointed in our service, and I promise to give special attention to your needs from this day forward. I have also left a voice mail message to tell you that I will personally come to your boat and take the measurements for your weather cloths. I have a selection of standard Cat 30 sails in stock, but I need more information from you: Do you need a main sail, jib, or genoa?

Just so that you know, our business has been severely shorthanded. As the summer is getting underway, we have a lot of inquiries from boat owners like you who wish to replace their aging canvas covers and weather cloths. I am scrambling to hire additional installers.

However, worst of all, my trusted administrative assistant has been sick lately, and our communication with customers has suffered as a result.

As you may have seen, we usually receive nothing but 4- or 5-star ratings. We will be happy to make up for our delayed response by expediting the manufacturing of your custom canvas. Please call me at 410-000-0000 to make an appointment, so that I can meet you at your boat and get the new canvas and sail order started for you.

Cordially, Charles Charles Henry | Owner | Sandy Point Sails | Solomons, MD 20688 | 410.000.0000

8.14 Direct Message: Self-Care for Businesspeople (L.O. 1, 2) Date:

Current

To:

All Staff

From:

Anika Contreras

Subject:

Steps to Healthier Sleep and Greater Productivity

For many of us there aren’t enough hours in a day. We tend to shortchange our sleep as we frantically try to keep up with our workloads. After ever longer hours on the job, we see diminishing returns. We are struggling with stress and decreasing productivity, which we mask by downing caffeinated beverages such as coffee or energy drinks. Sound familiar?

After reading Arianna Huffington’s book The Sleep Revolution: Transforming Your Life, One Night at a Time, I decided to share her tips for sleep health with all of you. The cofounder of the Huffington Post was a hard-charging executive and editor until one day she collapsed from exhaustion, hitting her head on her desk, and injuring her cheekbone. That was her wake-up call—literally.

Arianna Huffington offers the following tips to sleep deprived workers: 1.

Understand and recognize the importance of sleep. Almost every aspect of our health is affected by sleep. Sleep enables us to regulate weight, improve heart rate, and manage daily stressors. The body repairs itself and releases toxins it built up during the day.

2.

Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep each night. Research shows that most people need 7-9 hours of sleep. If you need an alarm clock to wake up, you’re not getting enough sleep.

After the right amount of sleep, you will feel refreshed and fully recharged.

3.

Nap to compensate for lack of sleep. If you can’t get a good night’s sleep, power nap to make up for it. Because our energy dips around 1-3 p.m., a post-lunch nap is ideal to keep you alert and energized. Practice regular sleeping habits to avoid sleep disorders.

4.

Proactively manage your stress during the day. Instead of caffeine fixes, use breathing exercises, go for a walk, eat a healthy snack, and meditate.

5.

Turn your bedroom into a sleep sanctuary. Declutter the room; keep it gadget-free; surround yourself with soothing objects; opt for paperbacks, not work reading; and pick the right mattress.

6.

Create transition time to help you wind down. Engage in activities that mentally prepare you for sleep, e.g., take a bath, read a good book, write a journal, or wear dedicated sleeping clothes.

7.

Use guided meditation. Learning mediation techniques may help not just fall asleep but stay asleep too.

8.

Choose herb tea over coffee close to bedtime. Coffee is not the enemy, but it shouldn’t substitute for sleep; drinking coffee after 2 p.m. can disrupt quality sleep.

9.

Value your dreams by documenting them. Dreams are a source of creativity and may be an outlet for unresolved emotions. When you sleep long and deeply enough, you will be able to remember your dreams. Keep a dream journal and share it with your partner.

Change will be gradual. Shedding long-held habits and establishing new sleep routines is not easy. Start slow, and you will see results. You will wake up refreshed and may find that

you will be able to leave the building at a reasonable hour because your well-rested mind and body will be more productive.

[Source: 9 sleep tips Arianna Huffington swears by. (n.d.). Well.org. Retrieved from https://www.well.org]

8.15 Direct Message: Poole, Joyce & Partners Interviewing Potential Associates (L.O. 2) To: soren.poole@pjp.com From: [Name] Subject: Rescheduling Interviews for Environmental Architect/Designer As you requested, I have rescheduled three candidates for the position of environmental architect/designer. Here is a summary of the schedule with brief information about their backgrounds: Day, Time

Candidate

Background

April 19, 9 a.m.

Karson Lambert

Owner, LEED Consulting. 10 years’ experience with energy efficiency, sustainable materials, domes, and earthfriendly design

April 19, 11 a.m.

Kamryn David

MA, Arizona State University. 5 years’ experience with sustainable building materials as architect planner for Phoenix Builders

April 19, 2 p.m.

Harmony Rush

BA, University of California, Los Angeles.

2 years’ experience with MegaSolar, specializing in passive solar energy

Do you want me to send this summary to Krish so that she can attend? Please let me know by April 5 so that she can plan.

8.16 Instruction Message: How to Copy Pictures and Text from PDF Documents (L.O. 2) Date: To: From: Subject:

Current All Marketing Employees Frankie Mays How to Copy Images and Text From PDF Documents in Acrobat

After requests from several of you, I’m sending instructions detailing how to copy images and text passages from PDF documents in Adobe Acrobat. Copying content from

portable document format (PDF) files is easy and convenient for those of us working on our yearly catalog.

The process works as follows in the PDF document you have opened in Acrobat: 1. Select the Edit pull-down menu.

2. Click Take a Snapshot to activate the copying tool. (It is identified by a camera icon and check mark once activated.)

3. Now you are ready to select the portion of the PDF document you wish to copy; your cursor will take the shape of a plus sign.

4. Click and hold down your left mouse button near the spot where you wish to copy an image or text passage; simultaneously drag the mouse over the page. You will see a selected area that you can expand or collapse as long as you don’t release the left mouse button.

5. As soon as you let go of the left mouse button, the snapshot will be taken for you.

A small banner saying The selected area has been copied will pop up. Click OK or check the box next to Do not show this message again.

6. Now open a blank Word document or an existing one and paste the selection into the file by right-clicking the mouse and choosing Paste Options.

7. You will see the image or passage you have selected and can further manipulate it by making it smaller or larger, as far as the image resolution will allow.

Of course, you can paste the images and text into Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. If you wish to copy an entire page, simply go to the page in your PDF document you wish to capture and left-click once. The same message will appear that your image was copied to the clipboard.

This is a useful feature. The whole procedure will make your work much easier when you need image files from previous catalog editions (no more photocopying!) or when you need to transfer a photo or figure from one catalog to another. Let me know if you need help with these instructions. If you like, I can also show you how to edit and annotate PDF documents in Acrobat.

8.17 Instruction Message: Fighting Phishing at First Federal (L.O. 2) It’s safe to assume that routine messages described in this chapter will be (pre)written by AI bots in the future, particularly as they are perfected and updated beyond 2021. However, as anyone who has tried ChatGPT knows, the AI is not perfect. At this time it produces acceptable first-draft writing but requires a lot of editing. The prose it generates tends to be verbose and filled with clichés, providing an invaluable opportunity to let students test their editing skills.

8.17 Instruction Message: Fighting Phishing at First Federal To: Staff Members From: Paula Goldman <paula.goldman@firstfederalsavings.com> Subject: New Procedures to Avoid Loss of Data Through Hacking Valued Staff Members: Like other banks, we fear that our employees will unwittingly expose valuable information to hackers. Cybersecurity experts have advised that we can reduce some threats by following these procedures: •

Never click phishing links. Be suspicious of all requests for password information and of links to click. Even messages that seem to be from high-level officials or human resources can be sophisticated, realistic fakes. For example, don’t click a link to receive a package or to download a form from within the organization.

•

Check URLs. If you doubt the authenticity of an e-mail, check its URL by reading it from the right to the left to determine its true domain.

•

Avoid out-of-office messages. Please do not leave voice mail or e-mail messages explaining when you will be away. Such messages alert hackers that your computer is not being monitored.

•

Do not take photos of documents on phones. Smartphones can be lost or stolen, and when important documents appear on these phones, the data can be compromised.

•

Do not use thumb drives. Although handy, small memory devices are easily lost.

Do not store company information on these drives.

•

Do not use work e-mail addresses for social media. Sharing details about your job can help hackers determine an organization’s best target.

Within the next two months, we will introduce a program that includes fake phishing messages to train employees about what to avoid. You will learn more about this program from your managers in training workshops beginning January 3.

Paula Goldman, CEO [Full contact information] 8.18 Direct Claim: New Gate Is Getting Stuck (L.O. 3) Current date Van Phan Luong Castle Iron Works 1960 NE Irving Street

Portland, OR 97209 Dear Van Phan Luong: Subject: Gate Installed on August 20 at 921 NW 23rd Avenue, Portland, OR 97210 We would like your help with a double swing gate that was installed last August at one of our commercial properties at 921 NW 23rd Avenue, Portland, OR 97210. The gate was fine at first; it opened, closed, and locked without a hitch. Now, however, the gate opens, closes, and locks only after major strain if operated by someone with real muscle.

In short, something may have settled, and now the two panels don’t match very well.

The store owner leasing the property should not have to struggle with the gate every time it needs to be opened or closed. Please send someone to fix the gate so that it opens smoothly again.

Also, the white paint is now bleeding rust in some spots, after less than six months. We would welcome repainting.

The proposal that led to the installation of a white metal gate on our property is enclosed to help you recall the job. Our phone numbers are listed above and on the enclosed proposal that you sent us last year. Please respond by March 29, as our business tenant needs the gate to operate normally as soon as possible.

Sincerely, Your Name Property Manager Ext. 8583 Enclosure: Copy of your proposal

8.19 Direct Claim: Let Down by a Business? Say Something (L.O. 3) Current date Ms. Jacqueline Cruzado Online Labels, Inc. 3033 E. Lake Mary Blvd.

Sanford, FL 32773 Dear Ms. Cruzado: Please send us a new box of Avery Easy Peel Laser Labels No. 5960 or refund the purchase price of our bulk order, none of which will work in our office printers.

On March 3 my office purchased three boxes containing 7500 sheets of Avery Laser Labels (No. 5960) each. Our order number was G 358338. The total cost of the order was $254.67 plus tax. I used 25 sheets immediately upon receiving the shipment, and they worked well in my laser printer. Then I put the box away and didn’t need it again until two weeks later. At that time the labels would not feed through my printer. In fact, some of the labels lifted off their sheets and jammed my printer. Although I was able to get the printer working again, I worried about the remaining labels because I could not risk ruining our office printers. I opened the other two boxes to spot check the labels.

Sure enough, the adhesive was not sticky enough anymore and some labels were curling up from the backing paper.

I thought that the Avery brand stood for high quality, but this time we clearly have received a shipment of defective address labels—all 22,500 of them. I suspect they are old and may have been stored at extreme temperatures.

Please let me know if you want us to return the box with the remaining labels so you can investigate what happened. If so, please e-mail us a return shipping label. In the meantime, please send us an expedited new shipment because we urgently need the address labels for our spring direct mail campaign. If you are not able to replace the shipment with high-quality labels promptly, please refund $254,67 to our credit card, and we will have to order the labels from another supplier. If you wish to discuss the defective order, please call us at (813) 000-0000.

Sincerely, Enclosure 8.20 Goodwill Letter: Microsoft Is Writing to a Newborn (L.O. 5) This letter was universally praised for its originality and warmth. Microsoft scored points for not being afraid to be cute by addressing its benefits letter to a newborn baby. It’s a clever way to highlight the generous benefits the software company offers employees who become new moms and dads. One new father, David Ertel, posted the letter on LinkedIn with enthusiastic comments, praising his employer for the letter.

In an interview with Business Insider, Ertel said he felt like an individual among thousands of Microsoft employees and was gratified to see the consideration the company showed his family.

“It made me feel proud for my son that my company values him enough to recognize him coming into this world,” Ertel said [Weinberger, M. (2018, December 1). Read the sweet letter that Microsoft sends to the newborn children of its employees. Business Insider]. Another nice touch is Microsoft’s support of people with disabilities and children’s charities. The message garnered much attention from the public.

We can’t detect any weaknesses; rather, we recognize this letter as a fine model that students may enjoy as they analyze its tone, structure, and the features of goodwill messages discussed in this chapter. Some students may recognize that the letter is also a direct message sending important information about benefits, albeit in a heartfelt package.

8.21 Goodwill Message: Thanks for a Recommendation (L.O. 5) 358 Pine Street Columbia, SC 29205 Current date Dr. Beth Busby Darla Moore School of Business 1014 Greene Street Columbia, SC 29208 Dear Dr. Busby: Thank you for your teaching and encouragement during my four years at SC. Your courses in financial management, advanced investment finance, and international finance helped to prepare me for my new job as a junior financial analyst.

Your supportive recommendation letter was instrumental in helping me obtain a position with Carolina Wealth Partners. The company was also impressed with the investment portfolio I compiled in your advanced investment finance course. The portfolio and other assignments helped me respond competently when interviewers questioned me about realworld financial situations.

Thank you for writing highly of my work as a student. You were an exceptional teacher, and I learned a great deal from your courses.

Sincerely,

8.22 Goodwill Message: Thanking an Etiquette Expert (L.O. 5) Current date Ms. Diane Gottsman, President The Protocol School of Texas 210 Lakeway Centre Lane, Suite 3 Lakeway, TX 78734 Dear Ms. Gottsman: Thank you for your fascinating business etiquette talk and demonstration at XYZ College on December 3. We value your taking time out of your busy schedule to speak to an audience of students and faculty on the important subject of social skills.

Thank you for lessening our fears of dining. We now know which forks and knives are appropriate with specific types of food and individual courses. Before your presentation, we knew about you from your Web presence and television appearances, but in person

you made the scariest aspects of etiquette seem easy to conquer. We particularly enjoyed the many hands-on components of your talk—for example, the various place settings you laid out for us.

As business students, we appreciated learning about such crucial skills as gifting, invitations, introductions, greetings, seating arrangements, toasting, and many business etiquette dos and don’ts.

We wish you continued success in your work and will follow your activities on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook to learn yet more about business etiquette and other professional skills.

Sincerely, 8.23 Goodwill Message: Responding to Good Wishes (L.O. 5) Current date Dear Ash: I appreciated very much receiving your good wishes at the time of my graduation. It made me feel good to know that you cared enough to write.

Cordially,

8.24 Goodwill Message: Tributes to Controversial Politician Silvio Berlusconi (L.O. 5) Answers will vary. Writing condolences requires tact, even more so in the case of a problematic public figure. Most writers will try to find something praiseworthy about the deceased, as is customary. Some students may remark on how euphemistic (by necessity) some of the sympathy notes are. Most play it safe and focus on the surviving family and even more frequently on the Italian people. Ursula von der Leyen says that Berlusconi “led Italy in a time of political transition”—that’s putting it mildly. Berlusconi was prone to scandal and his tenure was turbulent. He also had autocratic tendencies, seizing control over most Italian media. Moreover, he was fond of Vladimir Putin and vice versa.

George W. Buch chooses almost amusing phrases: “There never was a dull moment with Silvio,” whom he describes as a “vibrant leader with a personality to match”—yet another polite hint at the brash, boastful Berlusconi. Bush then adroitly pivots to the friendship between Italy and the United States and credits Berlusconi with strengthening the alliance. The tone is personal. The former president uses Berlusconi’s first name and includes his wife Laura, as a couple would when commemorating someone close.

In marked contrast, President Biden’s condolences spoken by his press secretary sound measured and impersonal. Biden addresses Berlusconi’s family and the people of Italy, staying away from Berlusconi as a person because he can’t find anything truly praiseworthy about the late premier—a dilemma most writers of typical condolences

don’t face or at least not to this extent. Instead, Biden acknowledges Berlusconi’s long tenure that outlasted several U.S. administrations and his support for the friendship between the United States and Italy.

As opposed to that, former UK premier Tony Blair fearlessly delves into Berlusconi’s divisive nature, but like George W. Bush he signals a personal relationship by calling Berlusconi by his first name and characterizing him as “capable, shrewd and, most important, true to his word.” which is one of the few expressions of praise—except for rather predictable accolades and hyperbole from Berlusconi enthusiast Vladimir Putin.

To add an example not listed in this activity, Pope Francis offered prayer in his condolence telegram to Berlusconi’s eldest daughter Marina Berlusconi. He diplomatically stated that the late premier had carried out “public responsibilities with an energetic temperament,” another tactful euphemism describing the mercurial politician.

How do students feel about a social media post expressing condolences? Some students may say that a tweet is a lot less personal while being very public and “going through the motions.” Ursula von der Leyen may have also sent a more personal written note, but by tweeting, she did her duty, was visible, and stayed away from controversy, which would be unseemly in death. Most heads of state sent condolence telegrams, a throwback to times before social media but very effective in speed and confidentiality.

Unlike tweets and other social media posts, telegrams may or may not be shared with the public.

8.25 Goodwill Message: Conveying Sympathy to a Spouse or Partner (L.O. 5) 2402 W. Fowler Avenue Tampa, FL 33620 Current date Dear Grace, Your many friends and I here at Surge Semiconductor, LLC, were deeply saddened to learn of the death of your husband Pete.

I remember when we first met Pete at an office holiday party many years ago. He was extremely entertaining, especially when he affectionately referred to you as his Courageous Congenial Copilot. You and Pete were a remarkable couple.

Although it’s difficult for others to understand what a deep loss you must feel, I hope that your strong faith and your beautiful memories can outlast the pain of your grief. Please know that we share your profound loss and are available to help if needed.

Fondly,

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1.

2.

3.

False. It’s “unseemly” for anyone to take the phone into the bathroom, private or public, says Diane Gottsman, national etiquette expert and owner of The Protocol School of Texas. The person on the other end doesn’t want to hear flushing and other bathroom noises, and no one in the bathroom wants to be forced to overhear other people’s conversation. Aside from that, the call would hardly be “personal” or “private.” In general, we shouldn’t force others to witness our phone conversations in a public space. It’s rude.

True. Sharon Schweitzer, an etiquette expert says that taking care of private business in a public bathroom or the office bathroom should not result in crowding what little privacy is available in a stall.

False. Although not uncommon among women, going to the restroom together and chatting across stalls is “bad form,” says Jason Danbury, a hotel manager in Galveston, Texas. He points out that the whole restroom is not keen on hearing about payroll, the boss’s new wife, or a kid’s strange rash. “Try to keep chatter in general to a minimum,” Danbury says. Not to mention that one never knows who might be listening.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates. (Chat About It Topic #2 can be found in the chapter outline above as a PPT activity.)

Topic 1: Amazon founder Jeff Bezos prefers six-page narrative memos to slide presentations. In his view, composing a “world-class” six-page memo might take a week or more, and it’s a team effort: “The great memos are written and re-written, shared with colleagues who are asked to improve the work, set aside for a couple days, and then edited again with a fresh mind. They simply can’t be done in a day or two.” What types of memos might Bezos expect his teams to prepare? How would you characterize his standards?

Topic 2: Some shoppers presumably buy clothes, wear them, and return them to the store afterward. How do you feel about this so-called renting, or wardrobing? How about other consumer goods that people buy with the intention to use them only for a specific purpose and then return them to the retailer?

Topic 3: How do you feel about fake or paid reviews on Amazon, Yelp, Google, TripAdvisor, Angi, and other platforms? Do you read customer reviews before making a purchase? If yes, how long do you browse reviews on the Internet before deciding to buy?

Topic 4: Are you the type of consumer who reads user manuals very carefully or one who ignores instructions and prefers to figure out electronics and other gizmos by trial and error? Explain your answer. Discuss the pros and cons of following instructions in user manuals.

Topic 5: Do you write reviews on the Internet? Describe a situation in which you or someone you know wrote a review or a complaint online. Did you first “exhaust all other options,” and did the post receive a reply? Were you satisfied with the response? Why or why not?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Organization and Clarity

Research

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peer-

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not

References/Works Cited

Grammar and Spelling

reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 7

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore inevitable bad news and its associated negative messages within the workplace. First, we explain how to apply the 3-x-3 writing process along with the strategies behind conveying negative news. Next, we cover the direct and indirect strategies for conveying unfavorable news. Additionally, we discuss the components of effective negative messages. Finally, we explore techniques for delivering bad news externally to customers and internally within organizations.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5

Explain the strategies of business communicators in conveying negative news.

Analyze the direct and indirect strategies in communicating unfavorable news.

Identify the components of effective bad-news messages.

List proven techniques for refusing requests or claims.

Name strategies for managing bad news within organizations.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • • • • • • •

Updated a complex opening scenario focusing on Volkswagen and its massive Dieselgate scandal to demonstrate the importance of corporate ethics and transparency in communicating bad news.

Introduced coverage of poor crisis communication by chip giant Nvidia in the wake of a controversial data breach as a teachable moment about the dangers of secrecy and delay tactics.

Provided a counterpoint to Nvidia’s poor approach to bad news by introducing Nike’s successful communication of its unpleasant company news to show both negative and positive examples to students.

Created three new documents for analysis to give students an opportunity to study flawed messages and apply their revision skills.

Consulted and used the most recent sources available and culled valuable information from current business sources to present up-to-date examples, case scenarios, and best practices to students.

Created 50 percent new end-of-chapter activities based on up-to-date negative news cases in business today to help students practice their skills in delivering sensitive news in a nuanced way.

Opted for current subjects such as return-to-the-office mandates, controversies surrounding companies that emphasize DEI and ESG initiatives, Ring employee spying scandal, and a solution produced by Google chatbot Bard for students to evaluate and edit.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 9. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Communicating Negative News Strategically (L.O. 9.1, PPT Slides 3–10, DISC: Purpose; Audience; Syn./Asyn. choice; Personal, corporate, legal, ethical responsibilities) a. Bad feelings associated with disappointing news can be reduced if the receiver: i.

Knows the reasons for the rejection ii.

Feels the news was revealed sensitively iii.

Believes the matter was treated seriously and fairly b. When communicating negative news, follow these goals (Figure 9.1): i.

Explain clearly and completely. ii.

Convey empathy and sensitivity. iii.

Project a professional image. iv.

Be fair. v.

Maintain friendly relations. c. The 3-x-3 writing process can be applied when communicating negative news. d. Phase 1 (prewriting)—Analyzing, Anticipating, and Adapting i.

Analyze the bad news. ii.

Anticipate its effect on the receiver. iii.

If disappointment will be mild, announce the bad news directly. iv.

If the bad news is serious or personal, use techniques to reduce the pain. v.

Choose words that show you respect the reader. vi.

Select the best channel to deliver the bad news. e. Phase 2 (drafting)—Researching, Organizing, and Drafting i.

Gather information. ii.

Brainstorm for ideas. iii.

Jot down the reasons that explain the bad news. iv.

Present only the strongest and safest reasons. v.

Include an ample explanation of the situation. (If necessary, conduct research to help explain what went wrong and why a decision or action is necessary.) vi.

Avoid fixing blame.

f.

Phase 3 (revising)—Editing, Proofreading, and Evaluating i.

Read your message carefully to ensure that it says what you intend. ii.

Check that your wording is concise without sounding grumpy. iii.

Make sure the tone is friendly and respectful. iv.

Review the message for overuse of certain words and consult a thesaurus. v.

Read your sentences to see if they are conversational and flow smoothly. vi.

Edit to improve coherence and tone. vii.

Proofread for grammar, mechanics, and formatting using a grammar checker or an AI-based writing assistant. viii.

Evaluate your message: Is it too blunt? Too subtle? Is it clear but professional?

g. It’s important to convey negative news without causing legal liability. i.

Defamation – the legal term for any false statement that harms an individual’s reputation ii.

Libel – when abusive language is written iii.

Slander – when abusive language is spoken iv.

Abusive language is actionable when it is: (a) False (b) Damaging to one’s good name (c) Published v.

E-mail, social media posts, instant messaging, live chat, and texting are all subject to these rules. vi.

Statements that may be misinterpreted or are potentially damaging to an organization should be avoided. vii.

Phone calls and in-person meetings may be appropriate for sensitive topics. viii.

Avoid volunteering information that could be misused. ix.

Avoid making promises that can’t be fulfilled. x.

Don’t admit or imply responsibility for conditions that caused damage or injury.

II.

Analyzing Negative-News Strategies (L.O. 9.2, PPT Slides 11–15, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Ethics and morals) a. Use the direct strategy for delivering negative news (Model Document 9.1): i.

When the bad news is not damaging ii.

When the receiver may overlook the bad news iii.

When the organization or receiver prefers directness iv.

When firmness is necessary b. Use the indirect strategy to deliver negative news: i.

When the bad news is personally upsetting ii.

When the bad news will provoke a hostile reaction

iii. iv.

When the bad news threatens the customer relationship When the bad news is unexpected

c. The direct strategy places the bad news first, followed by the reasons and a pleasant close. The indirect strategy opens with a neutral or buffer statement, followed by the reasons, the bad news, and a pleasant close. Which strategy you use depends on the situation, the reaction you expect, and your goals for communication. (Figure 9.2) d. The key to ethical communication lies in the motives of the sender. Unethical communicators intend to deceive. e. The goal of the indirect strategy should be compassion, not deception. f.

III.

Do not use the indirect strategy to avoid or misrepresent the truth.

Composing Effective Negative Messages (L.O. 9.3, PPT Slides 16–25, DISC: Patterns; Audience; Personal, corporate, legal, ethical responsibilities; Rhetorical considerations) a. Indirect negative messages should be opened with a buffer. i.

A buffer is a device to reduce shock or pain. ii.

Buffers begin with a neutral but meaningful statement that makes the recipient continue reading. iii.

Buffers should be relevant, be concise, and provide a transition to the explanation that follows. b. Buffer possibilities include best news, compliment, appreciation, agreement, fact, or understanding. c. Apology––“an admission of blameworthiness and regret for an undesirable event” d. Sincere apologies work and may even affect the bottom line. e. The five Rs model for effective apologies in business messages as recommended by author John Kador are as follows (Figure 9.3): i.

Recognition: Organizations that apologize have better outcomes.

Individuals who apologize well rise higher in management and have better relationships. ii.

Responsibility: Accountability means taking responsibility and rejecting defensiveness. Accountability is an important skill. The cover-up is often worse than the crime. iii.

Restitution: A concrete explanation of what you will do to make things right is best. The remedy should be appropriate, adequate, and satisfying. iv.

Remorse: Apologies may become necessary unexpectedly. We can prevent automatic defensiveness by being prepared to apologize when the need arises. Apologies should be honest, sincere, and authentic. v.

Repeating: Written apologies are more formal than spoken but work similarly. By communicating effectively over the long term, businesses

gain the trust of employees, the public, as well as the media and are therefore better equipped to weather crises successfully. f.

Empathy – “understanding our emotional impact on others and making change as a result.”

g. Empathy quotient – the emotional impact a company has on its people measured through metrics such as corporate culture, leadership, brand perception, ethics, carbon footprint, and social media presence. h. The components of presenting the reasons for bad news include: i.

Explaining clearly ii.

Citing reader benefits or other advantages, if plausible iii.

Explaining company policy iv.

Choosing positive words v.

Showing fairness and serious intent i.

j.

Bad news can be cushioned by breaking the news sensitively. You can cushion the blow by: i.

Positioning the bad news strategically ii.

Using the passive voice iii.

Highlighting the positive iv.

Implying the refusal v.

Suggesting a compromise or alternative After explaining bad news sensitively, close the message with a pleasant statement that promotes goodwill (Figure 9.4). You may use one of these techniques to personalize a closing: i.

Forward look ii.

Alternative iii.

Good wishes iv.

Freebies v.

Resale or sales promotion

Ethics Check: Communicating About Aviation Disasters Without a doubt Boeing wished to regain the public’s trust after the two deadly crashes.

However, critics felt that an actual apology was noticeably absent on the largely empty page with the short commemorative text. They felt the ad “rings hollow” and was a stunt in the wrong media outlets, failing to address the people hurt by the disasters. “It doesn’t sit well with me.

This is anything but an apology,” stated Brett Snyder, an aviation expert. He felt that victim families hardly read the newspapers in which the ad appeared, nor would they care about the ad. Instead, the ad targeted buyers of airplanes and airline employees, Snyder said.

Others disagreed, claiming that prudent corporate strategy dictated this kind of wording and framing. Eric Denzenhall, a crisis communication expert, brought up the familiar warning about the dangers of apologies, namely that they were admissible in court as negligence. He said Boeing had done the right thing without being “self-congratulatory” or engaging in “grandstanding.” The high cost of the ad for one day of advertising to a very specific audience at

a cost of more than $600,000 raised eyebrows. Denzenhall commended Boeing’s crisis management for speaking to “key audiences,” in other words, “opinion leaders and investors,” not consumers.

In a response to Adweek, Boeing said the ads “reflect our deep regret for the loss of life in both accidents” and pledged to make the 737 Max one of the safest aircraft ever built. Boeing also ran a two-page statement from then CEO Muilenberg in Indonesian newspapers, in English and Indonesian. [Barwick, R. (2019, October 29). Boeing takes out full-page ads before CEO testifies. Adweek.]

Doubts continue about the best-selling plane’s safety. An Australian source reports the troubled jet experienced “at least six mid-air emergencies and dozens of groundings” in the year after the FAA cleared it to fly again. U.S. government safety databases recorded more than 60 mid-flight problems, including engine shutdowns and pilots’ losing partial control of the plane [Diss, K., Nguyen, K., & Bali, M. (2022, June) Boeing 737 MAX mid-air emergencies revealed as US agency prepares to probe production issues. ABC News (Australia)].

Most recently, Boeing and the FAA have insisted that the jets can continue flying while inspections examine the causes of a “manufacturing issue” with some 737 Max aircraft [Valinsky, J. (2023, April 14). Boeing discovers new issue with 737 Max jets but says they can continue flying. CNN Business].

IV.

Refusing Typical Requests and Claims (L.O. 9.4, PPT Slides 26–35, DISC: Patterns; Audience; Rhetorical considerations; Theory application) a. To reject requests for favors, money, information, and action, follow these guidelines (Model Document 9.2): i.

Begin with a buffer that acknowledges the request. ii.

Use praise as a transition to the explanation. iii.

You may offer a gentle refusal or not state the reasons explicitly. iv.

Show appreciation for the inquiry and respect for the writer. b. To decline an invitation, follow these guidelines (Model Document 9.3): i.

Open cordially with a buffer that compliments the reader. ii.

Unless the reasons for refusal are confidential, offer an explanation. iii.

Offer an alternative if one exists. iv.

Focus on something positive about the situation. c. When dealing with disappointed customers in print and online, follow these guidelines: i.

Call or e-mail the individual or reply to their online post within 24 hours. ii.

Describe the problem and apologize. iii.

Explain why the problem occurred, what you are doing to resolve it, and how you will prevent it from happening again. iv.

Promote goodwill by following up with a message that documents the phone call or acknowledges the online exchange of posts. d. Use a written message (Model Document 9.4):

i. ii. iii. iv.

When personal contact is impossible To establish a record of the incident To formally confirm follow-up procedures To promote good relations

e. When managing negative news online (Model Document 9.5): i.

Recognize social media as an important feedback channel. ii.

Verify the situation. iii.

Become proactive. iv.

Steel yourself. v.

Accept the inevitable. f.

To handle problems with orders: i.

Use the direct strategy if the message has some good-news components. ii.

When the message is disappointing, use the indirect strategy.

g. When announcing rate increases and price hikes (Model Document 9.6): i.

Explain why the rate or price increase is necessary. ii.

Explain the reasons and hook increases to benefits. iii.

Give advance warning of rate increases. h. The reasons-before-refusal strategy helps you be empathetic and artful in breaking bad news. i. To deny a claim, follow these guidelines (Model Document 9.7): i.

Adopt a proper tone and show empathy. ii.

Don’t blame customers, even if they are at fault. iii.

Avoid “you” statements that sound preachy. iv.

Use neutral, objective language to explain why the claim is being refused. v.

Consider offering resale information to rebuild customer confidence. j.

V.

When refusing credit: i.

Avoid language that causes hard feelings. ii.

Retain the customer on a cash basis. iii.

Prepare for possible future credit without raising false expectations. iv.

Avoid disclosures that could cause a lawsuit.

Managing Bad News Within Organizations (L.O. 9.5, PPT Slides 36–40, DISC: Purpose; Audience; Syn./Asyn. choice; Rhetorical considerations) a. Consider these pointers on how to deliver bad news in person tactfully, professionally, and safely: i.

Gather all information. Cool down and collect the facts before confronting someone. Remember that every story has two sides. ii.

Prepare and rehearse. Outline what you plan to say so that you are confident, coherent, and dispassionate.

iii. iv.

v.

vi.

Explain: past, present, future. Explain what caused the situation, the current state, and how and when you plan to fix it.

Consider taking a partner. Bring a colleague with you if you fear a negative reaction. Be sure both parties have a consistent and credible part in the presentation. Call on auditors, inspectors, or human resources experts to lend credibility to your view.

Think about timing. Don’t deliver bad news when someone is already stressed or grumpy. Avoid delivering bad news on Friday afternoons when people have the weekend to dwell on it.

Be patient with the reaction. Give the receiver time to vent, think, recover, and act wisely.

b. When refusing workplace requests (Model Document 9.8): i.

Start with a buffer that delivers honest praise. ii.

Provide a rational explanation for the refusal. iii.

Close positively with an alternative and gratitude. iv.

Focus on explanation and praise rather than refusal or apologies. c. When announcing bad news to employees and the public (Model Document 9.9): i.

Keep communication open and honest––Smart organizations communicate bad news openly to employees and stockholders rather than letting rumors distort the truth. ii.

Choose the best communication channel––When delivering bad news to individuals, consider delivering the news personally. When delivering bad news to large groups, use multiple channels, including both print and digital. d. When saying “no” to job applicants, follow these guidelines (Model Document 9.10): i.

Show appreciation for the receiver. ii.

Reduce the receiver’s disappointment by using the indirect approach. iii.

Keep explanations intentionally vague. iv.

Ensure letters are general, simple, and short to avoid charges of discrimination or wrongful actions. v.

End messages with best wishes.

Ethics Check: Ghosting Will Haunt You Vanishing from the hiring process without a trace not only puts the hiring manager or recruiter in a bind, but it also creates a hardship because job searches are costly and may force the employer to scramble to reach out to the runners-up. In the worst case, the company may need to restart its time-consuming, expensive search for other suitable candidates. Such a sudden departure without any explanation burns a lot of bridges.

The rejected recruiter can harbor negative feelings about candidates or become aware of lies they told to wriggle out of the offer. The job seekers’ unwillingness to be honest with the employer can tarnish their reputation, especially in industries where professional communities share information and key players know each other. The best advice for job candidates is to be

up front during negotiations. They should show enthusiasm for the position but tell the interviewer about any factors that may affect their decision to accept a job [Shellenbarger, S. (2019, June 24). Wait, where did our new hire go? The Wall Street Journal].

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Selective Truth (L.O. 9.3) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Mike Michalowicz, author of Profit First and CEO of Provendus Group, quotes a famous American poet to illustrate how he refuses unpleasant potential clients: “Emily Dickinson said speak the truth but with slant. You don’t have to say something so coldly it starts an argument. We usually tell the client we don’t have resources to support your specific needs,” he says. b. Discuss this strategy, its advantages, and disadvantages. i. Answer: Emily Dickinson seems to be suggesting that we tell the truth selectively, avoiding blunt, hurtful statements. Giving bad news is unpleasant, and many of us avoid it for fear of causing conflict. We may be feeling guilty or embarrassed, and the indirect approach may be helpful in difficult situations. Dismissing or not accepting a client could backfire if word got out in the industry. Letting the company down gently allows both parties to save face. However, in some situations the reason given may not suffice and more embarrassment might ensue when additional explanations are needed or when the recipient of the bad news doesn’t understand the no.

2. Discussion: The Fallout of Careless Public Remarks (L.O. 9.1) Duration: 20 minutes. a. At a sustainability conference, Levi Strauss CEO Chip Bergh caused a viral sensation by revealing he had never laundered his two-year-old Levi’s in a washing machine. Instead, he hand-washed and line-dried his jeans every few months. His point was that jeans shouldn’t be washed all the time, but people thought it meant Bergh never washed them. The fallout from this one quip continues even years later: “Today, if you type ‘CEO Levi’s’ into Google, ‘don’t wash jeans’ comes up,” Bergh says. “I expect that my supposed anti-laundry stance will be mentioned in my obituary.” b. Can you think of other, more negative examples of executives’ offhand public comments?

i. Answer: Although Levi Strauss President and CEO Chip Bergh didn’t seriously damage the reputation of his company, he lost control over his carefully managed message of sustainability. Bergh’s well-intentioned “wake-up call,” as he put it, was misconstrued and that lasting impression is haunting him even now, many years later. Levi Strauss had studied the life cycle of its jeans and learned that most of the water that jeans consume is used when owners wash them, not in manufacturing. One executive whose public remarks generated truly bad news—and not just once—is Elon Musk. An ill-advised tweet about Tesla stock led to an SEC investigation and a large fine for stock manipulation.

3. Discussion: The Ethics of an Indirect Strategy (L.O. 9.2) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Consider times when you have been aware that others were using the indirect strategy in writing or speaking to you. b. How did you react? i. Answer: Students may indicate that they appreciated the indirect pattern because it was more tactful and made them feel that the communicator cared about their feelings. On the other hand, students may suggest that they felt they were being manipulated and that they distrusted the communicator who was not forthright. Others may say that they were impatient to hear the bottom line. They disliked “beating around the bush.”

4. Discussion: Firing by Text or E-mail (L.O. 9.5) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Experts agree that, if possible, workers should be fired in person—not by phone, e-mail, or text message. The consensus is that the kindest way to fire someone is when the direct supervisor delivers the bad news. However, increasingly employees are getting fired by text or e-mail. b. Make a case for and against firing workers by text or e-mail. i. Answer: A case for letting someone go via a text message or an e-mail is that a remote worker may not be able to come into the office to be fired in person. In that case, however, the consensus is that the telephone is more appropriate than e-mail or text messages. Potential advantages of choosing e-mails or texts are the following: Direct conflict can be avoided; the process is faster and more efficient; and this method may be practical in distributed work arrangements. The case against firing via text or email is the following: Most people still consider it unprofessional and lacking in respect; workers are deprived of the opportunity to express themselves and be heard; and it appears cruel and cowardly. In addition to being let go, the worker may perceive the impersonal firing as a slap in the face. One expert sums up the dilemma this way: “Getting fired is never a pleasant prospect, and it has an even stronger sting if it’s done by text message. But here’s something to consider: Do you really want to

work for a company that lets its employees go in as impersonal a manner as a text message? Probably not.” [Parris, J. (2016, November 18).

Getting fired by text message. Flexjobs.]

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: The Bad News Keeps Coming: Volkswagen and Dieselgate: The Scandal That Refuses to Go Away (Part 1): In this case study, students will read a description of the scandal known as Dieselgate that plagued Volkswagen Group. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. What should an individual or organization such as VW do when caught in an ethical impropriety or scandal? i. Experts maintain that organizations that have seriously faltered should—depending on the gravity of the offense—hire new leadership, apologize promptly and sincerely to those who were hurt by the ethical lapse, and communicate as openly as possible about steps that will be taken to avoid a recurrence of the problem. Few of us like to convey bad news or admit wrongdoing, but temporary unease or embarrassment is better than lying and cheating because those actions tend to have longer-term consequences. They can significantly prolong the agony as we can see in the case of Volkswagen Group shows. b. How do you feel about large payouts to departing managers like CEO Martin Winterkorn who are forced to step down in the aftermath of a scandal? i. Students almost invariably fall into two groups—one that defends high compensation of managers to reflect their enormous responsibility and attract the best talent and one that may prefer tying compensation to performance and institute hefty clawbacks and penalties in cases of malfeasance. Martin Winterkorn will not have to part with much of his golden parachute of 59 million euros ($64 million); VW may demand he return between 300,000 euros ($325,000) and 11 million euros ($12 million). In 2021 he settled with his former employer and returned almost $14 million, although he denied the charges against him. c. Can we conclude from this scandal that the public’s memory is short, or can we assume that reputational damage may linger? i. A high stock price and devoted diesel fans buying refurbished cars at rock-bottom prices aren’t sufficient indicators of whether Volkswagen Group has redeemed itself after engaging in appalling fraud. Reputation is a precious good. It takes years to build but can be lost in an instant, particularly if the offense is egregious. It remains to be seen how the carmaker will be viewed by the public in the future. In the United States, VW had struggled to gain a foothold in the market even before resorting to

fraud. The scandal is of a proportion that suggests it may take a while before consumers forget Dieselgate. On the other hand, Volkswagen Group has quickly retooled and refocused on the e-vehicle market and may finally produce loweremissions cars after all.

Case Study: The Bad News Keeps Coming: Volkswagen and Dieselgate: The Scandal That Refuses to Go Away (Part 2): In this case study, students will read a summary of how Volkswagen Group executives have historically approached bad news and how executives handled apologies around Dieselgate. They are then asked to evaluate Volkswagen’s handling of the scandal. Break students into groups of three to five and have them complete the assignment as a team. You may wish to have students present their work to the class or submit their responses electronically.

This ongoing, complex case will elicit various responses. It’s safe to say that Volkswagen Group has mishandled the crisis. Instead of embracing radical transparency, installing an outside CEO untainted by scandal, and sharing the results of an internal investigation with the public to build trust, VW did the opposite, continuously appointing Volkswagen Group insiders and loyalists. Clumsy, half-hearted apologies, inability to take personal responsibility, and constant efforts to hide the full extent of the scandal continue to haunt Volkswagen Group eight years and counting since the first revelations.

Winterkorn’s successor, Ralf Müller, who originally came from BMW, was also allegedly involved in Dieselgate. His tenure was brief. It wasn’t until Herbert Diess was appointed that the VW Group was led by a chief executive not directly involved in the emissions scandal and the company started to face the unsavory truth. “It’s been established pretty clearly, if anecdotally, that companies that come clean quickly and fulsomely are better off in the long run,” said Alexandra Wrage, president of Trace, a consulting firm in Annapolis, Maryland, that helps companies avoid getting entangled in corruption. “But many still opt for opacity” [Ewing, J. (2019, July 26). “A few dirty tricks”: Documents show Audi’s role in Volkswagen emissions scandal. The New York Times]. Herbert Diess, who spearheaded the company’s pivot to e-mobility, was replaced in 2022 by Volkswagen’s current CEO, Oliver Blume, another insider who formerly headed Porsche.

Students should examine the wording of the executives’ apologies. They may notice euphemisms as the managers carefully avoid naming the fraud (problem, irregularities, situation) and deflect responsibility: Martin Winterkorn said he accepted responsibility only to say he was not aware of any wrongdoing on his part. While apologizing almost too profusely in two head-scratching NPR interviews in 2016, his successor Matthias Müller blamed “a misunderstanding” of U.S. law for Volkswagen’s moral lapse and his own language interference for first asserting that VW had not lied to regulators. Oliver Schmidt, who seemed sincere in apologizing, in the end put the blame on his loyalty to the company and said VW had taken advantage of him. Incidentally, even as he was going to prison, Schmidt did not give away any names of executives who ostensibly had given him talking points and had pressured him to greenlight the fraud.

Industry insiders expect litigation to continue for several more years. In September 2018 a new $9 billion shareholder case opened in Braunschweig, Germany. It is still ongoing at this

writing. The European Commission is investigating several automakers—BMW, Daimler, VW, and Audi—accusing them of having formed an illegal “cartel” as far back as the 1990s that had led to Dieselgate. The regulators argue that the carmakers’ collusion may have denied consumers the opportunity to purchase cleaner cars because they bought into the myth of clean diesel. The enormous cost of Dieselgate cannot yet be assessed fully, but when the lawsuits are finally over, it may have reached $45 billion in fines, settlements, and buybacks.

As a purportedly clean(er) fuel, diesel has been completely discredited. Germany, a country that had subsidized diesel car production and kept the price of diesel fuel low, is now gradually banning diesel vehicles from city centers and some roadways because they emit too much nitrogen oxide. NOx contributes to smog, acid rain, water quality deterioration, childhood asthma, respiratory ailments, and premature death, according to the EPA. Without technical fraud, tailpipe emissions of VW diesel cars were 40 times higher than the pollution limits in the U.S. The scandal has pushed VW into developing electric cars, a technology the company had neglected.

Executive actions during Dieselgate are telling, as this selective timeline reveals: In 2015 Volkswagen admits installing cheating software in 11 million diesel vehicles worldwide. CEO Winterkorn resigns but claims he knew nothing about the scam, despite allegations that he and other executives knew as early as 2006 or 2014 at the latest. In 2016 a first investor lawsuit claims the automaker failed to disclose the crisis promptly. In 2017 Volkswagen pleads guilty to three U.S. charges and admits the cheating started in 2006 but doesn’t clarify how much management knew.

Two low-level U.S.-based employees are sentenced to prison in 2018. In April newly indicted CEO Matthias Müller is hastily replaced with Herbert Diess, who is less tainted by the scandal. In May Winterkorn is personally indicted in the U.S. on cover-up charges. In June the Audi chief Rupert Stadler is accused of fraud and suppression of evidence. In April 2019 the SEC charges Winterkorn and four others with fraud, unfair competition, and breach of trust. In September 2019 VW chief Diess, Winterkorn, and board chairman Hans Dieter Pötsch are charged with market manipulation [VW “Dieselgate” fraud: Timeline of a scandal.

(2019, September 27). TechXplore]. After steadfastly denying the charges against him, former Audi chief Stadler pleads guilty in 2023 in exchange for a suspended sentence and a fine, along with two other C-suite executives. No high-ranking officers have gone to prison yet and it’s doubtful they will.

The culture at Volkswagen is characterized by arrogance, insiders say. One of Germany’s premier newspapers (FAZ) blamed the massive moral failure on a siege mentality at VW. Ferdinand Piëch, a majority shareholder of both VW and Porsche AG, and his hand-picked successors exerted such pressure to perform that several VW executives apparently saw no other option than fraud. Also, the internal pressure at Volkswagen was laser-focused on becoming the world’s largest automaker by volume ahead of Toyota, apparently at all cost.

In addition, Volkswagen is an iconic German company—Germany’s largest—which has a reputation for technological and engineering prowess to uphold. Admitting failure in creating “clean diesel” was not an option.

Former CEO Winterkorn is facing between 10 to 25 years in prison and a six-figure fine.

However, because Germany doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the United States, Winterkorn is safe in Germany, but he probably won’t be traveling to America anytime soon.

He is also facing charges in Germany. However, due the former executive’s poor health, his trial set to begin in 2023 was postponed “indefinitely” [Isermann, R. (2023, May 3). Ex-Audi CEO to plead guilty over “dieselgate” scandal. Agence France-Press].

The best critical thinkers in your classes may point out Martin Winterkorn’s dubious, illogical defense when he denied having known of any fraud—with the backing of the VW supervisory board: “Professor Dr. Winterkorn had no knowledge of the manipulation of emissions data” [Lorio, J. (2015, September 23). Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn resigns in wake of diesel emissions scandal. Car and Driver]. In a company with a stratified, hierarchical structure, headed by a CEO who keeps tight control and doesn’t tolerate bad news, few employees will find the courage to voice contrarian opposing views, blow the whistle, or otherwise oppose management. That a bunch of low-level engineers and managers could have concocted a scheme as massive as Dieselgate without the knowledge of the C-suite seems unlikely, even preposterous. If true, though, such supposed cluelessness would suggest a profound breakdown of leadership.

A scholar in the Darden School of Business at University of Virginia, Luann Lynch, identified the three factors that may have led to an ethical breakdown at Volkswagen Group: Pressure, opportunity, and rationalization. The “dangerous triad” or “fraud triangle” helps explain the scandal, she says. The pressure from the top was immense. Combined with an autocratic leadership style, it pushed workers to succeed at all costs. When a supplier, Bosch, presented the opportunity by providing the engine-management software for tampering with diesel vehicles, Volkswagen engineers only needed to rationalize using it to beat strict emissions controls supposedly in the best interest of their company [Lynch, L. J., Bird, E., & Cutro, C. (2016, October 17). VW emissions and the 3 factors that drive ethical breakdown. UVA Darden, Ideas to Action].

Dale Bell, cofounder of The Media and Policy Center in Burbank, California, produced a documentary about the Volkswagen emission scandal, BACKFIRED: When VW Lied to America. Bell confessed his fascination with this colossal ethical failure and decided to explore the questions at the core of Dieselgate: “How could a corporate entity turn so abruptly on its customers, eviscerate its own corporate values, and wantonly poison and kill children and elders globally in pursuit of profit and domination of a market?” [Kiley, D. (2018, May 16). Volkswagen diesel scandal coming to a TV screen and movie theater near you.

Forbes]. A Netflix documentary, Dirty Money, likewise addresses the scandal.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. The results are so surprising that one would do well to scrutinize the way the poll was conducted, how the questions were phrased, and what the sample looked like. For example, were respondents asked whether they would want to be without screens and social media permanently or were they asked to hypothetically imagine a presumably simpler era tinged by nostalgia and viewed with rose-colored glasses? Harris polls are generally reliable as to method and credibility. Still, a critical thinker would want to consult other research corroborating such stunning findings.

You could ask your students what it would take for them to give up their devices for a day, two days, a week, a month, or even longer. Would they forego their connectedness for a limited time if offered a financial inducement? Dr. Audrey Wagstaff’s experiment at Wilmington College involved a “media cleanse” project with university students’ giving up all electronics, social media, and the Internet for 24 hours. The results were mixed. Most students were relieved and felt “safe” again once their screens were back in their lives, but overall participants also felt they had learned an important lesson [Students give up smartphones for 24 hours in media cleanse experiment. (2019, December 12).

Wilmington College].

2. Answers will vary. Professor Robert Bies believes that it is seriously damaging (“cardinal sin”) to spring unfavorable news at unsuspecting people; he cites not preparing managers for impending bad news or withholding unfavorable feedback about workers’ performance. In the latter case, such silence takes away the employees’ ability to improve.

Giving bad news is unpleasant, and many of us prefer to avoid it or hide behind technology to avoid facing the other person. We may be feeling guilty or embarrassed; we may fear the dreaded “kill the messenger” response. Some managers are afraid of tears and emotional outbursts. The indirect approach may be helpful in difficult situations.

3. Students may indicate that they appreciated the indirect pattern because it was more tactful and made them feel that the communicator cared about their feelings. On the other hand, students may suggest that they felt they were being manipulated and that they distrusted the communicator who was not forthright. Others may say that they were impatient to hear the bottom line. They disliked “beating around the bush.”

4. A case for letting someone go via a text message or an e-mail is that a remote worker may not be able to come into the office to be fired in person. In that case, however, the consensus is that the telephone or a video chat is more appropriate than e-mail or text messages. Potential advantages of choosing e-mails or texts are the following: Direct conflict can be avoided; the process is faster, more efficient; and this method may be practical in distributed work arrangements.

The case against firing via text or e-mail is the following: Most people still consider it unprofessional, lacking in respect; workers are deprived of the opportunity to express themselves and be heard; and it appears cruel and cowardly. In addition to being let go, the worker may perceive the impersonal firing as a slap in the face. One expert sums up the dilemma this way: “Getting fired is never a pleasant prospect, and it has an even stronger sting if it’s done by text message. But here’s something to consider: Do you really want to work for a company that lets its employees go in as impersonal a manner as a text message? Probably not” [Parris, J. (2016, November 18). Getting fired by text message. Flexjobs].

However, it appears that amidst a general loosening of workplace norms, workers too have taken to quitting via workplace chat app, text messages, or e-mails. Some workers never physically encounter their managers except online, so they may not feel any obligation to the employer they wish to leave. Experts believe that it’s not wise to burn bridges by a curt exit and recommend an in-person or at least a video chat conversation [Abril, D. (2022, November 4). New workplace norms: Is it okay to quit via text, Slack or email? The Washington Post].

5. Answers will vary. Most of us do not “need” a shiny new iPhone or Android each year, particularly since these sleek devices now easily cost more than netbooks or even laptops. However, Apple runs a slick, tempting marketing machine. Peer pressure, too, may drive many young people to upgrade in order to match the type of phone their friends own—a smartphone arms race, so to speak.

From a sustainability perspective, annual upgrades are detrimental to the environment.

Precious rare earth elements are used in smartphones and need to be recycled. The phones are manufactured mostly in China under questionable manufacturing and labor practices. Then the devices are shipped halfway around the world. Fortunately, with the iPhone 12, Apple has at least started using recycled rare earth elements and reusing other valuable components.

As for planned obsolescence, it has been argued that in some ways it is necessary; otherwise, if products lasted “forever,” commerce would stall. Our economy depends on consumption and periodic “upgrades.” On the other hand, consumer goods cannot be flimsy and short-lived, or buyers would rightly complain and call for regulation. Consumer goods also must be safe.

Besides the Italian consumer association, similar lawsuits against Apple’s alleged planned obsolescence practices were filed in Belgium and Spain. Apple has admitted that it throttled the CPU speed of older iPhones which then ran more slowly, allegedly to prevent unexpected shutdowns and to prolong battery life.

WRITING IMPROVEMENT EXERCISES 9.1 Organizational Strategies (L.O. 1−3) a. Direct and indirect – It depends! Google CEO Sundar Pichai chose directness over tact and in this opening dives right in: “Googlers, I have some difficult news to share. We’ve decided to reduce our workforce by approximately 12,000 roles.”

Pichai’s colleague at Microsoft, Satya Nadella, is a lot more circumspect. He uses a long buffer and doesn’t get to the bad news until the second sentence of the third paragraph.

He writes a lengthy explanation citing economic volatility and large-picture outlook for Microsoft and the industry. Here is the first part of Nadella’s lengthy buffer: “We’re living through times of significant change, and as I meet with customers and partners, a few things are clear. First, as we saw customers accelerate their digital spend during the pandemic, we’re now seeing them optimize their digital spend to do more with less.

We’re also seeing organizations in every industry and geography exercise caution as some parts of the world are in a recession and other parts are anticipating one.”

[Browne, R. (2023, January 20). Google to lay off 12,000 people—read the memo CEO Sundar Pichai sent to staff. CNBC; Nadella, S. (2023, January 18). Subject: Focusing on our short- and long-term opportunity. Official Microsoft Blog]. b. Direct – The direct strategy is prescribed by established practice. Data breach letters now follow a specific format as shown in this chapter. Typically, this type of bad news is disclosed directly in the interest of clarity and transparency. c. Direct – In this scenario no harm was done, and the disappointment of the audience is probably minimal, not warranting an indirect strategy. d. Indirect – Breaking the news of a rate hike delicately makes sense in this case. The bearer of such bad news can at best provide a solid explanation of the recent losses to justify the rate hike. Pivoting to a resale proposition offering higher coverage limits at a higher premium could be risky with price-sensitive homeowners. Destructive hurricanes have posed similar problems for insurers and their customers in Florida and Louisiana. e. Direct – Cancelations as a result of vis major, literally superior power, a legal term describing events beyond the control of the carrier could generally be addressed directly.

However, to motivate and rally United employees, a gentle and compassionate tone is important. United CEO Scott Kirby chose an indirect approach with this buffer, offering thanks: “I wanted to say thank you for the incredible work you did this weekend under what were unprecedented challenges. I know it was very tough on each of you, and it’s not over yet with weather continuing today on the East Coast. But I want you to know that I’m proud of you” [Aten, J. (2023, June 28). After thousands of canceled flights, United’s CEO sent an email to employees. Inc.]. f.

Direct – Both communicators share a preference for direct messaging. In addition, the rejection of the proposal is unlikely to cause any pain or anguish.

g. Indirect – Here the indirect strategy works best to let down disappointed customers gently and maintain their goodwill. However, the injury caused was not such that it

would justify giving away expensive free tickets. A warm, engaging message conveying sympathy should suffice.

9.2 Employing Passive-Voice Verbs (L.O. 3) a. No executives can be sent to the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, this year. b. Because that three-week vacation period has already been reserved, your request cannot be granted. OR: Because that three-week vacation period has already been reserved, additional requests for the same time period must be denied. c. Free shipping is available on all orders over $100. OR: Orders of $100 and up qualify for free shipping. d. Health and dental benefits are offered only after employees have been on the job for 12 months. e. Because visitors are no longer covered by our liability insurance, company tours must be postponed indefinitely. f.

Large SUVs are not covered by car rental insurance. OR: Large SUVs are excluded from conventional car rental insurance.

9.3 Subordinating Bad News (L.O. 3) a. Although sustainability goals prevent us from mailing print catalogs, you will find all current products on our website, which is always up to date. b. Because smoking is prohibited within 5 feet of a state building, the college has set aside 16 outdoor smoking areas. c. Although your cabinet hinge is no longer manufactured, we are sending a replacement that should work for you. d. Although your last order was delayed, we have improved our shipping process and we promise that your next order will arrive within a week. e. Although our nine-day boat excursion on the Danube is now fully booked, we have placed you on a wait list, and you are only the second in line. f.

Although your complete order cannot be shipped now, two corner workstations should arrive within five days.

9.4 Implying Bad News (L.O. 3) a. Although a raise cannot be granted right now, as soon as our economic situation improves, we can revisit your request. b. Although our public-private partnership has run out, we will be able to retain and reassign a few team members.

c. Because our billboard space was completely filled during the holidays, we hope to display your message, as promised, next month. d. Although all our resources are needed to lease equipment and offices for our new branch in New Bern, we hope to be able to support your commendable endeavor in the future.

ACTIVITIES 9.5 Document for Analysis: No License for Personal Software (L.O. 1–3, 5) Weaknesses a. Opens with a direct refusal and a harsh reference to the prohibitive cost of software as a service subscriptions. b. Sounds petulant and makes no attempt to soften the bad news. c. Includes many sentence fragments (“Which is cost prohibitive,” “Definitely not for personal use,” “Or to develop new software”). d. Is repetitious throughout, reiterating the no to buying additional licenses for home use. e. Includes a long lead-in and a wordy phrase (“This e-mail is to inform you” and “due to the fact that”). f. Closes with a reminder of the bad news and a cliché (“Thank you for your cooperation”).

Revision To: Staff computer users From: Sylvia Wei <swei@csb.com> Subject: Request to Provide Software Licenses for Personal Use Staff computer users: A number of computer users have expressed interest in the latest Adobe Creative Cloud apps and services. We recently purchased software as a service licenses to access Adobe Creative Cloud on the computers in our Document Production Department.

Like most software makers, Adobe has moved its coveted Creative Cloud suite to the cloud. Rather than forcing users to buy the popular graphic and web designer package for thousands of dollars every few years, Adobe has shifted to a subscription model. We now pay a monthly fee per computer, per user. We have purchased expensive licenses for Adobe Creative Cloud where it is needed the most—in the Document Production Department. Although the licenses cannot be provided for personal use because of the high subscription cost, you do have access to this excellent suite of apps and services at your workstations. For personal use, consider using lunch breaks or time after hours to work on your own projects.

We look forward to using the Adobe Creative Cloud suite for many of your projects— work related as well as personal—here in the Document Production Department.

When you have a chance, please drop by to check out our new graphics and presentation capabilities.

Sylvia Wei, Manager Document Production [Full contact information] 9.6 Document for Analysis: Water Damage Voids Insurance Coverage (L.O. 1–4) Weaknesses a. Misspells the customer’s name. b. Begins with a long lead-in (“This message is being sent to you to inform you that”). c. Delivers the bad news bluntly with no effort to soften the blow. d. Heaps blame on the customer and chastises him for not handling the smartphone properly. e. Emphasizes the bad news by repeating it in the middle of the e-mail. f.

Fails to present the reasons logically or positively.

c. Presents the options to the reader poorly without much effort to promote the product or renew good feelings. a. Does not conclude with a way for the customer to get in touch with the writer easily.

Revision Current date To: Keith Bowman <keith.bowman@outlook.com> From: Kristen Davila <kdavila@csb.com> Subject: Information About Your Smart Device Insurance Coverage Dear Mr. Bowman: Many of our customers purchase the Peace of Mind Plan to insure their valuable smartphones against theft, loss, and malfunction as you have done. The low fee of $12.99 a month is a wise investment in protecting your expensive device.

Although fairly sturdy, today’s smartphones are very sophisticated electronic gadgets that require proper care and handling. The Peace of Mind Plan is designed for the most common incidents smartphone owners experience, such as when their devices are stolen, lost, or defective. In addition, all our cellular phones are backed by a one-year manufacturer’s

warranty against manufacturing defects. Under the Peace of Mind Plan, we gladly replace smartphones as long as they have not been exposed to water and other liquids or have not sustained physical damage. Our service technicians discovered that the liquid damage indicator strip (LDI) inside the SIM card tray clearly shows liquid intrusion. In addition, the smartphone casing shows signs of blunt force.

Although the one-year manufacturer’s warranty has expired by now, you have options, Mr. Bowman. You may want to purchase a low-cost remanufactured Zero Plus for $149 plus tax.

Alternatively, you could buy any of our newest cell phones at full retail cost. Furthermore, your two-year contract is nearing Month 20. This means that you will be eligible to choose from a number of free or inexpensive models with a new two-year contract.

Please visit any of our retail outlets for a personalized consultation, or go to www.blueskywireless.com to browse new calling plans, view current smartphones, and order your product or service online.

Sincerely,

9.7 Document for Analysis: Wedding Blues (L.O. 1−4) Weaknesses a. Fails to open with a buffer statement before announcing the bad news. b. Uses negative words (unfortunately, sadly). c. Implies that the writer is not as smart as other brides who booked in advance. d. Does not use subordinate clause to introduce bad news. e. Provides reason for bad news but uses an arrogant rather than sympathetic tone. f.

Suggests alternative but fails to make it easy for reader to follow through on the alternative.

g. Makes little effort to promote the alternative or develop goodwill for the Napa Valley Inn. h. Does not end with a call to action, provide telephone number, or encourage receiver to respond.

Revision To: Ellen Ibarra <eibarra@gmail.com> From: Ben Abri <babri@nvi.com> Subject: Your Inquiry About June Saturday Wedding

Dear Ms. Ibarra: Thanks for your inquiry about weddings at the Napa Valley Inn, one of the most beautiful and romantic settings in the country.

June is our busiest month, and this year is no exception. Although all of the Saturdays in June are booked, we can accommodate your party in midweek if you reserve soon. With unparalleled cuisine and service, along with panoramic Napa Valley and vineyard views, our Inn offers a unique, intimate ambiance in a breathtaking location for your special event.

Let the Napa Valley Inn with its 45 Mediterranean-style rooms and suites, each with its own sun-drenched private terrace, provide the perfect location for you and your guests to celebrate your union. Afternoon ceremonies typically begin at 11 a.m., while evening ceremonies usually begin at 6 p.m. Please call me at 1-800-435-3321 so that I can help you plan a midweek event in June. But please act soon to secure your reservation.

Sincerely, Your name 9.8 Bad News to Employees: You’ve Got Mail—Return-to-Office Mandate (L.O. 1, 2, 5) If students were so inclined, they probably could find one of the many public e-mails and posts by chief executives calling on their workforce to return to the office. Students could also use ChatGPT, Bard, and other generative AI to produce a first draft. Depending on the policies at your university or college, AI bots may not be allowed. However, students will likely use them anyway. They will also need to be able to use AI tools in the workplace after they graduate. This is why we suggest letting students experiment with generative AI. Chances are you would detect bland, unedited AI prose, and if students do edit the bot output well, they will have honed an important skill.

Some corporate memos of this genre were unbending, for example, Meta’s firmly worded mandate—a notable reversal from earlier promises of remote work and hybrid schedules. Google too insists on a minimum of three days in-office. Other corporate missives were kinder and gentler. A corporate consultant led at least one company he advises to switch from “a top-down mandate to a team-driven approach.” This approach entails appealing to worker benefits, namely, “welcoming staff to the office for the sake of collaboration and mentoring” [Tsipursky, G. (2023, June 26). We’re now finding out the damaging results of the mandated return to the office—and it’s worse than we thought.

Entrepreneur] Salesforce announced a creative incentive: the cloud-based software company pledged to donate $10 to charity per day during a 10-day period on behalf of every worker who comes into the office or every remote worker participating in company events.

Here are some arguments for working from home at least part of the time (hybrid schedule): •

Increased productivity: Studies have shown that remote employees tend to be more productive than those who work in the office. This is because potentially they face fewer interruptions and can work at their own pace.

•

Improved work-life balance: Working from home can help employees achieve a better work-life balance. They can avoid long commutes and have more flexibility in their schedule.

•

Reduced stress: Working from home can help reduce stress levels. Employees can avoid office politics and distractions, and they exert more control over their immediate environment.

•

Point of no return: Once American office workers have enjoyed the flexibility of fully remote or hybrid work, they are unwilling to return to the 9-to-5 in-office model five days a week. Turning back the clock on flexibility seems impossible, at least as long as the labor market remains tight.

Hi Team, I’m writing to you today to discuss plans for returning to the office. As you know all too well, we’ve been working remotely for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time we’ve all learned a lot about the benefits of remote work.

We’ve been able to be more productive, save time on commuting, and have a better work-life balance.

However, we’ve also missed the benefits of working in the office such as the collaboration, inspiration, and energy that come from being together in person. We’ve also missed the ability to build relationships with our colleagues.

After careful consideration, our leadership decided to start a phased return to the office.

We’ll begin by asking teams to come into the office one day a week starting in April.

We’ll then increase the number of days in the office during the next two months to allow for a smooth and gradual transition.

Individuals hired from regions without an office will remain fully remote. Local employees will be considered for fully remote work strictly case-by-case in special circumstances.

Under this exceptional distributed flextime option, highly productive team members are able to set their own hours as long as they keep meeting their work targets.

Most of you will follow a hybrid schedule, allowing for flexibility within this arrangement.

A majority of staff will work on-site a minimum of three days a week with the option of working from home on the remaining work days. Because having full and overlapping coverage during the week is important, the best days for WFH are Mondays and Fridays.

Your managers and HR will work with each of you to find the arrangement that best suits your needs.

We know that this will be a big shift for some of you, and we appreciate your understanding during the transition. However, we’re confident that this is the right decision for our company and are excited to start this new chapter together

We’re also excited to see you all in person very soon!

Best regards, [Your name] 9.9 Can Companies Afford to Stay Out of Controversies to Avoid Negative Coverage?

(L.O. 1, 3, 5) If public debate is any indication, lively discussions may ensue in the classroom.

Answers will vary.

Students may be familiar in broad strokes with the backlash against Bud Light’s advertising campaign featuring Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender influencer with nearly 11 million followers on TikTok, who was hired to promote the beer on Instagram. The strong response against the spokesperson included a viral video of musician Kid Rock shooting up stacks of Bud Light; calls for boycotts of the beer followed.

The uproar over transgender and LGBTQ+ rights also engulfed the retailer Target and country singer Garth Brooks who announced his new bar in Nashville would serve Bud Light, along with other beers. To complicate things, some members of the LGBTQ+ community criticized Anheuser-Busch InBev, the owner of the Bud Light brand, for not countering the backlash more forcefully [Holpuch, A. (2023, June 14). Behind the backlash against Bud Light. The New York Times]. Each such controversy reflects the highly divisive “culture wars” in the United States.

The fight between Florida governor Ron DeSantis and Disney World is now headed to court. It was sparked by legislation prohibiting the discussion and instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation in Florida (the Parental Rights in Education Act, called the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by critics). Silent at first, Disney took a strong stand against the bill after public protests by the company’s own employees. In turn, the governor intensified his long-running campaign to limit the autonomy of the amusement park and revoke its favored tax status. Conservative media and DeSantis then started to mock the company as “Woke Disney.” The feud is representative of the partisan battles dividing our nation [Jiménez, J., & Barnes, B. (2023, Mary 19). What we know about the DeSantis-Disney dispute. The New York Times].

Despite boycotts, such controversies can raise visibility and lead to higher sales, as Nike learned after siding with Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback who kneeled during the national anthem to protest racism. Nike too used Dylan Mulvaney as brand ambassador and incurred calls for boycotts of its apparel and shoes. Overall, the success of boycotts is mixed, according to Anna Tuchman, a professor at Northwestern University who studies boycotts. Their impact tends to be largely symbolic and short-lived, she says. As for controversies involving LGBTQ+ people, it’s important to note that this community collectively accounts for an estimated $1.1 trillion (!) in annual purchasing power [Holpuch, 2023].

One of the risks is potential damage to the brand. At the moment Bud Light is no longer America’s best-selling beer. Its sales plunged after the Dylan Mulvaney controversy.

However, in our fast-moving (social) media news cycle, most consumers typically forget their grievances and move on. Still, companies have to tread lightly. They can incur strong opposition if they unequivocally champion causes, but they will also be criticized if they try to remain neutral and not get involved, as the Disney example shows. The public and many shareholders today seem to favor companies that do take a stand.

Below is a raw, unedited e-mail written by Google’s Bard in response to this assignment.

The e-mail alone could provide fodder for a discussion or revision. No edits were made although the text could benefit from Chapter 6-type improvements. Potential areas for revision are highlighted in red. Predictably, the bot excels at structuring the message well. The date was chosen by Bard. It was not the date of prompting. To make the assignment more meaningful and prevent ChatGPT or Bard from doing all the heavy lifting, ask that students use a specific recent scenario as they argue their case. Bard’s e-mail cites no specifics but could be prompted to include them.

Solution provided by Bard (bard.google.com) To: CEO From: Bard Date: March 8, 2023 Subject: Taking Sides on Social Issues As you know, there is a growing trend of companies taking sides on social issues. This can be a risky proposition, but it can also be a rewarding one. In this memo, I will discuss the benefits and dangers of taking sides on social issues, and I will argue that your company should continue to advocate for social justice.

Benefits of Taking Sides on Social Issues There are several benefits to taking sides on social issues. First, it can help to build brand loyalty. Consumers are increasingly looking for companies that share their values.

When a company takes a stand on a social issue, it can signal to consumers that the company is aligned with their values. This can lead to increased sales and customer loyalty.

Second, taking sides on social issues can help to attract top talent. In today’s competitive job market, top talent is looking for companies that share their values. When a company takes a stand on a social issue, it can signal to potential employees that the company is a good place to work. This can make it easier to attract and retain top talent.

Third, taking sides on social issues can help to improve a company’s reputation. When a company takes a stand on a social issue, it can show that the company is committed to making a difference in the world. This can improve the company’s reputation and make it more attractive to investors.

Dangers of Taking Sides on Social Issues There are also some dangers to taking sides on social issues. First, it can alienate customers. Not all customers will agree with the company’s stance on a social issue.

This can lead to lost sales and customer loyalty.

Second, taking sides on social issues can lead to backlash. In today’s polarized political climate, taking a stand on a social issue can be viewed as an attack by one side or the other. This can lead to negative publicity and even boycotts.

Conclusion The decision of whether or not to take sides on social issues is a difficult one. There are both benefits and dangers to consider. However, I believe that the benefits of taking sides outweigh the dangers. In today’s world, consumers are increasingly looking for companies that share their values. By taking a stand on social issues, your company can build brand loyalty, attract top talent, and improve its reputation.

I urge you to continue to advocate for social justice. It is the right thing to do, and it is also good for business.

Recommendation I recommend that your company continue to take sides on social issues. However, I also recommend that you do so carefully and thoughtfully. Consider the potential risks and benefits of each issue before taking a stand. And make sure that your company’s stance is consistent with its values.

I believe that by taking a thoughtful approach to social issues, your company can build a strong brand and a positive reputation.

9.10 Request Refusal: No Resources Left for Children’s Health Fund (L.O. 1, 2, 4) Current date Ms. Allie Young Children’s Health Fund 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 630 New York, NY 10115 Dear Ms. Young: Let me commend you on the fine work you are doing as a volunteer with the Children’s Health Fund. Its mission to bring comprehensive health care to children growing up in underserved communities and to train advocates for the health and well-being of all children deserve the high praise CHF receives from local and national organizations.

My heart goes out to children who don’t have access to pediatric primary care, mental and behavioral health care, and dental care. CHF and its national network are working

toward positive change thorough advocacy, education, and by building healthier communities for generations to come.

In the past my company was able to make generous contributions. This fiscal year, however, has been difficult for us and for many other insurance companies. Frequent catastrophic fires and devastating floods have sapped our resources considerably.

Although funds are unavailable for charitable donations this year, we hope to be able to consider supporting the Children’s Health Fund at a time when we will have recovered from the recent massive expenditures.

I wish you continued success in your praiseworthy mission.

Sincerely,

9.11 Request Refusal: Thank You, But I Can’t Give a Talk (L.O. 1–4) Current date Celeste Gunvaldsen Associated Students University of South Carolina 1244 Blossom Street, Suite 206 Columbia, SC 29208 Dear Celeste Gunvaldsen: Your invitation to speak at beautiful University of South Carolina thrilled me because I enjoy meeting young people and discussing the importance of nonverbal communication with them. I was particularly impressed with your professionalism in communicating with me and following up As my audience is growing, so are my responsibilities. In the spring I have set aside time to write a new book on microexpressions. At the same time, I will travel to multiple corporate training engagements in the United States and abroad. Although a campus visit during your spring semester is not possible due to a scheduling conflict with corporate training, I would be happy to speak at the University of South Carolina at some time in the future. Alternatively, I would be delighted to offer you the expertise of my deputy director, Tinashe Efe. Tinashe is a popular senior trainer with many illustrious clients and would be available during the spring semester.

You are to be commended for showing an avid interest in developing skills that will be crucial to your career success and, in fact, your personal life. Please let me know whether you can wait until my schedule eases up a little or whether you would like to invite my trusted stand-in, Tinashe Efe. Sincerely,

9.12 Bad News to Customers: Ring Employees Spied on You (L.O. 1–4) Ring customers must be plugged in to use the hardware and software; they have to divulge their e-mail addresses. Therefore, sending out personalized e-mails to customers is an option. Sending a “personalized” letter from the CEO by mail might lend the message gravity; on the other hand, the customers would receive an automated mail-merge document, not an original hand-signed letter, of course. This might detract from the presumed impact of a letter as opposed to an e-mail.

The allegations paint a troubling picture. The least Ring can do is apologize, clarify what happened, and explain what the company is doing about it, so that the fiasco doesn’t repeat itself. The civil rights violation aspect is mentioned only tangentially but would merit its own (research) assignment.

A potential e-mail to customers: Dear Ring Customer, I am writing to you today to respond to the revelations that a handful of Ring employees and contractors have abused their access to customer videos. This news may have shaken your trust in Ring, and I want to assure you that we are taking such incidents very seriously.

First, let me be clear: We were shocked that our employees spied on some of our customers, particularly children. No doubt about it, we had not done enough to prevent such transgressions, and for that we are very sorry. As a result, we have stepped up privacy protections. Here are a few measures we have taken since to improve our security and privacy practices: • • • • •

Tightened privacy and security protections for video doorbells, cameras, and lights, for example, by mandating two-factor authentication and strong passwords Created a new in-app Control Center for users’ privacy settings that will put customers in charge of their data Terminated the employment of the employees involved in unauthorized surveillance Introduced new controls that limit employee access to customer footage Conducted an internal investigation and provided additional training for our teams.

These steps cannot erase what happened, but we trust they will prevent future lapses and thus help to restore your faith in Ring. You now have greater control over your video footage and can determine whether you wish to share it with local law enforcement agencies, for example. Moreover, in your Control Center settings, you can stop data sharing with third parties.

Although we disagree with the Federal Trade Commission’s allegations and deny violating the law, we agreed to a $5.8 million settlement with the FTC to resolve the matter and refocus on innovating on behalf of our customers. Millions of Ring devices continue to keep families safe.

Thank you for being a Ring customer. We are committed to rebuilding your trust in us and will work tirelessly to make sure that your privacy and personal information are secure.

Sincerely, Elizabeth Hamren CEO, Ring

9.13 Bad News to Customers: Costly Rental Car Upgrade (Obj. 1–4) Current date Mr. Pani Patil 801 Saratoga Drive, Apt. B San Mateo, CA 94401 Dear Mr. Patil: Thank you for writing to us about your experience in renting a Ford Expedition at our Seattle office. We can readily understand your concern when you learned that your credit card insurance carrier did not cover the damage incurred during your rental of this vehicle.

Hertz agents are trained to offer our own insurance coverage to every car rental patron.

However, we find it difficult or impossible to keep abreast of the many variations in individual credit card provisions.

We are also keenly aware of the need for speed in handing over vehicles to each of our valued customers. We consistently rank high in customer satisfaction for our swift counter work and efficient vehicle pick-up. Although we cannot warn customers about specifics of their own insurance coverage, we strive to provide efficient service and provide a variety of policies and rental vehicles at competitive rates.

Because we value you as a Hertz customer and feel that we can offer you an unparalleled rental experience, we are enclosing a coupon for two days’ free rental of a full-size sedan on a future trip of a week or longer. A digital version of this coupon is noted on your account. It is valid for two years. We sincerely appreciate your taking the time to share your comments with us, and we look forward to serving you again.

Sincerely, Your Name Enclosure

9.14 Bad News to Customers: The Right Elliptical Stepper for Crunch (L.O. 1-4) The safest way to go is to use the full name of the customer instead of unnecessarily guessing the recipient’s gender or gender expression.

To: Walker Vaughn <wvaughn@crunch.com> From: Your Name <your e-mail address> Subject: Question About Your Order of Fitness Equipment Dear Walker Vaughn: Thank you for your order! Your new Olympic Benches, Stamina Power Towers, and Premier Dumbbells have been shipped and should arrive on or before May 17 via UPS. The Titanic 20 Elliptical Stepper, which you ordered, is a favorite of many of our customers for home use. It offers an enjoyable aerobic workout without the harmful impact of running or walking. However, most fitness centers and gyms purchase our Titanic 90 because it is larger, sturdier, and specifically designed for the heavy use and varying needs of fitness club customers.

In addition to its robust construction, the Titanic 90 Elliptical Stepper offers a built-in cooling fan, water bottle holder, and speakers that allow users to hook up to any MP3 player (iPhone, etc.) for easy listening. In addition, it comes with a chest-strap heart-rate monitor, has 20 resistance levels, and features a lifetime warranty on its frame. Although the Titanic 90 costs more at $3,100, the machine will withstand the constant pounding your customers will give it. With all of its advanced features, the Titanic 90 is sure to be a favorite among your customers.

Before we ship your ellipticals, I want to be sure that we’re sending you the equipment that is best for Crunch. Of course, we’re happy to ship the Titanic 20 if you prefer it.

Please call me at 1-800-254-9001 so that we can confirm the Titanic model and ship this remaining part of your order.

Sincerely, Your Name [Full contact information]

9.15 Bad News to Customers: “Technical Issue” Causes Admission Mix-Up (L.O. 1–4) Within 24 hours of the glitch, the University of Kentucky e-mailed an apology to seniors and potential applicants. In the e-mail the school explained to the recipients what had happened. In an interview with a local news outlet, a spokesperson said UK regretted the error. Apparently, such mix-ups afflict universities across the United States with some regularity.

A potential solution: To: [Student’s e-mail address] From: Eli Capilouto <pres@uky.edu> Subject: Erroneous E-Mail Message Announcing Admission to the University of Kentucky Dear Seniors and Potential Applicants: Very recently we sent you an e-mail message by mistake. It welcomed those who have been admitted to campus. That message should have gone only to the 35-40 students who are accepted each year to our university’s competitive clinical leadership and management program in the College of Health and Sciences. Through an error in our new customer relationship management (CRM) tool, our university sent out 500,000 admission messages instead.

I realize how disturbing and confusing this message must have been to you. The Admissions Office has never experienced an error of this magnitude before, and you can be sure that I have ordered a complete review of the notification process so that this kind of mistake will not recur. We will make sure that the operation of our new CRM will be smooth from now on.

To confirm your admission status, you may send an e-mail to the Admissions Office at admissions@uky.edu. We will also be calling the 40 admitted students to discuss their status.

In all humility, I ask that you accept my sincere apologies and those of the University of Kentucky.

Sincerely,

9.16 Bad News to Customers: Announcing a Price Increase (L.O. 1–4) Student messages will vary. Below are portions of an authentic letter announcing a newspaper rate increase. As for Netflix, the company announced the price hike rather confidently to its existing customers. The media company was not beating around the bush too much, perhaps banking on the popularity of its service. Existing customers may not need much persuading. The pain threshold of most subscribers after a price increase of $3 a month may not have been reached yet.

The message does start with a buffer hinting at an unspecified change, but the price increase is revealed upfront in the second paragraph. Although the message is short, it hints at the benefit of a Netflix membership by addressing the freedom of watching anything anywhere and promising a greater selection of films and other media.

The message also makes downgrading or canceling the plan very easy and transparent, which is important for maintaining trust. Few things are as annoying as companies that

deliberately make downsizing or canceling a service difficult. Netflix subscribers can simply click the links provided within the e-mail.

Neflix currently offers four tiers of service, starting at $6.99 per month with ads.

The high-end premium costs $19.99 per month. It allows streaming on four supported devices (with an option to add up to two additional members for $7.99 each per month).

The top-tier plan allows viewing in Ultra HD and Netflix “spatial audio).

Dear Home Delivery Subscriber: Effective February 6, there will be a modest increase in the price of home delivery of , the first home delivery price increase in four years. This increase reflects the rising costs of printing and delivery. The new weekly rates are shown in a separate box.

In the four years since our last increase, we have significantly enhanced our coverage of the arts, travel, business, and real estate—giving you even richer perspectives on vital aspects of your life and helping you make the most of your free time, investments, and so much more. We introduced new sections, Thursday Styles and Friday’s Escapes, to help you discover new looks and new destinations. We also introduced such new features as The Funny Pages and Freakonomics to our Sunday magazine. is also rewarding our readers in new ways. Home delivery customers now have free access to a powerful online resource featuring articles going back 25 years, as well as information that’s unavailable anywhere else, exclusive multimedia events, blogs, interaction with our columnists, and more.

Home delivery remains the most convenient and reliable way to benefit from all that has to offer. It continues to be a cost-effective way to stay exceptionally well informed. We thank you for your business and for choosing .

Sincerely, 9.17 Credit Refusal: Cash Is King at Ridge to Rivers Gym (L.O. 1−4) Current date Mr. Kieran Goodwin 3100 South Vista Avenue, Apt. 8 Boise, ID 83705 Dear Mr. Goodwin: Thank you for making Ridge to Rivers Gym your fitness club of choice. We appreciate your application for our Premium Membership plan. A Premium Membership at Ridge to Rivers Gym qualifies members for all of our testing, exercise, recreation, yoga, and aerobics programs.

This unique multiservice fitness program is expensive for us to offer because it requires that we maintain an extensive staff. As a result, a solid credit rating is required of applicants. Your credit report, which we obtained from Experian, indicates that your credit history makes it impossible for a Premium Membership to be offered at this time.

However, you may be interested in our Drop In and Work Out plan. This plan would enable you to use our available facilities on a cash basis. You could pay as you go and sign up for yoga and aerobics classes, space permitting, and reserve space on the racquetball and handball courts. Alternatively, you could prepay classes and court time.

We offer vouchers in pairs of two, starting at four to ten. These prepaid vouchers can be redeemed anytime or be gifted to another person.

I suggest that you contact Experian, where you may receive a free credit report if you mention your application to us. In the meantime, we hope to welcome you at Ridge to Rivers Gym for Drop In and Work Out sessions soon. Our evening classes are filling up fast, but your prepaid vouchers will never expire.

Sincerely,

9.18 Bad News to Employees: “Bossware” Is Spying on Employees (L.O. 1, 2, 5) Getting caught red-handed, so to speak, and thus unprepared after an anonymous leak online is difficult for companies. They need to contain anger and restore trust among their workforce. In the sample e-mail that follows, the company admits it failed to notify its workers and explain that monitoring software QMind was going to be installed. The email needs to be tactful because the company may be justified in its actions, but monitoring is deeply unpopular.

A sincere apology is in order, but more than that, a plausible explanation can go a long way toward reassuring angry and disappointed workers. The writer starts directly, without a buffer, to address the proverbial “elephant in the room” head-on. A buffer and an indirect approach could come across as devious or manipulative. The apology sounds sincere; the writer seems to take responsibility for failing to notify the staff.

Pointing out to readers the widespread use of the practice in business sends the message that the company’s monitoring is not outlandish. The writer distinguishes subtly (and rightly) that the monitoring per se was not the problem but that it should have perhaps been disclosed and explained; consent should have been obtained. The writer tries to reassure workers concerned about their privacy and indicates that communication channels are open to those who wish to know more. Moreover, the company will send out a survey and later hold a town hall to face the employees and their questions.

Dear Team, I would like to address the recent concerns about the use of QMind employee-monitoring software made public online by an unknown employee of this company.

Many of you are rightly upset, and I’m sorry for the way the monitoring was introduced and how you found out about it. We should have been transparent with you about installing this software. We erred in not notifying you and in failing to explain the reasons for the monitoring.

Please know that we did not install this software with malicious intent. Rather, we purchased it because we are concerned about security and data loss, a concern that includes protecting your work-related sensitive information as well. We thought that QMind would help us do that. We will only be using the software to monitor our systems for security threats. Currently few restrictions exist that would disallow the practice, and we hardly stand alone. According to research firm Gartner, 60 percent of large corporations monitor their employees’ work phone calls and Internet usage, including keystroke logging, website tracking, e-mail monitoring, and screen recording.

We understand that you may have concerns about the use of this software. We want to assure you that we will not be using it to track your personal activities or to spy on you.

We do not track location, monitor personal texts and phone calls, or record conversations without consent. Although keystroke logging is legal, we have decided against deploying it for the monitoring of productivity.

We are committed to protecting your privacy, and we will not do anything to violate that trust going forward. If you have any immediate concerns, please get in touch with me. As soon as tomorrow, you will receive an anonymous survey asking for your feedback.

Within two weeks we will hold a town hall meeting to answer your questions face-to-face and address the results of the survey.

Sincerely, [Your name]

9.19 Bad News to Employees: Say Goodbye to Perks (L.O. 1–3, 5) Hi Team, Your hard work and creative talents have produced a number of amazingly successful products for Minxx customers. As a result of your efforts, we have been able to offer an outstanding workplace with many amenities to attract the best and brightest talent.

As you know, some of our products did not land as expected, but we are cautiously optimistic about our prospects in the longer term. Most important, though, we are still adjusting to significant post-pandemic changes. Roughly two thirds of our coworkers

currently follow a fully remote or hybrid schedule. It seems unlikely that we will return to full in-office presence of most team members.

With fewer on-site employees, we needed to reassess the generous amenities that had been provided in the past. A few of the most popular perks have become uneconomical, but we are very pleased that—unlike other tech firms—we are not forced to let go any employees. The amenities that we must give up include our in-house chef, free meals, on-site acupuncture, massage, and yoga classes. However, we continue to offer signing bonuses to talented new-hires and are able to provide unlimited snacks and pet-friendly offices. You’ll also be able to challenge your in-office colleagues to a spirited game of table tennis or foosball when you need a break from work.

Minxx has always been a fun place to work, and we promise to continue our efforts to encourage the kind of camaraderie that we have enjoyed since our start. If you have any questions or suggestions for moving forward, please know that I am always eager to listen to you.

Warmly, Julia V. Arnaq Founder and CEO, Minxx [Full contact information] 9.20 Bad News to Employees: No to Tuition Reimbursement (L.O. 1–5) To: Violet Valenzuela <vvalenzuela@ensuritmutual.com> From: Your Name<your e-mail address> Subject: Your Inquiry About Tuition Reimbursement Violet, We appreciate your thoughtful message requesting that Ensurit Mutual establish a program to reimburse the costs of college expenses such as tuition and books.

You’re smart, Violet, in striving to further your education by returning to school to take additional courses that improve your career skills. Thriving companies are able to offer tuition reimbursement to selected employees when they return to school. These programs are expensive to organizations because they involve not only the actual cost of tuition and learning materials but also the cost of program administration.

As you know, Ensurit Mutual is facing stiff competition in the insurance industry, and our profits have not been strong. Although a tuition reimbursement program cannot be considered at this time, we do not rule out that it might be possible in the future.

Our CEO Reyes Ochoa joins me in expressing our appreciation for the fine work you are doing at Ensurit Mutual. We admire your desire to advance your education and wish you all the best.

Sincerely, Your Name [Full contact information]

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1.

2.

3.

False. You should say: “Ms. Castillo-Martinez, I would like to introduce Yarden Rivers, our new office assistant.” The senior-ranking person should be mentioned first. However, when introducing a guest, client, or business partner, that person should always be the first to be introduced to coworkers and supervisors, regardless of peers’ or supervisors’ rank or seniority.

False. You should smile and calmly say, “I remember meeting you, but I can’t remember your name.” Don’t try to bluff your way through your encounter. Because many people can’t remember names, you should help others remember yours by announcing it when you greet someone who may have forgotten your name. Don’t expect people to remember your name. Besides, racking your brain to recall the name would most likely take your attention away from the conversation.

True. It is no longer necessary for a man to wait for a woman to extend her hand. All people in the workplace are equals, regardless of gender or gender expression. Anyone can be the first to initiate a handshake. As for handshakes themselves, some people may still be wary of this type of greeting post-pandemic. It doesn’t hurt to ask, particularly if the counterpart’s body language suggests hesitation.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Since the COVID-19 pandemic, monitoring of employees’ work at home has surged, and much of it is covert. Sales of monitoring software, so-called "bossware," for example, Teramind, InterGuard, StaffCop, or CleverControl, are skyrocketing. Tracking includes logging work time, keystrokes, websites, apps, and e-mail, but also grabbing screenshots and activating webcams. Workers don’t have much recourse beyond complaining or quitting. Even personal devices can be monitored as long as they access company e-mail, networks, or servers. Privacy advocates and unions are alarmed.

Employers like keeping tabs on productivity. How do you feel about such surveillance, not only at the office but also at home?

Topic 2: An infamous viral video showed an elderly passenger being forcibly dragged off a United Airlines flight because he wouldn’t give up his seat to a United employee. The United CEO at the time, Oscar Munoz, first said: “I apologize for having to reaccommodate these customers.” Later that day, Munoz falsely claimed passenger David Dao had been denied boarding and was “disruptive and belligerent.” The third time around, Munoz said: “I want you to know that we take full responsibility and we will work to make it right. It’s never too late to do the right thing.” He closed with “I promise you we will do better.” Discuss Munoz’s apology and crisis management.

Topic 3: Analyze the corporate jargon for getting laid off: realigning the workforce, reallocating resources, focusing on involuntary attrition, rightsizing the company, eliminating redundancy, rewiring for growth, smartsizing the company, redeploying workers, rebalancing human capital, and decruiting. How do these terms compare to fired, booted out, given the boot, or get the ax?

Topic 4: You are an executive at a company that suddenly has to lay off 400 employees within three days or risk financial disaster. You have to make the cuts quickly, but you don’t want to be impersonal by announcing the cuts by e-mail. How would you announce the bad news?

Topic 5: Discuss your own examples of effective and ineffective apologies. Which elements determine whether we find an apology credible and sincere?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

0 points

CHAPTER 8

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore the concept of persuasion in the workplace. First, we define persuasion and explore digital age persuasion and techniques for persuasive messages.

Next, we cover the traditional four-part AIDA strategy for creating successful and ethical persuasive messages. Additionally, we explore how to craft persuasive requests, claims, and complaints. Then, we explore persuasion within the workplace. Next, we cover how to create effective print and electronic sales messages. Finally, we discuss persuasive press releases.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6

Explain time-tested persuasive strategies in the contemporary workplace.

Describe the traditional four-part AIDA strategy for creating successful and ethical persuasive messages.

Create persuasive messages that request actions, make claims, and deliver complaints.

Write persuasive messages within organizations to supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates.

Create effective and ethical sales messages.

Identify basic persuasive strategies in compelling news releases.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

• • •

•

Thoroughly revised the thought-provoking opening case scenario about e-cigarette startup Juul and its controversial marketing campaign that targeted teenagers to demonstrate the power of influence.

Provided new authoritative Reality Checks quoting business practitioners and shedding light on relevant chapter content.

Updated coverage of puffery and misleading advertising claims in persuasive marketing messages to instruct students in the importance of ethical sales practices.

Included critical-thinking questions and discussions that increase students’ awareness of contemporary issues in business, for example, fake and paid-for online reviews and “dark patterns.”

Updated the discussion of marketing e-mails and compared it with more traditional persuasive channels such as sales letters and other direct mail.

•

Provided 40 percent new end-of-chapter writing assignments to create opportunities for students to practice professional persuasive techniques as part of typical multichannel campaigns with topics such as Twitter/X CEO’s e-mail to the severely diminished staff, sacrifices to slow climate change, and inducing the public to quit soda.

Analyzed a solution provided by Google’s chatbot Bard to demonstrate ethical uses of generative AI.

•

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 10. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Understanding Persuasion in the Contemporary Workplace (L.O. 10.1, PPT Slides 3–18, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Communication evolution; Audience; Ethics and morals) a. Solid persuasive skills are more important than ever within the workplace due to: i.

Flatter hierarchies ii.

Increased teamwork iii.

Collaboration across divisions iv.

Blurred lines of authority b. Though we are subjected to persuasive messages daily, we don’t often recognize the techniques of persuasion or its evil cousin, manipulation. Being informed is our best defense. c. Social media users tend to congregate with like-minded people, resulting in the formation of echo chambers or opinion bubbles. d. Persuasion is “a symbolic process in which communicators try to convince other people to change their attitudes or behaviors regarding an issue through the transmission of a message in an atmosphere of free choice.”—Richard M. Perloff e. Perloff’s definition of persuasion has five components: i.

Persuasion Is a Symbolic Process: Words, signs, or images can all be infused with rich meaning. ii.

Persuasion Involves an Attempt to Influence: It is a conscious effort to persuade someone in order to achieve a specific outcome. iii.

Persuasion Is Self-Persuasion: Ethical communicators make compelling, honest cases to support their arguments and then give others the choice to accept them or not.

iv.

v.

f.

Persuasion Involves Transmitting a Message: Messages can be verbal or nonverbal and conveyed face-to-face or via any other channel. Some persuasive messages are meant to appeal to our emotions.

Persuasion Requires Free Choice: People are free when they are not forced to comply, when they can refuse a suggestion, and when they are not pressured to act against their own preferences. Most people respond to pressure with a defensive strategy of resistance called reactance.

Robert B. Cialdini outlined these seven psychological triggers that prompt us to act and believe (Figure 10.1): i.

Reciprocation: When someone does us a favor, we feel obligated to return it. ii.

Commitment and Consistency: Once we make a choice, we stay consistent with that decision. iii.

Social Proof: Actions are more acceptable to us when others are doing them. iv.

Liking: We are more likely to accept requests of people we know and like or those who say they like us; we favor those who appear to be like us. v.

Authority: We tend to obey authority as a widely accepted system that is beneficial to an orderly society. vi.

Scarcity: We regard opportunities as more valuable when their availability is restricted. vii.

Unity: People are inclined to say yes to someone they consider one of them.

g. Experts estimate the average American consumer today endures as many as 5,000 advertising impressions a day, up from around 500 per day 50 years ago. h. Some marketers believe the range of daily ad impressions and brand encounters is even higher; naturally, we remember only a fraction of them. i.

Politicians, activists, and influencers mobilize millions of followers through powerful messages and images, without face-to-face interaction.

j.

Persuasive messages come from companies of all sizes, ad agencies, PR firms, social activists, lobbyists, marketers, pollsters, and more. However, the rising gig economy has begun to shift persuasion strategies into solo endeavors.

k. Persuaders play on emotions using flattery, empathy, nonverbal cues, and likability appeals. l.

Marketers study target groups and mine data to microtarget (highly customize) appeals to a narrow subset of the intended audience.

m. Digital deception can permeate broadly and deeply, may be indistinguishable from reality, and can harness malicious software to influence human minds. n. Listeners and readers will be more inclined to accept what you are offering if you follow these important strategies (Figure 10.2): i.

Establish credibility: Show you are truthful, experienced, and knowledgeable, using expert opinions to support your position. ii.

Make a reasonable, specific request: Make your request realistic, doable, and attainable with a clear objective. iii.

Tie facts to benefits: Use statistics, reasons, and analogies to support your position, translating the supporting facts into audience benefits. iv.

Recognize the power of loss: Show others what they stand to lose if they don’t agree, knowing that people dread losing what they already possess. v.

Expect and overcome resistance: Anticipate opposition and be prepared with well-reasoned arguments and facts. vi.

Share solutions and compromise: Aim for a solution that is acceptable to all parties, listening to others and creating buy-in. o. The 3-x-3 writing process can be applied to persuasive messages by: i.

Analyzing the purpose: knowing what you want to achieve (Model Document 10.1) ii.

Adapting to the audience to make your message heard iii.

Researching and organizing persuasive data p. The AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) strategy is used to craft persuasive messages and overcome resistance. (Figure 10.3) i.

Attention: Gain your audience’s attention in the opening of your message. ii.

Interest: Use the body of your message to build interest by convincing your audience that your proposal is worthy. iii.

Desire: The body should also elicit desire for the offer and reduce resistance. iv.

Action: An effective closing should prompt specific action, making it easy for the reader to respond.

Ethics Check: Automatic, Mindless Compliance Best-selling author Robert B. Cialdini was on to something when he first published his blockbuster book Influence more than four decades ago. The book’s success is a testament to its timeless relevance. We now know that targeted disinformation campaigns waged from cyberfarms in Russia and China aim to destabilize our society by sowing discord and planting false information. Bots have all but conquered social media, and it has become increasingly difficult to track the sources of propaganda. Partisanship in echo chambers and opinion bubbles makes Americans more susceptible to unvetted information of uncertain origin, as long as it “sounds” plausible.

For three years Cialdini, an experimental social psychologist by trade, had observed the persuasive techniques of typical marketers and salespeople. He underwent all manner of sales training to analyze the approaches to persuasion by various sales professionals. The insights from this training and experience informed the first version of Influence. The various iterations of this book have sold 5 million copies [Cialdini, R. B. (2021). Influence, new and expanded: The psychology of persuasion. Harper Business].

One conclusion students may take away from Cialdini’s work is that they need to become aware of the strategies visited upon them by “compliance professionals,” as Cialdini calls marketers and other persuaders. Perhaps because people today are subjected to a barrage of advertising and other persuasive messages, they have become numb to unsophisticated messages and are a lot savvier, but professional sellers, too, have had to refine their craft in the digital age.

Persuasion today is more subtle, targeted, and devious. Hence, its subtle workings are more likely to be overlooked.

Another aspect might be the sheer volume of persuasive and sales messages raining down on consumers. This onslaught may blunt people’s awareness of their own spontaneous, unthinking responses as they try to cope with and make sense of the information glut. Critical thinking— meaning a healthy skepticism toward online and offline claims—is more important than ever.

Cialdini’s seven principles of influence teach readers how to become skilled persuaders—and how to defend themselves against skilled persuaders looking to influence them. Students may also recognize that persuasiveness requires a conscious effort and lots of skill. They may realize that career success is contingent on mastering the art of influence while remaining honest and ethical.

II.

Applying the AIDA Strategy to Persuasive Messages (L.O. 10.2, PPT Slides 19–24, DISC: Purpose; Patterns; Audience; Ethics and morals) a. Successful persuasive messages blend the four steps of the AIDA strategy into a seamless whole. (Figure 10.4) b. To gain attention, make a brief, relevant, and engaging opening statement. If your request is substantial and you anticipate resistance, provide a provocative opening from the following examples: i.

Present a capsule of the problem your proposal will help solve. ii.

Open with an unexpected statement that gets readers thinking. iii.

Immediately show the reader the benefit of your offer. iv.

Offer praise or a compliment but be sincere and don’t exaggerate. v.

Include relevant facts to set the scene for the interest-building section in the body of your message. vi.

Ask an intriguing question so the receiver will be curious and keep reading to find the answer. c. A persuasive request must convince the audience that the request is reasonable.

Build interest and conviction through the use of: i.

Facts and statistics ii.

Examples

iii. iv. v. vi.

Expert opinion Specific details Direct benefits Indirect benefits

d. The best persuasive requests anticipate audience resistance and are prepared for their arguments. Consider following these tips: i.

Reduce resistance with finesse. ii.

Anticipate the objections your reader will have. iii.

Offer counterarguments in sentences that emphasize benefits. iv.

Brainstorm using “What if?” scenarios and prepare a counterargument for each. v.

Demonstrate your credibility and competence by establishing your expertise, referring to your credentials, or providing information from reputable sources. vi.

Show the value of your proposal to the receiver. e. Once you’ve gained attention, built interest, elicited desire, and reduced resistance, you’ll need to inspire your receptive audience to act.

(Model Document 10.2) i.

Know what action you favor and make a specific request. ii.

Project confidence without seeming pushy. iii.

Make the action you’re requesting easy for the receiver to take. iv.

Don’t sound apologetic, and don’t supply excuses. f. To be an ethical persuader, follow these guidelines: i.

Be truthful and believable. ii.

Don’t manipulate, mislead, or exaggerate. iii.

Don’t omit crucial information or provide deceptive emphasis. iv.

Don’t use doublespeak, language that manipulates through the distortion and twisting of meaning. v.

Base arguments on truth, objectivity, and fairness.

III.

Writing Persuasive Requests, Claims, and Complaints (L.O. 10.3, PPT Slides 25–30, DISC: Purpose; Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. Individuals and organizations comply with persuasive requests for a variety of reasons: i.

A sincere interest ii.

Potential for goodwill for themselves iii.

A feeling of obligation iv.

Perceived benefit to others b. Use the direct strategy for straightforward adjustment requests. c. Use the indirect strategy if a past request has been refused or ignored or you anticipate a reluctance to comply. d. To develop a logical argument, follow these guidelines:

i. ii. iii. iv.

Open with sincere praise, an objective statement of the problem, a point of agreement, or a quick review.

Explain what happened and why your claim is legitimate.

Enclose copies of relevant supporting materials.

Close with a clear statement of what you want done; make sure your request is reasonable.

e. When writing a persuasive claim, use a moderate tone. i.

Don’t suggest the receiver intentionally deceived you or deliberately created the problem. ii.

Appeal to the receiver’s sense of responsibility and pride. iii.

Calmly express your disappointment. iv.

Communicate your feelings without resentment. f.

Complaints deliver bad news.

g. If the goal is to change something, persuasion is necessary. h. An effective claim message (Model Document 10.3): i.

Makes a reasonable and valid request ii.

Presents a logical case with clear facts iii.

Has a moderate tone Ethics Check: Persuading by Temper Tantrum?

Some students may say yes anything is fair to obtain the desired result. However, they should be reminded that the saying “You catch more flies with honey” applies no less in business.

When bad-tempered customers get their way, the business complies grudgingly, and goodwill is lost. As a result, generous policies may be changed to avoid abuse and conflict, harming future customers. Buying and selling is an exchange that should be fair and satisfying to both parties, a win–win situation.

Use the discussion for a teaching moment on emotional intelligence and its role in leadership. In his ground-breaking emotional intelligence theory, leadership guru Daniel Goleman has identified four main competencies of EQ: self-awareness, self-management, empathy, and relationship skills. In the context of throwing temper tantrums to intimidate and pressure salespeople, you could introduce Goleman’s idea that emotional balance is a hallmark of selfmanagement, a key leadership quality: “You keep any distressful feelings in check—instead of blowing up at people, you let them know what’s wrong and what the solution is” [Goleman, D. (2015, April 7). How to be emotionally intelligent. The New York Times].

Emotionally intelligent individuals are self-aware, meaning they are able to identify what they are feeling at any given time and understand the impact their own moods can have on others.

IV.

Writing Persuasive Messages in Digital Age Organizations (L.O. 10.4, PPT Slides 31– 35, DISC: Communication evolution; Audience) a. Lines of authority have blurred, and roles of executives have changed.

b. Managers expect creativity and flexibility instead of adherence to rigid instructions. c. Employees are more apt to leave undesirable work environments. d. Executives increasingly rely on persuasion to achieve buy-in from subordinates. e. Employers use persuasive downward messages to encourage employees to (Model Document 10.4): i.

Join programs to stop smoking, lose weight, or start exercising ii.

Volunteer for charity projects f.

Pay close attention to tone in order to gain buy-in and acceptance.

g. When communicating downward with tact, the goal is to present a strong but honest argument rather than manipulating employees or seducing them with trickery. h. Employees use persuasive upward messages to convince management to (Model Document 10.5): i.

Adopt a procedure ii.

Invest in a product or new equipment i.

Pay close attention to facts, figures, and evidence.

j.

Emphasize the benefits in monetary terms when possible.

k. Present ideas confidently and fairly, including both sides of the argument. l.

V.

Use a conversational yet professional tone.

Creating Effective Sales Messages in Print and Online (L.O. 10.5, PPT Slides 36–50, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Communication evolution) a. The 3-x-3 writing process can be applied to sales messages. b. Analyzing the product: i.

What can you learn about the product? ii.

What makes it special? iii.

How does it compare with the competition? iv.

What is your unique selling point (USP)? c. Determining the purpose of a sales message: i.

What do you want your reader to do? ii.

How does your central selling point achieve your intended reader response? d. Adapting a sales message to its audience: i.

Target your audience through selected database mailing lists. ii.

Use the knowledge you have of your audience to adapt your message for them.

e. Direct mail is used to make sales, generate leads, boost retail traffic, solicit donations, and direct consumers to websites. i.

Direct mail is less invasive than telephone solicitations and less hated than unwanted promotional spam e-mails. ii.

The open rate for direct mail can reach 90 percent as opposed to an open rate of 20-30 percent for promotional e-mail. iii.

Studies show that physical direct mail appears to have a greater emotional impact than digital ad content. iv.

A neuromarketing study suggested that physical materials “leave a longer lasting impact for easy recall when making a purchase decision.” v.

A UK Royal Mail study attributed the enduring effectiveness of direct mail to its tactile heft: “Giving, receiving and handling tangible objects remain deep and intuitive parts of the human experience.” (Figure 10.5) f. Direct mail still works because it is mostly well-targeted and personalized. g. Technology connects digital leads and direct-mail appeals through retargeting, the act of targeting again the consumers who have previously visited a brand’s site. i.

Tracking technology matches website visitors to their name and postal address. ii.

Privacy advocates have demanded stricter control over user data. h. The most effective sales messages follow the AIDA strategy. i.

j.

The opening paragraph of a sales message should be short (one to five lines), honest, relevant, and stimulating. To catch the reader’s attention, use one of the following: i.

Offer ii.

Promise iii.

Question iv.

Quotation or proverb v.

Fact vi.

Product feature and its benefit vii.

Startling statement viii.

Personalized action setting You can build interest with rational and emotional appeals. i.

Rational appeals are associated with reason and intellect (making or saving money, increasing efficiency, or making the best use of resources). ii.

Use rational appeals when a product is expensive, long-lasting, or important to health, security, or financial success. iii.

Emotional appeals relate to status, ego, and sensual feelings. iv.

Use emotional appeals when a product is inexpensive, short-lived, or nonessential. v.

Dual appeal messages combine emotional and rational strategies.

vi.

Consumers buy a product not for a feature (what a product is or does), but because of a benefit (how the audience can use it).

k. To overcome resistance, you should anticipate objections and questions and translate those objections into selling points. Be sure the claims you make are accurate. l.

Other techniques to overcome resistance and prove the credibility of your product include: i.

Testimonials ii.

Names of satisfied users iii.

Money-back guarantees or warranties iv.

Free trials or samples v.

Performance tests, polls, or awards

m. To make it easy for readers to act, provide a reply card, a stamped and preaddressed envelope, a toll-free number, a smartphone-readable QR code, a Web address, or a promise of a follow-up call. n. To further motivate your receiver to act, consider offering a gift, promising an incentive, limiting the offer, setting a deadline, or offering a guarantee of satisfaction. o. A direct-mail sales letter is the No. 2 preferred marketing medium right behind email because it can be personalized, directed to target audiences, and filled with a more complete message than other advertising media can. (Model Document 10.6) p. Direct mail is more expensive than e-mail, so crafting and assembling all the parts of a sales message are critical. q. The first rule of e-marketing is to communicate only with those who have given permission. By sending messages only to opt-in audiences, you greatly increase your open rate (the percentage of recipients who open the e-mail) and the click rate (the percentage of recipients who click a link within the e-mail). r. E-mail users detest spam but are highly receptive to offers tailored specifically to them. s. When selling by e-mail, consider these tips: i.

Craft a catchy subject line. ii.

Keep the main information “above the fold.” iii.

Make the message short, conversational, and focused. iv.

Sprinkle testimonials throughout the copy. v.

Provide a means for opting out. t.

While social media are not primarily suited for overt selling, posts and other online posts can be used to influence others and to project a professional, positive online presence. Or the opposite.

u. In persuasive tweets and other posts, writers try to advertise offers, prompt specific responses, or draw the attention of their audiences to interesting events and media links. (Figure 10.6) v. Don’t expect to see the four-part AIDA strategy represented in a 140- or 280character message on X; instead, you may see attention getters and calls for action, both of which must be catchy and intriguing. Many of the principles of persuasion still apply.

Ethics Check: Persuading with Emotion Perceptive students will realize that such appeals are not unethical, as long as they are executed truthfully and do not intend to deceive. It is not wrong to invoke recent burglary statistics to make a case for an alarm and monitoring system if these numbers are correct.

Similarly, before the holidays, when most people take stock of their lives and the year they have had, it’s natural to remember charitable giving and for marketers to tap into that greater willingness to give.

VI.

Publishing Persuasive News Releases (L.O. 10.6, PPT Slides 51–54, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Rhetorical considerations) a. News (or press) releases announce important information to the media. (Model Document 10.7) b. Organizations hope the media will pick up the news and provide good publicity. c. Because purely self-serving or promotional information is not appealing to editors and producers, press release writers follow these principles to get them to read beyond the first sentence: i.

Open with an attention-getting lead or a summary of the important facts. ii.

Include answers to the five Ws and one H (who, what, when, where, why, and how) in the article—but not all in the first sentence! iii.

Appeal to the audience of the target media. Emphasize reader benefits written in the style of the focus publication or newscast. iv.

Present the most important information early, followed by supporting information. Don’t put your best ideas last because they may be chopped off or ignored. v.

Insert intriguing and informative quotations of chief decision makers to lend the news release credibility. vi.

Make the document readable and visually appealing. Limit the text to one or two double-spaced pages with attractive formatting. vii.

Look and sound credible—no typos, no imaginative spelling or punctuation, no factual errors. d. The most important ingredient of a news release is, of course, news. Articles that plug products end up in the circular file or languish unread on a company website.

e. The best news releases focus on information that appeals to a targeted audience. f.

Newspapers, magazines, and digital media are more likely to publish a press release that is informative, interesting, and helpful.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Emotional vs. Rational Appeals (Critical Thinking #1, L.O. 10.5) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Sit back in your first-class seat and sip a freshly stirred drink while letting 12 channels of superb audio wash over you—or snooze is an example of what type of persuasive appeal? i. Answer: The first promotional statement focuses on creature comforts and conjures up feelings of luxury and relaxation. Therefore, it can be characterized as an emotional appeal. b. How does it compare to the following: Take one of four daily direct flights to South America on our modern Airbus aircraft, and enjoy the most legroom of any airline. If we’re ever late, you will receive coupons for free trips. i. Answer: The second statement is predominantly factual, and the appeal is rational.

2. Discussion: The Negative Connotations of Persuasion (Critical Thinking #2, L.O. 10.1) Duration: 10 minutes. a. The word persuasion turns some people off. b. Why? What negative connotations can it have? i. Answer: Many people subconsciously equate persuasion with coercion or force. In fact, both persuasion and coercion share the same continuum of strategies that seek compliance. When done well, however, persuasion answers questions and provides information. Persuasion is nonadversarial. Effective persuasion does not command, force, coerce, or threaten. It uses argument and discussion to change beliefs and motivate action. In Richard M. Perloff’s terms, persuasion is selfpersuasion and it involves free choice.

3. Discussion: Direct-Mail vs. E-mail Sales Messages (L.O. 10.5) Duration: 5 minutes. a. How are direct-mail sales letters and e-mail sales messages similar, and how are they different? i. Answer: Direct-mail sales letters and e-mail sales messages are similar in that both use persuasion to attempt to influence beliefs or motivate action. Many of the techniques of the indirect strategy work for both.

Direct mail involves messages delivered by the U.S. Postal Service.

These carefully planned marketing campaigns are fairly expensive and often result in low response rates (up to 9 percent). E-mail sales messages are usually short and far less costly than direct mail. However, they produce an even lower response rate (typically just 1 percent).

4. Discussion: The Ethics of News Releases (L.O. 10.6) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Why are magazine and newspaper editors or TV producers wary of press (news) releases from businesses and reluctant to turn them into articles? i. Answer: Traditionally, most self-respecting journalists fiercely guard their objectivity and independence from corporate, political, and other interests as the highest good that has lent them credibility and earned the trust of their readers. Critical yet balanced journalism used to be the hallmark of the professional reporter and editor. Increasingly, however, it is drowned out by partisanship and biased commentary masquerading as journalism.

Nevertheless, conflicts of interest are considered unacceptable. As we have seen, in certain cases online, it may even be illegal to fail to disclose a financial connection between a merchant and a promoter.

5. Discussion: The Ethics of Microtargeting (L.O. 10.1) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Microtargeting is controversial. Advertisers are trying to sweettalk Internet users into allowing them to harvest their location information, browser history, and other personal behavior data. They argue it’s to users’ advantage to see ads tailored to their lifestyles and preferences. An even bigger problem than threats to privacy are narrowly focused political ads. Critics worry that misleading information cannot be rebutted if it’s narrowly targeted. Although Facebook has been criticized not only for allowing political ads but also for not vetting them for disinformation or suspicious origin, the company is sticking to its guns. In the meantime, Google and X are limiting or banning political ads outright. b. What are the risks of microtargeted political ads on social media? i. Answer: The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), for example, doesn’t believe that Facebook should be expected to fact-check political ads to weed out misinformation that could sway U.S. elections. However, one of its directors, Ben Wizner, acknowledged, “There is something different about online microtargeted advertisements and the kind of political advertisements that we’ve mainly seen in the past, on radio and television.” With targeted campaigns, he warned, “it’s possible for

candidates to send one advertisement to me and a different one to my neighbor across the street. And so that makes it easier for lies to go uncorrected” [Chappell, B. (2020, January 9). FEC commissioner rips Facebook over political ad policy: “This will not do.” Northwest Public Broadcasting.] ii. Microtargeting is achieved with the help of sophisticated data mining which then helps the data-collecting entity to assemble a profile of a very narrow target audience, a small subset of individuals. If aspects of the truth (or untruth) are fragmented to such an extent, establishing common ground or even basic facts is very difficult if not impossible. iii. Watchdog groups such as the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF) accused Facebook of playing by different rules when policing individuals’ speech on the platform while being lenient toward political entities: “Facebook readily and pervasively plays the role of speech referee for the general public, but, concerned about playing politics, applies a more permissive set of rules to powerful political groups complaining about bias” [Ibid]. EFF’s Gennie Gebhart has urged tech companies to strongly oppose microtargeting voters with political ads: “Microtargeting by foreign and domestic actors in 2016 proved to be a potent weapon for spreading disinformation and sowing discord” [Ibid]. With its feature Custom Audience, Facebook even enables microtargeting.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Juul: Almost Vaporized by $2+ Billion Settlements and Potential Bans (Part 1): In this case study, students will read a description of the controversy around whether Juul Labs used social media and influencers to appeal to minors. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. What could explain the allure of Juul among teenagers and young adults, and what type of appeal was the e-cigarette startup using? i. Teenagers are naturally eager to explore and experiment, not least as they begin to discover their sexuality. They like adventure and playful fun with people their age.

The penchant for belonging to in-groups may make them open to emotional appeals and lifestyle ads, especially on social media, where they practically live. For example, and memorably so, two young social media users commented on a post by a Juul influencer: “This sounds fun” and “You make smoking look so good” [Nedelman, M., Selig, R., & Azad, A. (2018, December 19). #JUUL: How social media hyped nicotine for a new generation. CNN Health.] Teens are highly susceptible to peer pressure while parental influence typically fades. The allure of

rebelliousness is also strong in this demographic. These are the reasons that would make emotional appeals effective, linking sex appeal and fun to vaping, following the Big Tobacco playbook. It is noteworthy that the vaping craze hit just as tobacco use in the United States was dropping to historic lows, just in time to cause sleepless nights for parents, educators, and health advocates. b. What strategies may have facilitated the meteoric rise of Juul, the startup that burst onto a crowded e-cigarette scene in 2015 and within three years grabbed a 75-percent share of the vaping market? i. Although no easy answers exist, the FDA, FTC, and many public health advocates have shown conclusively that Juul deliberately hooked the next generation of nicotine addicts with its advertising on social media, using influencers and peers, and by introducing fruit flavors. Critics cite the Vaporized campaign in particular, a multichannel media extravaganza that featured attractive, happy models in their twenties having a great time while “Juuling.”

Just like Big Tobacco, it appears that Juul was selling sex appeal and fun. The Juul pods packed a wallop; unlike competing vaporizers, Juul had very high nicotine content, likely to cause addiction, and thus supplying paying customers for years to come. Perhaps not coincidentally, Juul accepted an investment by tobacco giant Altria, maker of Marlboro and other cigarette brands, for almost $13 billion to take a 35-percent stake in the e-cigarette company.

Last, undeniably Juul was and still is a visually attractive product. The sleek vaporizer looks like a thumb drive, and users customized it with decal “skins.” At $50 for a starter pack, vaping Juul wasn’t cheap and likely to be a status symbol, much like smartphones and other gadgets. The $16-22 refills come in packs of four pods.

Depending on the extent of users’ habits—for example, whether they consume the equivalent of a pack a day or two packs a day—the cost of Juuling can easily range from $120 to $240 a month.

Many competitors have emerged since the Juul scandal and are reaching for a piece of the revenue pie in the billions. In fact, Juul is trying again, seeking U.S. authorization for a new high-tech e-cigarette with age-restriction capabilities and 2percent nicotine content, instead of 5 percent. Surprisingly, the FDA for the first time authorized an e-cigarette product in 2021, allowing R. J. Reynolds to sell its Vuse vape products, now the market leader [Maloney, J. (2023, July 19). Juul has a new high-tech vape and hopes the FDA won’t ban it. The Wall Street Journal; Fox, M. (2021, October 12). US FDA Oks Vuse e-cigarettes, its first vape authorization.

Reuters].

As charged in a Massachusetts lawsuit, Juul Labs rejected a proposal by marketing firm Cult Collective that recommended branding Juul as a tech company that would target adult smokers for smoking reduction or cessation. The proposed campaign would have featured outdated gadgets next to a Juul vaporizer and the slogan, “The

evolution of smoking. Finally, a truly satisfying alternative.” But Juul dropped the firm and instead created the “Vaporized” campaign featuring beautiful youthful people in provocative poses, hip launch parties, and social media influencers. What does the shift to “Vaporized” suggest?

The Massachusetts lawsuit—now settled—accused Juul of deliberately targeting adolescents, causing “an epidemic” of underage vaping. Company representatives had even visited schools and referred to its vaping device as the iPhone of ecigarettes. Much like the popular Apple smartphone, Juul became fashionable among young students and quickly gained market share. During its early launch period, Juul had purchased ad space on youth-oriented websites, including those of Nickelodeon, the Cartoon Network, and Seventeen magazine—even educational sites for middle school and high school students. Free samples, social media campaigns, and flavors such as fruit, mint, and mango appealed to young users.

The company also tried to enlist influencers and celebrities, such as Miley Cyrus or Kristen Stewart who have a large underage following [Kaplan, S. (2020, February 12). Juul bought ads appearing on cartoon network and other youth sites, suit claims.

The New York Times].The evidence of intentionally marketing to youths is crushing.

Juul could not credibly deny trying to appeal to adolescents; so far it has decided to settle most of the state and federal cases against it instead of risking jury trials with an uncertain, potentially devastating outcome.

Case Study: Juul: Almost Vaporized by $2+ Billion Settlements and Potential Bans (Part 2): In this case study, students will read a description of the regulation and outrage around Juul’s flavored e-cigarettes. They are then asked to take on the role of a member of a team competing to create an antivaping campaign. Break students into groups of three to five and have them complete the assignment as a team. You may ask teams to summarize their strategy in an e-mail or memo or present their team’s approach in class. a. Students are asked to create a persuasive strategy to counter the youth appeal of Juul.

Teams should tailor their campaigns and consider the most effective channels to use. i. Answers will vary. The topic will likely generate a lively discussion.

Perceptive students will recognize that Juul Labs abdicated responsibility and, instead, blamed social media for perpetuating vaping and its appeal to minors. Never mind that Juul itself had originally introduced and popularized vaping, which then took on a life of its own among young people. Also, banning fruit flavors still left mint and menthol, another half-hearted measure because those two remaining flavors also mask the potency of the nicotine in the aerosol young people are inhaling. The lawsuits against Juul Labs just keep coming. Several school districts across the country have filed or are considering lawsuits against Juul Labs for creating “an epidemic” and encouraging youth nicotine addiction.

Many questions could be posed to students to get them thinking about persuasive appeals: Would rational, informative antivaping messages work? Would a total ban work? Might young people respond to the argument outlining the high dollar cost of vaping? Do science-based warnings work? A mysterious vaping lung disease—ecigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury (EVALI)—has been causing serious lung injuries to young adults in the United States. It is probably caused by an additive in e-liquid. The high nicotine content in e-cigarettes supercharges the addictive properties of the stimulant, yet many young users were or still are unaware.

An information campaign might be in order. A total prohibition would drive the sales underground (where the flavored disposable vapes currently seem to thrive) and potentially make the “forbidden fruit” ever more enticing.

What about appeals to fear? The FDA requires that conspicuous health warnings be displayed on packaging. Can scare tactics reduce smoking and vaping? Effective 2021, the FDA has mandated that cigarette packaging must show health warnings with large color photos that will include graphic images of diseased lungs, for example. The warnings and images will highlight lesser known smoking risks, including impacts on fetal growth, heart disease, and diabetes. Will scary, even disgusting images lower smoking rates? Consider, too, that in the past smoking was prevalent even in countries without cigarette advertising, for example, in China before it established trade relations with the West.

Perhaps the appeal of vaping among teens and young adults can be reverse engineered. Images showing young, attractive, and happy people who do not vape and say so in a clever caption might work well. Students could browse X to find any “third-party” Juul-perpetuating posts and try to forge an opposing strategy. For example, consider the brief video of a goofy bearded male who is vaping while spinning around. The tweet text reads, “This was the first time I ever hit a #juul and the last time I felt true happiness.” Showing an attractive, fun-loving but not vaping person, accompanied by a clever caption, could be a useful counterpoint. Or take a couple of lovers who are not vaping to offset Juul images showing couples vaping together. Students might be asked to create such visual ads, for example, as PowerPoint slides, Publisher graphics or short TikTok videos.

Appealing to young people’s vanity and the desire to be attractive might be effective.

The writer of the article titled “Ew! Yellow Teeth, Premature Wrinkles and Hair Loss: These Are the Grossest Side Effects of Vaping” in Parade magazine is onto something. She lists undesirable side effects of vaping such as a hacking cough, jitters, bad skin, hair loss, yellow teeth, gum disease, and a “disgusting chemical odor clinging to your clothes” [Mulcahy, L. (2019, October 3)].

An alternative option includes devising antivaping communication strategies for a different age group or the public at large.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEY CRITICAL THINKING 1. The first promotional statement focuses on nostalgic travel to a picturesque European capital and conjures up a sense of a dreamy escape. Therefore, it can be characterized as an emotional appeal. The second statement is predominantly factual, and the appeal is rational.

2. Many people subconsciously equate persuasion with coercion or force. In fact, both persuasion and coercion share the same continuum of strategies that seek compliance.

When done well, however, persuasion answers questions and provides information.

Persuasion is nonadversarial. Effective persuasion does not command, force, coerce, or threaten. It uses argument and discussion to change beliefs and motivate action. In Richard M. Perloff’s terms, persuasion is self-persuasion and it involves free choice.

3. Answers will vary. These questions could be used for group work, oral presentations, and short, concise posts or e-mails.

4. Traditionally, most self-respecting journalists fiercely guard their objectivity and independence from corporate, political, and other interests as the highest good that has lent them credibility and earned the trust of their readers. Critical yet balanced journalism used to be the hallmark of the professional reporter and editor. Increasingly, however, it is drowned out by partisanship and biased commentary masquerading as journalism.

Nevertheless, conflicts of interest are considered unacceptable. As we have seen, in certain cases online, it may even be illegal to fail to disclose a financial connection between a merchant and a promoter.

5. Even just the headline and opening paragraph scream fluff piece, that is, a superficial and hyperbolic take on a get-rich-quick scheme and achieving success without much sweat, to boot. The heading is worth examining. “Lazy millionaire” plays into the myth of making money in one’s sleep, as it were, counter to the more realistic American work ethic of hard work. Using numbers is an effective attention getter (“eight ways to make a million dollars”). The absurd claim that making a million bucks is effortless stands out and may draw in some readers, even skeptical ones who may want to know what support the writer will provide for the preposterous opening assertion.

Perhaps most noteworthy is the writer’s breathless claim in the first sentence (underscored by the exclamation point). His underlying assumption is that everyone is inevitably motivated by a desire for material wealth and that this truism cannot be doubted. A small concession to skeptics (“It might sound crazy”—and it really does!) is followed by an even more absurd claim: that getting rich is possible on a schedule of just four hours a day. The writer’s credibility suffers by the doubtful use of the word intelligibly. Perhaps he meant to say intelligently or diligently. This opening paragraph is preposterous, but what truly can’t be doubted is that it will pique the curiosity of many readers, even wary ones.

In terms of the principles established by Robert Cialdini, unity would seem to apply here (the writer is signaling that if you follow his advice, you too can join the putative millionaire’s club). The other principle at work here could be authority (the author possesses exclusive knowledge that others don’t; he may be graciously inclined to share that insider information). Such hooks have the effect that we sometimes keep reading although we know better. In an article such as this one, bold claims are nothing more than puffery. The article itself then dispenses platitudes such as embracing a simple life, curbing impulse buying, investing in real estate, taking all tax advantages, diversifying investments, banking on the power of compound interest, creating passive income sources, and embracing “a passionate career.”

Although in reality people, not careers, are passionate, the last truism the writer is pushing is to go find an occupation one loves. The author doesn’t divulge any big secrets; rather, he’s dispensing general advice on growing one’s savings and investments. Big credibility gaps remain; for example, how does one start without capital and how can the riches be accumulated on just four hours a day while the author simultaneously suggests the reader try a “side hustle.”

In the end, the “sage” advice fizzles with this vague conclusion: “Investing the right proportion in the right financial avenue on a timely basis takes you closer to being a millionaire. … Retiring as a millionaire is the dream for most individuals. However, you need a practical and achievable retirement goal in place. Be prudent while handling your retirement savings accounts and stick to your long-term plan as you rebalance your portfolio from time to time” [Rampton, J. (2023, June 16). Lazy millionaire—8 ways to make a million dollars on 4 hours a day. Entrepreneur]. No magic is revealed.

ACTIVITIES 10.1 Document for Analysis: Poor Persuasive Request Going to Texas 7-Eleven Owners (L.O. 1, 2, 3) Weaknesses • • • • • • •

Fails to think through what this message is supposed to achieve.

Should begin with a statement of the problem (brown bananas) and the company proposal to wrap them in plastic.

Did not build interest or develop message in a coherent manner.

Failed to articulate the request clearly or reduce possible resistance.

Did not end with clear request or make any attempt to motivate action.

Did not provide an end date or reason for it.

Included irrelevant details and chose overly casual language.

Revision To: 7-Eleven Franchise Owners Association of Oregon From: Dusty Cline <dcline@gmail.com> Subject: Finding a Better Way to Sell Fresh Bananas Fresh Del Monte has suggested that 7-Eleven stores sell fresh bananas wrapped in plastic. Selling more bananas and other fresh foods is helping us build profits lost when cigarette sales declined. Although the wrapper may slow ripening and extend the shelf life of bananas, the wrapping may turn customers off. They may see it as an environmental issue, and many may not appreciate wrapping in plastic something that comes naturally wrapped in the first place.

I suggest that we urge Fresh Del Monte to develop a wrapper that is biodegradable. Until we have a biodegradable wrap, we franchisees should not support the move to plasticwrapped bananas. At the February 1 meeting of the 7-Eleven Franchise Owners Association of Oregon, I propose that we reject the plastic wraps in favor of a biodegradable wrap that could achieve the same purpose.

Please let me know by January 20 whether you agree that a biodegradable wrap would be more attractive to our customers. I look forward to seeing you at the meeting.

Dusty [Full contact information]

10.2 Document for Analysis: Weak Persuasive Request Inviting One Earth Speaker (L.O. 1, 2, 3) Weaknesses • • • • • • •

Fails to open with an attention-getting technique or an appeal to the reader.

Focuses primarily on “I” and “we” statements instead of framing request from the reader’s perspective.

Does not build interest by showing how the vision of the writer’s organization closely mirrors the goals and expertise of the receiver.

Fails to reduce resistance or build desire by highlighting benefits to the reader of accepting this invitation.

Does not take advantage of several opportunities to point out benefits to reader (sharing the reader’s vision with a like-minded audience, staying at an eco-friendly hotel, and signing copies of speaker’s latest book).

Organizes the message carelessly instead of following a logical plan, such as AIDA (attention, interest, desire, action). Does not proofread.

Concludes weakly with “thank you” instead of with a specific action request.

Revision Current date Ms. Kassidy Glenn 98 Oakwood Road Skokie, IL 60076 Dear Ms. Glenn: You have written that this country’s food sector is both a central culprit in global warming and a key part of solving the crisis. As a well-known voice in the sustainability movement and a founding principal of the One Earth Institute, you are a change agent whose vision we share.

Sustainable Entrepreneurs of Boise is a nonprofit organization dedicated to equipping the Northwest’s citizens and decision makers with the policy research and practical tools that they need to advance long-term solutions to our region’s most significant challenges. Our work includes in-depth research, commentary, and analysis—all of which we deliver online, by e-mail, and in person to Northwest policy champions.

Our board would be honored to have you address members and guests at our March 14 conference in Seattle. We’re hoping that you can connect the dots between the food on our plate and global climate change. We’ve heard that you bring inspiring stories of farmers and food activists from around the world. Our members would be inspired to learn how we can feed the world and cool the planet by standing with sustainable farmers here and across the globe.

Please consider being our keynote speaker for our spring member drive. Although we can offer only a small honorarium, we can provide you with comfortable accommodations at Boise’s eco-friendly Sequoia Lodge. More importantly, you will be assured of a large audience of concerned citizens and policy makers who are eager to learn more about how we can feed the world and cool the planet at the same time. With your permission, we could also arrange to have copies of your latest book, which you could sign following your presentation.

If your schedule is free for March 14 and if you like an opportunity to share your sustainability message, please let me know before November 15, when our next board meeting occurs, and we will finalize the plans for the spring conference. With your exciting sustainability message, you can be a catalyst in helping us build ecologically sound communities, a green economy, and a healthy environment.

Sincerely,

10.3 Document for Analysis: Direct Message Requesting a Letter of Recommendation (L.O. 1–3) Weaknesses a. May have chosen the wrong channel to communicate with a professor to request an urgent favor. Seems to be confused about the messaging platform—Messenger instead of LinkedIn. b. Rambles and buries the desired action request. c. Does not provide relevant information to help the reader comply. d. Does not organize the request so that it is easily understood. e. Exhibits careless typing skills and poor spelling. f. Uses unprofessional and overly casual language (Hey, Prof!!; Anyhoo; Thanx) that could prevent the reader from responding favorably. g. Gives an end date that is uncomfortably and unrealistically close.

Revision Possible LinkedIn Message Version: Dear Professor Galvan: I hope you will see this message soon; I’ve noticed you are very active on LinkedIn. You always discussed technology with us in the Business Writing 201 class in fall 2023 and often discussed how AI is changing business communication.

After getting my BA in marketing in May, I’m now looking to enter our university’s MBA program because the job situation is still mixed right now. My application requires three letters of recommendation. I realize that my request is sudden, and I’m giving you very short notice.

However, I will be happy to meet with you or e-mail you all the information you may need, including my latest résumé, to help you remember me. We always talked about Japan, where my family is from. I enjoyed your class very much and benefit from it every day.

The deadline is on November 15. Please reply to this message or call me at (201) 442-8559 and let me know whether you will be able to write me a letter of support. Thank you!

Kit Yamamoto

Possible E-Mail Version: To: hgalvan@eastriver-college.edu From: kyamamoto@student.eastriver-college.edu Subject: Requesting Letter of Recommendation Dear Professor Galvan: Your Business Writing 201 course in fall 2023 has really improved my communication skills, although I got a B, not an A. It was a tough class, but I use what I learned from you in my job and in school every day. Imagine, I have finally graduated in May. However, to improve my job prospects, I have decided to enter our university’s MBA program.

From what I’ve been reading and hearing, it seems to be a good investment, likely to make me more competitive in any job market. To be considered, I will need three letters of recommendation.

Early next week, I would like to visit you during office hours and get reacquainted. Perhaps I will need to jog your memory a little because you teach hundreds of students each year. To update you on my progress since fall 2023, I will bring my most recent résumé as well as the guidelines for letter writers. A letter from you would mean a lot to me. You helped me write that first résumé.

I look forward to catching up with you as well, and I promise not to take too much of your time. I have been wondering whether you still enjoy travel to Asia.

You will have over two weeks to write the letter if you agree to do it. The deadline for the letter is not until November 15. If for any reason you need to talk to me sooner than next week, you can reach me on my cell phone at (201) 442-8559.

Best regards, Kit Yamamoto kyamamoto@student.eastriver-college.edu

10.4 Social Media Posts: Analyzing LinkedIn and X for AIDA Components Answers will vary, as do the examples in Figure 10.12. Here are a few more model posts with comments: Make a #NewYearsResolution to reduce weight! Extra fat creates hormones that could lead to unhealthy cell growth http://www.goo.gl/OmRK4 [Cancer charity effectively addresses a potentially receptive post-holiday audience and provides a health reason for weight reduction.]

Every little bit helps. Please retweet “@grist: The orcas are trapped in ice and need your help http://bit.ly/14j5BVB [A nonprofit using celebrity spokespeople whose clout might help with the appeal for assistance in freeing a dozen killer whales trapped in ice; the writer suggests that no contribution is too small and requests action, that is, retweets].

Not on #Windows 11 yet? Upgrade before Feb. 28 and get Windows 11 for $39.99 plus over $70 in app offers! [Microsoft uses subtle peer pressure, suggesting that the reader would not want to be left behind; the writers also creates urgency: the offer is limited and the price is reduced to motivate action].

10.5 Identifying Robert Cialdini’s Principles of Social Influence a. Liking. A team of Canadian researchers tested the hypothesis that they could change skeptical attitudes toward evolution with the simple news that a popular celebrity— George Clooney—had made positive comments about a pro-evolutionary book. As the researchers suspected, previously skeptical test subjects became more accepting of the theory of evolution.

The scientists tested for gender bias by also introducing another likeable celebrity, Emma Watson of Harry Potter films’ fame. The outcome was the same: elevated attitudes toward evolution. Robert Cialdini concludes: “For would-be persuaders, the message is plain: to change feelings, counteract them with other feelings; and liking for a communicator offers a useful source of such feelings” [Influence, 8th edition, p. 75]. It couldn’t be the authority principle because Clooney and Watson aren’t experts in evolutionary theory. However, due to their celebrity and popularity, the two actors do wield an outsize influence. b. Commitment and Consistency, Social Proof. Whether Hell Week hazing, military boot camps, or ancient tribal ceremonies—all have the purpose of perpetuating the group (i.e., consistency) to which the individuals are aspiring. For the membership in this “exclusive” group, the pledges are willing to undergo (i.e., commit to) harrowing deprivation and suffering. It appears that the harder won the admission to the group, the more valuable and worthwhile membership appears to the newly initiated. Social proof plays into what Cialdini calls “peer-suasion,” the persuasive power that results from observing and imitating those most similar to us. Peer pressure and the desire to fit in and belong may apply as well, so that a case could also be made for the unity principle not least because of the bond created by shared suffering. c. Unity. Authority. This type of resistance to persuasion is called psychological reactance.

It is due to tribal and partisan divisions as well as to lacking trust in experts and authorities (for example, the vitriol directed at health czar Anthony Fauci). Although an authority on the subject, Dr. Fauci was not perceived as credible or trustworthy by a sizable portion of the population. Of course, the other side of the same coin is deference to authority without questioning which can occur “in a mindless fashion as a kind of decision-making shortcut,” Robert Cialdini believes [Influence, 8th ed., p. 239].

d. d. Reciprocation. This rule is a powerful “lever of influence.” The rule says that we should try to repay what another person has provided us. Sales figures from Costco prove that all sorts of products benefit greatly from free samples, leading to higher sales, mostly by people who accepted the free offer. A small initial favor can produce a sense of obligation to agree to a substantially larger return favor. This explains in part why charities include small unsolicited gifts with their requests for donations. Reciprocal arrangements are vital in human social systems. e. Authority. One of the mental shortcuts we employ in making our everyday judgments is the rule “If an expert said so, it must be true.” Robert Cialdini says that rather than thinking about an expert’s arguments and being convinced, we frequently ignore the arguments and allow ourselves to be persuaded just by the authority’s status as “expert.”

In top-down command structures, subordinates must overcome great inner and institutional resistance to speak out. If they don’t succeed, disaster may strike, as evident in this and other airline crashes. f. Scarcity. According to the scarcity principle, the cookie in short supply was rated as more desirable to eat, more attractive as a consumer item, and more costly than the identical cookie in abundant supply. In general, people seem to be more motivated by the thought of losing something than by the thought of gaining something of equal value.

Opportunities as well as objects seem more valuable to us when they are less available. g. Social Proof. The principle of social proof is another potent lever of influence. This principle states that we determine what is correct by finding out what other people think is correct. We view an action as correct in a given situation to the degree that we see others performing it. This is why advertisers remind us that a product is “best selling” or “fastest growing.” The nightclub owners manufacture a brand of visible social proof for their club’s quality by creating long lines waiting outside.

An argument could also be made for the scarcity principle. The harder it is to be admitted to a popular club, the more some people may want to get in. They may also want to belong to the fashionable set that cavorts inside suggesting that they may potentially be operating under the unity principle. As for the bar tenders, social proof is a work here as the “bait” in the jar is used to signal that previous patrons have given generous tips, making customers more likely to match the behavior.

10.6 The Art of Persuasion—Aristotle’s <ITAL>Rhetoric</ITAL> (L.O. 1) Some students may be familiar with the three elements of Aristotelian rhetoric from freshman composition and other expository writing courses. Being able to recognize persuasive appeals will help students succeed as workers and citizens. It will also make them more cautious consumers. Finding examples of questionable uses of ethos is easier than ever, given the very public nature of social media.

Examples of shaky ethos are easy to find in the contentious gun control debate. Infowars host Alex Jones never disappoints those looking for much pathos and little logos. Most infamously, Jones caused massive social media buzz after what many considered his meltdown on the air with host Piers Morgan of CNN. However, perceptive students will find

that credibility (ethos) lies in the eye of the beholder. Although many commentators voiced their outrage at Jones, others were celebrating him as a hero. In this case, pathos played a great role as well. Alex Jones dodged Morgan’s dispassionate questions and was instead ranting and steamrolling his host. Again, behavior that might be off-putting to some can seem justified to others. Without a doubt, however, in this infamous televised exchange, logos was virtually nonexistent. Rational, fact-based arguments were few and far between.

Students may cull less controversial examples from advertising and blog entries. TV car commercials in particular tend to be high on pathos, showing pristine landscapes and successful, beautiful people, signaling a lifestyle—not so much a practical vehicle with specific features and benefits (logos). Ethos may be represented by a reputable automobile marque, glowing testimonials, and appealing spokespeople.

10.7 Persuasive Strategies—Hugh Rank’s Model (L.O. 1) As a marketing expert pointed out, the tactics described in Hugh Rank’s model can be used by appealing to emotion as well as logic. They can be found in traditional as well as new media [Larson, C. U. (2013). Persuasion: Reception and responsibility. 13th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, p. 17]. Naturally, most advertising is not going to address the drawbacks of the product or service it is promoting and will tout only the positive features. People using rational arguments are more likely to introduce opposing views for the sake of counterargument to strengthen their own arguments. Skilled writers make concessions only to counter by explaining why, overall, their idea or product has merit.

One way to test Rank’s model is to examine any current controversy and compare both sides. Often, the rival parties are not talking about the same things. Opponents of the death penalty may argue (i.e., intensify) that it’s a barbaric punishment and point out the high cost and length of the appeals process. Although they would not want to downplay the victims’ suffering, opponents of capital punishment might point out that one suffering is not alleviated by more suffering, emphasizing the common humanity of victim and perpetrator.

Proponents of capital punishment, on the other hand, may emphasize (i.e., intensify) the heinous nature of the crimes perpetrated by death row inmates and argue that society must protect itself from these “predators.” In turn, the “humanness” of the killers may be purposely downplayed. The language used in most emotional debates fits the model as well. Calling inmates monsters or predators dehumanizes as well as creates a negative association causing fear and revulsion and thus intensifies the argument. Victims groups may understandably put their own rights above those of the criminals.

The question of ethics arises whenever the persuader intends to manipulate and deceive.

Perceptive students might note that it’s not always easy to discern when a healthy emphasis on a product’s positive attributes turns into deliberate omission of, say, a serious drawback.

The legally mandated disclaimers imposed on pharmaceutical ads are a case in point. When

a commercial singing the praises of a certain drug is followed by a lengthy and disturbing list of potential side effects, it may strike us as odd because it deviates from the usual one-sided advertising model.

10.8 Analyzing the X CEO’s Memo to Her Decimated Staff (L.O. 1, 3) Answers will vary, but here are a few thoughts: Linda Yaccarino is using a variety of strategies that students might be able to recognize.

According to Robert Cialdini’s model, the CEO is appealing strongly to the principle of unity.

She’s invoking the common purpose as her e-mail is peppered with the pronoun “we”: the subject line alone (“Building Twitter 2.0 Together”) and this appeal: “We need to do it all together.” She uses pathos with lofty, emotionally charged words (“Twitter is on a mission,” “We’re on the precipice of making history,” “powerful vision,” and “We need to think big”).

Particularly the image of embracing the shared vision evokes unity of purpose and of belonging to an exclusive group. Then there is the principle of liking that Yaccarino is attempting to apply by expressing confidence in the Twitter workforce and formulating this compliment: “you’re built for this.”

Yaccarino echoes her boss Elon Musk who said to his Tesla executives and staff to either come back to the office and give their all or get out and “pretend to work somewhere else.”

In Yaccarino’s words it sounds gentler: “You have to genuinely believe—and work hard for that belief.” Invoking belief has religious connotations and is in keeping with the desired sense of unity among the staff and of serving a higher purpose—a cliché and platitude at best.

It might be worthwhile to provide the entire e-mail to your students. Yaccarino’s formatting and highlighting are also indicative of the rallying of “the troops” message [Heath, A. (2023, June 12). Read the new Twitter CEO’s first email to employees. The Verge]. The executive ends her e-mail on this lofty note (pathos, again) meant to inspire: “It’s rare to have the chance to put a new future into the hands of every person, partner, and creator on the planet. That’s exactly why I’m here – with all of YOU. So, let’s dig our heels in (4 inches or flat!) and build Twitter 2.0 together.” It remains to be seen whether Yaccarino will forge her own path or be Elon Musk’s placeholder. The rah-rah message of unity and team spirit may ring hollow to the survivors of the massive layoffs at Twitter.

The well-informed critical thinkers among your students will be skeptical of the stated ambition of Twitter to become “the world’s most accurate real-time information source.”

Since Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter (rebranded as X), the platform has stopped to mediate and filter posts. Twitter is now in the opinion of many a downright toxic free-for-all.

10.9 What Would You Be Willing Give Up for the Climate? (L.O. 1, 2, 3) Answers and results will vary. The idea is to expose students to the important subject of climate change that divides audiences despite solid scientific evidence and seems highly resistant to persuasion aiming to reduce personal climate impacts. Students may be surprised by how much they contribute to carbon emissions and which activities account for the lion’s share of those emissions. After users fill out the EPA carbon footprint calculator,

the score will compare the result with the U.S. average and with a new total when certain savings are undertaken. The U.S. average per capita is a whopping 20 metric tons, as opposed to an average per-capita carbon footprint of 8 metric tons in China and in Germany, and 5.15 tons in the U.K. [Ritchie, H., Roser, M., & Rosado, P. (2020, August).

Co2 and greenhouse gas emissions country profiles. Ourworldindata.org].

Discussing activities that might be easiest to give up or reduce could illustrate how difficult it is to change behavior, even such that we understand to be detrimental. Typical individual actions are eating less or no red meat; sourcing food locally at farmer’s markets; wasting fewer groceries; buying less clothing, washing it less frequently, and wearing it longer or sourcing it from second-hand stores; using public transport and bicycles where possible; and taking fewer flights. Food waste alone is a huge contributor to carbon emissions: Nearly 40 percent of all food in the United States is wasted. That’s a value of $408 billion thrown away each year or $1,218 per person. The 119 billion pounds of food waste in landfills is equal to 130 billion meals (!) [How much food waste is there in the United States? (n. d.).

Feeding America].

If you teach international students, consider comparisons of carbon footprint scores in various countries. One key take-away might be the fact that the same person can achieve the score of a virtuous consumer of fossil energy sources by scoring better than average in the United States while being considered a high emitter in comparison to lower emitting people in Europe or parts of Asia. Although China is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gasses in absolute terms, thanks to its large population, it has the same percapita rate as Germany with a population of 84 million. The world average is a relatively low 4 metric tons per person because the populations living in poverty all over the world help keep it low. Using median figures (the middle value) might provide a more realistic picture.

10.10 Persuasive Appeals: Quitting Sweet and Diet Soda (L.O. 1, 2, 3) This assignment can be turned into a lesson in numeracy which even business students sometimes lack, that is, the ability to interpret numbers and to think critically about them.

The absolute numbers, as stunning as they are, tell only part of the story. Once they are related to population size, yielding annual per-capita sales, a very different ranking arises.

As of this writing, the populations stand at 335 million in the United States, 1.413 billion in China, 231 million in Nigeria, 68 million in the United Kingdom, and 84 million in Germany.

This means that the annual per-capita sales are highest in the United States ($980), followed by the United Kingdom ($544), Germany ($357), Nigeria ($143), and China ($30).

Perhaps students will recognize the difference between absolute and relative numbers— each metric with its distinct advantages and disadvantages.

Focusing on the United States, we find that Americans buy nearly double the non-alcoholic beverages as Britons, almost three times as many as Germans, nearly seven times as many as Nigerians, and a whopping 33 times more than people in China buy in a year.

The negative health effects of sugary drinks (sodas, fruit punch, colas, lemonades, energy drinks, and even natural fruit juices) are well established. For one thing, they are the single largest source of calories and added sugar in Americans’ diet. In developing countries, for

example, in Nigeria, the consumption of sugary beverage is on the rise, which is linked to urbanization and aggressive marketing. Sweet beverages provide lots of calories and almost zero nutritional value.

Since the 1950s the consumption of sugary drinks has exploded, as have the container sizes, from the standard 6.5-ounce bottles in the 1950s to 20-ounce bottles or 2-liter bottles (more than half a gallon) today. Why? Many point to massive sugary drink marketing; beverage companies spend billions of dollars on marketing while denying that their products play any role in the obesity epidemic. They fund studies favorable to their products. Worse of all is that much of the marketing is targeted at children and adolescents, establishing a preference for sweet soda early in life [The nutrition source: Sugary drinks. (2023, April).

Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health].

Even diet sodas can be harmful, if consumed in large amounts. The artificial sweeteners in diet soda, for example, are considered safe for most people, but recently aspartame has been designated by the World Health Organization as a potential carcinogen. Nor is it clear whether diet beverages help with weight loss and cause health problems in the long run.

Although some diet sodas contain added vitamins and minerals, they are not health drinks.

Healthier low-calorie choices are water, skim milk, and unsweetened tea or coffee [Zeratsky, K. (2022, November 3). I drink diet soda every day. Could this be harmful? Mayo Clinic].

The introduction of aspartame and other artificial sweeteners into beverages, gum, ice cream, cereals, and other packaged foods has not stopped rising rates of obesity or Type 2 diabetes. Fake sugar has not made America healthier, as several studies have concluded.

Researchers are also studying the effects of sweeteners on the human microbiome, the microbes that live in our digestive tract [Flam, F. D. (2023, July 6). Cancer risk or no, diet soda is bad for you. Bloomberg].

Combating sweet drinks is probably as difficult as campaigns against smoking once were.

The consumption of sweet and sweetened beverages is similarly pervasive and entrenched, except that in this case, children and adolescents partake. Sodas are marketed as a lifestyle component, a perennial companion. One useful rational approach could be to demonstrate the amount of sugar in a glass of soda by using sugar cubes or spoonfuls of sugar. The appeal to fear—all appeals arguing the risk to health—is unlikely to work; it didn’t work with tobacco. The objective should be making not consuming sodas and energy drinks cool. Peer pressure and example work with kids and adolescents. Testimonials by role models young kids are likely to admire might be appropriate.

The Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health recommends the following to help people wean themselves off sodas altogether—whether sugary or diet: Of course, if you’re a frequent soda drinker, [giving up soda] is easier said than done. If it’s the carbonation you like, give sparkling water a try. If the taste is too bland, try a naturally flavored sparkling water. If that’s still too much of a jump, add a splash of juice, sliced citrus, or even some fresh herbs. You can do this with home-brewed tea as well, like this sparkling iced tea with lemon, cucumber, and mint. [Link provided on website]

10.10 Persuasive Appeals: Quitting Sweet and Diet Soda Here is the answer Bard provided when prompted with this assignment: Here are some persuasive appeals that could be helpful in persuading Americans to give up soft drinks or at least lower their consumption: • •

Health appeals: Soft drinks are not healthy. They are high in sugar, calories, and artificial ingredients. They can contribute to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.

Financial appeals: Soft drinks are expensive. The average American spends over $700 per year on soft drinks. This money could be better spent on other things, such as health insurance, education, or saving for retirement.

•

Environmental appeals: Soft drinks are bad for the environment. The production of soft drinks requires a lot of water and energy. The disposal of soft drink cans and bottles pollutes the environment.

•

Social appeals: Soft drinks are not cool. They are associated with obesity, laziness, and poor health. People who drink soft drinks are often seen as being less attractive and less successful.

Here are some reasons why the United States has such stunningly high sales numbers for soft drinks: •

The United States has a high level of obesity. Obesity is a major risk factor for diabetes, heart disease, and other chronic diseases. People who are obese are more likely to drink soft drinks.

•

Soft drinks are heavily marketed in the United States. Soft drink companies spend billions of dollars each year on advertising. This advertising targets children and adolescents, who are more likely to develop a taste for soft drinks.

•

Soft drinks are readily available in the United States. Soft drinks are sold in vending machines, convenience stores, restaurants, and grocery stores. They are also often served at sporting events, concerts, and other public gatherings.

If you are designing a campaign directed at children and adolescents to quit sweet or diet beverages, you could use the following arguments or emotional appeals:

•

Tell them about the health risks of drinking soft drinks. Soft drinks are high in sugar and calories. They can contribute to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.

•

Tell them that drinking soft drinks is not cool. Soft drinks are associated with obesity, laziness, and poor health. People who drink soft drinks are often seen as being less attractive and less successful.

•

Tell them that there are healthier and more refreshing choices available. There are many healthy and refreshing beverages available, such as water, milk, juice, and unsweetened tea.

•

Make it fun and easy for them to quit. There are many resources available to help children and adolescents quit soft drinks. These resources can provide support, advice, and tips on how to make the transition.

Despite the repetitive and inartful prose, the generative AI provides a few good ideas.

Some are vague (“many resources available” in the last paragraph, for example). We know that the average American spends closer to $1,000 a year on non-alcoholic beverages, a lot more than the $700+ cited by Bard.

If Bard is prompted specifically to apply Cialdini’s or Perloff’s persuasive models, this is the answer: Here are some persuasive appeals that could be helpful in persuading Americans to give up soft drinks or at least lower their consumption, specifically applying the persuasive appeals described by Perloff or Cialdini:

•

Fear appeals: Perloff argues that fear appeals can be effective in persuading people to change their behavior, but only if the fear is moderate and the message is credible. For example, an ad could show a child who is obese and struggling to play sports, with a voiceover saying, "Soft drinks are making kids fat. Don't let your child become another statistic."

•

Licensing: Cialdini's licensing principle states that people are more likely to do something if they have already done something similar. For example, an ad could show a celebrity drinking water instead of soft drinks, with a voiceover saying, "If [celebrity name] drinks water, so can you."

•

Scarcity: Cialdini's scarcity principle states that people are more likely to want something if it is scarce. For example, an ad could say, "Only 10 more days left to sign up for our free water bottle giveaway!"

•

Reciprocity: Cialdini's reciprocity principle states that people are more likely to do something for you if you have done something for them first. For example, an ad could offer a free water bottle to anyone who signs up for a soft drink recycling program.

•

Social proof: Cialdini's social proof principle states that people are more likely to do something if they see that other people are doing it. For example, an ad could show a group of people drinking water at a party, with a voiceover saying, "Water is the new cool."

These are just a few examples of how persuasive appeals can be used to persuade Americans to give up soft drinks or at least lower their consumption. The specific appeals that would be most effective would depend on the target audience and the context.

Note the cringe-worthy suggestion in the first paragraph to feature an overweight child in an ad.

The suggestions under “Scarcity” and “Reciprocity” are unlikely to reduce soft drink consumption, but using testimonials (commitment/consistency) and social proof or unity might be productive approaches.

“Licensing” most likely means “commitment and consistency” in Cialdini’s model. Appeals to fear have not worked with tobacco; they might not work here either.

This answer by Bard could spark a fruitful discussion about the outcome itself.

10.11 Persuasive Claim: Contesting Steep Legal Costs (L. O. 1, 2, 3) Current date Mr. Jayson Hempelmann Attorney at Law Hempelmann, Kanji, Rosato & Sturm, LLP 1111 3rd Avenue, Suite 3000 Seattle, WA 98101 Dear Mr. Hempelmann: Beqaa Café has a reputation for superb Lebanese food made from its masterful proprietary recipes. Naturally, when Beqaa Café was asked to distribute its product in grocery and convenience stores, the company sought the most competent legal advice for taking this big step.

Hempelmann, Kanji, Rosato & Sturm drew up contracts regarding the use of Beqaa Café’s name and quality standards for the distributed product. The bill we received included 38 hours of attorney preparation at $400 per hour. Surely, experienced attorneys such as yours would not require so many hours to prepare such contracts. Could an error have been made in the billing hours? Moreover, when I checked with other businesses, I learned that some competing law firms charge nearly half your rate, $250 per hour.

We would like to continue working with your prestigious firm, Mr. Hempelmann. However, we expect accurate billing statements and competitive rates. Please adjust the billing hours and rate to reflect a reasonable assessment of your services. Because we would like to send you a check before our fiscal year closes June 30, we would greatly appreciate your response before June 20.

Sincerely,

10.12 Persuasive Organizational Request Flowing Downward: Seeking Volunteers at Liquid Fusion Energy To: Staff <staff_list@liquidfusion.com> From: Your name <your_name@liquidfusion.com> Subject: Annual Charity Golf Tournament for SafeHaven Dear Staff Members: If you are like most of us, you may have wondered what to do about homelessness.

Perhaps you have felt helpless. What if we told you that you could help raise millions of dollars for this important cause and get paid by Liquid Fusion to do so?

Consider joining hundreds of dedicated Liquid Fusion volunteers who give back to our community. Our Annual Charity Golf Tournament is a huge opportunity to apply your skills in many roles while providing much-needed resources for people experiencing homelessness.

In eight years Liquid Fusion has helped raise $27 million to provide resources for our unsheltered population!

As you can imagine, organizing and running an annual community event requires a lot of hands on deck. We need your help in seeking sponsorships, creating appealing decorations, sprucing up the venue, assembling our special swag bags, managing the event, and coordinating a welcome dinner for more than 1,000 guests and participants. Are you game?

Consider these benefits of volunteering: It connects you to others. It’s good for your mind and body. It brings fun and fulfillment to your life. It increases self-confidence and provides a sense of purpose. It is good for longevity and physical health.

If you are ready to make a difference and make new friends, please reply to this e-mail by August 2.

Your name [Full contact information]

10.13 Persuasive Organizational Message Flowing Upward: Tipping at Geoffrey’s Malibu Current date Ms. Astrid Wirth, General Manager Geoffrey’s Malibu 27400 Pacific Coast Highway Malibu, CA 90265 Dear Ms. Wirth:

I hope you know that we the staff love working here at Geoffrey’s Malibu. The spectacular views and the special ambiance make the restaurant a dream workplace. We are proud of the highly regarded cuisine we’re dishing out.

However, we feel that we need to raise an important issue. Even when servers have given excellent service, some customers leave no tip. This is a serious problem for us servers at this restaurant. Many of us have gotten together and decided to bring the problem—and a possible solution—to your attention in this letter.

Many restaurants now add an automatic 18-percent tip to the bill, for larger groups in particular. Other restaurants are printing gratuity guidelines on checks. In fact, American Express now provides a calculation feature on its terminals so that restaurants can choose the tip levels they want printed.

We servers feel that a mandatory 18-percent tip added to checks would work well at our restaurant. We know that we give outstanding service, but some customers, especially our international guests, forget to tip. Also by printing recommended tipping guidelines on the check, we would remind them so that they don’t forget. Printed guidelines would do the math for them, which is an advantage for customers who are not too good with figures. Most diners do understand that 20-25 percent are customary for tips; therefore, they will add to the mandatory minimum tip amount.

Providing tipping guidelines and printing mandatory tips on checks not only helps customers but also proves to the staff that you support them in their goal to receive decent wages for the hard work they do. A few customers might resist, but these customers can always cross out the printed tip if they wish. If you have any doubts about the plan, we could try it for a six-month period and monitor customer reactions.

We urge you to begin printing tipping guidelines and charging a mandatory 18-percent tip on each customer’s bill. Our payment terminals are already equipped to do this. Perhaps you have ideas for how we could also encourage cash tips for servers, whether by a discreet note on the menus or unobtrusive signage. Please let us know your feelings about this proposal within two weeks because it is a serious concern to us.

Sincerely, 10.14 “Best in the World”: Examining Puffery The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) helps readers distinguish between puffery and deceptive claims with this example: (a) “The best-tasting juice in America!” and (b) “75 percent of people prefer our juice!” Clearly, (b) would require proof, whereas (a) is puffery.

10.15 Selling Features With Benefits To ensure originality in the students’ effort, consider assigning a limited number of products or services and narrowing the target audience. For example, consider a product description like this one from travel store Magellan’s:

Power Monkey eXtreme—This charger’s large-capacity, 9000 mAh lithium battery holds enough power to fully charge your tablet or phone multiple times, and can also charge two devices at once. It powers from a wall outlet, from a USB connection, or with its folding solar panels and holds 75 percent of its charge even after a year of inactivity. It features a waterproof, rubberized exterior and buttonless finger swipe controls, and includes an assortment of charge tips and adaptors for international outlets. (7 x 3¾ x 2½"; 28 oz.)

Now ask students to explain how the features of the product (in this case, the power pack) could benefit a frequent business traveler or a student on the go. The $199.50 price is steep and might be a challenge when pitching to a student crowd. In that case, price would not be emphasized. However, price might be less of an issue for business travelers.

Students should be asked to reflect on their strategy and imagine specific situations and applications that would make this electronic gizmo indispensable and worth the high cost.

When students are asked to do this exercise in writing, it could become a prewriting activity for a promotional e-mail or a fully developed sales letter, for products or services with more features.

10.16 Fake Online Reviews: Spotting “Opinion Spam” Results will vary. If the Cornell University study is to be believed, humans are poor judges of the veracity of reviews. Of course, it’s important to point out to students that they cannot fully believe the algorithm-driven robots either. Healthy skepticism is always indicated because the apps are not foolproof. ReviewMeta developer Tommy Noonan told CNET: “It’s impossible for someone to definitively determine whether a review is ‘fake’ or ‘real.’ Not even a human can do it, so it’s impossible to really determine how ‘accurate’ Fakespot or ReviewMeta is.” Any product’s rating might be artificially inflated. Fakespot and ReviewMeta provide a more accurate picture but they don’t evaluate the quality of the product itself [Broida, R. (2019, March 4). How to spot fake reviews on Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart and other sites. CNET].

10.17 Sales Message: EVs Are Cool! (L.O. 1, 5) Answers will vary. This assignment offers various options, allowing for team effort at the idea-generating and pre-writing stages while leading to an individually written direct-mail letter or e-mail. A letter is recommended so that students can practice the format.

An audience analysis could be completed by the whole class or within small groups. A specific electric vehicle can be chosen subsequently. A preliminary discussion serves the purpose of learning about potential receptiveness while also identifying resistance within the target group of college graduates. Students could be guided to consider how best to reach their target group, whether to choose an emotional, rational, or dual appeal.

Certainly, car buying among the intended demographic is unlikely to be solely a rational decision although parents may be needed to co-sign a loan; as a secondary audience, parents may be more interested in logic, not emotion. Most car commercials we see in prime time tend to play mostly on feelings—of freedom, independence, and coolness.

The next pre-writing step could lead to choosing a suitable vehicle and conducting minor research to identify the features most attractive to the audience. Next, students could be asked to develop the features into specific audience benefits relevant to this cohort. As an intermediate assignment, students could peer-edit and discuss tables that juxtapose features and fully fleshed-out audience benefits, perhaps showing the attributes of the vehicles in the left column and their relevant beneficial attributes tailored to the audience on the right.

The detailed audience profile and well-defined purpose both serve to stimulate students’ creativity, practice their critical thinking skills, and reduce opportunities for plagiarism.

Students should recognize the complexity of the challenges facing their promotion; for example, on the one hand, their target audience is ecologically aware and might choose to go electric; on the other hand, student debt may be so devastating that a new vehicle is out of the question. In addition, many millennials living in cities opt out of owning a car altogether and not just for financial reasons. The key points of resistance to EVs tend to be a high purchase price and short range.

Below you will find a sample sales letter promoting one of the best-selling mainstream electric vehicles, the Nissan Leaf.

10.17 Sales Message: EVs Are Cool!

MOSSY NISSAN San Diego

1885 Auto Park Place San Diego, CA 91911

(619) 000-0000 www.mossynissan.com

Current date Marvon Littleton 259 Arch Road

Are you ready to drive clean?

Do it for you. Do it for

Coachella, CA 92226

California.

Hi Marvon, Are you like most people? Do you follow the crowd? Or are you open to bold ideas and committed to the future of transportation? If you were like most people, you would believe that electric vehicles are too expensive and have driving ranges that are ridiculously short.

We didn’t think so. You are not like most people. So, let us explain how we can put you in a brand-new all-electric Nissan Leaf so you can do your part and drive all green. With more than 500,000 global deliveries, the Leaf is the most popular electric vehicle. In addition to the basic Leaf S model, you can now choose a long-range Leaf Plus with mindblowing standard features.

Spacious, cool, and safe: Expect a roomy cabin for even your tallest friends and insane trunk space for your Sierra camping trips or your next Santa Cruz surfing adventure. Did

we mention that the Leaf looks great too? For entertainment, while you drive to Lone Pine, plug in your iPhone or Android. Or listen to chill music on the satellite radio.

The Leaf comes standard with an 8-inch touch screen and Bluetooth audio streaming.

Standard equipment to keep you and your crew safe includes collision warning, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, and swerve warning.

Get free money when you buy or lease: Get money back when you buy a Nissan Leaf.

Federal, state, and local incentives will lower the price of buying your EV. You may qualify for a federal tax credit of up to $7,500.

That’s not all. As a California resident, you are eligible to collect a rebate on the purchase or lease of an EV of up to $4,500; low-income residents may receive up to $7,000. Local utilities may provide you with more free money, $800 to $1,000 depending on region. Even leases are eligible for clean-vehicle rebates—many paying as much as $5 to $10 a day!

There’s more! Take advantage of special loans, preferential parking, carpool-lane access even when driving solo, discounted tolls, and lower cost off-peak home charging. More good news: Most of the 100,000 charging stations nationwide are free. In California, 5,000 charging stations offer almost 20,000 outlets and more are added each day.

Save on fuel and maintenance: Every mile you drive will cost you about half the price of powering a combustion-engine vehicle. You will be able to charge your Leaf overnight at home using a standard 120-volt or 240-volt house plug or juice it up at work and in many public places for free. In town, you will always be close to a charging station. Even statewide, the dense charging infrastructure will put your mind at ease. There are apps for that.

Range anxiety be gone: According to the EPA, the standard Leaf delivers 149 miles of range, while the Leaf Plus can travel up to 226 miles. During the time it takes to make a pit stop and eat a sandwich, your car will reach 100 miles of range in only 30 minutes of charging!

Fewer moving parts. Electric engines live without oil changes, spark plugs, or fuel filters.

Regenerative engine braking extends the lifespan of your brake pads as the electric motor slows down the vehicle. You’ll be saving money while you drive. How does the MSRP of $28,040 look now? The Leaf Plus starts at $36,040. Do the math!

Don’t sacrifice fun and safety while being good to the planet: The Leaf is super fun to drive with peak torque right from a standstill. Precise handling and cornering come from a low center of gravity as the battery pack stabilizes the vehicle and distributes the weight evenly, keeping you safe.

Share in the fight for a gasoline-free America! California has the worst air in the nation.

More than 93 percent of residents live in regions that violate federal or state air-quality standards. And more than 7,000 Californians die each year from air pollution. Cleaner cars mean cleaner air. Do your share.

Visit our showroom, and let’s talk about our sales or attractive lease deals—and those special loan options. You can’t afford not to drive a Leaf!

See you soon, Darya Mitra Business Manager PS: Like us on Facebook or Instagram and tell us about your eco commitment. What are you already doing to lower your carbon footprint? Or tell us where you would take your Leaf! Post by May 30 and you will be entered to win one of five Apple Watches. But hurry, our raffle and special financing deals end on May 30!

Tell your family and friends—EVs rock!

10.18 Sales Message: Organic Greens, Home-Delivered Karla’s Corn & More Wholesome local food for you

Say no to imported produce!

Order a veggie and fruit box online for as little as $30!

“You, as a food buyer, have the distinct privilege of proactively participating in shaping the world your children will inherit.”

—Joel Salatin, Holy Cows and Hog Heaven: The Food Buyer's Guide to Farm Friendly Food Current date Mr. Wayne Parker 1200 West Spokane Falls Blvd.

Spokane, WA 99201 Dear Mr. Parker: Have you had it with tasteless supermarket greens? Are you concerned about chemicals you might be feeding your family? Or perhaps you are troubled about the carbon imprint of food that was harvested too soon and circled the globe before arriving on your table.

Be good and do good: Now you can be good to yourself and do good for the environment. You can also contribute to the survival of local family farms by buying sustainable food. How, you ask?

Become a member of Karla’s Corn & More and start ordering a box of seasonal fruit and vegetables from small local farms to your table—but without the premium cost charged by

high-end organic food markets. Pay only a little more than conventional supermarket food prices.

Enjoy many benefits: We personally know the farmers who supply our nutritious, healthy food, and we vet them carefully. Here are some of the benefits you can reap by joining us: •

Discover great-tasting fruit and vegetables, but don’t take our word for it. Dare to compare our fair and fresh food to conventional supermarket produce.

• Be good to yourself. Enjoy food that is 100 percent herbicide and pesticide free.

• Support small family farms that supply in-season sustainable products that meet our highest standards. Your dollars ensure that we can pay our farmers fair prices.

• Avoid lengthy shopping trips, traffic snarls, crowded parking lots, and packed supermarkets. Eat produce that has not been handled and bruised by hundreds of customers.

Order now—it’s easy: Select on our website the produce you want, and we will deliver it to your doorstep. Orders received by 10 a.m. on Sunday will be on your table on Tuesday or Wednesday. For Thursday or Friday delivery, submit your order by 10 a.m. on Tuesday.

That’s all!

Why wait? Visit www.karlascorn-and-more.com and order a box of fresh seasonal produce today! Or call 1-509-000-0000. Start eating wholesome and delicious food delivered weekly from the local farm to your table.

Sincerely, Ariel Keenan Marketer-in-Chief PS: Register as a member by July 15 and receive 20 percent off your first order!

105 B Street SW info@ karlascorn-and-more.com Quincy, WA 98848 1-509-000-0000 20 Analyzing News Releases (L.O. 6) Solutions will vary.

10.21 Writing a News Release (L.O. 6) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:

Erin Brownmiller (410) 000-0000 BIG MAC GOES GREEN WITH POTATO STARCH CLAMSHELL CONTAINER

San Diego, CA, current date. In an effort to use biodegradable packaging, McDonald’s has approved a new sandwich container for its Big Mac. Over 300 McDonald’s stores will begin handing out its most popular sandwich in an environmentally friendly clamshell container made from potato starch, limestone, and 100 percent postconsumer recycled fiber.

The new container, produced by EarthShell, is whipped up out of renewable starch that is reclaimed from the commercial processing of potatoes and French fries. It also uses natural limestone, cellulose fiber (from postconsumer recycled school milk cartons and juice boxes), biodegradable protective coatings, manufacturing release agents, water, and a thickener. The mixture is blended into a batter and then placed between two heated mold plates. Water in the mixture turns to steam, expanding the blend that eventually cools into a waffle-like form.

The miraculous EarthShell product is surprisingly strong, yet economical and biodegradable. It meets industry requirements for rigidity, insulation, stacking, consumer usage properties, and graphic capabilities. Using low-cost raw materials processed in conventional machinery, EarthShell packaging requires less total energy to make than polystyrene or paper products. What's more, EarthShell products are competitively priced.

Many fast-food restaurants have turned to paper after consumer groups insisted on banning polystyrene packaging, which is almost indestructible when discarded. But paper packaging is expensive and does not perform as well. EarthShell is a better solution.

EarthShell Corporation is engaged in the licensing and commercialization of proprietary composite material technology for the manufacture of disposable food service packaging, such as cups, plates, bowls, hinged-lid containers, and sandwich wraps. EarthShell packaging is designed to be cost and performance competitive compared to other food service packaging materials. However, it also provides important environmental advantages.

For more information, visit its website at www.EarthShell.com. ###

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. True. It is your responsibility to support your boss’s decisions, even if you disagree with them. You can strive to make changes but do so constructively and through the proper channels. Never publicly confront your supervisors. If you believe strongly that a decision might be seriously wrong, talk to your boss in private.

2. False. It’s always wise to talk with your supervisor about any behavior that might violate office expectations. However, it is true that more and more companies realize that allowing personalization of work spaces helps normalize the idea of an employee having non-work commitments.

3. False. Never take home any office supplies, no matter how “small.” No matter how entitled you may feel, it is theft. Imagine if all workers embraced this attitude and helped themselves to company property.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Direct-mail marketers rely on studies that seem to show that digitally engaged consumers may experience digital fatigue or screen overload–in other words, too much time spent online. The marketers believe that direct mail provides a personal and tangible alternative. Describe a time when you felt overwhelmed and fatigued by too much screen time and explain how you feel about direct mail as opposed to commercial unsolicited email.

Topic 2: Letzte Generation (last generation) is a climate activist group active in Germany, Italy, and Austria. Also known as “Klima-Kleber” (climate gluers), members have blockaded city streets and airports by super-gluing themselves to the ground for maximum disruption and publicity. Even more controversially, they threw foodstuff at famous paintings––all to protest against their governments’ perceived inaction on climate change. How do you suppose the public views the student-led group? Do you believe that such activism is persuasive and justified?

Topic 3: Consider your vast experience with TV and other advertising. Can you think of commercials or ads that seem to fall in the category of puffery or could even be considered deceptive? How do you know the difference between the two?

Topic 4: Traditional advertising and digital advertising have been compared to fishing with a dragnet versus spearfishing. Explain this analogy. Is it fitting, and what does it imply?

Topic 5: A UK study found that donors who receive thanks give again and donate even more money. Relate this finding to tangible and intangible benefits and to Cialdini’s seven principles of social influence. Which of them could explain the phenomenon? What lessons can you learn from this insight that may apply to your own life?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 9

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to learn about informal business reports and how to create them.

First, we cover how to interpret, tabulate, and analyze data. Next, we discuss how to draw meaningful conclusions and prepare practical report recommendations. Additionally, we explore techniques for logically organizing report data and the reader cues that aid in comprehension.

Then, we discuss the short informational reports that describe routine tasks in the workplace.

Finally, we cover how to prepare short analytical reports that solve business problems.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5

Explain the methods used to analyze statistical data.

Discuss how to develop meaningful conclusions and report recommendations after valid analysis.

Describe strategies for organizing report data.

Write short informational reports that describe routine tasks.

Create short analytical reports that solve business problems.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

•

•

• • •

Refocused the opening case about Netflix to reflect changes in the company’s approach to metrics and illustrate one of the chapter themes—analyzing data—by using viewer statistics of a streaming service with which students are very familiar.

Introduced a new “For the Record” item about a Dutch supermarket chain that actively combats the “loneliness epidemic” with deliberately slow cash registers to encourage chats with customers while also boosting its bottom line.

Conceived a new Ethical Insight feature to sharpen critical thinking by inviting students to consider the cost of highly polluting private jet travel to Davos, Switzerland, during the World Economic Forum which prides itself on its ecological focus.

Wrote all new critical-thinking questions to stimulate the students’ curiosity and encourage critical reading.

Created an end-of-chapter activity that involves ChatGPT, the much-discussed chat bot, to expose students to legitimate pedagogic applications of this controversial tool.

Updated three new self-contained reports to enable students to practice critical thinking, create decision matrixes, and formulate report conclusions as well as recommendations.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 12. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Analyzing Digital Age Data (L.O. 12.1, PPT Slides 3–10, DISC: Math and algebra accuracy; Numbers in visual display; Translation) a. Collecting information is easier than ever. b. Making sense of collected data is much harder. c. Raw data become meaningful through effective sorting, analyzing, combining, and recombining. d. Information helps businesses make strategic decisions and adapt to trends. e. Tables, statistical concepts (mean, median, and mode), correlations, grids, and decision matrices can all help you summarize large amounts of data. f.

Follow these tips when using tables (Figure 12.1): i.

Use systematic columns and rows to summarize and simplify data. ii.

Preliminary tables enable you to see what your assembled data mean. iii.

Cross-tabulation (analyzing two or more variables together) can make data more meaningful or prompt you to explore other possibilities.

g. The three Ms—mean, median, and mode—describe data. i.

The average is generally used to indicate the mean, or arithmetic average. ii.

The median represents the midpoint in a group of figures arranged from lowest to highest (or vice versa). iii.

The mode is the value that occurs most frequently. iv.

The range is the span between the highest and lowest values. h. Relationships between two or more variables that help explain the findings are called correlations. i.

Avoid suggesting that a cause-and-effect relationship exists unless one can be proved; only sophisticated research methods can statistically prove correlations. ii.

Gain credibility and allow readers to make their own decisions by using cautious statements followed by explanations.

II.

i.

Raw data—especially verbal data—are often arranged into a grid, which summarizes responses. (Figure 12.2)

j.

A decision matrix is a special grid that helps managers make the best choice among complex options. (Figure 12.3) i.

Decision matrices are designed to eliminate bias and poor judgment. ii.

Weights can help boost the relevance of important criteria.

Drawing Conclusions and Making Recommendations (L.O. 12.2, PPT Slides 11–14, DISC: Conclusion) a. Your value in an organization rises considerably if you can analyze information logically, draw conclusions, and show how the data answer questions and solve problems. b. Drawing logical conclusions from data is crucial to business success. c. Conclusions and recommendations are the most widely read sections of a report. d. When analyzing data to arrive at conclusions, follow these guidelines (Model Document 12.1): i.

Ensure the audience knows how the data relate to the problem. ii.

Make report conclusions more objective by using consistent evaluation criteria. iii.

Do not sensationalize or exaggerate findings. iv.

Be careful of words such as “many,” “most,” and “all.” v.

Examine your motives and don’t let preconceptions color your reasoning. e. Recommendations evolve from the interpretation of findings and conclusions. f.

Follow these tips when preparing report recommendations: i.

Separate conclusions from recommendations—conclusions explain what the problem is, while recommendations tell how to solve it. ii.

Provide specific, practical recommendations and ideas for implementation. iii.

Use your intuition and knowledge of the audience to determine how comprehensive your recommendations should be. iv.

Begin recommendations with a verb for a forceful and confident structure. v.

Avoid hedging words such as maybe and perhaps. vi.

Ensure your recommendations are helpful and relevant to the audience. vii.

Confirm your recommendations are the result of logical analysis.

g. Figure 12.4 illustrates the differences between findings, conclusions, and recommendations.

III.

Organizing Data (L.O. 12.3, PPT Slides 15–21, DISC: Patterns; Audience; Numbers in visual display; Translation)

a. Informational reports typically consist of three parts: an introduction with background information, the facts and findings of your research, and a conclusion. (Figure 12.5) b. Analytical reports typically contain four parts: an introduction of the problem, the facts and findings of your research, an analysis of those findings, and your conclusions and recommendations. (Figure 12.5) c. When using the direct strategy, place conclusions and recommendations up front; when using the indirect strategy, conclusions and recommendations should appear last, after your findings have been presented and analyzed. d. The real challenge of organizing a report of any kind lies in (a) organizing the facts/findings and discussion/analysis sections and (b) providing reader cues. e. Reader comprehension, not writer convenience, should govern organization. f.

Five common organizational methods can help the reader understand the data (Figure 12.6): i.

Time ii.

Component iii.

Importance iv.

Criteria v.

Convention

g. To guide readers through the data, you need to provide the equivalent of a map and road signs. This is accomplished using introductions, transitions, and headings, which will prevent the reader from getting lost. h. Introduction: i.

Tells the purpose of the report ii.

Describes the significance of the topic iii.

Previews the main points and the order in which they will be developed i.

Transitions: i.

Tell readers where ideas are headed and how they relate ii.

Use expressions such as “on the contrary,” “at the same time,” and “however” to reveal the logical flow of ideas iii.

Should be placed within a sentence where a natural pause occurs iv.

Should not be misused or overused, which can be distracting and frustrating for readers

j.

Headings: i.

Report writers may use functional or talking headings. (Figure 12.7) ii.

Functional headings show the outline of a report but provide little insight for readers, are useful for routine reports, and are appropriate for sensitive topics.

iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix. x. xi.

IV.

Talking headings provide more information to spark interest but can fail to reveal the organization of a report.

Combination headings combine the best attributes of both functional and talking.

Use appropriate heading levels. (Model Document 12.2) Capitalize and emphasize carefully.

Try to balance headings within levels.

For short reports, use first-level or first- and second-level headings.

Include at least one heading per report page, but don’t end the page with a heading.

Apply punctuation correctly.

Keep headings short but clear.

Writing Short Informational Reports (L.O. 12.4, PPT Slides 22–32, DISC: Patterns; Rhetorical considerations; Word processing; Theory application) a. Informational reports have the following characteristics: i.

Usually describe periodic, recurring activities (such as monthly sales or weekly customer calls) or situational, nonrecurring events (such as trips, conferences, and special projects) ii.

Have an audience that is neutral or receptive, requiring only to be informed iii.

Are written directly using a conversational and informal writing style iv.

Use headings, lists, and graphics to help the reader immediately grasp the major ideas v.

Should follow the principles of conciseness, clarity, courtesy, and correctness discussed in earlier chapters b. For effective document design, follow these tips: i.

Make use of desktop publishing packages and word processing programs to create professional-looking documents. ii.

Resist the temptation to incorporate too many features. iii.

Apply good sense and solid design principles to your documents. iv.

Figure 12.8 summarizes the top ten design tips for effective document design. c. A summary compresses the main points from a book, report, article, website, meeting, or convention, reducing it by 85 to 95 percent. d. Follow these guidelines when writing a summary: i.

Present the goal or purpose of the document being summarized. ii.

Highlight the research methods (if appropriate), findings, conclusions, and recommendations. iii.

Omit illustrations, examples, and references. iv.

Organize for readability by including headings and bulleted or enumerated lists.

v. vi.

Paraphrase accurately from memory without copying passages from the original.

Include your reactions or an overall evaluation of the document if asked to do so.

e. An executive summary summarizes a long report, proposal, or business plan, concentrating on what management needs to know from a longer report. f. For trip, convention, and conference reports, use these guidelines (Model Document 12.3): i.

Begin by identifying the event (exact date, name, and location) and previewing the topics to be discussed. ii.

Summarize in the body three to five main points that might benefit the reader. iii.

Itemize your expenses, if requested, on a separate sheet. iv.

Close by expressing appreciation, suggesting action to be taken, or synthesizing the value of the trip or event. g. Periodic (activity) reports are generally used to keep management informed about operations at a regular interval (weekly, monthly, yearly). Some periodic reports simply contain figures, while more challenging periodic reports require descriptions and discussions of activities. (Model Document 12.4) i.

Summarize regular activities and events performed during the reporting period. ii.

Describe irregular events deserving the attention of management. iii.

Highlight special needs and problems. h. Progress and interim reports are used to describe the status of continuing projects. They may be external or internal and typically adhere to the following pattern of development: (Model Document 12.5) i.

Specify in the opening the purpose and nature of the project. ii.

Provide background information if the audience requires filling in. iii.

Describe the work completed. iv.

Explain the work currently in progress, including personnel, activities, methods, and locations. v.

Describe current problems and anticipate future problems and possible remedies. vi.

Discuss future activities and provide the expected completion date. i.

Investigative reports deliver data for specific situations without offering interpretations or recommendations. i.

Generally nonrecurring, these reports are arranged using the direct strategy with three parts: an introduction, the body, and a summary. (A similar informational report can be found as Model Document 11.2 in Chapter 11.) ii.

To assemble an investigative report, follow cues in the report’s subject matter for division and organization decisions.

V.

Preparing Short Analytical Reports (L.O. 12.5, PPT Slides 33–39, DISC: Patterns; Rhetorical considerations; Theory application; Conclusion) a. Analytical reports have the following characteristics: i.

Attempt to evaluate the data and persuade the reader to accept the conclusions and act on the recommendations ii.

Emphasize reasoning and conclusions iii.

Three common types: justification/recommendation reports, feasibility reports, and yardstick reports iv.

May use the direct or indirect strategy v.

Answer questions about specific problems and aid in decision making b. Justification/recommendation reports are those that justify or recommend actions. (Model Document 12.6) i.

They may also be called internal proposals, because their persuasive nature is similar to that of external proposals. ii.

Their organization and formatting may be prescribed by your employer. iii.

The audience and topic should determine the use of the direct or indirect strategy. c. Use the direct strategy for nonsensitive topics and recommendations that will be agreeable to readers. Organize according to the following order: i.

Briefly identify the problem or need. ii.

Concisely announce the recommendation, solution, or action. iii.

Fully explain the benefits of the recommendation or steps necessary to solve the problem. iv.

Include a discussion of pros, cons, and costs. v.

Conclude with a summary specifying the recommendation and necessary action. d. Use the indirect strategy when a reader may oppose a recommendation or when circumstances suggest caution. Consider the following sequence: i.

Refer to the problem rather than your recommendation in the subject line. ii.

Describe the problem or need your recommendation addresses using examples, statistics, and quotes to lend credibility to the seriousness of the problem. iii.

Discuss alternative solutions, beginning with the least likely to succeed. iv.

Present the most promising alternative (your recommendation) last. v.

Show how the advantages of your recommendation outweigh its disadvantages. vi.

Summarize your recommendation and specify the action it requires, if appropriate. vii.

Ask for authorization to proceed, if necessary. e. Feasibility reports examine the practicality and advisability of following a course of action. The focus of these reports is on the decision. (Model Document 12.7) i.

Announce your decision immediately. ii.

Provide a description of the background and problem.

iii. iv. v. vi. vii. f.

Discuss the benefits of the proposal.

Describe the problems that may result.

Calculate the costs associated with the proposal, if appropriate.

Show the time frame necessary for implementing the proposal.

Conclude with an action request if appropriate.

Yardstick reports examine problems with two or more solutions.

(Model Document 12.8) i.

To determine the best solution, the writer establishes criteria by which to compare the available options. ii.

The criteria then act as a yardstick against which all the alternatives are measured. iii.

The real advantage to yardstick reports is that alternatives can be measured consistently using the same criteria.

g. Writers using a yardstick approach typically: i.

Begin by describing the problem or need

ii.

Explain possible options and solutions

iii.

Establish criteria for comparing the options and explain how the criteria were selected or developed

iv.

Discuss and evaluate each option in terms of criteria

v.

Draw conclusions and make recommendations

Ethical Insight: Greenpeace Slams the World Economic Forum for Climate Hypocrisy Students’ responses will vary. Those who are aware of the climate crisis might express their disapproval. Some may find the startling statistics shocking, and it is hoped that they will begin to think about the environmental impact of transportation choices. Greenpeace’s criticism is likely to resonate in Europe, a continent equipped with a tight network of high-speed trains and fast-moving freeways—alternatives to ultra-short private jet travel. Behavior change is generally slow and convenience tough to forego. It is unlikely that the rich and powerful will give up their private jets soon, but perhaps it is more likely that they will avoid short-haul flights.

In her statement, Klara Maria Schenk, transport campaigner for Greenpeace’s European mobility campaign, poignantly summed up what she views as the double standard exhibited by the conference attendees at the World Economic Forum: “The rich and powerful are swarming to Davos to discuss climate and inequality behind closed doors using the most unequal and polluting form of transport: private jets. Meanwhile, Europe is experiencing its warmest January days on record and communities around the world are grappling with extreme weather events supercharged by the climate crisis” [Purcell, J. (2023, January 13). Private jet emissions quadrupled during 2022 World Economic Forum. Greenpeace Press Release].

Greenpeace finds particularly galling that 53 percent of the international luminaries attending the WEF flew in from destinations less than 470 miles away, and 38 percent of them traveled from distances of under 300 miles—trips that could have easily been covered by train or automobile.

The shortest flight recorded was 13 miles long. Schenk goes so far as to demand that world leaders “lead by example and ban private jets and useless short-haul flights” [Purcell, J. (2023, January 13). Private jet emissions quadrupled during 2022 World Economic Forum.

Greenpeace Press Release].

Many Europeans feel “flight-shamed” if they can’t resist the temptation of cheap commercial short-haul flights to attractive destinations that are only a 1-hour hop away by air.

Students may be aware of Elon Musk, who faced much scrutiny for his frequent use of a private jet. This unfavorable attention intensified after Musk banned the Twitter user who posted freely available flight-tracking data showing the flight movements of the Twitter, Tesla, and SpaceX chief executive.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Using a Decision Matrix (L.O. 12.1) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Grids and decision matrices can be very helpful to consumers, as well as businesses, in making decisions. b. How might you have used a decision matrix in choosing which college to attend or which cell phone or other electronic device to purchase? What factors would you have included in your matrix? i. Answer: Decision matrices can help view raw data and variables more objectively. In a decision matrix, assigning a weight to different features based on importance can help simplify a seemingly complicated decision.

Students can identify the various factors that went into their choice of school or electronic device and how those factors may have been weighted. Then, they can analyze how their decision reflects the actual data.

2. Discussion: Technology and the Future of Reporting (L.O. 12.1) Duration: 30 minutes. a. Digital technologies are allowing, even forcing, businesses to examine how they can improve their internal and external reporting.

b. In what ways are artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies driving the future of reporting, and what are some of the specific benefits? i. Answer: After researching the technological trends shaping business reporting, students will have varying responses. Ideally, they will note that much of the time spent on business reporting in the past has been devoted to collecting data, generating reports, and sending them to the appropriate audience. Now, digital technology can do much of that, allowing employees more time for other work tasks. Potential benefits of technologies such as artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, data visualization, and chatbots include lower costs, more insights (since employees perform fewer manual tasks), and improved decision making.

3. Discussion: Writing Effective Recommendations (L.O. 12.2) Duration: 10 minutes. a. In a report, conclusions explain what the problem is, while recommendations tell how to solve it. b. In writing report recommendations, what considerations and strategies can help you increase the chances of their being implemented? i. Answer: Reports that consider the audience’s needs and offer specific, practical recommendations are most likely to succeed. How specific and forceful report writers’ recommendations can be depends on their authorization and status in the organization. Report writers must carefully consider both the background and information needs of their audience.

Recommendations should be practical and acceptable to those who authorized the report and phrased to begin with action verbs.

4. Discussion: Periodic vs. Progress Reports (L.O. 12.4) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Entry-level and middle-management employees can expect to write many informational reports. b. What are the differences between periodic (activity) reports and progress (interim) reports? i. Answer: Periodic reports (sometimes called activity reports) are written at regular intervals—such as weekly, monthly, or yearly—to inform management of operations. Progress or interim reports, on the other hand, describe the status of specific projects and are not necessarily written at prescribed intervals. c. What type of information can you typically expect in each? i. Answer: Periodic reports usually include a summary of regular activities, any irregular events needing management’s attention, and any special needs or problems. Progress reports often include work completed, work in progress, current and/or anticipated problems, future activities, and the expected completion date.

5. Discussion: The Ethics of Transparency and Compliance (L.O. 12.2) Duration: 20 minutes.

a. When it comes to financial reporting, transparency and ethical compliance have been at the forefront of shareholder discussions in many businesses, especially because non-compliance cases at leading firms have made headlines time and again. With the aid of digital technology, employees may now contribute to these discussions as well while protecting their anonymity. Alethia (which means “truth and disclosure” in Greek) is a digital communication app launched by United Arab Emirates-based firm AQ&P that provides an online dashboard for an employee to report potentially fraudulent activity to internal compliance functions without the fear of being labeled a whistleblower. b. Although this technology provides the benefit of increasing organizational transparency and accountability, what concerns might potential whistleblowers still have? i. Answer: Although a mobile app might seem safer than previous forums of reporting ethical concerns (such as phone hotlines or workplace e-mail), people are still naturally skeptical about technology and personal data.

According to co-founder Craig Roets, however, Alethia “instills confidence by requiring no personal information when downloading the app, and we don’t track IP addresses. All interactions are protected with SSL encryption using digitally signed tokens to ensure 100-percent anonymity for the whistleblower to safeguard against any form of retaliation.” [Pupic, T. (2019, December 30). Bringing ethics back to business: Alethia.

Entrepreneur Middle East.] c. What reservations might companies have about investing in the technology? i. Answer: Businesses may be concerned about the costs of implementing the technology companywide, its applicability to their particular industry, and/or the possibility that it could prompt employees to report suspicions without sufficient knowledge (and, therefore, not treat such reporting as seriously as it should be).

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Is Using Data the Netflix Way a Thing of the Past? (Part 1): In this case study, students will read a description of the struggles in determining the metrics to report Netflix’s viewership with some accuracy. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. Why was the number of subscribers originally a better measure of Netflix’s success instead of traditional television metrics that focus on viewership of specific shows?

i. IM: Netflix mainly relies on subscriptions to earn money, unlike traditional television, which depends on advertising dollars. Because the two business models are very different, it did not make sense to use the same measures to evaluate success in the past. However, how the streaming service gathers data will change and diversify; it will inch toward more conventional metrics as Netflix will reap ad revenue from its lowest membership tier. But the biggest change is the shift to using Nielsen data in three markets for now. b. What other factors might have influenced Netflix to withhold data on viewership compared with network TV? i. Much of Netflix’s original programming is tailored to smaller, niche audiences. As long as its varied programming continues to draw and keep subscribers, Netflix doesn’t need to attract large audiences for all its releases, unlike network TV, where every show must garner high enough ratings to attract advertisers and their money to the networks. Netflix claims that releasing viewership data on shows not meant for broad audiences could lead to a show being compared negatively and unfairly to shows geared to larger audiences. c. Netflix has recently hired the independent TV rating service Nielsen to collect data on selected Netflix programming. Why is vetting by an outside source important? i. A neutral party offers unbiased interpretation of data. Its independence from the company it measures makes it impartial. To retain its own integrity and to continue to be hired by more organizations, the outside source must hold itself to the highest levels of honesty and pure analysis.

Case Study: Is Using Data the Netflix Way a Thing of the Past? (Part 2): In this case study, students are asked to take on the role of an intern in the Netflix marketing department charged with writing a yardstick report. Have students work individually or break the class into groups of two or three and have them complete the assignment as a team. You may wish to have students present their work to the class or submit their responses electronically.

ANSWER: A short yardstick report, written by individuals or teams and organized by criteria, could pair two popular services from among the six listed. Alternatively, comparing three or all six of the major on-demand streaming services would yield a longer report. Prime Video is second after Netflix in number of subscribers globally.

Disney+ was a hit right out of the gate, having attracted 164 million subscribers worldwide within two years after its launch. Viewed as a bundle that also includes Hulu and ESPN+, Disney+ has reached 235 million global subscribers at the end of the most recent fourth quarter, adding 61 million subscribers in one year. At this writing, HBO and HBO Max have reached 77 million subscribers worldwide.

Additional criteria, for example, could be search volume (how many people look for a company in their browsers) and stock price, signaling the market’s confidence in the streaming services’ health. Netflix is the most expensive of the streaming services, aside from the lowest tier of service with ads. As for their catalogs, Amazon Prime Video offers viewers four times as many films as Netflix, 18,000 plus titles; some sources say up to 24,000 films and 2,100 shows. Naturally the numbers keep changing fast overall.

Incidentally, ChatGPT returned an untrue statement: “It is not possible to provide a yardstick report comparing the subscriber figures, subscription prices, size of catalog, and the impact of the most popular streamed titles among the major streaming services as the figures are constantly changing and these services are not publicly sharing this information.” This is incorrect. The information is absolutely available. ChatGPT also only has data up to 2021.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1.

2.

3.

After considering the technological trends shaping business reporting, students will have varying responses. Ideally, they will note that much of the time spent on business reporting in the past has been devoted to collecting data, generating the reports, and sending them to the appropriate audience. Now, digital technology can do much of that, allowing workers more time for other, higher-level tasks. Potential benefits of technologies such as artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, data visualization, and chatbots include lower costs, more insights (as a result of few manual tasks required by employees), and improved decision making.

Decision matrices can help view raw data and variables more objectively. In a decision matrix, assigning a weight to different features based on importance can help simplify a seemingly complicated decision. Students ought to be able to identify the various factors that went into their choice of school or electronic device and how those factors may have been weighted.

Although many of the commercial survey panels are legitimate and include by-invitationonly market research veterans such as PineCone Research, a Nielsen Company subsidiary, some are scams. The bogus sites tend to gather thousands of e-mail addresses, disappear as fast as they emerged and don’t pay the survey takers. The legitimate companies tend to be trusted names in market research. Like other types of surveys, paid online panels have their limitations. For one, they attract a self-selected group of people who take as many surveys as possible to earn rewards. Respondents available and willing to take an Internet poll do not constitute a representative sample of the public. The rewards require much time to accrue—the points-to-dollars redemption rate is 3,000 points to $1; iSay offers a better ratio of 100 points per $1 redeemed.

The quality of the surveys depends on how well the questionnaire is constructed and whether the respondents are carefully screened and targeted (as Nielsen panels are).

Survey companies have strict user agreements to ensure that participants do not create

4.

5.

6.

several identities to increase their compensation, but ultimately this stipulation is difficult to enforce.

Our intuition suggests correlations that may or may not be correct. When we see a correlation, we should ask why and how the two variables are related. Apparent correlations can stimulate investigation and present possible solutions to explore. In reporting correlations, writers should avoid suggesting that a cause-and-effect relationship exists when none can be proven. Only sophisticated research methods can statistically prove cause and effect. Cautious statements followed by explanations lend report writers credibility and allow readers to draw their own conclusions.

Answers will vary. TikTok is by far the most popular social media platform for people under 34 years of age. In surveys respondents primarily complain about their loss of personal freedom if TikTok were banned. They point out that all social media extract and sell user data. Reports suggesting that TikTok is “Chinese spyware” have riled up the public while experts see little evidence of serious risk to the individual as opposed to the aggregated data of many. As with all social media, users should not assume any privacy and data security, experts say. Given the vast popularity of TikTok, it seems impossible to roll it back. Young people in particular might chafe at the idea that their favorite social media platform could be taken away. Tech savvy as they are, as of now students can bypass the ban at school, for example, by using a VPN (virtual private network) or by switching from their institution’s Wi-Fi to their cellular provider’s network.

Bans tend to make the “forbidden fruit” even more interesting, not to mention that some faculty members use TikTok in their classes as they strive to make learning more relatable and fun for their students. Even if the security threat of TikTok could be established beyond any doubt, it’s unlikely that fans of the social media platform would readily give it up [Doffman, Z. (2020, July 11) Is TikTok seriously dangerous—Do you need to delete it? Forbes].

ACTIVITIES 12.1 Much Ado About ChatGPT (L.O. 2–5) If a student were to feed this assignment into ChatGPT, the bot would be stumped. “Summarize the debate that ChatGPT has sparked in business and academe” yields this response: I'm sorry, I am not aware of any specific debate that ChatGPT has sparked in business and academia. As a language model, my capabilities are limited to generating text based on the input provided to me. I do not have the ability to track or be aware of any debates or discussions outside of the context in which I am used. Can you please provide more information about the debate you are referring to so that I may assist you better?

Aside from this nonanswer, notable errors in the passage include a comma splice in the first sentence and an incorrect modifier in the second. The limitations and errors notwithstanding,

the chatbot is at its best when asked to execute routine tasks. The prose it generates is serviceable, if bland and, well, a bit “robotic.”

Some of the issues and opinions students might identify include: •

ChatGPT has recently passed a final MBA exam at Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and is in some respects astonishingly capable while also exhibiting some profound limitations in its current form.

•

As with previous types of academic dishonesty, educators are concerned that students will cheat and thus avoid real learning and receive grades they have not earned.

•

Instructors will need to either incorporate chatbots into teaching students or create assignment and assessments that are “AI-proof.” Visual and experiential content rather than text-based work could be an answer to ChatGPT. Assignments should be specific and based on recent events.

•

Proponents see no harm in asking ChatGPT to generate a first draft and to help with editing; after all, most writers already use tools such as thesaurus, spellcheck, Grammarly, or citation generators. These advocates also believe that a discussion about ethics and authorship raised by AI can be useful.

•

Bans of ChatGPT are impractical and unlikely to prevent the use of AI tools in the long run. AI will only get better.

•

Some have likened the “disruptive” effects of ChatGPT to the introduction of handheld electronic calculators in the 1970s; mathematics instruction shifted from basic calculations to problem formulation and problem solving. Similarly, the teaching of writing and text-based assignments may need to evolve.

•

ChatGPT has serious limitations. It can absorb and replicate false and biased information; it cannot reason and think critically.

•

Elon Musk posted that ChatGPT meant the end of homework.

•

OpenAI explains why ChatGPT sometimes provides answers unrelated to a question: “ChatGPT will occasionally make up facts or ‘hallucinate’ outputs.”

•

In business, the use of AI could free workers from writing routine messages and reports.

•

Institutions of higher learning are scrambling to create policies and best practices governing ChatGPT. Schools in New York City and in Seattle have banned students and teachers from using the chatbot.

GPTZero is an anti-plagiarism app created by a Princeton student. Edward Tian found a way to identify writing created by AI, much to the delight of educators. However, Tian himself opposes bans of ChatGPT in schools. Instead, he believes that students should understand how AI tools

work and know their effects [Mok, A. (2023, January 19). The Princeton student who built an app to detect ChatGPT plagiarism opposes banning the chatbot in schools. Business Insider].

12.2 Interpreting Survey Results (L.O. 1) a. REACTIONS OF SPRINGFIELD UNIVERSITY STUDENTS TOFOUR PROPOSALS ABOUT BOOKSTORE BAGS Fall 2024 N = 560 students Agree

Undecided

Disagree

Continue to provide plastic bags

23.6%

3.0%

73.4%

Provide no bags; encourage students to bring their own bags

73.9

4.5

21.6

63.4

3.4

32.9

11.3

2.7

86.1

Provide no bags; offer cloth bags at a reduced price (about $3) Give a cloth bag with each major purchase, the cost to be included in registration fees

b. The data could be cross tabulated by examining each response in terms of number of units carried (did full-time students react differently from part-time students?), by sex, and by major (if those questions had been asked in the survey). However, such examination seems to serve no purpose beyond a curiosity factor. The action taken will not be affected by such knowledge. c. Three conclusions that could be drawn from the survey: 1.

A majority of students are concerned enough about the environment to want to give up plastic bags.

2.

Although a majority of students want to eliminate plastic bags, they do not want to replace them with cloth bags financed by their registration fees.

3.

Most students seem to prefer bringing their own bags. d. The following are possible recommendations based on the data collected: 1.

Stop supplying plastic bags with each purchase.

2.

Encourage students to bring their own bags. Publicize this change in policy in the campus newspaper and with signs around campus and in the bookstore.

3.

Encourage students who want bags to purchase the bargain $3 cloth bag. Put signs in the bookstore to promote cloth bags.

4.

Mount an advertising campaign to inform students of the impact on the environment of plastic bags and your effort to reduce pollution.

e. Through this role-play activity, students will polish their presentation and persuasion skills as they present recommendations to the bookstore manager.

12.3 Working With the Three Ms (L.O. 1) Arrange the homes by ascending price as follows: $380,000; $380,000; $380,000; $380,000; $400,000; $400,000; $440,000; $480,000; $540,000 MEAN = (380,000 + 380,000 + 380,000 + 380,000 + 400,000 + 400,000 + 440,000 + 480,000 + 540,000) ÷ 9 = $420,000. The mean is most commonly referred to as the average. This value tends to be unrealistically high (or low) whenever extreme figures are present. Here it is higher than either the median or the mode.

MEDIAN = $400,000. The median is the middle value in a list—here the fifth in order. Home prices are typically indicated as a median value for a reason. It is the midpoint between the lowest and the highest prices.

MODE = $380,000. This is the number that occurs most often. The mode could be useful to show the most numerous value (in this case, sales figure), the ones that occur most frequently.

The range, if computed, would indicate the span between the highest and the lowest amount: $160,000.

12.4 Telling Conclusions From Recommendations (L.O. 2) a. b. c. d. e. f. g.

Conclusion Recommendation Conclusion Conclusion Conclusion Recommendation Recommendation

12.5 Which Tablet Is Right for You? (L.O. 1, 2) Reflecting the priority of price, followed by battery life and resolution, the outcome favors the Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 with 118 points. The tablet wins decisively against the other three brands although in the unweighted grid all four devices score within a range of 3 points, between 13-15 points.

Unweighted Decision Matrix—Table 1 Features:

Weight

Battery

Price

Resolution, ppi

Life Tablet Options

Total

1-5 pts.:

Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 (13” screen) battery 12 hrs.; 256 GB $650

3

4

5

3

15

2

5

1

5

13

4

3

2

5

14

5

1

3

5

14

Weight

Battery

Price

Resolution, ppi

(512 GB $1,300) 1.85 lbs; res. 196 ppi Microsoft Surface Pro X: 13” screen battery 15 hrs.; 256 GB $1,400 (512 GB $1,900) 2 lbs; res. 267 ppi Apple iPad Pro: 13” screen batt. 10 hrs.; $1,200; 256 GB (512 GB $1,350) 1.5 lbs; res. 264 ppi Samsung Galaxy Tab S8+, 12.4“ screen batt. 7:25 hrs.; 256 GB $1,000; (max.

512GB $1,300) 1.27 lbs; res. 266 ppi

Weighted Decision Matrix—Table 2 (Price) Features:

Life Tablet Options

Weights:

Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 (13” screen) battery 12 hrs.; 256 GB $650

Total

5

8

10

7

15

32

50

21

118

10

40

10

35

95

(512 GB $1,300) 1.85 lbs; res. 196 ppi Microsoft Surface Pro X: 13” screen battery 15 hrs.; 256 GB $1,400 (512 GB $1,900) 2 lbs; res. 267 ppi

Apple iPad Pro: 13” screen batt. 10 hrs.; $1,200; 256 GB

20

24

20

35

99

25

8

30

35

98

(512 GB $1,350) 1.5 lbs; res. 264 ppi Samsung Galaxy Tab S8+, 12.4“ screen batt. 7:25 hrs.; 256 GB $1,000; (max. 512GB $1,300) 1.27 lbs; res. 266 ppi

If you would like to further practice student numeracy, you could base another decision matrix on Figure 12.3 and Activity 12.4. Ask students to create a grid with the following weights: Assign 10 points to screen resolution, 7 to battery life, and the average factor of 5 to device weight and price, respectively. This set of preferences might suit a graphic artist, a video editor on the go, or a buyer who primarily wishes to watch films and TV shows.

In this case students will learn that such a shift in priorities will result in a different outcome. The Apple iPad Pro narrowly wins with 101 points. However, the Microsoft Surface Pro X is a close second with 100 points. While the Microsoft Surface tablet is more expensive than Apple iPad Pro, it also features the longest battery life of 15 hours. If students were to assign an even higher relevance to battery life (a factor of 8) they would see Microsoft Surface narrowly win over Apple iPad Pro. Unweighted Decision Matrix—Table 1 Features:

Weight

Battery

Price

Resolution, ppi

Total

Life

Tablet Options

1-5 pts.:

Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 (13” screen) battery 12 hrs.; 256 GB $650

3

4

5

3

15

Microsoft Surface Pro X: 13” screen battery 15 hrs.; 256 GB $1,400 (512 GB $1,900) 2 lbs; res. 267 ppi

2

5

1

5

13

Apple iPad Pro: 13” screen batt. 10 hrs.; $1,200; 256 GB

4

3

2

5

14

(512 GB $1,300) 1.85 lbs; res. 196 ppi

(512 GB $1,350) 1.5 lbs; res. 264 ppi

Samsung Galaxy Tab S8+, 12.4“ screen batt. 7:25 hrs.; 256 GB $1,000; (max.

512GB $1,300) 1.27 lbs; res. 266 ppi

5

1

3

5

14

Price

Resolution, ppi

Total

5

10

Weighted Decision Matrix—Table 2 (Screen Resolution) Features:

Weight

Battery Life

Tablet Options

Weights:

Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 (13” screen) battery 12 hrs.; 256 GB $650

5

7

15

28

25

30

98

10

35

5

50

100

20

21

10

50

101

25

7

15

50

97

(512 GB $1,300) 1.85 lbs; res. 196 ppi Microsoft Surface Pro X: 13” screen battery 15 hrs.; 256 GB $1,400 (512 GB $1,900) 2 lbs; res. 267 ppi Apple iPad Pro: 13” screen batt. 10 hrs.; $1,200; 256 GB (512 GB $1,350) 1.5 lbs; res. 264 ppi Samsung Galaxy Tab S8+, 12.4“ screen batt. 7:25 hrs.; 256 GB $1,000; (max.

512GB $1,300) 1.27 lbs; res. 266 ppi

12.6 Decision Matrix: Buying a Sensible Car for a Growing Family (L.O. 1, 2) The two tables could look something like this: Table 1: Unweighted Matrix (scale from 1 to 5, from worst to best) Features

Price

Cargo

Fuel

Comfort

Look

Quality

Total

Minivan

2

5

2

5

1

2

17

SUV

1

4

1

4

3

4

17

Pickup truck

2

3

1

4

3

3

16

Four-door sedan

5

2

4

3

2

3

19

Weights: Vehicle Options

Students should decide which relative weights to assign to each feature in Table 1 and could arrive at the following table after multiplying the factors with the scores in Table 1: Table 2: Weighted Matrix (factors range from 1 to 5) Features

Price

Cargo

Fuel

Comfort

Look

Quality

5

5

Minivan

10

SUV

Total

3

4

2

3

25

6

20

2

6

69

5

20

3

16

6

12

62

Pickup truck

10

15

3

16

6

9

59

Four-door sedan

25

10

12

12

4

9

72

Weights: Car Choices

This example may surprise students because the four-door sedan scores the highest and seems to be the best compromise option for Chana and Kaylin. Answers may vary, depending on the weights used. For example, if fuel economy were the most important factor and price

were not, the weighted results could result in a different outcome. If EVs were factored in, they still tend to be more expensive than conventional cars and would score low on price.

Table 2: Weighted Matrix (factors range from 1 to 5) Features

Price

Cargo

Fuel

Comfort

Look

Quality

2

5

Minivan

4

SUV

Total

4

3

2

3

25

8

15

2

6

60

2

20

4

12

6

12

56

Pickup truck

4

15

4

12

6

9

50

Four-door sedan

10

10

16

9

4

9

58

Weights: Car Choices

This assignment lends itself to additional options. Students could be asked to prepare decision matrixes for an item or object of their choice—some potential purchase that requires some research and is not easy to resolve. Of course, tasks without well-defined parameters sometimes result in student work of questionable authenticity. Therefore, you might want to specify that a decision matrix be created for popular noise-canceling headphones, smartphones, vacation packages, high-quality binoculars, DSLR cameras, kitchen appliances, real-estate purchases, or any other big-ticket item one doesn’t purchase on a whim.

12.7 Organizing Report Data (L.O. 3) a. Convention. The report is periodic and in most cases has standardized, recurring features. b. Time. Like itineraries and agendas, instructions require attention to chronological order. c. Component. The data could be grouped by geographic regions and the individual agents within them. d. Time. A process that’s evolving in stages suggests chronological order. e. Convention. The report is periodic and, in most cases, has standardized, recurring features (e.g., type of permit issued, dates, name of owner, address, contractor). f. Importance. You would probably want to present the strongest, most compelling arguments first. g. Component. The report will cover each region as part of the whole that constitutes the company. h. Criteria. It is better to discuss findings by criteria than separately by first discussing the buying option and then the leasing option.

12.8 Identifying Report Headings (L.O. 3) a. Talking. This heading reveals what follows in the subsequent section, yet it is short enough for easy reading. b. Combination. This heading combines talking and functional at an appropriate length. c. Functional. This heading provides minimal information, but in a report covering a sensitive topic that might offend readers, its generic nature may be effective. d. Talking. This heading clearly prepares the reader for what follows. e. Functional. This heading describes a purpose and may be appropriate in a short report, but it is not very interesting or helpful to the reader. f. Combination. This heading combines both talking and functional and is short enough. g. Talking. This heading is precise in telling the reader what is coming. h. Functional. This functional heading provides minimal information and is not very interesting.

12.9 Executive Summary: Keeping Your Supervisor in the Loop (L.O. 4) Students write an executive summary of a current business news article. Solutions will vary.

To prevent having to read bot-generated summaries, assign a business news article ideally published on the day of the assignment. If you want more control, assign a selection of articles you found in the news very recently. Run one or two through ChatGPT by inputting a hyperlink and asking for a summary. The summaries will be useless but spelled correctly. If you tell the bot that the summaries are inaccurate, the machine will apologize! ChatGPT as yet cannot find and summarize articles that are newer than 2021. Also, the more specific an assignment, the less the bot is able to do the work for the student.

12.10 Periodic Report: Checking in With the Boss (L.O. 4) This is an excellent activity to help students relate report writing to their current jobs.

Students who are not working can apply this activity to this course, their overall campus experience, or academic program. Students could use periodic reports to keep instructors up-to-date on their progress on research projects or term papers. This could help instructors get to know their students better, as well as give students a chance to reflect on what they are accomplishing both in and out of the classroom.

12.11 Progress Report: Are You on Track? (L.O. 4) One of the biggest problems students have with any long report assignment is procrastination. Without having to report progress periodically, many students put the work off until the last minute. This activity gives students incentive to stay on track and helps them avoid procrastination. You can have students devise their own formats for this report, or you can provide a consistent format for all students to use. The periodic, or activity, report in Model Document 12.4 provides an example of a document style much used in busy workplaces. Students could also be encouraged to use the format of Model Document 12.5 showing an e-mail progress report.

If students are engaged in service learning or experiential learning, this assignment could be enriched by focusing on audience awareness. Instead of the instructor, the target audience could be the community client sponsoring the service-learning opportunity. Students would need to consider how the same report might need to be adapted to a primary external audience. Would the report writers need to provide additional context? Would the team need to change any phrasing for this new audience?

12.12 Progress Report: When Will You Graduate? (L.O. 4) This is another excellent activity to help students stay on track. They could also share this report with their counselors.

12.13 Investigative Report: Tracking the Competition (L.O. 4) Harley-Davison has indeed launched efforts to appeal to women to solidify rebounding sales and open up new target markets. Harley-Davidson has created the Pink Label clothing line specifically for women. A portion of the proceeds goes to breast cancer charities. In addition, the company promotes its smaller and lighter motorcycles with lower seats as “hogs” particularly suitable for women.

On its website Harley-Davidson USA has pages designed for women riders. Womenonly events called garage parties, news, reader stories, and more, focus on females. The company lists riding classes across the nation and has posted a guide, “We Ride,” to encourage women. Within its hugely successful Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.) organization, the manufacturer maintains Ladies of Harley, a subgroup catering to female motorcycle enthusiasts, whether as riders or passengers.

Targeting female riders has been an uphill ride because still only about 20 percent of all motorcyclists are women. Moreover, apart from the high price tag, many women are intimidated by the formidable size and weight of Harley-Davidson motorcycles bigger than the Sportster and Dyna lines. For example, the Sportster SuperLow weighs 599 pounds and starts at $8,700. The Forty-Eight weighs 551 pounds and costs more than $11,300. A Street Bob features a curb weight of 670 pounds and runs upward of $14,550. Midsized bikes such as those in the Softail line weigh 755 pounds and cost more than $17,000, and Harley’s largest touring bikes such as the classic Road King hit the scales at 814 pounds and start at nearly $20,000.

Women tend to favor lighter and less expensive Japanese bikes such as the Honda Shadow Aero with its curb weight of 560 pounds and retail price of $7,700 and up. The Harley-Davidson Sportster and Dyna lines can compete on price and weight with Japanesemade bikes. Softails, touring bikes, and the high-end CVO line tend to prompt owners to spend a lot of money on customization, a lucrative business for any Harley-Davidson dealer for years following a motorcycle sale. Students should be able to organize an investigative report based on their research. Alternatively, or as part of a team report, they could be encouraged to study the financial picture of Harley-Davidson and its dire future outlook.

As for LifeWire, Harley’s foray into electric mobility, many believe that a $30,000 motorcycle with a maximum range of 110 miles geared to urban riders is unlikely to attract younger consumers and won’t appeal to core brand loyalists. Industry experts point out that transportation itself is changing, with autonomous vehicles just around the corner.

Inexpensive ride-hailing services favored by young consumers are becoming entrenched in U.S. cities [Cameron, S., & Kim, I. A. (2020, February 27). The rise and fall of HarleyDavidson. Business Insider; Hoium, T. (2019, April 22). Harley-Davidson is in a funk it may never recover from. The Motley Fool].

The slick 18-minute video on Harley-Davidson’s website celebrating the 120-year anniversary features excited talking heads who predominantly match the motorcycle company’s stereotypical following: middle-aged white men. A young blond woman is shown enthusing over a leather jacket, not a ride, cementing the impression that women are still only accessories or clotheshorses. Later on, H-D Motorcycle Portfolio Lead Bridget Fillner is presenting a massive trike to a Black male customer. Two young (white) Harley workers are discussing the Nightster, a smaller, less expensive bike. The inconvenient truth is that most of the large motorcycles are prohibitively expensive, and the attempt to appear “diverse” in the video is unconvincing. Most employee spokespeople in the video are white and male. It doesn’t appear likely that such an appeal will land with Gen Z even just as an aspirational brand.

12.14 Informational or Analytical Report: Companies Featured in Social Media Posts (L.O. 4, 5) Answers will vary. The X feeds about Coca-Cola used to be varied and generally positive or neutral, not negative. More recently, though, critical attitudes seem to prevail. Coca-Cola and other large corporations are blamed for environmental destruction and undue influence on legislators and governments. Many (re)posts reference a lawsuit against Coke-owned Simply Tropical juice for allegedly containing PFAS, toxic “forever chemicals” at levels “hundreds of times” above federal limits (The Guardian).

At more than 109 million fans and counting, Coca-Cola is one of the three most popular brands on Facebook; however, now more than ever before, many commenters are critical of Coke; they reference lawsuits against the company for chemical contamination of Simply Orange juice and a recent guilty verdict for employment discrimination. Other unflattering posts show Coca-Cola “addicts” who describe their struggle to cut back their consumption of the sweet soda. The most curious items perhaps are posts sharing recipes that include Coca-Cola. Many posts talk about the much-discussed switch at Culver’s from Pepsi to Coke.

This assignment also showcases the importance of knowing proper search tools—for example, on X. Whereas a hashtag preceding a company name will return posts that mention Coca-Cola in some form, the at sign (@) plus the name will lead directly to the company’s official X pages as well as to unverified X sites.

12.15 Justification/Recommendation Report: Money for a Good Cause (L.O. 5) Solutions will vary.

12.16 Feasibility Report: Starting an International Student Club on Campus (L.O. 5) Solutions will vary.

12.17 Feasibility Report: Fostering Healthy Habits (L.O. 5) Solutions will vary.

12.18 Yardstick Report: Buying New Office Equipment (L.O. 5) This assignment requires careful monitoring as it may invite copying of product descriptions and comparisons from the Internet and little original thinking. To safeguard against plagiarism, determine beforehand the models and specifications for students to compare. If you have doubts about the authenticity of documents, try string searches (using exact word groups from student papers) in Google and other search engines. Find out whether your campus subscribes to the antiplagiarism site Turnitin if you encounter texts that sound copied. An excellent new tool to detect ChatGPT-generated text is GPTZero, provided free to educators after registering. In several tests the AI-detection tool in its first beta version correctly identified passages written by ChatGPT. 12.19 Justification/Recommendation Report: Going With the Times at Domenico’s Pizza (L.O. 5) This self-contained problem provides all the data necessary to complete the report without further research. Here are possible conclusions and recommendations that may be derived from the data provided.

CONCLUSIONS Although a taste test did not occur and, therefore, the quality of each competitor’s pizza was not evaluated, my observations have yielded useful results. Based on the analysis of the data, the following conclusions may be drawn: 1. Mascotti’s has the most efficient system for serving customers. The average time it takes a customer to receive an order is half the time it takes at Domenico’s Pizzeria.

2. Using an electronic ordering system or calling out the menu item, having customers pick up their orders, and having one cash register per counter person result in a significant reduction in the average time it takes a customer to receive an order.

3.

Preparing the pizza dough in advance would save Domenico’s one minute per order; therefore, it would make sense to follow the competition and switch to preprepared dough.

4. The customer demographic is changing, and it’s likely that the technologically inclined crowd would appreciate placing orders and communicating with Domenico’s Pizzeria using a smartphone app.

5. Because the Marshall Y-500 convection oven reduces cooking time by two minutes, it makes sense to consider investing in one. However, a taste and quality test for comparison makes sense.

RECOMMENDATIONS Some recommendations for making the ordering process more efficient require little expenditure; others may call for a significant investment. Conclusions from the study lead to the following recommendations: 1. Have counter clerks call out orders to the cooks in the short run, and purchase or subscribe to an electronic system such as Square for recording orders as soon as possible.

2. Consider letting customers pick up their own orders.

3. Purchase at least one new cash register.

4. Prepare the pizza dough before the store opens.

5. Consider investing in a Marshall Y-500 convection oven after conducting a comparative taste test of the products from various pizza ovens.

6. To reduce wait time, look into letting customers order pizza by text message before coming to the restaurant to reduce wait time.

7. Explore having a proprietary mobile app designed that would reduce wait time by allowing users to order on their smartphones or other mobile devices. Or consider switching to a common point-of-sale system such as Square or Rezku POS. Customers could pick up their pizzas after receiving a message on their mobile devices.

To expedite payment and become part of a larger established network, consider using PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and similar established payment apps.

Feasibility Report: Does Ardrose Need a Social Media Consultant? (L.O. 5) This self-contained problem provides all the data necessary to complete the report without further research.

Here is one solution prepared as a memo report. Although variations are possible with this type of report, the first sentence should announce the decision to hire the consultant. The supporting data should include answers to each of the eight questions that factor in the problem. Headings should break the report into logical sections.

ARDROSE MEMORANDUM Date:

April 5, 2024

To:

Rylee Dillon, President

From:

James Student, Vice President, Marketing JS

Subject:

Hiring a Social Media Consultant Is Feasible

We should hire a social media consultant to help the company develop a broader social media strategy. This report presents the background information supporting the need to hire a consultant, advantages and disadvantages of doing so, potential problems and possible solutions, and estimated costs and time to implement the strategy.

Background Information Supporting the Decision to Hire a Social Media Consultant The Marketing Department collects Facebook data, our only social media tool, but we don’t use it. The department also does not have the skills to implement a broader social media strategy. Even if we did, no employee is able to devote the time needed to implement the strategy and monitor social media sufficiently.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Hiring a Consultant Besides the professional skills and time savings that hiring a consultant offers, an additional advantage is that the consultant has the time to learn what our competitors’ social media strategies are and to analyze them. The two main disadvantages are that the consultant will not be an expert in our business and that we are unable to predict the return on investment of these services. To offset these disadvantages, we should ensure that we complement the consultant’s expertise with our own, monitor costs closely, and periodically evaluate whether we are receiving the services we have purchased.

Potential Problems and Possible Solutions Based on my research of social media blunders, we need to be aware of at least three potential problems. First, remaining silent in social media conversations invites these conversations to turn negative. A possible solution to this problem is to make one employee responsible for participating in these conversations.

Second, not planning for problems could increase their size because of delayed responses or hasty, incorrect responses. A possible solution to this problem is to have worst-case scenario meetings. Third, removing negative social media comments angers customers and encourages them to express their anger in other, even more public ways. A possible solution to this problem is to forbid the removal of negative comments without permission.

Estimated Costs and Time to Implement the Strategy My research on social media consultants’ fees shows that the average setup costs for the tools we need—TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, X, Facebook, Pinterest, and a company

blog—total $6,850, and the average monthly account management and content management fees total $8,150. The estimated setup time for these tools is two months.

RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Hire a social media consultant.

2. Spend time orienting the consultant to the company and its customers.

3. Establish a list of responsibilities and a timeline of duties.

4. Assess the results of the consultant’s work at regular intervals.

5. When the company is ready to take over social media management, assign an employee from the Marketing Department as a trainee with the consultant to prepare to take over social media tasks.

I would be happy to meet with you to discuss these costs in greater detail and answer any questions you might have.

12.21 Yardstick Report: How to Hire the Best Social Media Manager (L.O. 5) CONCLUSIONS Candidates

Demonstrated ability to lead teams and to juggle multiple projects (20%)

Quality and quantity of knowledge and work experience in social media (40%)

Strong analytical, organizational, and creative problem-solving skills (20%)

Social media marketing experience with a multiunit retail company (20%)

Total

Shanice Johnson

2 (x 0.20 = 0.40)

3 (x 0.40 = 1.20)

3 (x 0.20 = 0.60)

2 (x 0.20 = 0.40)

2.6

Oliver Chandler

3 (x 0.20 = 0.60)

2 (x 0.40 = 0.80)

2 (x 0.20 = 0.40)

3 (x 0.20 = 0.60)

2.4

Kianna Choi

1 (x 0.20 = 0.20)

1 (x 0.40 = 0.40)

1 (x 0.20 = 0.20)

1 (x 0.20 = 0.20)

1.0

A. Candidate 1. Shanice has three years of work experience for a large retail corporation in a position that would be just beneath the one being offered. Her portfolio illustrates strong visual, written, and technological abilities. Although her experience is not in apparel, the field of home furnishings is closely related to fashion

and accessories in terms of trends, colors, and fabrics. Shanice was a bit nervous in the interview; however, she showed the potential for becoming an energetic and positive leader.

B. Candidate 2. Because this is a new position for which salary was established after a national review, it is unlikely that the salary will meet Oliver’s expectations. A lack of apparel-related experience is a deficit. His experience may be more technology related, rather than marketing based, and it is unclear whether he directed social media efforts or actually developed the content himself.

C. Candidate 3. Although Kianna has a master’s degree, her social media experience is not in retailing or apparel marketing; it is in blogging and podcasting. Her lack of interest in analytics does not comply with the job requirement of working with internal analytics and social media teams on ROI and post-event analyses.

RECOMMENDATION(S) 1. Following HR and CEO approval, offer the position to Shanice Johnson.

2. If Shanice accepts the position, arrange for company orientation and leadership training.

3. If Shanice declines, propose offering the position to Oliver Chandler and prepare to negotiate salary and job expectations.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False. Don’t do it! As an employee, you have a responsibility to contact your employer regarding absence and lateness. If you text, it could give the impression that you have something to hide. It’s better to make a phone call.

2. False. Many workers dislike voice-mail messages. If possible, wait until she returns to talk with her in person or on the phone. Sending an e-mail is also possible.

3. True. Delivering bad news such as a reprimand is better done privately. If your goal is to change behavior, private talks are more effective than humiliating public dress-downs.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: If you were asked to study the relationship between traffic speeds and traffic accidents, what statistic might be most useful: the mean, median, or mode? Why? Topic 2: Some research studies have revealed that young people experience anxiety and feelings of isolation as a result of their social media use. Other studies report that young people believe social media use has helped them make personal connections and develop professionally. In your experience, do social media seem to enhance or hinder your personal relationships? How about your professional growth? Explain each.

Topic 3: Provide a simple example that illustrates the differences among findings, conclusions, and recommendations when analyzing data.

Topic 4: In-N-Out Burger is planning to expand beyond California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, Oregon, and Colorado. What type of report would be best for the family-owned chain for comparing several potential locations? How might a decision matrix help?

Topic 5: Many famous wits have weighed in on procrastination. Oscar Wilde quipped “I never put off till tomorrow what I can do the day after.” As if answering Wilde, Mark Twain offered this funny maxim: “Never put off till tomorrow what you can do after tomorrow just as well.” And Ellen DeGeneres seems to imply a higher purpose in delaying: “Procrastination isn’t the problem. It’s the solution. It’s the universe’s way of saying stop, slow down, you move too fast.”

Are you an adrenaline junkie, or do you approach work tasks early and systematically?

How do you keep motivated?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points

Organization and Clarity

Research

References/Works Cited

Grammar and Spelling

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points

The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic. Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language. Offers criticism in an offensive manner. Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 10

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore the importance of proposals, business plans, and formal reports within the workplace. First, we learn about the significance and purpose of informal proposals and how to write them. Next, we cover how to prepare formal and grant proposals. Then, we learn how to create an effective business plan. Additionally, we cover the front and back matter and body of a formal business report and how they all work together to serve and support the purpose of the report. Finally, we cover some final writing tips that can help authors of formal business reports be more effective in their endeavors.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6

Explain the types and basic components of informal proposals.

Discuss the components of formal and grant proposals.

Identify the components of effective business plans.

Describe the role of the front matter components in formal business reports.

Discuss the body and back matter components in formal business reports.

Specify final writing tips that aid authors of formal business reports.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • •

•

•

•

Adapted the chapter opening case to the latest news about aerospace company SpaceX, whose most recent success illustrates the advantages of writing winning proposals.

Introduced a For the Record photo essay that illustrates grant proposal writing by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, an organization focused on improving health access, racial equity, and well-being for communities of color.

Created a For the Record photo essay highlighting a student entrepreneurship competition at a university in Maryland that invited students to pitch their business ideas much like the contestants on the hit show Shark Tank do.

Introduced an Ethical Issue/critical-thinking question prompting the discussion of wastefulness and unsustainability of a toy manufacturer’s disposal of excess inventory in a landfill in place of donating the collectibles.

Prepared an end-of-chapter activity designed to result in a proposal that requests the funding of a repair café, a free event run by skilled volunteers who help the public save money, learn new skills, and come together in their community by repairing their household items instead of dumping them.

•

Revised the model long report to conform to the 7th edition of APA Style, a guide exhorting users to “write with clarity, precision, and inclusion.”

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 13. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Writing Informal Proposals (L.O. 13.1, PPT Slides 3–12, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Theory application) a. A proposal is a written offer to solve a problem, provide a service, pitch a project, or sell equipment. i.

Proposals can mean life or death for an organization. ii.

All types of proposals share two significant characteristics: (a) they use easy-to-understand language, and (b) they show the value and benefits of the product or service being recommended. iii.

Proposals may be classified as (a) informal or formal, (b) internal or external, and (c) solicited or unsolicited. b. Informal proposals are short reports often formatted as memos or letters.

Proposal sections usually contain six basic parts (Figure 13.1 and Model Document 13.1): i.

Introduction or description of the problem ii.

Background information or statement of need iii.

Proposal benefits and schedule for completion iv.

Staffing requirements v.

Budget analysis vi.

Conclusion including an authorization request c. Formal proposals differ from informal proposals in format. In addition to the six basic parts of an informal proposal, formal proposals may also contain (Figure 13.1): i.

Copy of a request for proposal (RFP) ii.

Letter of transmittal iii.

Abstract or executive summary iv.

Title page v. vi.

Table of contents vii.

List of figures viii.

Appendix

d. Internal proposals are written for company decision makers in regard to changes to company policies, equipment, or services. e. Most proposals are external and addressed to clients and customers outside the company. Examples include sales proposals or grant proposals. f. When government organizations or businesses have a specific need, they prepare a request for proposal (RFP), which specifies their requirements. g. A solicited proposal is the response to an RFP. h. Enterprising companies looking for work or special challenges might submit unsolicited proposals––bids that have not been explicitly requested. i. Proposals must be persuasive, not merely mechanical descriptions of what can be done. Effective proposals must: i.

Proposals must be persuasive, not merely mechanical descriptions of what can be done. Effective proposals must: ii.

Get the reader’s attention. iii.

Emphasize how the proposed methods and products will benefit the reader. iv.

Showcase the bidding firm’s expertise and build credibility. v.

Present ideas clearly and logically.

j.

Informal letter proposals usually contain six principal components: introduction, background, proposal, staffing, budget, and authorization. (Figure 13.1) k. The introduction includes a brief explanation of the reasons for the proposal and highlights the writer’s qualifications. (Model Document 13.1) l. The background section identifies the problem and discusses the goals or purposes of the project. m. In the proposal section, the writer explains their plan for solving the problem and may include the promise of specific deliverables. n. The staffing section describes the qualifications of the team that will complete the work as well as the credentials and expertise of the project leaders. o. A central item in most proposals is the budget––a list of proposed project costs. p. Use the conclusion and authorization portion of a proposal to: i.

Remind the reader of the proposal’s key benefits. ii.

Request approval or authorization and make it easy for the reader to respond. iii.

Include a project completion date and/or offer a deadline, if appropriate.

II.

Preparing Formal Proposals (L.O. 13.2, PPT Slides 13-18, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Theory application) a. A formal proposal is one that responds to a big project and may range from 5 to 200 or more pages. b. Formal proposals contain the six basic parts described for informal proposals and may also contain some or all of the following front matter and back matter components: i.

Copy of the RFP

ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii.

Letter of transmittal Abstract or executive summary Title page Table of contents List of illustrations Appendix(es)

c. A formal proposal submitted to a government or civilian organization that explains a project, outlines its budget, and requests money in the form of a grant is called a grant proposal. i.

The U.S. government, private foundations, and public corporations provide billions of dollars a year in funding to charities, educational facilities, and nonprofits for special projects. ii.

Grants do not require repayment, but funds must be used for the purposes outlined in the proposal. iii.

Skilled grant writers are among the most in-demand professionals today. d. Successful grant proposals do the following: i.

Include an abstract and needs statement that explains the problem or situation ii.

Explain the significance of the problem and how funding would solve the problem iii.

Describe short- and long-term goals (which are reasonable, measurable, and attainable within a specific time frame) iv.

Present an action plan that tells what will be done by whom and when v.

Include a budget that outlines how the money will be spent vi.

Present a plan for measuring progress toward completion of its goal III.

Creating Effective Business Plans (L.O. 13.3, PPT Slides 19–24, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Theory application) a. A business plan is a description of a proposed company that explains how it expects to achieve its marketing, financial, and operational goals. b. Successful business plans include the following components: i.

Letter of transmittal ii.

Mission statement (Figure 13.2) iii.

Executive summary iv.

Table of contents and company description v.

Product or service description vi.

Market analysis vii.

Operations and management viii.

Financial analysis ix.

Appendixes

c. Business plans may be written from scratch or may follow a sample business plan found on the Internet.

Ethics Check: Honesty Is the Best Policy To create buy-in from potential investors and to ensure the smooth management of the start-up, solid research and an honest look at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats are necessary. After all, among the reasons for the failure of many start-ups are not writing a business plan; creating a weak, unpersuasive document; and implementing a business plan poorly. The business plan is a living document that needs to change as the business evolves while also creating a solid basis for the entrepreneur. A flawed or dishonest business plan will not lead to long-term success. The chances that a newly incorporated business will survive for eight years are about 50 percent.

IV.

Writing Formal Business Reports (L.O. 13.4, PPT Slides 25–33, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Theory application) a. A formal report is a document in which a writer analyzes findings, draws conclusions, and makes recommendations intended to solve a problem. (Figure 13.3) b. Front matter (or preliminaries) includes the segments in the front of a report.

(Model Document 13.2) c. Front matter components include the following: i.

Cover ii.

Title page iii.

Letter or memo of transmittal iv.

Table of contents v.

List of illustrations vi.

Executive summary vii.

Introduction d. The best way to prepare an executive summary is to do the following: i.

Look for strategic words and sentences. ii.

Prepare an outline with headings. iii.

Fill in your outline. iv.

Begin with the purpose. v.

Follow the report sequence. vi.

Control the length. e. A good report introduction typically covers the following elements, not necessarily in this order: i.

Background ii.

Problem or purpose iii.

Significance iv.

Scope v.

Organization

f.

V.

Add the following elements if they are relevant to your readers: i.

Authorization ii.

Literature review iii.

Sources and methods iv.

Definitions and key terms

Body and Back Matter Components of Formal Business Reports (L.O. 13.5, PPT Slides 34–39, DISC: Patterns; Purpose; Audience; Conclusion; Theory application) a. The body of a formal report is the heart of the document, where the author or team discusses the problems and findings before reaching conclusions and making recommendations. i.

Present your solution to the initial problem. ii.

Discuss, analyze, interpret, and evaluate the research findings. iii.

Show the evidence that justifies your conclusions. iv.

Organize the body into logical categories using headings that explain each section. b. Use the conclusions section to explain what the findings mean in terms of solving the original problem. i.

Conclusions can be combined with the analysis of findings, placed before the body, combined with recommendations, or presented after the body. ii.

Present a summary of findings for long reports. iii.

Consider using numbered or bulleted lists for conclusions to improve comprehension. c. Use the recommendations section to make precise suggestions for actions to solve the report problems. i.

Strive for practical, reasonable, feasible, and ethical recommendations that evolve from the findings and conclusions. ii.

Do not introduce new information in the conclusions or recommendations sections. iii.

Number multiple recommendations in lists; phrase them as commands. iv.

Describe how to implement each recommendation, if appropriate. d. Appendixes are placed at the end of a formal report and include incidental or supporting materials not relevant to all readers. i.

Include items such as survey forms, copies of other reports, tables of data, large graphics, and related correspondence. ii.

Multiple appendixes are labeled Appendix A, Appendix B, etc. e. Sources of information should be identified using Works Cited or References.

(Model Document 13.2) i.

When using the MLA (Modern Language Association) citation format, list all sources alphabetically in a section titled Works Cited.

ii. iii. iv.

When using the APA (American Psychological Association) format, use the label References for your list.

Include the author, title, publication, date of publication, page number, and other significant data for ideas and quotations used in your report.

Include the Internet address (URL) for digital references.

Ethics Check: In It Together Answers will probably vary. Most instructors would consider the team as a whole guilty of academic dishonesty, whereas many students view their research tasks as work that they divide among themselves and don’t perceive as a coherent whole. Each group member assumes responsibility for an activity—such as researching, writing, or editing—or team members write small sections of the report, say, a third or a quarter each in a three- or four-member team.

Such an approach makes cheating for the cowriters nearly undetectable, and the group members have little control over the work individuals do.

Instructors tend to hold the entire group responsible because they are evaluating a team effort, after all. Anticheating websites such as Turnitin are useful not only to instructors, but also to students, helping them protect themselves against lazy, unskilled, or unethical peers. If instructors allow their students to upload a draft or even multiple versions before the deadline, Turnitin results enable team members to monitor each other’s integrity and documentation skills.

However, even if Turnitin is not available, each researcher must take full responsibility for the report. Few instructors are willing or able to play detective to find the guilty party, if indeed only one person cheated or plagiarized.

VI.

Final Writing Tips (L.O. 13.6, PPT Slides 40–44, DISC: Rhetorical considerations; Purpose, Patterns; Theory application) a. Tips for writing formal reports include the following: i.

Allow sufficient time. ii.

Finish data collection. iii.

Work from a good outline. iv.

Create a proper writing environment. v.

Use the features of your computer wisely. vi.

Write rapidly; revise later. vii.

Save difficult sections. viii.

Be consistent in verb tense. ix.

Generally avoid “I” and “we.” x.

Let the first draft sit. xi.

Revise for clarity, coherence, and conciseness. xii.

Proofread the final copy three times. b. Use these guidelines when working through the report process: i.

Analyze the report and purpose. ii.

Anticipate the audience and issues. iii.

Prepare a work plan. iv.

Collect data.

v. vi. vii. viii. ix. x.

Document data sources.

Interpret and organize the data.

Prepare graphics.

Compose the first draft.

Revise and proofread.

Evaluate the product.

c. Typical report components include the following: i.

Title page ii.

Letter of transmittal iii.

Table of contents iv.

List of illustrations v.

Executive summary vi.

Introduction vii.

Body viii.

Conclusions and recommendations ix.

Appendix(es) x.

Works cited or references

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: The Importance of Grant Writers (L.O. 13.2) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Why are highly capable grant writers among the most sought-after professionals today? i. Answer: A grant writer is the vital connecting link between a funder and the grant seeker. b. What activities does their work entail? i. Answer: Large projects may require a team of writers to produce various sections of a grant proposal. Then one person does the final editing and proofreading.

Effective grant proposals require careful organization, planning, and writing.

Skillful writing is particularly important because funding organizations may receive thousands of applications for a single award. A well-written and wellsupported grant proposal can make or break important research.

2. Discussion: To Footnote or Not (L.O. 13.6) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Is it true that business reports shouldn’t contain footnotes?

i. Answer: Although some people do assert that business reports should never contain documentation, not revealing one’s sources can be dangerous. b. If you were writing your first business report and did considerable research, what would you do about documenting your sources? i. Answer: The best plan is to seek advice from a supervisor and see how sources were documented in previous reports. It’s best to list all sources and be prepared to submit the list should someone ask for source documents. If the company does not have a general documentation style, the writer should still note the authorship, date, and source of the information. Another option is to reveal sources with in-text comments, such as this: According to an article on page B1 in The Wall Street Journal on December 16, 2016, the rate of increase was …

Good writers know that giving credit to or documenting sources is necessary.

3. Discussion: Is Streaming Bad for the Environment? (L.O. 13.5, 13.6) Duration: 20 minutes. a. If you were to read credible reports showing that streaming (think films and gaming) is very bad for the environment because the growing electricity needs of huge data centers are nearly exhausting power production, would you change your behavior?

Why or why not? i. Answer: Answers will vary. It’s one thing to worry about the state of the planet and another to change one’s ingrained behavior, especially if it encroaches on our creature comforts. Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, HBO Max, and Disney+, the immense platforms of Amazon and Facebook, as well as growing Internet traffic burn through a lot of electricity, mainly to keep servers cool. Internet traffic is booming, as more people are getting online. About a decade ago, the first articles started sounding the alarm about the increasing power needs of data storage as more and more information has been moved into the cloud. ii. Data centers with massive numbers of servers that require cooling to function are appearing all over the world, but mostly in northern climes, such as Iceland and Ireland. They are taxing and potentially will overwhelm power generation, despite the fact that Iceland, for example, has many renewable sources, such as geothermal and hydroelectric power. Still, much of that electricity is gobbled up by data storage and the energy-intensive act of mining cryptocurrency. iii. Over the last eight years, data centers have skyrocketed from 500,000 worldwide to more than eight million now. With the coming of 5G and with it the Internet of Things, i.e. Internet-connected smart devices and appliances, the need for data centers will grow. More energy-efficient servers offer only a partial answer. Other environmental threats from data storage and hosting are battery waste, harmful ozone-depleting coolants, and potential fire risks. [Dellinger, A. J. (2019, June 19). The environmental impact of data storage is more than you think—and it’s only getting worse. Mic; Daigle, T. (2020, January 2). “Completely unsustainable”: How streaming and other data demands take a toll on the environment. CBCNews.] iv. This complex issue would make an engaging research assignment that could be fashioned into a proposal addressing potential solutions or mitigation.

4. Discussion: Approaching a Business Plan (L.O. 13.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. If you were about to launch a new business, would you write your business plan from scratch or use a software program? b. What are the pros and cons of each method? i. Answer: Business plan software could certainly be helpful in learning the parts of a business plan and determining what goes in each section. However, many people say that no cookie-cutter business plan software or app can create a convincing business plan. Entrepreneurs must do their own investigations, gather information, organize it logically, and present a persuasive argument that their business ideas are worthy of financial support.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: SpaceX: Soaring on the Wings of Proposals (Part 1): In this case study, students will read a description of SpaceX’s efforts to win valuable government contracts for space exploration. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. Why are proposals vitally important to a company such as SpaceX? i. As is typical in the aerospace industry, SpaceX’s business is largely program based.

NASA’s and the Air Force’s awards to SpaceX are based on the agencies’ evaluations of proposals submitted by various contractors. Successful proposals determine (a) what programs the company will clinch to employ its personnel, (b) which product development efforts will receive the funding needed, and (c) whether the company will be awarded future contracts. ii. Ultimately, the quality of SpaceX’s proposals determines its ability to win competitions, and its ability to win competitions determines how much money the company makes. iii. Proposals must often be submitted for follow-up on contracts and related projects. In SpaceX’s case, the Commercial Resupply Services came in stages (i.e., CRS 1 and CRS 2), and each stage involved a new competition among contractors. When receiving an award from NASA, contractors such as SpaceX must meet milestones in the time frame and within strict cost limits determined by the space agency. b. How are proposals at SpaceX similar to and different from proposals or long reports written by students? i. Both student proposals and corporate proposals share the following characteristics: • Purpose-driven • Persuasive and often sales oriented • Time constrained

• ii.

iii.

Audience or customer focused Not surprisingly, student proposals are generally shorter and simpler than most corporate proposals. They also are more likely to be written as an exercise by a single person. Corporate proposals, on the other hand, especially the most important and largest ones, are always for real and are likely to be critical to the survival of the business, created in response to customers’ (in this case, NASA’s) detailed requests for proposals, and written by teams of writers and engineers.

Long reports and proposals at SpaceX are often written by teams of writers; are frequently argumentative or persuasive in tone; and are important, customerfocused documents. Long reports are always written to accomplish a purpose that makes it worth the cost of producing them. Like student proposals, student reports tend to be simpler and less complex than most corporate reports, written by individuals rather than teams, and completed as exercises rather than for business purposes.

c. How can team members maintain consistency and meet deadlines when writing important, time-constrained, multivolume documents such as formal proposals? i.

In developing large, multivolume, team-written documents on tight schedules, much can go wrong either in the planning and management of the development process or in developing content. The first challenge is to create a document development plan that does the following: • Includes everything that must be accomplished to complete the document • Schedules all necessary stages (e.g., storyboard and draft reviews, executive reviews, document sign-offs) • Identifies the people who will write the document and those who will manage the development process, and makes sure they know what they must accomplish and when • Enables authors who are not professional writers to develop sections that are accurate, effective, and doable within the available time and with the projected resources • Clarifies what authors need to say where, how much detail they need to convey, and the language they should use to be consistent with other authors’ language elsewhere in the document • Provides management controls ii.

The next step is to set the document development plan in motion. The process should involve the 3-x-3 writing process used by most writers in developing almost any written document. This should result in a successful, substantial multivolume business document.

Case Study: SpaceX: Soaring on the Wings of Proposals (Part 2): In this case study, students be asked to take on the role of a communications intern at SpaceX and develop materials to fine-tune SpaceX reports and proposals. Select one of the two tasks suggested within the activity. For Task 1, break class into groups of two or three students and have them complete the assignment as a team. For Task 2, students should work individually. You may wish to have students present their work to the class or submit their responses electronically.

a. For Task 1, teams should plan the report and have each team member prepare an outline of their assigned section. As a team, students should review and improve the outlines with written comments and annotations. i. Task 1 requires a short (three- to five-page) business report recommending a structured writing process to be used for team-written company documents. The following is a suggested outline for this report: • Executive summary of the key points (optional) • Introduction identifying why report was written and outlining the need for an improved writing process for team-written company documents • Analysis of the characteristics that an effective team-writing process for business documents should have • Discussion of possible alternative approaches that might work, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of each • Description of the students’ preferred process saying why it is preferred • Discussion of the resources needed to implement the selected process • Discussion of the likely costs of implementing and using the selected process • Recommendation to management that the company implement and use the process where appropriate and say why it is a good idea • List of references b. For Task 2, students should work individually to research, plan, and write a one- to twopage memo. i. Task 2 requires a memo evaluating several (two to four) proposal consulting companies that might be able to help SpaceX teams write high-quality business proposals when the company’s proposal specialists are unavailable. ii. This memo should use a standard memo (or e-mail) format and recommend proposal consultant firms. It should also provide their contact information.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1.

Like a persuasive sales message, an effective proposal (a) gets the reader’s attention, (2) emphasizes how its methods and products will benefit the reader, (b) showcases the writer’s expertise and credibility, and (c) presents ideas clearly and logically, making it easy for the reader to understand and respond.

2.

Although some people do assert that business reports should never contain documentation, not revealing one’s sources can be dangerous. The best plan is to seek advice from a supervisor and see how sources were documented in previous reports. It’s best to list all sources and be prepared to submit the list should someone ask for source documents. If the company does not have a general documentation style, the writer

should still note the authorship, date, and source of the information. Another option is to reveal sources with in-text comments, such as this: “According to an article on page B1 in The Wall Street Journal on December 16, 2016, the rate of increase was ” Good writers know that giving credit to or documenting sources is necessary.

3.

Answers will vary. It’s one thing to worry about the state of the planet and another to change one’s ingrained behavior, especially if it encroaches on our creature comforts.

Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, HBO Max, Apple TV, and Disney+, the immense platforms of Amazon and Facebook, as well as growing Internet traffic burn through a lot of electricity, mainly to keep servers cool. Internet traffic is booming, as more people are getting online. About a decade ago, the first articles started sounding the alarm about the increasing power needs of data storage as more and more information has been moved into the cloud.

Data centers with massive numbers of servers that require cooling to function are appearing all over the world but mostly in northern climes such as Iceland and Ireland.

They are taxing and potentially will overwhelm power generation, despite the fact that Iceland, for example, has lots of renewable sources, such as geothermal and hydroelectric power. Still, much of that electricity is gobbled up by data storage and the energy-intensive act of mining cryptocurrency.

Over the last eight years, data centers have skyrocketed from 500,000 worldwide to more than eight million now. As 5G is being rolled out and with it the Internet of Things, in other words, Internet-connected smart devices and appliances, the need for data centers will grow. More energy-efficient servers offer only a partial answer. Other environmental threats from data storage and hosting are battery waste, harmful ozonedepleting coolants, and potential fire risks. [Dellinger, A.J. (2019, June 19). The environmental impact of data storage is more than you think—and it’s only getting worse. Mic; Daigle, T. (2020, January 2). “Completely unsustainable”: How streaming and other data demands take a toll on the environment. CBCNews].

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin gobble up so much electricity that they rival the power consumption of entire countries. The electricity needed to power the complex processes of creating and tracking virtual currencies is mostly generated from fossil fuel—the dirtiest of which is coal. The cryptominers do not report their carbon emissions to regulators. A congressional investigation wants to change that. Cryptomining drives up energy cost for local residents and small businesses and adds to the strain on power grids, for example in Texas, a cryptomining hub [Tabuchi, H. (2022, July 15).

Cryptomining capacity in U.S. rivals energy use of Houston, findings show. The New York Times].

This complex issue would make an engaging research assignment that could be fashioned into a formal report or a proposal addressing potential solutions or mitigation.

4.

Business plan software could certainly be helpful in learning the parts of a business plan and determining what goes in each section. It might be tempting to imagine that artificial intelligence could ease the drudgery of writing. ChatGPT has been known to produce serviceable prose and even pass exams. A chatbot might be helpful in getting started or in providing a structure to follow.

However, many people say that no cookie-cutter business plan software or app can create a convincing business plan. Entrepreneurs must do their own investigations, gather information, organize it logically, and present a persuasive argument that their business ideas are worthy of financial support. Nothing seems to be able to replace the passion and commitment that budding entrepreneurship requires.

5.

While Funko cannot be forced to donate the toys, a public campaign boosted by social media awareness might help persuade the company to donate its excess product instead of throwing it away. Some experts suggested that the supposedly “worthless” batch be given to small, independent comics stores that would benefit greatly from the Funko revenue.

Funko’s success was greatest during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021 the company posted over $1 billion in net sales, up 58 percent from the year before. While toys seem to be subject to booms and busts, some think that Funko would do well to consider the example of another company that had dumped its unwanted product in a landfill: Atari discarded millions of copies of its unpopular E.T.-themed video game. Some of the cartridges were excavated and later fetched more than $100,000 each on eBay. [Bowman, E. (2023, March 4). Over $30M worth of Funkos are being dumped. NPR.org].

Perceptive students might point out the wastefulness and unsustainability of dumping in landfills millions of vinyl toys that most likely will never decompose.

ACTIVITIES Answers will vary. The proposal could be assigned to individuals or teams. The key is to require specific, localized information to encourage academic honesty. A sample letter proposal is provided below.

13.1 Proposal: Throw Away? No Way! Seeking Funding for a Local Repair Café (L.O.1) Date City of Seal Beach – City Hall Recreation and Community Services Department 211 Eight Street Seal Beach, CA 90740 Dear Representatives of the City of Seal Beach:

We are proposing the creation of a Repair Café in our community and requesting your support in helping to make this project a reality. Originating in the Netherlands in 2009, the Repair Café is a concept that has been gaining popularity around the world as it addresses three important concerns: sustainability, waste reduction, and community building. Globally, Repair Cafés now number more than 2,600 (NPR).

A Repair Café is a free pop-up event held 3-4 times a year during which volunteers come together to help members of the public repair broken or damaged items, such as electronics, clothing, and furniture. The goal is to reduce waste and help people save money by encouraging them to repair and reuse appliances and similar items rather than throwing them away. Repair Cafés also provide a space for residents to learn new skills, connect with neighbors in their community, and build relationships based on a shared commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship.

West Los Angeles, North Long Beach, and Pasadena already hold occasional Repair Cafés. Our Repair Café would be the first in Orange County.

Advantages of Creating a Repair Café A Repair Café would be a valuable addition to our community by providing these main benefits: (1) Make available a much-needed service to underserved residents who may not have the resources or expertise to repair their own broken household items and electronics.

(2) Promote sustainability and waste reduction, keeping potentially fixable products out of landfills.

(3) Create a sense of community and connectedness among residents, which is particularly important in a time when many people feel isolated and disconnected.

Budget: What We Are Requesting Free Use of a Community Venue: We are asking for free use of a community space to hold the Repair Café, ideally a space that is accessible to all residents, centrally located, and large enough to accommodate 20 volunteer “fixers” and approximately 200 participants per day. Among the reservable areas in our city, the Marina Community Center, North Seal Beach Community Center, or the Seal Beach Senior Center seem to be suitable venues.

Feeding the Volunteers: In addition to space, we are also requesting funding for incidentals such as food for the volunteers. While the Repair Café is a low-cost initiative, it’s important to ensure that volunteers are properly fed and cared for, in order to maintain their energy and enthusiasm for the project. We believe that this funding will be a small but important investment in the success of the Repair Café.

Assuming that each volunteer will receive two meals (e.g., breakfast and lunch) and that the meals consist of simple, affordable options such as sandwiches, fruit, and snacks,

the cost per volunteer per meal could run approximately $10-$15. This would mean that the cost of feeding 20 volunteers for one event (two meals) could be in the range of $400-$600.

Other expenditures might include the cost of tools and equipment and promotional materials: Tools and Equipment: Commonly used tools at a Repair Café include screwdrivers, pliers, wrenches, soldering irons, and sewing machines. In addition, we may need to purchase common replacement parts for tools that need to be repaired. If we need to purchase basic tools and equipment, the cost could range from $500 to $1,500, depending on the number of tools and the quality of the equipment purchased. Those tools purchases would be one-time expenses because they would be reused at future events.

Promotional materials: The cost of promotional materials, such as flyers, posters, and social media ads, will depend on the quantity and quality of the materials, as well as the marketing strategy used. The cost for the basics could range from $100 to $500, depending on the scope of the marketing campaign and the number of materials produced.

In all, we estimate our budgetary needs not to exceed $2,650 total per event. We pledge to keep costs low and to seek in-kind donations and strictly voluntary contributions from participants and the public.

Additional Benefits of Repair Cafés Repair Cafés are highly effective at promoting sustainability and reducing waste. The Repair Café Foundation pegs the success rate of repairs at about 70 percent. In the most recent year of operation, the Foundation estimates that 420,000 successful repairs have resulted in saving 22 million pounds of CO2 emissions and prevented 925,000 pounds of waste, the equivalent of a full Boeing 747 with passengers, cargo, and fuel on board.

Furthermore, Repair Cafés result in a high level of participant satisfaction. According to a survey conducted by the Repair Café Foundation, 98% of participants reported being satisfied with the Repair Café experience, and 82% said that they would attend future events. This indicates that Repair Cafés not only meet a practical need but also provide a valuable and enjoyable community experience.

Guided by recent National Public Radio coverage, we believe that such a pop-up event would be a valuable addition to our community. We hope that you will consider supporting this initiative by providing free use of one of the community spaces we have identified as well as funding for incidentals, tools, and promotion. We are confident that the benefits of the Repair Café will extend far beyond the immediate participants and will have a positive impact on our community as a whole. Existing Repair Cafés have become regular events in many communities across the United States.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely, [Your Name]

13.2 Proposal: The Magic of Compound Interest (L.O. 1) Most students have had some workplace or internship experience to draw on. However, they may have difficulty identifying a problem that’s substantial enough to merit a proposal. Students tend to bring up problems that are insignificant or whose solutions wouldn’t generate much in savings or earnings—the standard for writing a proposal.

With these kinds of problems, why not just say it?

Students may need help identifying a problem that would merit writing about. Another standard for writing a letter or memo proposal is that the problem must be serious enough to require a cost–benefit analysis, however informal it may be. Topics could include upskilling initiatives (on-the-job training and growth opportunities), offering tuition assistance, launching sustainability measures, improving waste management or recycling (switching companies), improving the company’s social media channels for better customer service, changing store closing times to adjust to new shopping habits, or offering a new peer-counseling fitness program.

13.3 Proposal: Pinpointing a Workplace Problem (L.O. 1) Most students have had some workplace or internship experience to draw on. However, they may have difficulty identifying a problem that’s substantial enough to merit a proposal. Students tend to bring up problems that are insignificant or whose solutions wouldn’t generate much in savings or earnings—the standard for writing a proposal.

With these kinds of problems, why not just say it?

Students may need help identifying a problem that would merit writing about. Another standard for writing a letter or memo proposal is that the problem must be serious enough to require a cost–benefit analysis, however informal it may be. Topics could include upskilling initiatives (on-the-job training and growth opportunities), offering tuition assistance, launching sustainability measures, improving waste management or recycling (switching companies), improving the company’s social media channels for better customer service, changing store closing times to adjust to new shopping habits, or offering a new peer-counseling fitness program.

13.4 Proposal: Calling Budding Entrepreneurs (L.O. 1) Many students dream of owning a business one day; some students even run small businesses while in college. This is why they enjoy activities that provide hypothetical and occasionally real-world scenarios in entrepreneurship. At the same time, this activity introduces students to important resources, such as the Small Business Administration’s website.

Finding a service or product to promote may not pose a great problem for students. You may want to limit the scope of the assignment or choose the product or service the class will promote and the audience it will target. The more specific features you provide, the better the prospects of receiving legitimate, authentic student work.

The assignment calls for an informal letter proposal. To help your students prepare, you may ask them to analyze direct (junk) mail they receive at home. Many direct-mail letters are excellent, well-written examples of persuasive writing. Examples could include promoting a new dental office, a massage therapy franchise, a gardening service for water-saving landscapes, or an organic food delivery business.

13.5 Proposal: Lending a Hand With Proposal Writing (L.O. 1, 2) This activity encourages students to search the Internet to locate actual proposals. Real proposals are too long to include as models in this textbook, but examples abound on the Internet. Students will find numerous websites that are hawking proposal templates or books to sell. This is a good exercise to help students develop their skills in distinguishing marketing sites from authentic resources.

13.6 Proposal: Healing With Mar Vista Sports Medicine (L.O. 1) Answers will vary. Students should be encouraged to do minor Internet and database research to explore typical suppliers likely to be needed by a clinic.

13.7 Grant Writing: Learning From Nonprofits (L.O. 1, 2) This activity encourages students to learn more about writing proposals and grants on the Internet. You may want to assign this memo report as a foundation for writing real proposals for local nonprofit organizations as a component of a service-learning or experiential learning project.

13.8 Business Plan: Critiquing Mission Statements (L.O. 3) Figure 13.2 establishes four goals for mission statements. They should be (a) easily understood; (b) free of complex words and buzzwords; (c) concise, memorable, and simple; and (d) unique in distinguishing a business or program. Writers of mission statements should ask themselves the following questions: (a) What do we do? (b) Why and how do we serve our clients? (c) Why did we start this business? (d) What image do we want to convey? and (e) What is the broadest way to describe our work?

Only one of the selected mission statements is exemplary. Harley-Davidson comes closest to the goal of a concise, memorable statement that is unique in distinguishing its business. The other five mission statements could easily be interchanged, suggesting that they are in no way unique or memorable. The five weakest statements could be improved by being more precise about what the organization does, or in the case of IBM, be more focused and concise. If possible, the statement should be quantifiable and suggest where the company operates. It should reflect the organization's values and signal its goals to its customers, employees, suppliers, and community.

Students should attempt to improve the five weak statements. For example, an improved Eaton Corporation statement might read: “We are committed to manufacturing the highest quality parts for fluid power, electrical systems, and vehicles as well as to attracting and developing a diverse workforce.” Students might come up with something better!

Recently some corporations (e.g., Disney or Unilever) have been criticized for politicizing their mission statements by infusing their brands with a social or environmental purpose.

Ben & Jerry’s, an independent subsidiary of Unilever, has gotten into hot water over its strong stance on Israel’s settlement policy and for taking sides in domestic politics. Its mission statement, particularly the “euphoric concoctions,” reflects the ice cream maker’s traditionally quirky philosophy. The Wall Street Journal has questioned whether each of the 400 brands Unilever owns really needs a mission statement. [Chaudhuri, S. (2022, May 20). Does your mayo need a mission statement? The Wall Street Journal].

While some people may dislike businesses that act politically, some constituents and stakeholders may welcome such a commitment.

Indeed’s editorial team lists 54 mission statements of mostly well-known business organizations and nonprofits [Indeed Editorial Team. (2022, December 12). 54 powerful mission statement examples]. Students could be asked to evaluate a good number of these mission statements based on the criteria established in Figure 13.2 and reiterated in this activity (13.8). Although Indeed calls these mission statements “powerful,” some are less than memorable or inspired. Students could be asked to revise some of the mission statements they may find lacking.

13.9 Business Plan: Ready for the Shark Tank? (L.O. 3) The assignment culminates with a full-fledged business plan but could include intermediate stages with deliverables such as a work plan, a discussion of team responsibilities, a schedule, and a progress report. The final deliverables could include a written business plan and an oral presentation pitching the product or service described in the business plan.

Keeping tabs on the proposed product or service at each stage is crucial. Students often need help in developing the subject or focus of their business plan. Requiring intermediate deliverables ensures that the resulting student-generated documents are authentically and ethically prepared.

13.10 Executive Summary: Boiling Down a Peer-Reviewed Article (L.O. 2, 3, 4) Responses will vary. Being able to identify the main idea of an article and learning how to write a succinct yet complete summary are important skills. Students often struggle with this assignment, and practice is necessary. It is worth pointing out that summarizing is also necessary when we use sources in academic papers and reports. Under APA rules, verbatim quoting is discouraged except for the most poignant passages or when an excerpt from the source is needed for its detailed discussion in an article. In most cases, researchers in the social sciences summarize and paraphrase instead of using word-for-word quotations. Also, the ability to summarize complex ideas after careful

close reading is an important check of comprehension. This is what makes executives summaries essential assignments. Another advantage is that they are quick-to-read assignments.

A variation of this assignment is giving students an article you select. After all students have submitted their summaries of that piece, it’s useful to discuss your observations with them, for example, if you notice that students are leaning on the original too heavily, having partially copied the wording of the text. Explaining effective paraphrasing is a teachable moment. Finally, to provide an example, write your own summary that you share with the students as a potential model document. Point out to them that many variations are possible, as long as they are accurate, clear, and concise. Impress upon students the need to paraphrase from memory—not by looking at the original and changing a word here and there or adopting the exact sentence structure of the article.

Selecting a few recent peer-reviewed articles in the various business disciplines from which students can choose will cut down on bot-generated summaries. Toward that goal, ask for a separate concluding statement indicating the students’ reaction to the article and a rationale for choosing it, if it was indeed self-selected.

13.11 Unsolicited Proposal: Requesting One-Time Funding (L.O. 1) Students are to write an unsolicited letter or memo proposal to an assistant dean who oversees student business clubs. The project may be completed individually or collaboratively.

13.12 Unsolicited Proposal: Keeping Valuables Safe in Residence Halls (L.O. 1, 2) For this activity students prepare an unsolicited proposal to an ASO officer who must be persuaded to give permission for the project. The writing task may be completed individually or collaboratively.

13.13 Formal Business Report: Expanding Internationally (L.O. 4-6) This popular research activity requires that students write formal reports based on information they first collect from secondary sources but subsequently relate to primary research (interviews). Certainly, if students were given concrete instructions about the nature of the business that seeks to expand its operations, the research and accompanying interview questions could be more focused and authentic.

When the assignment is narrowed down to specific countries and includes local informants, academic dishonesty is much less likely. The project may be completed individually or collaboratively. Alternatively, the target country could be selected by the instructor and assigned to the entire class; one or more informants with knowledge of the country could be invited to speak to the students in a Q & A informed by prior secondary research.

13.14 Proposals, Business Plans, and Formal Reports: Pick a Topic (L.O. 1–6) The list of report topics gives students a number of ideas for executive summaries, long reports, business plans, and proposals that can be written individually or collaboratively.

Close monitoring in the form of progress reports and brief summaries/commentaries describing students’ secondary research will safeguard academic integrity.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False: This answer is not so clear cut, however. You may relax the rules on professional attire only as long as you’re not in virtual meetings with customers and coworkers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, some workers famously dressed professionally only from the waist up. Generally, let the company culture guide your wardrobe choices. Still, keep in mind that just as you would dress for the job you are aspiring to while in the office, you might consider dressing for success from home as well. For one thing, many remote workers report that dressing professionally puts them in a frame of mind for productivity. Others, though, claim that dressing down puts them more at ease than dressing up does, making them more productive that way. We tend to err on the side of caution and advocate for smart casual (business casual) in both scenarios.

2. True. In North American workplaces, the first person should hold the door for whomever follows, regardless of gender or power status.

3. False. In an office, if everyone contributes and if you occasionally help yourself to the coffee or pastries, you are obligated to contribute. Always contribute your fair share toward group gifts, treats, or housekeeping.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Is it ethical for a student team to use a chat bot such as ChatGPT to write portions of its report? What does your school say about such a practice?

Topic 2: What category of proposal, solicited or unsolicited, is more likely to succeed, and why?

Topic 3: Why do experts refer to a business plan as a living document? Some have said that a business plan needs constant review and adjustment. What might account for such a short shelf life?

Topic 4: Why do business writers put so much effort into writing a formal report when its readers may never read it in full and instead expect to glean the gist of the document from the executive summary?

Topic 5: Should companies remain as neutral as possible, or should they take a stand on controversial topics of the day? Do you make any buying decisions based on how a company or brand is expressing support for causes that are dear to you?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Organization and Clarity

Research

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

References/Works Cited

Grammar and Spelling

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 11

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to emphasize the importance of soft skills and why they are becoming increasingly important in our knowledge-based economy. By developing soft skills— which include oral and written communications, listening proficiency, nonverbal communication, the ability to work in teams, and etiquette expertise—students will increase their ability to succeed in today’s digital age workplace. First, we explore the roles of team members and how to contribute to the productivity of the team. Next, we describe effective practices for collaborating in virtual teams, including planning and participating in virtual meetings. To familiarize students with the latest technologies used to connect employees around the globe, we describe the tools used to connect virtual teams, including voice conferencing, videoconferencing, Web conferencing, instant messaging, blogs, and wikis. Additionally, because listening is usually the least developed area of communication, we explore the effective listening techniques that are essential for workplace success. Finally, we stress the importance of paying attention to and interpreting the meaning of what others are saying, both verbally and nonverbally, to gain a competitive edge by demonstrating professionalism and business etiquette skills.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 2.1

Explain how you can contribute to successful team performance in the digital-age workplace.

Identify best practices for effective face-to-face and virtual meetings.

Name active listening skills.

Discuss how effective nonverbal communication can help you advance your career.

Describe how developing professionalism and business etiquette skills can give you a competitive edge.

2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: • •

Created a brand-new opening case about the textile innovator Evrnu to engage and invite students to think critically about the alarming environmental impact of the apparel industry and how they can make a difference as individuals.

Highlighted the importance of team skills in the contemporary workplace to help students thrive in a team-driven environment and in face-to-face as well as virtual meetings.

• • • • •

Emphasized the reach of collaboration facilitated by the latest virtual meeting technology in a global world of work, exemplified by companies that have eliminated physical offices.

Inserted a new section detailing Zoom-specific dos and don’ts and added coverage of Zoom fatigue to help students achieve proficiency in virtual meetings.

Boosted the coverage of workplace listening to impress upon students the need to develop and strengthen this often overlooked yet essential career skill.

Addressed sensitive nonverbal cues and changing perceptions of workplace etiquette, exemplified by body art such as tattoos and piercings.

Provided up-to-date guidance to students on acceptable workplace attire and professionalism in general, showing that emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills are the best safeguards against job losses to automation and AI.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 2. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Succeeding in Professional Teams (L.O. 2.1, PPT Slides 3–15, DISC: Teamwork) a. Hard skills refer to the technical expertise in your field. b. Soft skills include both oral and written communication skills. Soft skills also include other competencies such as listening proficiency, nonverbal behavior, and etiquette expertise. c. Around 72 percent of U.S. employees work in matrixed teams, which means that their job tasks are spread out across multiple teams, and they don’t always work with the same people or report to the same manager. d. Teams are formed for the following reasons: i.

Better decisions are made when group and team members contribute different expertise and perspectives. ii.

Faster responses are possible, as small groups and teams can act rapidly. iii.

Increased productivity results when team members are close enough to the action that they can see opportunities for improving efficiency. iv.

Greater buy-in is a byproduct of decisions that are arrived at jointly because members are committed to the solution and more willing to support it.

v. vi. vii.

Less resistance to change occurs when people have input into decisions, making them less hostile, aggressive, and resistant.

Improved employee morale and personal satisfaction are valuable outcomes of team success.

Reduced risks are possible when responsibility for a decision is diffused on a team.

e. Knowledge and information workers who struggle to set boundaries may experience collaborative overload, where constant interaction inflates their workload, they fall behind, and their performance suffers. f.

Virtual teams are remote collaborations with a group of dispersed people who, aided by communication technology, must accomplish shared tasks without faceto-face contact across geographic boundaries. g. Remote work has become so prevalent that a Spotify executive has called our time the Distributed Age. A Stanford scholar believes that the United States has entered a permanent working-from-home economy. h. There are five phases of team development. (Figure 2.1 outlines the five phases of team development and how a team might proceed through these steps to solve a problem and reach a decision.) i.

Forming – Members get to know each other and establish rules for working together. ii.

Storming – Members define their roles and plans for achieving goals; conflict may arise. iii.

Norming – Tensions subside, roles are clarified, and information is exchanged. iv.

Performing – Team reaches a state of high performance. v.

Adjourning – Also called Mourning, this stage marks the separation of team members after their work together is over.

i.

To be a productive and welcome member of a group, be prepared to perform the positive tasks described in Figure 2.2 and avoid the negative behaviors.

j.

A team player showing positive behavior: i.

Willingly establishes rules and abides by them ii.

Analyzes tasks and defines problems iii.

Strives to resolve differences iv.

Encourages a warm, supportive climate through praise and agreement v.

Summarizes points of understanding

k. A team player showing negative behavior: i.

Puts down the ideas of others ii.

Wastes time by bragging or going off topic iii.

Withdraws and refuses to participate in discussions

l.

Groupthink – faulty decision-making processes by team members who are overly eager to agree with one another i.

Successful teams use productive conflict, listening, and debate to arrive at the right answer. ii.

Groupthink results from members with similar backgrounds, lack of procedure, demands for a quick decision, and/or a leader who favors a specific outcome. iii.

Avoid groupthink through team diversity, open discussion, evaluation of alternative solutions, and contingency planning.

m. The method teams use to reach decisions greatly affects morale, commitment, and implementation success. i.

Majority: Majority wins via vote; leads to alienation and lack of commitment ii.

Consensus: Team members ultimately agree through discussion; time consuming, but results in commitment to implementation iii.

Minority: Subcommittee investigates and makes recommendation; saves time iv.

Averaging: Middle position reached through negotiation and compromise; most knowledgeable opinions may be lost v.

Authority rule with discussion: Leader listens to team ideas and decides; encourages lively discussion but requires a decisive leader n. Teams that do not work well together can increase frustration, lower productivity, and create employee dissatisfaction. o. Effective teams share some or all of the following characteristics: i.

Stay Small and Embrace Diversity ii.

Agree on a Purpose iii.

Establish Procedures iv.

Confront Conflict v.

Communicate Effectively vi.

Collaborate Rather Than Compete vii.

Accept Ethical Responsibilities viii.

Share Leadership p. Using the six-step plan for dealing with conflict illustrated in Figure 2.3 can save time and enhance team commitment.

Ethics Check: Social Loafing Haunts Teams How do you deal with a student who does sloppy work, misses team meetings, and fails to respond to texts, calls, or e-mails?

Answer: Social loafing or freeloading refers to the slacking off some people are guilty of once teamwork allows them to hide behind the effort of others whereas observable individual output is usually higher. Free-riding team members tend to be the most common complaint among students about teamwork. Establish clear ground rules for dealing with flaky group members but leave the handling of such situations to the team members themselves so that they learn how to deal with difficult participants. A gradual approach should be encouraged ranging from warnings to action that is more serious.

For instance, a smart policy is to allow the team to “fire” noncompliant members who then have to work on another project by himself or herself. Gauging the state of the collaboration early in the term by asking students to fill out a confidential teamwork evaluation form is also helpful.

Finally, the larger the student team, the greater the likelihood that someone will ride on the group’s coattails. Hence, it’s a good idea to limit team size to three or four members. From the beginning, emphasize to students who form teams of three, for example, that each person’s responsibility for the final document is 300 percent, not 33.3 percent.

II.

Making the Most of Face-to-Face and Virtual Meetings (L.O. 2.2, PPT Slides 16–26, DISC: Meetings) a. Business meetings consist of three or more people who assemble to pool information, solicit feedback, clarify policy, seek consensus, and solve problems. b. Workers on average spend at least three hours a week in meetings, and 92 percent of employees consider meetings unproductive and costly. c. Face-to-face meeting provides nonverbal cues and signals, making it the richest of available media. d. Determine the purpose of the meeting – no meeting should be called unless it is important, can’t wait, and requires an exchange of ideas. e. Select the meeting participants – the meeting purpose determines the number of participants. (Figure 2.4) For decision making, limit participant count to fewer than eight. f.

Attendees should include those with relevant information, those with authority to make decisions, those responsible for implementation, and representatives from those who will benefit from the decision.

g. Use digital calendars to make appointments, schedule meetings, track daily activities, and receive reminders. (Figure 2.5) h. Distribute an agenda and other information at least two days before a scheduled meeting. (Figure 2.6) A good agenda includes: i.

Date and location of meeting ii.

Start and end times

iii.

Brief description of each topic in order of priority, including the names of individuals who are responsible for performing some action

iv.

Proposed allotment of time per topic

v.

Any premeeting preparation expected of participants

i.

Start meetings promptly and open with introduction: goal, length of meeting, background, possible solutions, constraints, agenda, and ground rules.

j.

Typical ground rules: communicate openly, be supportive, listen carefully, participate fully, confront conflict frankly, silence digital devices, and follow the agenda.

k. Tips to move a meeting along include: i.

Use a parking lot list to avoid getting sidetracked. ii.

Remind participants to adhere to the agenda and schedule. iii.

When consensus is reached, summarize the position and verify agreement. l.

Tips for participating actively and productively include: i.

Arrive early, showing respect and organization. ii.

Come prepared, be ready to ask knowledgeable questions, and bring good ideas. iii.

Have a positive attitude and use positive body language. iv.

Contribute respectfully. v.

Wait for others to finish, showing respect and good manners. vi.

Keep your voice calm and pleasant, yet energetic, and avoid showing anger, keeping the focus on your ideas. vii.

Give credit to others and gain allies by doing so while enhancing your credibility. viii.

Use your cell phone, tablet, laptop, and other devices only for meetingrelated tasks. ix.

Help summarize the points you have noted during the meeting. x.

Express your views in the meeting, building trust. Don’t hold postmeeting sidebars that involve criticism or judgment. xi.

Follow up, complete your assignments efficiently.

m. Use this four-step process for handling conflict in meetings: i.

Encourage those who clash to make a complete case and question one another while other attendees listen. ii.

Summarize what was said. iii.

Invite comments from participants. iv.

Consider modifications or alternatives and reach consensus as a group. n. Effective meeting conclusion and follow-up involves: i.

Ending on time

ii. iii. iv.

Summarizing decisions and deadlines Agreeing on who is responsible for action items and by what time Distributing minutes within a couple of days after the meeting (Figure 2.7)

o. Additional skills and practices are important in virtual meetings (Figure 2.8). To prepare for virtual meetings, follow these suggestions: i.

Select most appropriate technology. ii.

Ensure that all participants are able to use the technology. iii.

Encourage log in 15 minutes early. iv.

Be aware of time zones. v.

Rotate meeting times. vi.

Decide what language to use. vii.

Explain Q&A procedures. viii.

Ensure speaker is clearly identified. ix.

Remind group to silence devices. x.

Don’t multitask. xi.

Anticipate limitations of technology. xii.

Manage turn-taking. xiii.

Humanize virtual meetings.

Ethics Check: The Team member Who Vanished You leave voicemail messages and send e-mails. No answer. What should you do?

Answer: Students should enjoy this discussion because it is a common problem when students work as part of a small team in a classroom to complete a task. Have them brainstorm about this scenario in small groups and report their conclusions to the entire class. Having this discussion early in the term can help avoid similar problems during the remainder of the semester. This situation can be a useful segue to a discussion of team projects and your policies in assessing them.

III.

The biggest problem here is that Shiloh is the committee chair and as such would be expected to exercise leadership, not simply disappear. The remaining members of the committee may need to document their attempts to contact the unresponsive chair, appoint a new leader, and notify their supervisor or mentoring faculty member. The team would need to wait for a few days before acting on the chance that the AWOL chair had a serious personal emergency that prevented communication.

Practicing Active Listening (L.O. 2.3, PPT Slides 27–34, DISC: Purpose; Teamwork; Meetings) a. Good listeners make good managers. b. The most effective form of listening is empathetic listening – sincerely striving to understand others’ viewpoints.

c. Truly listening to build trust and gain respect requires mindfulness, or being fully present. d. When listening to supervisors, don’t multitask or be distracted. Show interest, take notes, and ask questions. Avoid criticizing or arguing. e. Critical listening – listen to decide whether speaker’s message is fact, fiction, or opinion. f.

Discriminative listening – identify main ideas, understand a logical argument, and recognize the purpose of the message.

g. Employees trained in listening techniques are far more likely to elicit customer feedback and promote goodwill than untrained employees are. (Figure 2.9) h. The following bad habits and distractions can interfere with effective listening: i.

Physical barriers, including hearing disabilities, poor acoustics, and noisy surroundings ii.

Psychological barriers – a unique set of cultural, ethical, and personal values iii.

Language problems iv.

Nonverbal distractions, such as unusual clothing or mannerisms, body twitches, or radical hairstyles v.

Thought speed –because listeners can process between 400 to 800 words per minute but speakers talk at about 125 to 175 words per minute, the resulting lag time fosters daydreaming in a phenomenon known as the speech-thought differential vi.

Faking attention vii.

Grandstanding i. The following recommendations can help you become an active and effective listener: i.

Stop talking. ii.

Control the listening environment. iii.

Listen between the lines and validate emotion. iv.

Separate facts from opinions. v.

Ask clarifying questions. vi.

Paraphrase to increase understanding. vii.

Capitalize on lag time. viii.

Take notes to ensure retention. ix.

Adopt an empathic, humble attitude.

IV.

Communicating Nonverbally (L.O. 2.4, PPT Slides 35–40, DISC: Purpose; Cultural imperatives) a. Nonverbal communication includes all unwritten and unspoken messages, whether intended or not.

b. Nonverbal messages speak louder than words. c. Effective communicators ensure that nonverbal messages reinforce spoken words and professional goals. d. Your body sends silent messages. i.

Eye contact – Show attention and respect and reveal sincerity, confidence, and truthfulness. ii.

Facial expression – Be mindful of emotions displayed and how they align with your intentions. iii.

Posture and gestures – Use good posture and mirror the person to whom you’re talking. Be mindful of cultural differences in interpretation of posture and gestures. e. Time, space, and territory send silent messages: i.

Time – Arrive on time, stay on task, and give amply of your time. ii.

Space – Use space to convey the environment you wish to foster. iii.

Territory – Be aware of others’ zones of privacy as defined by Edward T. Hall: Intimate (1–1.5 feet), personal (1.5–4 feet), social (4–12 feet), and public (12 or more feet). (Figure 2.10) Be cognizant that some workers may be wary of physical proximity due to COVID-19. f.

Appearance sends silent messages: i.

Eye appeal of business documents – Avoid sloppy communication and use the appropriate appearance and format to convey messages. ii.

Personal appearance – Viewers judge your status, credibility, personality, and potential based upon personal appearance. Invest in appropriate, professional-looking clothing and accessories.

g. Tips for building strong nonverbal communication skills in the workplace checklist: i.

Establish and maintain eye contact. ii.

Use posture to show interest. iii.

Reduce or eliminate physical barriers. iv.

Improve your decoding skills. v.

Probe for more information. vi.

Interpret nonverbal meanings in context. vii.

Associate with people from diverse cultures. viii.

Appreciate the power of appearance. ix.

Observe yourself on video. x.

Enlist friends and family.

Ethics Check: Sending Nonverbal Cues to Your Instructor Is it fair to say that classroom conduct is naturally different from workplace behavior?

Answer: Even if told repeatedly, students often don’t make the connection between behavioral guidelines they read about in their textbooks and their own practice in the classroom. They also tend to forget that they are being watched and evaluated almost as much as they will be in the workplace. Although the classroom is a training ground simulating the workplace, it ought to be taken seriously as a professional environment. Naturally, this means that instructors should lead by example.

V.

Developing Professionalism and Business Etiquette Skills On-Site and Online (L.O. 2.5, PPT Slides 41–48, DISC: Purpose; Teamwork) a. Professionalism describes desirable workplace behavior, such as being considerate, respectful, reliable, honest, prompt, well-groomed, and selfmotivated. b. Business etiquette is about your desire to show others consideration, courtesy, and respect. c. There are costs associated with incivility: i.

Absenteeism or tardiness can be grounds for dismissal. ii.

Employees may sabotage their careers with unprofessional language. iii.

You are more likely to be taken seriously and promoted if you maintain a professional image. d. Projecting and maintaining a professional image can make a real difference in helping you obtain and retain the job of your dreams. (Figure 2.12) e. Because workplace rudeness has been shown to turn customers away, businesses are responding to increasing incidents of desk rage and cyberbullying in the workplace by establishing policies to enforce civility. f.

Use these pointers to polish your social competencies: i.

Use polite words. ii.

Express sincere appreciation and praise. iii.

Be selective in sharing personal information. iv.

Don't put people down. v.

Respect coworkers' space. vi.

Rise above others' rudeness. vii.

Be considerate when sharing space and equipment. viii.

Choose the high road in conflict. ix.

Disagree agreeably.

g. There are six main dimensions of professional behavior that will ease your entry into the world of work. (Figure 2.13)

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as wholeclass discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Multitasking (L.O. 2.1) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Cal Newport, computer scientist and author, blames open-office layouts and relentless collaboration for a decline in concentrated deep thinking. He cites research suggesting that even short interruptions significantly increase the total time needed to complete a task. Other studies show that multitasking not only drags out work but reduces its quality. One researcher believes that jumping from one task to another reduces efficiency because of “attention residue.” As the mind turns to a new task, it is still thinking about the old task. b. Are you easily distracted? What techniques help you concentrate? i. Answer: Students’ answers will vary. Many will probably dispute that multitasking is problematic, as they tend to check their screens and communicate with others while studying and listening to music.

Neuroscientists have found that it isn’t possible to fully multitask because the brain cannot complete two cognitive tasks at exactly the same time. It must switch between them—fast, if necessary—but they are never simultaneous. Some students may prefer to study without playing music, while others will swear that they can concentrate only when they listen to music. Some students may need solitude, while others prefer the din of public spaces.

2. Discussion: Beware of Meetings (L.O. 2.2) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Evaluate the following humorous analogy between the murder of a famous Roman emperor and the deadening effect of meetings: “This month is the 2,053rd anniversary of the death of Julius Caesar, who pronounced himself dictator for life before running the idea past the Roman Senate. On his way to a meeting, he was met by a group of senators who, wishing to express their unhappiness with his vocational aspirations, stabbed him to death. Moral of the story: Beware of meetings.” b. Is the comparison fitting? What might the author of the article have wanted to convey? i. Answer: The author of this article, who is critical of meetings, uses humor to mock meetings, which are almost universally disliked. He opens his article with this rather incongruous comparison between a momentous historical event, the assassination of mighty Julius Caesar in ancient Rome, and mundane meetings. The humor in part stems from the obviously absurd analogy; at the same time, most detractors of unproductive meetings will smile at the exaggeration and identify with the

underlying sentiment. Some of the humor also arises from the author’s clever use of language: Julius Caesar’s momentous dictatorial power grab is described as the emperor’s failing to obtain the opinion of the Senate. The violent response to Caesar’s coup is rendered jocularly as the senators “wishing to express their unhappiness with his vocational aspirations.”

3. Discussion: Listening as Executives and Managers (L.O. 2.3) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Good listeners make good managers. b. Why do executives and managers spend more time listening than do workers? i. Answer: Before they can make decisions, executives must listen to feedback from supervisors, specialists, and others. They also listen to their bosses—boards of directors and owners—and they might also need to listen to customers, especially when handling serious complaints.

Minds are like parachutes; they work well only when open. All three levels of workers should have good listening skills, but because the decisions coming from executives’ listening may be more critical, their skills should perhaps be most highly developed.

4. Discussion: Is Body Language a Science? (L.O. 2.4) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Understanding messages often involves more than merely listening to spoken words. Nonverbal cues, in fact, can speak louder than words. Psychologist and philosopher Paul Watzlawick claimed that we cannot not communicate. This means that every behavior is sending a message even if we don’t use words.

The eyes, face, and body convey meaning without a single syllable being spoken. b. What arguments could you give for or against the idea that body language is a science with principles that specialists can interpret accurately? i. Answer: Although few would argue that body language does not send silent messages, no scientific principles have evolved explaining exactly what those messages mean. Most researchers agree that nonverbal cues contain much information, but specifically what those cues mean is unknown. Authors Hickson and Stacks said, “The nonverbal message by itself may be ambiguous; in almost every instance it needs the verbal message to complete the process of communication.” [1993. Nonverbal communication. Dubuque, IA: Brown and Benchmark, p. 8.] Julius Fast, author of the precedent-setting Body Language, stated that “nonverbal language is partly instinctive, partly taught and partly imitative.” [1971.

New York: Pocket Books, p. 14.] However, it is not a science with principles that always hold true. Most communicators tend to believe nonverbal messages over verbal messages when the messages are in conflict. The Chinese have a profound proverb: Be wary of the man

whose belly does not move when he laughs. People who are sincerely laughing show it with their entire bodies, not just their faces.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Innovator Evrnu—Collaborating to Make Fashion Sustainable (Part 1): In this case study, students will read a description of Lyft’s approach to strategic partnerships, hiring, and teams. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. How do you feel about the tremendous environmental cost of fashion?

Answer: It is possible that most students have not heard about the dark side of fashion.

Answers will vary. It is to be hoped that students will be appropriately shocked and perhaps start thinking about how they themselves contribute to the global demand for inexpensive, “throwaway” garments, called fast fashion, and how—if they change their own behavior as consumers—they could perhaps become part of the solution. This aspect is addressed in Part 2 of this case scenario. b. How else could the pollution and waste problem of apparel production be addressed?

Answer: Relying on technological solutions alone to tackle the second-largest source of global pollution would be naïve. Certainly, with its innovative approach, Evrnu is showing the way to a more sustainable future, but ultimately the demand side needs to step up— the consumers. Although it is clear that many of us might not want to hold on to garments “forever,” buying fewer clothing items of higher quality and wearing them longer could be a start. The bottom line is that we all will need to work together to use less, to reuse, and to recycle, which is conceivable without causing deprivation or cramping one’s personal style. More on this in Part 2 of the case. c. Why is Evrnu partnering with much larger organizations such as Levi’s or Adidas?

Answer: As Evrnu is growing, it needs vast amounts of capital for its labs as well as the South Carolina research and development facility. Being able to scale up the reuse of clothing requires strategic partnerships, especially in capital-intensive research and development. Few companies have the resources to tackle complex projects by themselves, such as addressing global excess in the production of apparel and its wastefulness at the end of its short life cycle. Partnering with well-known global brands increases Evrnu’s reach and effectiveness. The company can evaluate whether such partnerships can be scaled up to include expansion to other cities in the United States and worldwide, wherever clothing is produced, and textile waste is generated.

Case Study: Innovator Evrnu—Collaborating to Make Fashion Sustainable (Part 2): In this case study, students consider sustainability of the garment industry and those who profess to be sustainable and those who take steps to be sustainable. Students are to research, individually or in teams, various clothing companies and their efforts to be sustainable, then write a report about what effort theyj8 would consider making to encourage change. What efforts would their families be willing to make?

Answer: Efforts at the individual level could be summarized by “less is more.” As the UN suggests, the only way to make fashion sustainable is to end the throwaway culture [United Nations. (2019, March 25). UN launches drive to highlight environmental cost of staying fashionable. UN News, Climate and Environment].

If shoppers opted for fewer items of clothing of higher quality—clothes that, unlike fast fashion, would be worn more than five times on average—carbon emissions could be reduced by as much as 400 percent per item per year [Patil, M. (2021, July 1). The 5 pillars this entrepreneur used to build a sustainable fashion brand. Entrepreneur].

One argument is worth discussing—whether buying cheaply and in bulk is better for people of limited means than purchasing just a few durable items that can be matched and worn beyond one season. Quantity offers variety and a low price, but it fails to deliver on quality and levies a huge invisible cost at the expense of the environment. Not only is it more wasteful to take part in fast fashion, but ultimately it might be equally expensive or potentially more expensive than obtaining more lasting quality for slightly more money.

Sustainable fashion advocates argue that not all ecological fashion trends are costlier than fast fashion. They also insist that Gen Z is embracing sustainable fashion best described by the motto “Be responsible, buy less but better” [Patwa, P. (2020, June 16). Generation Z’s new rage is sustainable fashion. Entrepreneur].

Another option is to patronize retailers who follow the five principles described in the case scenario, specifically to buy garments with third-party certifications. Even just buying from companies that follow at least some sustainability principles would be a start: H&M (a plan for garment collection), Guess Jeans (wardrobe recycling), Patagonia (making polyester from recycled bottles); the Swiss firm Freitag (upcycling of tarps, seat belts etc. to make bags and backpacks); and the Canadian firm Novel Supply (a “take-back scheme” to recycle customers’ returned clothing) [United Nations, 2019]. Consumers would probably recycle their discarded clothes in greater numbers if more collection sites or recycling containers were available.

Consumers reluctant to forego the variety of fast fashion could consider renting clothing. Already, upscale clothing-rental companies have sprung up, such as Rent the Runway, that are satisfying the desire for frequent retail shopping while offering sustainability. Alternatively, some people enjoy hunting for fashionable pieces at affordable thrift stores that benefit various charities. Wearing quality second-hand clothes can be “edgy” while helping the environment and ethical employment practices.

The closed-loop clothing purveyor For Days likewise set out to combat wastefulness of the $1.5 trillion global fashion industry by up-cycling clothes to prevent them from piling up in homes and landfills. For Days has a swap program allowing customers to switch out any piece of clothing at any time and for any reason. Every item that’s sent back is eventually recycled. High-quality, sustainable materials, reusable packaging, and carbon offsets minimize waste [Breen, A. (2021, December 30). This fashion founder’s company will take back any piece of clothing at any time for any reason. Here’s why. Entrepreneur].

For latest trends in the fashion industry, including sustainability, students could peruse The State of Fashion published annually by consultancy McKinsey. One notable emerging trend discussed in the latest report is gender-fluid fashion. Another prediction is that daily office attire will become yet more casual, influenced as it is by remote work [Amed, I., André, S., Balchandani, A., Berg, A., & Rölkens, F. (2022, November 29). The state of fashion 2023: Holding onto growth as global clouds gather. McKinsey.]

This assignment could be turned into a larger, more complex research task in conjunction with Chapters 12 and 13. To thwart ChatGPT, make the directions specific and ask for sources after 2021. Even if some students begin by prompting the bot for help, the outcome will be noticeably vague, general, and as mechanical (if serviceable) as a basic five-paragraph essay.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. Journalist Kate Murphy is an expert on listening and the author of You’re Not Listening: What You’re Missing and Why It Matters. She believes that listening is a skill we can acquire although some people may have a stronger natural propensity while others may have to work harder at it. Learning to truly listen can serve us well on the job because it can help us “understand other people’s attitudes and motivations, which is essential in building cooperative and productive relationships, as well as discerning which relationships [we’d] be better off avoiding” [Murphy, K. (2020, January 9). Talk less.

Listen more. Here’s how. The New York Times].

This particular workplace savvy seems indispensable in an age of teaming and collaboration.

2.

Answers may vary. Although students may not have extensive work experience, they have likely sat in large classes and participated in smaller groups as well—enough to recognize that the more a team expands, the less nimble it is. Agreeing on a course of action simply takes time if the group is large. However, the critical thinkers among your students may question Michael Mankins precise “math.”

Mankins has determined that seven is the highest number of participants for decisionmaking and his percentage of increasing inefficiency may seem arbitrary and hyperbolic. Surely it would be difficult to measure exactly how much efficiency decreases with each new team member—not to mention that efficiency may be directly correlated with group members’ expertise and collaboration skills and not absolutely hinge on the number of participants. You could point out to students that experts sometimes exaggerate to achieve a memorable effect.

Hyperbole can be a rhetorical device, an element of style.

Former Wall Street Journal columnist Sue Shellenbarger provided us with the following formula for optimal meeting size depending on purpose: • Problem-solving: four to six people • Decision-making: four to seven people • Agenda setting: five to 15 people • Brainstorming/idea generating: ten to 20 people [Stone, M. (2018, July 3). Who should be at the table? Tips for selecting your meeting attendees. Atlassian blog.]

3.

Students’ answers will vary. Many will probably dispute that multitasking is problematic as they tend to check their screens, communicating with others, while studying and listening to music. Neuroscientists have found that it isn’t possible to fully multitask because the brain cannot complete two cognitive tasks at exactly the same time. It must switch between them—fast, if necessary—but they are never simultaneous. Some students may prefer to study without playing music while others will swear that they can concentrate only when they listen to music. Some students may need solitude while others prefer the din of public spaces.

4.

Although few would argue that body language does send silent messages, no scientific principles have evolved explaining exactly what those messages mean. Most researchers agree that nonverbal cues contain much information, but specifically what those cues mean is unknown. Authors Hickson and Stacks said, “The nonverbal message by itself may be ambiguous; in almost every instance it needs the verbal message to complete the process of communication.” [1993. Nonverbal communication.

Dubuque, IA: Brown and Benchmark, p. 8.] Julius Fast, author of the precedent-setting Body Language, stated that “nonverbal language is partly instinctive, partly taught and partly imitative” [1971. New York: Pocket Books, p. 14]. But it is not a science with principles that always hold true. Most communicators tend to believe nonverbal messages over verbal messages when the messages are in conflict. The Chinese have a profound proverb: Be wary of the man whose belly does not move when he laughs.

People who are sincerely laughing show it with their entire bodies, not just their faces.

5.

Although the brash types are all over the news and, in their arrogance, sometimes harm or destroy their companies, the unpretentious and humble leaders toil in obscurity, inspiring close teamwork and high performance of their teams. Experts such as Fast Company co-founder Bill Taylor lament that “[w]e live in a world where ego gets

attention, but modesty gets results. Where arrogance makes headlines, but humility makes a difference.”

Taylor poses these questions to leaders or aspiring leaders: “Are we confident enough to stay humble? Are we strong enough to admit we don’t have all the answers?” Taylor believes that being humble and ambitious is not mutually exclusive; on the contrary, “humility in the service of ambition is the most effective and sustainable mindset for leaders who aspire to do big things in a world filled with huge unknowns,” he says.

Taylor also cites HR professionals at IBM who coined the term “humbition,” meaning “one part humility and one part ambition.” These IBM managers concluded that “by far the lion’s share of world-changing luminaries are humble people” who “focus on the work, not themselves. They seek success—they are ambitious—but they are humbled when it arrives…. They feel lucky, not all-powerful.”

Humility may seem soft, and leaders may appear vulnerable, but Taylor and others believe that such vulnerability is a virtue, that the most effective leaders don’t pretend they have all the answers. They get the best ideas from the right people, whoever they may be [Taylor, B. (2018, October 15). If humility is so important, why are leaders so arrogant? Harvard Business Review].

ACTIVITIES 2.1 Team Decisions: Majority, Minority, Consensus, or What? (L.O. 1) More than one strategy may be appropriate for these situations. Following are recommendations: a. Minority b. Majority c. Minority (committee decision) d. Majority would work, but consensus would be better. e. Consensus f. Majority g. Majority would work, but consensus would be better. h. Authority rule with discussion 2.2 Resolving Conflict: Putting the Six-Step Procedure to the Test (L.O. 1 Students should apply the following six-step procedure: (1) Listen to each person’s position to ensure you understand the problem. (2) Understand the other’s point of view. Ask questions and paraphrase what you hear. (3) Show a concern for the relationship. Show an understanding of the other person’s situation and needs. (4) Look for common ground. Look for a solution to which both sides can agree. (5) Create new problem-solving options, if necessary. (6) Reach an agreement based on what’s fair. Encourage students to role-play two or more of the scenarios.

2.3 H for Humility: Taking the HEXACO Personality Inventory – Revised (L.O. 1, 3) Results will vary. We recommend that you take the test for the experience so that you are able to assess the students’ results. The inventory strikes us as remarkably accurate, if the questions are answered sincerely and honestly. The results in each category or factor are explained on the HEXACO website and help the respondents interpret their scores. Aside from creating awareness of students’ character traits and presenting individuals with potentially surprising results, students can compare their scores with others’ outcomes— those of all other test takers and within the class. Naturally, discussions of personal characteristics could be far-reaching, but it’s best to focus on business. One businessrelevant factor, Honesty-Humility and two of its subcategories (Sincerity and Modesty) from the inventory, are presented here: Persons with very high scores on the Honesty-Humility scale avoid manipulating others for personal gain, feel little temptation to break rules, are uninterested in lavish wealth and luxuries, and feel no special entitlement to elevated social status. Conversely, persons with very low scores on this scale will flatter others to get what they want, are inclined to break rules for personal profit, are motivated by material gain, and feel a strong sense of selfimportance.

Sincerity assesses a tendency to be genuine in interpersonal relations. Low scorers will flatter others or pretend to like them in order to obtain favors, whereas high scorers are unwilling to manipulate others.

The Modesty scale assesses a tendency to be modest and unassuming. Low scorers consider themselves as superior and as entitled to privileges that others do not have, whereas high scorers view themselves as ordinary people without any claim to special treatment.

This factor and its subcategories may lead to fruitful discussions, as students’ views of businesspeople tend to be stereotypical, shaped by perceptions of ruthless tycoons as the most successful bosses (think The Apprentice, The Wolf of Wall Street, or its older predecessor from 1987, Wall Street).

Yet research suggests that leaders who exhibit honesty and humility are more successful than bullies are. Their teams tend to outperform those led by unscrupulous, aggressive types. Leaders exhibiting humility are better listeners. They are able to coax others to contribute, foster rapid learning, and create a safe environment for the expression of alternative, creative ideas.

Note: When users download the PDF version of the online results, the helpful explanations of the factors are not saved alongside the results. They should be copied online first and saved in a separate file. The PDF document does contain some general explanations of the testing methodology, however.

Alternatively, if the HEXACO assessment seems too complex to do, try a simple poll measuring humility created by Hogan Assessment Systems. Present students with the following six questions. When the students complete their answers, provide them with the general answer that follows the questions, and discuss the humility factors defined by the questions: POLL: HOW HUMBLE ARE YOU? Do you agree or disagree with these statements?

1. I appreciate other people’s advice at work.

2. It’s not my job to applaud others’ achievements.

3. People lose respect when they admit their limitations.

4. I am entitled to more respect than the average person.

5. I do many things better than almost everyone I know.

6. It annoys me when others ignore my accomplishments.

Answer: People high in humility tend to agree with Item 1 and disagree with Items 2 through 6.

Source: Hogan Assessment Systems [This activity is based on Shellenbarger, S. (2018, October 9). The best bosses are humble bosses. The Wall Street Journal.]

Sample tweets: Canadian researchers have created a personality inventory. Take the free test to measure your aptitude for business leadership Take the HEXACO personality inventory to assess your humility score and other leadership factors.

2.4 Making Meetings Productive (L.O. 2) a. Donte likes to make long-winded statements and often digresses to unrelated subjects.

Answer: At the beginning of the meeting, lay down the rules and warn that speakers who digress will be interrupted. Create a list of important but divergent issues that you propose to tackle later. If the behavior persists, address the entire group and state that the team is veering off track and bring the group back to the original topic. b. Charlize keeps interrupting other speakers and dominates the discussion.

Answer: b. Wait for a pause and then break in. Thank Charlize for her thoughts and summarize briefly the previous comments or ask someone else for an opinion. Direct your eye contact to the person whose opinion you are seeking. c. Kamden and Simeon are hostile toward each other and clash over an agenda item.

Answer: Let both state their cases and allow them to question each other while group members give their full attention. Summarize what was said and invite the group to offer comments. d. Rogelio arrives 15 minutes late and noisily unpacks his briefcase.

Answer: Allow Rogelio to settle down before involving him in the discussion of an agenda item he is able to follow. Do not fill him in about the items he missed. e. Sofia, Emilee, and Armani are reading e-mails and texting under the table.

Answer: If possible, set the rules before or at the beginning of the meeting, including turning off or silencing all mobile devices. Don’t embarrass offending individuals but try to involve them in the discussion. For example, calmly ask them a direct question within their specific expertise if the opportunity presents itself. f. Emma is quiet, although she is taking notes and seems to be following the discussion attentively.

Answer: Draw Emma out by asking her opinion or pose a specific question that you are sure she will be able to answer confidently. Give her positive feedback, if warranted, to encourage her participation. g. Adrian, a well-known office clown, is telling off-color jokes while others are discussing the business at hand.

Answer: As the meeting leader, plan to seat Adrian strategically—next to you. Avoid seating him at the head of the table or at the far end of the room. In addition, you may want to talk to Adrian before the meeting or during a break about the dangers of telling inappropriate jokes in the workplace. Ask Adrian to take the meeting minutes to keep him occupied. If someone else is the recorder, tactfully ask Adrian’s opinion on the agenda item being discussed. h. The meeting time is up, but the group has not met the objective of the meeting.

Answer: Concisely summarize the decisions that the group has made, and state who will be responsible for specific action items. Postpone unfinished business until the next meeting. Before ending the meeting promptly, set the date and time of the next meeting. Thank the participants for attending.

2.5 Scheduling Meetings With Doodle Polls (L.O. 2) Answer: Results will vary. The idea is to expose students to this useful scheduling tool.

Once the team leaders create their free accounts, they can generate a Web link to send to the other members who don’t need to have a Doodle account. To allow each individual to try Doodle, throughout the term assign other potential events, for example, a service-learning meeting, mock interviews at the career center, or a research meeting at the college library that all entail finding a date and time that fit the schedules of all or most invitees.

To give everyone an opportunity to try Doodle, rotate the responsibility for sending out a scheduling poll among all students. If class size is an issue, this assignment could be completed in pairs or groups of three. To enable you to check for completion of the assignment, you could ask students to include you among the invitees and, once the poll is complete, to share the selected date, time, and location of the meeting or event with you.

When2meet is similar to Doodle; the site sustains itself through donations and advertising.

Like other applications and platforms, Microsoft 365 includes a Scheduling Poll, but users must have a business account to access calendars of meeting attendees in the same

organization. Slack allows users to connect Outlook Calendar and Google Calendar for scheduling meetings.

2.6 Managing Meetings That Don’t Suck (L.O. 2) Answer: Answers will vary, but most will support the advice provided in this book. Mark Zuckerberg has improved meeting efficiency at Meta. Erstwhile Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg praised her former boss. The changes he instituted are the following: (1) Send relevant materials in advance to the attendees and (2) Set a goal at the start of the meeting [Feloni, R. (2015, December 16). How Mark Zuckerberg made meetings better at Facebook.

Business Insider].

Some titles of articles or blog posts are descriptive: “Make your meetings hyperproductive and fun” (Dave Logan, CBS News) or “Let’s call off the meeting and get back to work” (Andy Kessler, The Wall Street Journal). In a recent Harvard Business Review piece, Morten T. Hansen advocates rigorous discussion as a remedy for fruitless meetings (“How to have a good debate in a meeting”).

Elon Musk is known for his ruthless bluntness and strong dislike of meetings. He is said to have confronted a meeting participant: “You haven’t said anything. Why are you here?” [Jackson, A. (2017, October 3). Elon Musk has reportedly used a brutal tactic to keep from wasting time in meetings. Business Insider.]

Musk’s advice is to get rid of large meetings and retain only those that provide value to the entire audience, in which case they should be very short. He urges his employees to do away with frequent meetings unless urgency dictates that they be held. Not known for his polish or subtlety, Musk also gives businesspeople license to simply walk out of an unproductive meeting: “It is not rude to leave. It is rude to make someone stay and waste their time” [Zipkin, N. (2018, April 19). Why Elon Musk hates meetings. Entrepreneur].

2.7 Five-Minute Meetings: The Answer to Meeting Bloat? (L.O. 2) Answer: Answers will vary. Students may come up with creative methods to ensure turntaking and participation by instituting a system of sanctions and rewards. They may realize that not all companies or industries may be able or willing to hold super short daily meetings.

Rather, this type of extremely short meeting seems most suitable for highly creative, designand tech-heavy occupations that enjoy a great deal of independence.

Conversely, following the military example, tightly run, somewhat authoritarian organizations might do well with standing meetings. As for punishing tardiness and other transgressions, it appears that small penalties such as paying $1 into an office coffee kitty or being subjected to a mildly humiliating or unflattering activity such as singing a corny song would suffice. You could try five-minute mini meetings at the beginning of class to capture students’ attention when making important announcements or giving instructions.

Even proponents of the efficient five-minute scrum admit that something is lost in the process. The extremely short time does not allow for any kind of socializing or friendly banter. The CEO at e-commerce firm Netamorphosis in New York, Lyde Spann, says that “meetings used to be a time to connect. You’d ask people how their weekend was. You build relationships. We run the risk of missing that.”

Spann compensates for the abruptness of cutting off meeting participants by huddling with them later. She also schedules time off on Fridays for socializing and monthly “check-ins” to allow employees to express their feelings and receive reinforcement.

[Shellenbarger, S. (2017, November 7). Can you keep your meeting to five minutes? The Wall Street Journal]. Last, mini meetings are suitable only for routine decision-making, not for complex problem-solving.

2.8 Virtual Meetings: Keeping the Team Engaged (L.O. 2) Answers: a. Setting a more reasonable start time for the Phoenix office (no earlier than 11 Eastern, which would have been a bright and early 8 am in Phoenix) would have shown courtesy to the participants who are subject to Mountain Standard Time. b. Asking participants to log in early may have helped to avoid the delay in starting the meeting. c. Waiting for participants and delaying the presentation wasted the time of those who signed in on time. d. Reminding participants of ground rules such as turning off or muting all phones and not checking e-mail during the meeting may have encouraged participants to focus and be more involved. e. Using interactivity may have prevented group members from losing interest. A technique such as round-robin, in which all participants speak one after the other, would have elicited more active participation and discouraged multitasking. f. Distributing materials prior to the meeting would have given participants the opportunity to prepare questions and be more involved during the session. g. Keeping the video call shorter than one hour and instead making time for feedback would have helped engage Kelsey’s remote team members.

2.9 Virtual Meetings: Video Call to Clarify an Order (L.O. 2) Answer: This simulation should proceed smoothly assuming that after the pandemic each participating student is familiar with Zoom, Microsoft Teams, FaceTime, or Skype. Students could be asked to create or be given brief scripts, each defining the individual participant’s role and motivation. This should help them assume Mr. Frommer’s and his caller’s personas.

The script could also include instructions detailing the botched order and its correct version.

Each participating student should create or receive his or her own script independently, thus allowing parties to respond spontaneously and realistically to each other.

One conversation partner should step outside and converse by Zoom, Skype, or FaceTime in a quiet area to minimize interference and noise. Zoom, FaceTime, and Skype conversations can be recorded and reviewed. Information about Life Fitness and its family of brands is available on the company website. After the video call, the class should discuss the interaction between the partners. For added interest, additional players in various roles could be added to create a multiuser teleconference with or without a camera.

2.10 Listening Survey: How Good a Listener Are You? (L.O. 3) Answer: Share the explanation of the scores with the students: The meaning of your listening habits score The higher your score, the lower your listening skills. The closer your score is to 45, the highest possible score, the more strongly you probably need a skills upgrade. By contrast, the lower your score is, the better your listening skills.

Fewer than 20 points would indicate strong listening skills.

A score near 25 would be on the lower end of normal listening skills.

Above 25 indicates significant room for improvement of listening.

A score of 35 or above likely indicates significant listening deficits.

[Source: Heitler, S. (2011, November). The art of listening: How open are your ears?

Psychology Today.]

The listening stick is a tool executive coach Amy Jen Su is using to break her clients’ bad habits by making the business leaders more mindful. She says that better listening is a conscious choice, a mindset. She believes that self-awareness is a crucial first step.

[Source: Stibitz, S. (2015, January 30). How to really listen to your employees. Harvard Business Review.]

Students may find the listening stick or stone to be an unnatural constraint or even a gimmick, but the object only serves to drive home the point that some of us tend to dominate the conversation while our conversation partners may be silenced in the process. The listening object eliminates interruptions and aggressive turn-taking.

In addition to the best practices for more effective listening presented in this book, students could be asked to look for reputable articles or posts that offer advice on further improving listening skills. Presenting oral or written summaries, the students could review the tips their sources provide.

2.11 Becoming a Better Listener With TED (L.O. 3) Answer: This assignment is plagiarism-resistant and invites students to explore their listening skills. As an alternative to Julian Treasure’s interesting TED Talks, students could be asked to test their recall by using one of the award-winning author’s blog posts. To provide additional options, you could ask students to view the TED talk by Alex Doman, an expert in the practical application of sound and listening, who has co-written Healing at the Speed of Sound, a book on “how we can use music and silence to become more efficient, productive, relaxed, and healthy.”

Another passionate advocate for silence and mindful listening is MIT professor Sherry Turkle, whose TED Talk is entertaining and informative. In her book Alone Together, Turkle

argues that we form infinite shallow relationships online but remain without deep connection with the people around us. Journalist Kate Murphy, author of You’re Not Listening: What You’re Missing and Why It Matters has given an engaging interview on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show, also available on YouTube; Murphy has written opinion pieces in The New York Times and other publications that could be used for this listening and retention exercise. Another intriguing TED Talk is Susan Cain’s presentation based on her bestseller Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.

A search on YouTube or the TED portal reveals numerous other TED Talks on silence and listening. Most experts agree that active listening is in short supply and even waning— paradoxically, it seems, on account of mobile communication technology and social media.

At the same time, these authorities in the field believe that people can be trained to become better listeners. They provide tips on how to improve listening skills.

2.12

Deciphering Nonverbal Cues: Is It a Cinch? (L.O. 4)

Answer: These nonverbal cues or body movements do not necessarily mean the same thing when used by different individuals. Remember that to a certain degree nonverbal communication can be culture or subculture specific, and context always plays a major role in the interpretation of this type of communication. Students may have other interpretations, but these body movements can be construed to mean the following: a. Leaning back in the chair, figure four leg cross, hands cupping the back of the head: confident, dominant, arrogant b. Bowed posture, twiddling thumbs: bored, impatient c. Steepled hands, sprawling sitting position: contemplative or relaxed d. Rubbing hand through hair: frustrated or nervous e. Chin up, forehead back, looking down one’s nose: feeling superior, being skeptical f. Wringing hands, tugging ears: upset or nervous g. Twitching, sweating: anxious, fearful h. Fidgeting, darting eyes: nervous, fearful, impatient 2.13 Nonverbal Communication: Casual Wear at Work (L.O. 4) Answer: This activity can be expanded into an informational report topic. A variation on this activity relies on student experiences. In virtual settings, instead of conducting interviews in the community, students can organize a forum discussion among their peers who work, asking them to comment on casual-dress policies in the jobs or internships they have held.

Naturally, interviewing can be conducted in virtual meetings.

2.14 Nonverbal Communication Around the World (L.O. 4) Answer: Students should be able to find a number of gestures and their meanings discussed at various websites. Here is one example: “The fingertip kiss, in which the tips of the thumb and fingers are kissed and quickly moved forward away from the face, is a sign of affection and may be used as a greeting in Sicily and Portugal. The fingertip kiss is not used often in Italy and the British Isles, but it is common in France, Germany, Greece, and Spain

to signify praise” [Martin, J., & Chaney, L. (2006). Global business etiquette. Westport, CT: Praeger, p. 53].

An example for a changing meaning of a gesture, a narrowing, is the OK or A-OK sign. The formerly neutral finger-thumb pinch has recently become associated with white supremacy.

The Anti-Defamation League has placed the OK hand sign on its list of hate symbols [OK hand sign added to list of hate symbols. (2019, September 27). BBC News]. Although the far-right has appropriated the traditional gesture, context matters, as is true for most nonverbal cues. In the United States, the gesture still mainly signifies that everything is all right.

However, in Brazil the same OK sign is considered vulgar and offensive. So is the fingerscrossed sign in Vietnam. The “V” for victory in World War II became the peace sign during protests worldwide. Yet in parts of the British Commonwealth, the outward-facing V sign is the equivalent of giving someone the finger; similarly, the thumbs-up gesture in the Middle East, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and other countries is considered obscene [Anderson, D., Stuart, M., Abadi, M., & Gal, S. (2019, January 5). 5 everyday hand gestures that can get you in serious trouble outside the US. Business Insider].

This is why hitchhikers who extend their arm in a closed-fist, thumbs-up gesture in the United States and most of Europe should abandon this gesture when traveling to the Middle East. In that region hitchhikers extend their arm with the open palm pointing to the ground approximately at a 45-degree angle.

2.15 Business Etiquette: Visiting Your Instructor’s Virtual Office Hours (L.O. 5) Answer: Virtual office hours can be a time-saver. Comments you make and questions you answer can be made visible even to those who do not participate. Therefore, you don’t have to answer the same questions repeatedly. You can create a log and post it on your coursemanagement platform for students who could not attend. Although an online chat lacks the confidentiality and richness of a face-to-face visit, it is the interaction most resembling inperson interaction, especially if conducted via video chat.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False. Shunning the team is not advisable. Gatherings outside of work hours are opportunities for networking, getting to know coworkers more closely, and for bonding.

Even if some team members are shy, it is essential that they at least occasionally try to come out of their shell. While it is not necessary to join others for lunch every day and to attend every company-hosted event, making an effort is key. No team member should risk being considered antisocial and arrogant. Otherwise, coworkers might not be forthcoming with help next time it is needed.

2. False. It’s best to compliment a colleague on work performance alone and avoid talking about how you think someone looks. What we may view as a positive, flattering

comment, the coworker may view as uncomfortable, harassing, or potentially discriminatory.

3. True. Your friendly colleague is right to caution against soliciting—whether selling cookies or asking for donations. Read the company policies and procedures manual.

Many companies forbid promoting personal causes, especially on company time because it’s considered disruptive. Canvassing of any kind takes up work time and places people in an awkward position. Breaking the rules could be grounds for dismissal.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: The CEO of mortgage lender Better.com, Vishal Garg, fired 900 workers during a Zoom call. He announced he had some bad news and then said: “If you’re on this call, you are part of the unlucky group that is being laid off. Your employment is terminated effective immediately.”

The backlash was swift and went public. The board of directors announced in a memo that the chief executive would be “taking time off” after the “very regrettable events.” Why was it so upsetting to be fired over Zoom? How might layoffs be handled differently?

Topic 2: During negotiations, Moritz, the head of the German delegation, spoke in a direct tone and made steady eye contact with Mei, who represented a Hong Kong business. She was not used to this communication style and felt that Moritz was being aggressive in his approach.

What might be going on here? What consequences might the misreading of nonverbal cues have?

Topic 3: Consider a situation in your family, in your circle of friends, in high school, at college, during an internship, or at work that shows the potential risks of poor listening skills. How could the resulting misunderstandings or other negative consequences have been prevented? Which techniques would have helped avert the undesirable outcome?

Topic 4: Psychologists say that we fear rejection when deviating from group consensus; we try to avoid the “hazards of courage” and may consequently fall victim to groupthink. Recall a past or present team experience. Can you relate to feeling “the pain of independence” when going against the majority opinion?

Topic 5: Research by the late communication expert Clifford Nass suggests that young people are spending so much time looking at screens that they are losing the ability to read nonverbal communication and learn other skills necessary for one-on-one interactions. Have you observed social awkwardness in your own life? Would the loss of social skills be worrisome?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

Standard Writing Rubric Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 12

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore business presentations and speaking skills. First, we consider the critical nature of speaking skills, the types of presentations commonly encountered, and how to create an effective business presentation. Next, we cover how to organize content and use visual aids to build audience rapport. Additionally, we discuss how to prepare errorfree, engaging presentations that show a firm grasp of basic visual design principles as well as the delivery techniques that can keep an audience engaged. Then, we cover how to develop intercultural and team presentations within the workplace. Finally, we look at best practices for improving telephone skills to project a positive image.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.6

Explain the factors that lead to successful business presentations.

Discuss effective organization and visuals that help build audience rapport.

Describe the elements of engaging multimedia presentations.

List the steps from preparing the delivery to concluding your presentation.

Explain the specific requirements of team presentations and intercultural audiences.

Identify best practices for professional phone calls.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

•

•

• •

Created a new chapter-opening case featuring Eliza VanCort, a celebrated speaker who set out to “revolutionize” speaking skills and is an inspiring source of rhetorical training to students.

Reinforced the coverage of glossophobia, the fear of public speaking or stage fright to impress upon students that even seasoned speakers experience some form of anxiety or tension when presenting.

Included new Reality Check quotations by business communication experts that juxtapose human vs. AI communication, address the efficacy of PowerPoint, or emphasize listening and observation skills to demonstrate the importance of genuinely connecting with audiences.

Revised the discussion of adapting business presentations to intercultural audiences.

Discussed a new app, Ummo, that analyzes speakers’ speech patterns, pace, and volume and enables them to eliminate annoying fillers from their talks.

• •

Updated the smartphone best practices for business so that students understand the professional uses of their cherished devices.

Among new end-of-chapter activities, included output by chatbot Bard and used generative AI to facilitate learning, not cheating.

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 14. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Creating Successful Business Presentations (L.O. 14.1, PPT Slides 3–8, DISC: Purpose; Audience; Receiver reactions) a. Glossophobia is the fear of public speaking. b. Interpreting information through speaking, listening, and observing is part of the skill set that will AI-proof your career. c. Speaking skills rank high on recruiters’ wish lists––public speaking and “storytelling” are among the top foundational skills that will help workers succeed in the workplace of the future. d. You can expect to encounter a wide variety of business presentations in your career. (Figure 14.1) e. In order to know your purpose when creating a business presentation, ask yourself these questions: i. What do you want to accomplish? ii. What do you want your listeners to remember or do? f.

In order to know your audience, follow these guidelines: i. Analyze your audience. ii. Anticipate the reaction of audience members. iii. Adjust to its needs. iv. Focus on audience benefits.

g. There are four audience types (friendly, neutral, uninterested, and hostile), with varying techniques for succeeding with each. (Figure 14.2) h. Elements such as age, gender, education level, experience, and size of the audience will impact your style and message. i. To determine organizational pattern, delivery style, and supporting material, analyze the following questions:

i. ii. iii. iv. v.

How will this topic appeal to this audience?

How can I relate this information to my listeners’ needs?

How can I earn respect so that they accept my message?

What would be most effective in making my point?

What measures must I take to ensure the audience remembers my main points?

II. Organizing Content and Using Visual Aids to Connect With Audiences (L.O. 14.2, PPT Slides 9–21, DISC: Purpose; Audience; Synchronous messaging; Theory application) a. To organize content for a presentation, follow these expert-recommended steps: i. Tell them what you are going to tell them. ii. Tell them. iii. Tell them what you have told them. b. Avoid banalities by striving to accomplish three goals in the introduction to your presentation: i. Identify yourself and establish your credibility. ii. Capture listeners’ attention and get them involved. iii. Preview your main points. c. A speaker should be sure to establish credibility using these techniques: i. Describe your position, knowledge, education, or experience. ii. Dress professionally. iii. Display self-confidence. iv. Maintain direct eye contact. v. Try to connect with your audience. d. When organizing the body of a presentation, follow these guidelines (Model Document 14.1): i. Focus on a few principal ideas. ii. Develop each point with adequate, but not excessive, explanation and details. iii. Use a simple and logical organizational strategy. e. Consider organizing your presentation according to: i. Chronology ii. Geography/space iii. Topic/function/conventional grouping iv. Comparison/contrast (pro/con) v. Journalistic pattern (the six Ws) vi. Value/size vii. Importance viii. Problem/solution ix. Simple/complex x. Best case/worst case

f.

Listeners will remember the conclusion more than any other part of the speech; make it as effective as you can by achieving three goals: i. Summarize the main themes of the presentation. ii. Leave the audience with a specific and memorable take-away (the value of the presentation to the audience and the benefit audience members believe they have received). iii. Include a statement that allows you to exit the podium gracefully.

g. Building rapport means establishing a connection with the audience, creating a harmonious relationship in which people feel they have something in common. i. To establish rapport, use effective imagery (Figure 14.3), employ verbal signposts, and pay attention to nonverbal messages. h. Information conveyed in images is more memorable than text alone, a phenomenon known as pictorial superiority. i.

Visual aids have several functions. i. They emphasize and clarify main points. ii. They increase audience interest. iii. They make the presenter appear more professional, better prepared, and more persuasive. iv. They illustrate and emphasize the message better than words alone. v. They jog the memory of the speaker.

j.

The most common types of visual aids include multimedia slides, handouts, and Prezi zoom presentations. (Figures 14.4 and 14.5)

k. Presenters should move beyond bullet points by following these guidelines: i. Create slideshows that tell a story with less text and more images. (Figure 14.6) ii. Provide content unsuitable for presentation in an image (e.g., complex financial or technical data) in handouts, instead. iii. Strive for simplicity and clarity.

III. Preparing Engaging Multimedia Presentations (L.O. 14.3, PPT Slides 22–36, DISC: Purpose; Audience; Synchronous messaging; Theory application; Rhetorical considerations; Standard English) a. The 3-x-3 writing process should also be applied to multimedia presentations. i. Phase 1 : Analyze, anticipate, and adapt ii. Phase 2: Research, organize, compose, and design iii. Phase 3: Edit, proofread, and evaluate b. To analyze the situation and purpose, ask how the presentation will be used and then make design choices based on the situation and purpose. c. Presentations should be designed to get the most positive response from the audience.

d. It’s important to understand the meaning of color when designing presentations. i. Blue: reliability, authenticity, security, and trust ii. Green: nature, freshness, growth, wealth, and calmness iii. Purple: spirituality, royalty, creativity, and mystery iv. Be sure there is a high contrast between text and background. v. Adapt slides based upon the environment where the presentation will be given. e. Presenters should understand the power of images in multimedia presentations.

(Figure 14.7) i. Use the 6-x-6 rule: Six bullets per screen, six words per bullet, max. ii. Break the 6-x-6 rule when necessary for the situation. iii. Adjust layout and styling to make slides more appealing and more memorable. iv. Use features such as PowerPoint’s SmartArt to add variety. v. Convert text and bullet points to graphics, charts, and other images. f.

Add animation features only if they help convey your message or add interest and don’t draw attention away from your main points with distracting special effects.

g. When organizing your presentation, follow these guidelines: i. Convert major points from your outline into slide titles. ii. Build bullet points using short phrases. iii. Use bullets, lists, and headings to improve readability. iv. Add visual elements that help the audience understand and remember your message. v. Use a blueprint slide near the start and end to provide an overview and then a review of your key points. h. When composing your presentation, use these tips: i. Set a time limit for making slides or canvas visually appealing. ii. Consider what (a) your audience expects and (b) your content requires to make it understandable. iii. Create a slide or canvas only if it: 1. Generates interest in what you are saying and helps the audience follow your ideas 2. Highlights points you want your audience to remember 3. Introduces or reviews your key points 4. Provides a transition from one major point to the next 5. Illustrates and simplifies complex ideas i.

To work with templates, follow these guidelines: i. Select or create a template as the background for your presentation. ii. Compose individual slides by selecting a layout that best conveys your message. iii. Use existing templates or customize them to get started quickly.

iv. Avoid visual cliches––overused templates and clip art. j.

Techniques for revising and proofreading your presentation include the following (Figure 14.8): i. Rearrange, insert, and delete slides as you revise. ii. Focus on making your presentation clear and concise. iii. Check carefully for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and other errors. iv. Check for consistency in capitalization and punctuation.

k. To evaluate a presentation, ask these questions (Figure 14.9): i. Is your message presented in a visually appealing way? ii. Have you tested your slides on the equipment in the room you will be using? iii. Do the colors you selected work in this setting? iv. Are the font styles and sizes readable from the back of the room? l.

When preparing and anticipating your multimedia presentation, follow these tips: i. Allow plenty of time before your presentation for setup and testing. ii. Be sure the places you plan to stand are not in the line of the projected image. iii. Make sure all video or Web links are working and you know how to operate all the features. iv. Bring backups of your presentation via USB flash drive, cloud-stored document, e-mail attachment, or printed handouts. v. Remember you are the main attraction—don’t rely on visuals to carry the show!

m. Follow these seven steps for a powerful multimedia presentation (Figure 14.10): i. Start with the text. ii. Select background and fonts. iii. Choose images that help communicate your message. iv. Create graphics. v. Add special effects. vi. Create hyperlinks. vii. Move your presentation online.

IV. Refining Delivery, Rehearsing, and Performing Your Talk (L.O. 14.4, PPT Slides 37–46, DISC: Synchronous messaging; Theory application) a. Memorize only significant parts, such as the introduction, conclusion, and meaningful quotations, to avoid sounding robotic and unnatural. b. Don’t read from your notes. c. The best plan is extemporaneous delivery, which means speaking freely, generally without notes, after preparing and rehearsing.

d. Avoid an impromptu delivery that is improvised, unrehearsed, spontaneous, and spur-of-the-moment. e. Use note cards or an outline of key sentences and major ideas, not a script, and practice with your notes in order to use them while speaking conversationally. f.

Even pros experience stage fright––the sometimes-crippling fear of failure.

g. Faced with a frightening situation, your body responds with the fight-flight-freeze response. h. Control and reduce performance anxiety effects with these techniques: i. Breathe deeply. ii. Convert your fear. iii. Know your topic and come prepared. iv. Use positive self-talk. v. Take a sip of water. vi. Shift spotlight to visuals. vii. Ignore stumbles. viii. Feel proud when you finish. i.

Before your presentation, follow these tips: i. Prepare thoroughly. ii. Rehearse repeatedly. iii. Time yourself. iv. Dress professionally. v. Check the room and the equipment. vi. Greet members of the audience. vii. Practice stress reduction.

j.

During your presentation, use these guidelines: i. Start with a pause and present your first sentence from memory. ii. Maintain eye contact. iii. Control your voice and vocabulary. iv. Show enthusiasm. v. Skip the apologies. vi. Slow down and know when to pause. vii. Move naturally. viii. Control visual aids with clickers, pointers, and blank screens. ix. Avoid digressions. x. Summarize your main points and drive home your message.

k. After your presentation, be sure to follow these guidelines: i. Distribute handouts. ii. Encourage questions but keep control. iii. Repeat questions. iv. Reinforce your main points. v. Avoid “yes, but” answers.

vi. End with a summary and appreciation.

V. Presenting as a Team and Adapting to Intercultural Audiences (L.O. 14.5, PPT Slides 47–54, DISC: Cultural imperatives; Teamwork; Theory application) a. Whether your team produces written reports, digital or printed slide decks, or oral presentations, you generally have considerable control over how each project is organized and completed. b. Team projects can be harmonious and productive when members establish ground rules and follow guidelines. c. When preparing to work together, use these tips: i. Establish ground rules and put them in writing. ii. Name a leader, recorder, and evaluator. iii. Decide how the team will be governed (by consensus, majority rule, other). iv. Create a team charter. v. Bring conflict into the open and encourage healthy confrontation. vi. Decide how to deal with members who do not share the load. vii. Make meetings a top priority. d. Guidelines for planning and preparing the document or presentation include the following: i. Establish the purpose for the document or presentation and the main issues. ii. Decide on a final format and what parts to include. iii. Consider how the report or presentation will be delivered. iv. Profile the audience. v. Develop a work plan, assign jobs, and set deadlines. vi. Assign written tasks for oral presentations; decide how written documents will be composed. e. When collecting information: i. Brainstorm for ideas, assign topics, and decide who gathers what. ii. Establish deadlines for information collection. iii. Discuss how to ensure the accuracy of the information collected. f.

When organizing, writing, and revising, be sure to: i. Review the proposed organization and make necessary adjustments. ii. Use the same software to facilitate combining files. iii. Use collaboration tools to edit and store documents. iv. Decide on one person to coordinate the parts and apply global changes. v. Strive for a consistent style, format, and feel in the final product. vi. Make logical connections between oral presentation segments for smooth transitions.

g. Techniques for editing, rehearsing, and evaluating include the following:

i. Assign one person to merge files; run a spell-checker; and check for consistency in design, format, and vocabulary. ii. Identify and correct grammatical, spelling, and mechanical errors. iii. Evaluate the final document as a group. Does it fulfill its purpose and meet the needs of the audience? iv. Practice delivering the presentation together several times. v. Video record a rehearsal so presenters can critique their own performances. vi. Practice fielding questions. h. In a globalized business world, adjusting to a multicultural audience can be challenging. Follow these tips for success: i. Anticipate differing expectations and perceptions (e.g., being direct). ii. Speak slowly and express ideas in small chunks when working with an interpreter. iii. Divide your talk into distinct topics and encourage discussion after each one. iv. Match your presentation and nonverbal messages to your audience. v. Curb your enthusiasm and observe greater formality. i.

When adjusting visual aids to intercultural audiences, use these guidelines: i. Understand how colors and photos may have different meanings for different cultures. ii. Use caution when employing humor, which may get lost in translation. iii. Be cognizant of cultural responses to the visual organization of slides–– for example, other cultures may view sparse slides with large images as lacking in content and diligence. iv. Understand cultural responses to hierarchies when determining who should deliver the presentation. v. Provide handouts in both English and the target language. vi. Project or write out numbers for all to see. vii. Distribute translated handouts summarizing your important information when the presentation is finished.

Ethics Check: The Risks of Memorization This sensitive subject should lead to a lively discussion. Perhaps not surprisingly, students struggling with English hate public speaking even more than many U.S.-born students do. It terrifies many of them. As a result, they sometimes resort to memorization in the hope of receiving a better presentation grade. In the absence of accent-reduction classes in most colleges and universities, and because of the stubborn nature of most accents, it may be unreasonable to expect fast improvement. Hence, commenting on someone’s accent may seem pointless and insensitive, aside from insisting on speaking slowly and clearly.

On the other hand, every student needs to be able to present competently and be understood.

As for evaluating such a flawed presentation, most instructors would probably shy away from

public criticism of the student’s language skills but encourage the student in private to intensify efforts to acquire the language. Some classmates may favor saying openly that they did not understand much of the talk, whereas others may choose to overlook the obvious and comment on another feature of the presentation.

VI. Adopting Best Practices for Business Phone Calls (L.O. 14.6, PPT Slides 55–64, DISC: Synchronous messaging; Asynchronous messaging; Theory application) a. When making telephone calls professionally, follow these suggestions: i. Plan a mini-agenda. ii. Use a three-point introduction. iii. Be brisk if you are rushed. iv. Be cheerful and accurate. v. Be professional and courteous. vi. Bring it to a close. vii. Avoid telephone tag. viii. Leave complete voice mail messages. b. When receiving telephone calls professionally, follow these guidelines: i. Identify yourself immediately. ii. Be responsive and helpful. iii. Practice telephone confidentiality. iv. Take messages carefully. v. Leave the line respectfully. c. When using smartphones in business, consider these tips (Figure 14.11): i. Be courteous to those around you. ii. Observe wireless-free quiet areas. iii. Speak in low, conversational tones. iv. Take only urgent calls. v. Drive now, talk later. vi. Choose a professional ringtone. vii. Text with caution. d. Many businesspeople make extensive use of voice mail to intercept and screen incoming calls. e. To make voice mail work effectively on the receiver’s end, follow these tips: i. Don’t overuse voice mail. ii. Prepare a professional, concise, friendly greeting. iii. Respond to messages promptly. iv. Plan for vacations and other extended absences. f.

For effective use of voice mail on the caller’s end, consider these tips: i. Be prepared to leave a message. ii. Leave a concise, thorough message. iii. Speak slowly and clearly. iv. Be careful with confidential information.

Ethics Check: When Is Lying Trivial and Merely Polite?

Answers will vary because students may perceive the exact boundaries of propriety and impropriety differently. They may suggest that it depends on the relationship between the caller and the recipient of the call. They may be more forthcoming toward friends and family, perhaps.

Sometimes workers may be avoiding clients if they are behind with their work or if they must disclose something unpleasant. Most would probably agree that covering for a colleague who takes the afternoon off pretending to be sick would be too much of a lie to shoulder.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Preparation Is Key (L.O. 14.48) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Why should even veteran speakers plan their presentations when addressing a business audience instead of just “winging it”? i.

Answer: Very few people can speak off the cuff competently. Without a plan, it’s very easy to ramble instead of focusing on just a few principal ideas. To avoid overwhelming their listeners, experienced speakers choose just the right kind of information and sort it into a few main ideas that they then emphasize. Because listeners do not have written copy to follow or return to, verbal signposts, transitions, and even a certain amount of redundancy are desirable. ii.

For a case in point, direct students to Guy Kawasaki’s ironically named video “Guy explains how to be a remarkable speaker” in his series Remarkable People on Periscope. The video is a disappointment for anyone expecting a dynamic, inspiring speaker, based on Kawasaki’s reputation. Kawasaki has made his name as a master communicator, brand evangelist (formerly of Apple), and Canva spokesperson. The video is dull and rambling because Guy Kawasaki likes to hear himself speak and apparently believes that others want to watch him drone on for 15 minutes spouting platitudes. While speaking in front of a black background, Kawasaki is clearly unprepared; he also keeps touching his face, which is unprofessional, not to mention dangerous in the age of the COVID-19 pandemic. This poor video presentation by a successful spokesperson could be a useful lesson for those who think that they can afford to improvise without preparation.

2. Discussion: Boredom Is Contagious (L.O. 14.2 and 14.4) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Corporate communication consultant Dianna Booher believes that enthusiasm is infectious and “boredom is contagious.” b. What does this mean for you as a presenter? i.

Answer: If you want to stay in control during the talk, build credibility, and engage the audience, you must try to move naturally, use visual aids effectively, and radiate enthusiasm. According to Dianna Booher, boredom also spreads among members of the audience: Boredom is contagious.

You cannot expect your audience to be stoked about a subject when you are just going through the motions and don’t seem to enjoy your speaking role. When you are excited, the audience will sense your passion for the topic and will be more likely to stay alert and interested. This passion for the topic manifests as an enthusiastic tone and emphatic facial expressions and gestures.

3. Discussion: Beyond Bullet Points (L.O. 14.2 and 14.3) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Why do many communication consultants encourage businesspeople to move beyond bullet points? i.

Answer: PowerPoint is omnipresent in business. Millions of poorly designed and poorly delivered presentations have tarnished PowerPoint’s reputation as an effective communication tool. Just try a Google search for Death by PowerPoint, and you will see millions of hits. Moreover, overused templates have resulted in boring visual clichés. Tools are helpful only when used properly. b. What do they recommend instead, and why? i.

Answer: Experts recommend substituting text with powerful images whenever possible. Images are more memorable than text. Experts call this pictorial supremacy. Humans cannot read text and listen to a presenter at the same time, but they are able to look at an image and simultaneously listen to comments by the speaker. The truism that a picture is worth a thousand words seems to apply to business presentations as well.

4. Discussion: Combatting Glossophobia (L.O. 14.4) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Name at least five effective techniques for reducing stage fright. i.

Answer: • Breathe deeply.

• Convert your fear.

• Know your topic and come prepared.

• Use positive self-talk.

• Take a sip of water.

• Shift the spotlight to your visuals.

• Ignore any stumbles.

• •

Don’t admit you are nervous.

Feel proud when you finish.

5. Discussion: A Little Humor Goes a Long Way (L.O. 14.5) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Etiquette expert Jacqueline Whitmore offers this advice to aspiring speakers: “A long, dry presentation of facts is sure to be a yawn-inducer, so consider your presentation as a conversation with your audience. … Ask questions, incorporate teambuilding exercise, and ask for volunteers to come up to the front to help you demonstrate a point. … Ask the group to stand, clap, or raise their hands, and give you frequent feedback. And remember, a little humor goes a long way.” b. Consider what you’ve learned in this chapter. Is this good advice for all audiences? i. Answer: Knowing techniques to keep an audience interested is important.

Etiquette consultant Jacqueline Whitmore may have a point about keeping a talk lively and engaging by allowing the audience to participate.

However, her advice is ethnocentric, geared narrowly toward business presentations customary in the United States. Even the other North Americans, the Canadians and Mexicans, tend to be more reserved than U.S. audiences. The idea that they or German, French, or Japanese businesspeople would enthusiastically follow along when ordered to stand and clap their hands is almost absurd. Not only that: Even in the United States, audiences are not monolithic, which is why humor and activities that smack of grade school should be handled with care, as we suggest in this chapter.

6. Discussion: Accountability and Team Presentations (L.O. 14.5) Duration: 20 minutes. a. Deborah Grayson Riegel, a communication skills expert, has this to say about team presentations: “I’ve found that group presentations tend to fall into the trap of creating a feeling of shared accountability (‘we’re all in this together’) that translates into a reality of no accountability (‘I’m sure someone else will test that the A/V set up is working’). This means that core elements of presentation planning, design and delivery often fall through the cracks, resulting in a mishmash of uncoordinated—and sometimes competing—objectives, repeated or missing information, wildly different styles in graphics, and the likelihood that the presentation will run significantly under- or over-time. Add to that the feelings of frustration and resentment that people working in teams often feel about carrying more weight than their partners, and a team presentation is often a recipe for disaster.” b. Can you relate? How can you ensure successful team presentations? i. Answer: Answers will vary. Many students have encountered failing teamwork and the kind of abdication of responsibility that Deborah Grayson Riegel describes. Students need to be reminded that in a team of five, each member is 500 percent responsible, not 20 percent. Grayson

Riegel recommends asking and answering the following 20 questions to guide a professional polished collaboration: 1. Who is accountable for this presentation overall (the person who gets to make final decisions and have veto power)?

2. Who is responsible for which part in terms of content vs. design?

3. Who will “knit” the parts of the presentation together so it looks and sounds like a consistent and cohesive whole?

4. Who do we need to work with outside of this group to give us objective insight and feedback?

5. When is each part due and who will keep us on schedule?

6. When will we practice delivering as a team and how much time will we need for that?

7. Who is in charge of checking the AV before we present? Who is in charge of running it as we present?

8. How will each presenter be introduced to the audience on the day of the presentation?

9. Where should the team members stand while the others are presenting?

10. What should the non-speaking team members be doing/not doing when they’re not “on”?

11. How will we keep track of our time in each section, for each speaker, and overall during the presentation?

12. Who is taking notes/writing flipcharts/distributing materials?

13. Do we want to share one microphone or do we each need one?

What kind?

14. What do we do if someone on the team says something incorrect or inaccurate?

15. What do we do if a member of the team chokes or isn’t at his or her best?

16. Who will be watching the audience for clues and cues? How will we communicate our “reading of the room” to the rest of the team during the presentation?

17. How will we transition from one speaker to the next? What will we say to hand it over to the next person?

18. How will we divide up the Q&A? 19. Who is the point person on our team for any follow-up needed?

20. How can we support our weakest link and showcase our strongest player? ii. [Grayson Riegel, D. (2017, July 5). 20 things that great presenting teams ask before they open their mouth. Inc. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com]

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Eliza VanCort: Revolutionizing Speech (Part 1): In this case study, students learn about communication tools that can help add confidence to their presentation.

1. Why is how information presented as important as what information is presented?

Vocal delivery, the use of silence, and body language strongly affect how the audience perceives a message. Speakers who use distracting fillers, resort to uptalk, speak too fast, and exhibit a body language that suggests insecurity can sabotage their delivery and call the validity of their information into question.

VanCort’s main message in her TED Talk and in her book A Woman’s Guide to Claiming Space: Stand Tall. Raise Your Voice. Be Heard is that speakers can be more successful if they use the tools she describes to improve the balance of power in a conversation or presentation. If speakers are aware of how their message comes across, they can strive to adjust their strategy to not only appear more confident but also to become more persuasive.

The specific tools VanCort addresses as well as their effects on audience perception are the following: •

Silence can help clean up the fillers so often used in speech and can contribute to an appearance of confidence and topic mastery.

•

Cadence variations can enhance the impact of a message, directing the audience toward main concepts. Slowing down helps dispel the impression of nervousness and anxiety.

•

Pitch can add drama to a presentation and grab the audience’s attention. Losing the tentativeness of uptalk leads to increased credibility.

•

Emotional stamping (body language) can add emphasis to important concepts, providing cues to the audience about key issues.

In the ideal case, speakers are able to combine powerful content with equally impressive, complementary tone, pace, and body language instead of exhibiting mannerisms likely to undermine the effectiveness of their delivery.

2. How do VanCort’s four communication tools address a speaker’s discomfort with presenting?

VanCort’s four communication tools can lead to greater confidence by improving the speech traits favorably perceived by most (Western) audiences. VanCort provides strategies that require speakers to set aside old habits that work against them in favor of newer, more powerful practices. Conquering ingrained habits alone should boost a

speaker’s confidence. A more confident speaker is more enthusiastically received by audiences. Such positive experiences in turn increase confidence and lessen the fear of future speaking or presenting. Breaking old habits is the way to more effective speaking skills and, hence, greater confidence, too.

3. In what ways can you “claim your space” during a presentation?

This question is an opportunity for students to reflect on which of these tools (or perhaps others they have encountered elsewhere) they believe may be most useful for them as they battle their own presentation insecurities.

VanCort believes that speakers who lack confidence make themselves small because they are afraid of attracting attention to themselves. If speakers (in particular women, the LGTBQ+ community, and people of color) claim their space, they become more visible and, by extension, appear to be more powerful and effective.

The ticket to conquering ingrained habits and insecurities that are holding some speakers back is adopting new practices, that is, embracing silence, slowing down a rapid speaking rate, avoiding uptalk, engaging in genuine eye contact, and emerging from behind lecterns. The last point of stepping out into the audience (standing tall) instead of hiding behind a lectern is quite literally the meaning of claiming one’s space.

Case Study: Eliza VanCort: Revolutionizing Speech (Part 2): In this case study, students will take on the role of an intern planning street team activities to help the teams “hitting the streets.”

You want the company to bring VanCort in to help the team members learn more effective communication skills using her tactics, so you create a presentation to convince upper management to hire VanCort.

Students should apply the concepts they have learned in the chapter and use the tools provided in the opening case to develop a presentation that accomplishes these key objectives: • Identifies and supports the purpose (the need for more powerful communication skills in the street team) • Understands the audience (local radio station management) • Captures audience interest with content and visual aids (establishes VanCort’s credibility by highlighting her expertise and accomplishments) • Explains VanCort’s communication theory (relates the four tools to the needs of the radio station, mainly to equip its street teams with better speaking tools—this is where much of the students’ team research will occur) • Makes a case for how VanCort’s visit could improve the field team’s skills and boost the members’ confidence • Provides a conclusion that summarizes key points and encourages audience action (let’s hire VanCort!)

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. At some point all businesspeople have to inform others or sell an idea. Such informative and persuasive presentations are often conveyed in person and involve audiences of various sizes. Speaking skills rank very high on recruiters’ wish lists and are useful at every career stage. Spoken communication consistently ranks near the top among the most desirable interpersonal skill employers seek in job candidates.

2. You can avoid being upstaged by not relying totally on your slides or canvases. Help the audience visualize your points by using other techniques. For example, drawing a diagram on a whiteboard or flipboard can be more engaging than showing slide after slide of static drawings. Demonstrating or displaying real objects or props is a welcome relief from projected images. Remember that slides or canvases should be used only to help your audience understand the message and to add interest. You are still the main attraction.

3. If you want to stay in control during the talk, build credibility, and engage the audience, you must try to move naturally, use visual aids effectively, and radiate enthusiasm.

According to Dianna Booher, boredom also spreads among members of the audience: Boredom is contagious. You cannot expect your audience to be stoked about a subject when you are just going through the motions and don’t seem to enjoy your speaking role. When you are excited, the audience will sense your passion for the topic and will be more likely to stay alert and interested. This passion for the topic manifests as an enthusiastic tone and emphatic facial expressions and gestures.

4. Answers will vary. An unnamed academic in the authors’ circle of acquaintances carries an extracted wisdom tooth to tough pitch meetings, presentations, and appearances in front of large audiences for good luck. The tooth supplies the “wisdom” that supposedly was removed by extraction. a. Breathe deeply. b. Convert your fear. c. Know your topic and come prepared. d. Use positive self-talk. e. Take a sip of water. f. Shift the spotlight to your visuals. g. Ignore any stumbles. h. Don’t admit you are nervous. i. Feel proud when you finish.

5. Knowing strategies to build rapport and keep an audience engaged is important.

Etiquette consultant Jacqueline Whitmore may have a point about keeping a talk lively and engaging by allowing the audience to participate.

However, her advice is ethnocentric, geared narrowly toward business presentations customary in the United States. Even the other North Americans, the Canadians and Mexicans, tend to be more reserved than audiences in the United States. The idea that they or German, French, or Japanese businesspeople would enthusiastically follow along when ordered to stand and clap their hands is almost absurd. Not only that: Even in the U.S., audiences are not monolithic, which is why humor and activities that smack of grade school should be handled with care, as we suggest in this chapter.

6. Answers by students about their attitudes toward presentation software will vary.

Geoffrey James’s writing style suggests that some of his statements are tongue-incheek, particularly his remarks about coworkers supposedly “torturing” each other with PowerPoint.

The more serious point James is making is that oral presentations are fleeting, unlike carefully prepared written documents such as reports. Presentations allow the speaker to be less accountable because of that performative aspect of public speaking. What is said in a presentation can more easily be walked back—something that written documents do not allow as easily. Written documents are easier and faster to read and reread as opposed to a presentation that can drag on in listeners’ view due to lag-time: We think and read much faster than a presenter speaks.

Complicated diagrams and graphics supposedly encouraged by PowerPoint presentations have been blamed for obfuscating and obscuring rather than clarifying meaning. PowerPoint presentations made by NASA scientists apparently created the impression that careful analysis and rigor had been applied. In reality such diligence was not exercised and may have contributed to the Challenger tragedy when all astronauts on board were killed.

Another example is the U.S. Army’s infamous “spaghetti slide” used by officers during the war in Afghanistan. It was colorful but impenetrable. In sum, while many workers profess to hate PowerPoint (and badly executed presentations can be excruciating), those slideshows aren’t going away anytime soon, and in the hands of skilled presenters they can certainly be at least bearable.

ACTIVITIES 14.1 Examining Famous Speeches (L.O. 1–3) If your students are giving oral reports for your class, this would be an effective activity for them, especially if they critique a speech based on their written and oral report requirement.

In the age of generative AI, it is easy for students to ask Bard to write an analysis of “I Have a Dream” by Martin Luther King, Jr. We have included one such interpretation below. The piece is unchanged although the mechanistic prose, occasional awkwardness, and repetition would benefit from editing using the tools introduced in Chapter 6.

To avoid a complete abdication of homework to chatbots, try to link some aspect of the chosen speech to a student’s own life. By personalizing the assignment, Bard is less effective as a homework buddy.

14.2 Who Is Your Audience? (L.O. 1, 2) Be prepared to set your parameters for defining recent issue and also for limiting or not limiting the resources students can use. Verbalizing why the topic will appeal to their audience and how it relates to their needs will shift your students’ focus from themselves to where it needs to be, on their audience. By personalizing the assignment, you will ensure that generative AI will be much less effective as a homework aid.

The subject of tipping has received renewed scrutiny since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many consumers have been complaining about the perceived increase in tipping in nontraditional service venues and even at self-serve counters. National Public Radio (NPR) has devoted much attention to the issue and shone a light on the practice from various angles. You could assign the following two recent segments (transcripts are provided on the NPR.org site): Smith, S. V. (2023, July 5).To tip or not to tip? 3 reasons why tipping has gotten so out of control. NPR.org.

Smith, S. V. (2023, July 17). Got tipping rage? This barista reveals what it’s like to be behind the tip screen. NPR.org.

Both pieces should be of interest to students, some of whom are not only restaurant patrons but may have experience as servers, bartenders, and other service staff.

14.3 Hiring a Professional Speaker (L.O. 1) In teams or individually, students will have the opportunity to practice some of the insights they gained in this chapter—for instance, how to analyze an audience and identify desirable characteristics of their chosen speakers. Students could be asked to watch videos of the speakers and critique their mannerisms, nonverbal behavior, command of voice and tone, degree of enthusiasm, use of humor, attire, and other traits of successful presenters discussed in the chapter. Students could also be asked to define what it is that makes the speakers inspiring and memorable in their view.

14.4 Following a Preeminent STEM Scientist or Entrepreneur on Social Media (L.O. 1) You may have noticed that we omitted the social media outlet X, formerly known as Twitter. The turmoil and absence of content moderation since Elon Musk took over the company make this omission seem prudent.

Dr. Ashanti Johnson is promoting her current book and TV appearances. She offers workshops to educators to awaken in their students an interest in oceanography.

Aerospace engineer Dr. Aprille Ericsson is celebrating her trailblazing NASA career and promoting the role of women of color in the development of space flight. Dr. Ayanna Howard is posting about AI, robotics, autonomous vehicles, ethics, and diversity in science.

Philanthropists Bill Gates and his ex-wife Melinda French are prolific social media users.

They share links to interesting articles they find and disseminate their views on vaccination and assistance to developing countries. Suze Orman dispenses financial advice and frequently engages with her fans. Apple CEO Tim Cook generally posts about Apple products. Students should realize that celebrities may have more than one social media account, and they should also be on the lookout for fake accounts, particularly on Twitter/X. They should select only authorized accounts.

14.5 Fighting State Fright (L.O. 4) This activity could help students come to grips with their fears. After completing this discussion and/or writing business messages or posts, students will realize that they share many of the same anxieties. Stress that all speakers, even very experienced ones, suffer stage fright occasionally and that controlled stress can actually enhance a presentation because the tension keeps speakers or performers on their toes.

14.6 Speaking Is Not for You? (L.O. 1, 4) You may want students to discuss this activity in groups of three or four—in person or virtually—and then have one individual from each group provide a synopsis of the group’s findings. Requiring students to come to class with a prepared report or slide presentation ready for submission will ensure that all group members participate in the discussion.

14.7 Outlining an Oral Presentation (L.O. 1, 2) This outline should be the basis for each oral presentation. You might want to ask students to label each part of their presentation with the parts represented on the outline.

14.8 Life After Death by PowerPoint and Beyond (L.O. 1–3) Electrical engineer turned “corporate comedian” Don McMillan is famous for his humorous critique of PowerPoint misdeeds, impenetrable Venn diagrams or charts, and

other office life. He is a sought-after speaker and presenter on a variety of business topics. The don’ts in the revised version “Life After Death by PowerPoint 2012” are the following: too much text, small font size, annoying text animations, poor typeface selection, spelling errors, excessive bullet points, pointless animation of graphs, too many acronyms, and unnecessary charts. McMillan’s clips appear on YouTube and on his website Technically Funny (http://www.technicallyfunny.com).

Alternatively, or to complement a comedian’s look at misused presentation slides, you could assign students to watch David JP Phillips’s TED talk titled “How to avoid death by PowerPoint” to reinforce key chapter concepts in a visual space. In his 20-minute-long presentation, the Swedish authority on presentations discusses some of the principles highlighted in this chapter, mainly simplicity, competent design, and the supremacy of image over text.

For more laughs, consider using comedian Kate McKinnon’s impromptu PowerPoint presentation by Vanity Fair on YouTube which has garnered 4.5 million views to date.

McKinnon improvises the presentation and drives home the message that preparation is key. She lampoons certain mannerisms and commonplaces to which PowerPoint presenters sometimes resort.

14.9 Learning From a TED Talk (L.O. 1–3) Answers will vary. TED talks are consistent in their quality because the organizers invite only the most accomplished personalities from the fields of technology, entertainment, and design (TED) who also happen to be captivating speakers. TED conference participation is by invitation only, and the annual membership fee is $6,000. Following are two authentic samples of posts about TED. How much should parents control their children’s genes? The murky ethics of designer babies: #designerbabies @TEDTalks https://on.ted.com/h04PB “I skip the canvas. If I paint your portrait, I'm painting it on you—physically on you.” @TEDTalks https://on.ted.com/c00Vs - pic.twitter.com/d8wXaAEbF9 14.10 Presenting Your Job Duties (L.O. 1–3) Students should present a three- to five-minute talk about the duties of a current or a past job, volunteer activity, or internship. Following is a model of a typical professor’s job duties. This PowerPoint presentation is available at the Instructor Companion Website.

14.11 Perfecting the Elevator Pitch (L.O. 1–3) This activity works best if you reveal the particulars of the topic at the last minute and the student must deliver an impromptu message. Consider recording students’ performances, with their permission, of course. The advantage is that the speakers can review their talks.

14.12 Practicing Phone Skills by Role-Playing (L.O. 6) Students’ telephone communication skills are often their weakest. This activity will give them much-needed practice. Students could record their “calls” with their cell phones or laptops. Or instead of mimicking a telephone call, use a phone number you don’t mind sharing with students. For example, Google Voice is a free voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service that allows users to sign up for a phone number that can receive voice messages and send and receive texts.

14.13 Phone and Voice Mail Etiquette (L.O. 6) This activity will help students practice leaving a professional voice mail message.

Typical problem areas include callers who rattle off their names and phone numbers, so the message must be played back repeatedly to be comprehended. Awkward or halting delivery is also common. Some students are too casual whereas others may be overly formal, even stilted. The latter is especially true for international students, some of whom are used to different degrees of formality and may address a professor as Esteemed Madam. Here too a VoIP number on Google Voice can come in handy by shielding the instructor’s cell phone number from unrelated or mischievous phone calls.

14.14 Texting Like a Pro (L.O. 6) Other typical scenarios could be used—for example, students could request callback on an important decision or excuse themselves from an after-work visit to the local bar. You may be more comfortable giving the students your e-mail address than sharing your cell phone number with them. For privacy reasons, you could create a free Web number (e.g., Google Voice) from which you can send and receive texts, pick up voice mail, as well as make and receive voice calls that can be forwarded to your personal phone number(s).

14.15 Selecting Business Presentation Topics (L.O. 1–5) Students could first be required to submit an outline of their chosen topic. Then they would be expected to prepare a presentation with effective visual aids.

TEST YOR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1.

2.

True. You should not order alcoholic beverages, appetizers, or desserts unless the host does, and your meal should not cost more than the host’s. If unsure about the most appropriate selections, ask your host for recommendations.

False. Sex, politics, religion, and other sensitive topics are off limits no matter how well you think you know the others.

3.

False. Expect the host, regardless of gender, to pay for the business meal. Don’t offer to pay for your own meal.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: What are your pet peeves about smartphone use? Share specific examples of rude, unsafe, or irresponsible smartphone use that you have experienced or observed.

How could such behavior be stopped?

Topic 2: In her best-selling book, the classic Slide:ology, Nancy Duarte says this about presentations: “Save the decorations for the holidays.” What does she mean, and how does this piece of advice apply to business presentations?

Topic 3: Why do some presenters avoid making steady eye contact? What advice might these individuals benefit from?

Topic 4: Remember some of the speeches or oral presentations you have witnessed.

What were some of the elements that made them stand out, whether positively or negatively?

Topic 5: Impromptu, as we have discussed, describes delivery that’s spontaneous, improvised, and not prepared beforehand. The American writer and humorist Mark Twain once said: “It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.” What is Mark Twain saying?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points Etiquette

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 13

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to explore job searching, résumé writing, and cover messages in a digital age job market that is more competitive than ever before. First, we cover how technology is altering today’s job searching. Next, we unveil search strategies for exploring the open job market as well as unlocking the hidden job market. Additionally, we cover how to customize your résumé by organizing your qualifications and skills effectively. Then, we investigate how to use digital tools to boost your job search. Finally, we explore the importance and construction of cover messages for today’s job seekers.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6

Describe how AI and other technologies will shape the four major stages in your job search.

List job-search strategies that explore the open job market.

Identify job-search strategies that unlock the hidden job market.

Explain how to create a customized résumé and a winning LinkedIn profile.

Describe tools that can improve the ranking of your résumé and boost your job search.

Analyze the purpose and structure of customized cover messages.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

•

•

• •

After substantial research, revised this important chapter to prepare students for a strong, competitive job market and for the revolutionary impact of generative AI on job searching and hiring.

In the opening case, included a new interview with job search expert Liz Ryan, who provided tips for students on building their personal brand and preparing effective, more “human” application documents.

Provided practical advice to students to help them optimize their résumés for applicant tracking systems (ATS) and understand that their documents may be scanned by robots before any human reads them.

Discussed the effectiveness of social media, LinkedIn, job boards, and other means from which recruiters prefer to source their best talent.

Emphasized effective networking techniques, including a 3-step plan that students can apply in building a personal network leading to referrals.

•

Presented updated strategies and practices to help job hunters in both the open job market and the hidden job market.

Devoted considerable attention to LinkedIn recognizing its importance in any job search; provided tips to help students harness the power of the platform and make their mark on it.

Addressed the need to protect one’s privacy when responding to Internet job postings.

In a special Ethical Insight feature warned against the dangers of résumé padding to impress upon students that lying on a résumé is not worth the risk.

Included updated coverage on e-portfolios and video résumés to broaden students’ options in their job hunt.

Provided up-to-date nuanced information on the continued relevance of cover letters.

As before, included chapter-relevant advice on inclusive and nonbinary honorifics.

Updated all résumé models making them ATS-compliant to ensure that new graduates’ documents would achieve a high ranking and get past the robots.

• • • • • • •

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 15. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

AI and Other Technologies Rule in Today’s Job Hunting (L.O. 15.1, PPT Slides 3–11, DISC: Communication evolution) a. AI and other technologies have firmly taken hold in job searching today. b. Emerging trends in digital age job hunting include the following (Figure 15.1): i. Résumés must get past the robots. ii. The job search is mostly digital: Today’s candidates search job boards, apply online, research employers, e-mail résumés, and develop personal online brands. iii. A positive online presence is a must! Those who have not developed a social media presence may be left in the dust. iv. Networking is about building connections. v. Interpersonal skills: Today’s employers demand soft skills such as critical thinking, writing, speaking, and team skills. c. Organizations lean heavily on technology: i. Technology is integral for both candidates and organizations. ii. You can download apps to plan your career, manage the job hunt, scour multiple job boards, visit career sites, receive instant job alerts, and arrange lunch dates for networking.

iii. Applicant tracking systems (ATS) automatically post openings, select résumés, rank candidates, and generate interview requests. iv. Automated text messages inform candidates about the status of their applications. d. Résumés are as important as ever: i. In some cases, you may need the résumé only after you have established a virtual or face-to-face relationship with a recruiter. ii. Résumés and cover letters will likely first be read by a robot rather than a human. iii. Whether online or in print, your résumé should always be available, current, and tailored to the position you want. e. Your best plan for completing a successful job search involves a four-step process (Figure 15.2): i. Analyzing yourself ii. Developing a job-search strategy iii. Creating a customized résumé package iv. Knowing the hiring process f.

A job search should open with self-analysis: i. What are you passionate about? Can you turn this passion into a career? ii. Do you enjoy working with people, data, or things? iii. How important are salary, benefits, technology support, and job stimulation? iv. Must you work in a specific city, geographic area, or climate? v. What kind of work environment do you envision? Do you want to work in an office, fully remote, or on a hybrid schedule? vi. Are you looking for security, travel opportunities, money, power, or prestige? vii. How would you describe the perfect job, boss, and coworkers?

g. One effective way to self-analyze is by using one of the numerous online tools that measure personalities, interests, skills, and values. h. When taking stock of their qualifications, job applicants should ask themselves these questions: i. What technology skills do you bring to the table? ii. Do you communicate well in speech and in writing? Do you know another language? iii. What other skills have you acquired in school, on the job, or through activities? iv. Do you work well with people? Do you enjoy teamwork? v. Are you a leader, self-starter, or manager? vi. Do you learn quickly? Can you think critically? i.

Upskilling and reskilling are required to remain relevant and employable in today’s career market.

j.

To prepare for career opportunities, follow these tips: i. Visit your campus career center. ii. Search for career apps. iii. Check government data. iv. Take a summer job, internship, or part-time position in your field. v. Interview someone in your chosen field. vi. Volunteer with a nonprofit organization. vii. Monitor job postings.

Ethics Check: Are Millennials Not Loyal?

Students might observe that workers of all ages change jobs for many reasons: higher salaries, increased responsibilities, new skills, a better work-life balance, more flexible hours, and greater job fulfillment. However, young people can be expected to spend less time in their early jobs because many are still finding their way. The COVID-19 pandemic forced workers of all generations to reevaluate their relationship with and attitudes toward work. From an employer’s view, job hoppers are a drain on profits with the heavy cost of hiring and training replacements.

Employers cannot be condemned for preferring loyal employees.

On the other hand, students may argue that it is not disloyal to seek advancement and career growth, regardless of age. Perhaps millennials are getting a bad rap. Dispelling the contention that millennials are guilty of excessive job hopping, Richard Fry, senior researcher at Pew said, “When you look at millennials, they have no shorter job tenures with their current employers than Generation X did back in 2002. Ten years after the great recession, it’s still the case” [Dill, K. (2020, February 20). Young employees put down roots at work. The Wall Street Journal, p.

B6].

II.

Exploring the Open Job Market (L.O. 15.2, PPT Slides 12–18, DISC: Communication evolution; Application) a. There are two distinct job markets: i. The open job market consists of jobs that are advertised or publicly listed. ii. The hidden job market consists of jobs that are never advertised or listed. b. Most job seekers begin in the open job market by visiting the big job boards. i. Recruiters complain that postings bring a flood of unsuited candidates. ii. Candidates complain that listings are outdated and fail to produce leads. iii. Job boards can provide valuable information such as résumé, interviewing, and salary tips, and they can serve as jumping-off points in most searches. iv. In addition, they inform candidates about the kinds of jobs available and the skill sets required. v. Recruiters are primarily listing jobs on social media (Figure 15.3), and job seekers are turning to LinkedIn, Facebook Jobs, and X to find them. c. The four top job sites are Indeed, CareerBuilder, Monster, and CollegeRecruiter. d. There are also many niche sites for specialized fields.

e. Visit company websites for the best leads. i. Many companies only post openings to their own sites. ii. Review vision and mission statements, history, and names of hiring managers. f.

Newspapers, career fairs, and Craigslist postings can also be a valuable source for job leads.

g. Mobile apps––such as the Indeed Job Search app, Intro, JobAware, and others– –allow users to access and vet job openings as soon as they are listed. h. The challenge when posting job-search information online is to strike a balance between supplying enough information and protecting yourself. (Figure 15.4) i. Use reputable, well-known sites and never pay to post a résumé. ii. Don’t divulge personal data and use your city and state or region in place of your home address. iii. Set up a separate e-mail account with a professional-sounding address for your job search. iv. Post privately if possible, controlling who has access to your e-mail address and other information. v. Keep careful records of every site on which you posted and remove all posted résumés at the end of your job search. vi. Don’t include your references or reveal their contact information without their permission. vii. Don’t respond to job postings without company names or addresses, since scammers use online job boards to gather personal information.

III.

Unlocking the Hidden Job Market (L.O. 15.3, PPT Slides 19–24, DISC: Communication evolution; Theory application) a. To establish a network, follow these three steps: i. Step 1: Develop a contact list—Make a list of anyone who would be willing to talk with you about finding a job. ii. Step 2: Make contacts in person and online—Call the people on your list or connect online. Provide a copy of your résumé with the goal of getting two or more referrals. (Figure 15.5) iii. Step 3: Follow up on your referrals—Call or contact the people on your list. Ask how they got started in this line of work, what they like best (or least) about the work, what career paths exist, and what problems a newcomer must overcome. Ask how someone with your background might get started. Send an informal thank-you note. Ask if you may stay in contact every three weeks or so during your job search. b. LinkedIn can be a valuable resource in finding a job. (Figure 15.6) i. Develop an online presence at LinkedIn and update your profile regularly. ii. Search LinkedIn for companies that interest you and find employees connected to people you know, using your contact as a referral when you apply.

iii. Leverage your LinkedIn network by e-mailing your connections for help. iv. Ask a LinkedIn contact to review your résumé and help you tweak it. v. Maintain a strong profile with regular status updates so that your connections know you as an active user with worthwhile information to offer. c. Facebook, X, and Instagram are also increasingly important. i. 92 percent of employers use social media to search for talent, and 70 percent of hiring managers said they have successfully recruited candidates on social media. ii. Showcase your skills and highlight your experience. iii. Follow organizations on their social media sites to see job postings first. iv. Be sure your Facebook account represents you professionally; use the “View as” feature to check how much of your profile is visible to the public. v. The best way to hunt for jobs on X (formerly X) is either to follow companies you like or to put hashtags to work. vi. In your Instagram, X, or Facebook profile, be sure to link to your LinkedIn profile.

IV.

d. To build a personal brand, follow these tips (Figure 15.7): i. Create a personal tagline that briefly describes what you do, who you are, and what’s special about you. ii. Create a business card with your name, tagline, and an easy-toremember e-mail address. Many businesspeople believe that printed cards add a personal touch, are easy to carry, and make you look professional. iii. You need to be able to describe who you are and what problems your skills can solve in 60 seconds, so prepare an elevator speech. Tweak it for your audience and practice it until it feels natural.

Customizing Your Résumé (L.O. 15.4, PPT Slides 25–39, DISC: Communication evolution; Theory application; Rhetorical considerations; Personal, corporate, legal, ethical responsibilities) a. You have only seconds to catch the recruiter’s eye––if your résumé is even read by a person. b. Start with a basic résumé but customize it to fit every company and position. c. Because recruiters are swamped with applications, most companies use an applicant tracking system (ATS) to automatically post openings, screen résumés, rank candidates, and generate interview requests. d. A chronological résumé is the most popular and has the following characteristics (Model Documents 15.3, 15.4, and 15.6): i. Lists work history job by job in reverse order, starting with the most recent

ii. Focuses on education and experience iii. Best for candidates with experience and steady career growth iv. Less helpful for those who have changed jobs frequently or who have gaps in their employment records e. Another option is the functional résumé (Model Document 15.5): i. Groups skills and accomplishments ii. Focuses on skills instead of employment iii. Best for candidates with frequent job changes or employment gaps, or who want to transition into an entirely different field f.

Experts disagree on how long a résumé should be, but here are some general guidelines to follow: i. One page: Fewer than 10 years of experience; candidates making a career change; individuals with only one or two employers ii. Two pages: 10 years or more of related experience iii. Three or more pages: Senior-level managers and executives

g. No two résumés are ever exactly alike, but most writers include all or some of the following categories: name and contact information, a summary statement called summary of qualifications, work experience, education, skills and capabilities, and awards and activities. h. Your résumé should start with contact information whether it is chronological or functional: i. First line should always be your name, followed by your e-mail address. ii. Use your personal e-mail address rather than an employer’s and make sure it sounds professional. iii. Include links to your LinkedIn profile or website. i.

Using a customized objective or résumé headline indicates that you have taken the time and made the effort to prepare your résumé specifically for the position you are applying for.

j.

The biggest change in résumés over the past decade has been a switch from a career objective to a summary of qualifications, also called a résumé summary or profile statement. i. The summary of qualifications presents a snapshot of your most notable work experience, achievements, and skills. ii. The summary ensures that your most impressive qualifications are not overlooked and enables you to present relevant keywords for a robot to recognize. iii. Target the most important qualifications an employer will be looking for.

k. The education section of your résumé should include the name and location of schools, dates of attendance, major fields of study, and degrees received. i. Your grade point average (GPA) and class rankings may be important in certain fields.

l.

When your work or volunteer experience is significant and relevant, it should appear before your education information. i. For each position, include: employer’s name, city, and state; dates of employment (month and year); most important job title; and significant responsibilities, impressive accomplishments, and contributions in two to four bullet points. ii. Statements describing your work experience should include many nouns relevant to the job you seek in order to be recognized by the ATS and appeal to human readers. (Figure 15.8)

m. Capabilities and skills––list your special skills, including many nouns that relate to the targeted position, and highlight exceptional aptitudes. n. Awards, honors, and activities––include awards, scholarships, fellowships, dean’s list, honors, recognition, commendations, certificates, as well as school, community, volunteer, and professional activities. o. Résumés in the United States omit personal data but may include hobbies or personal interests. p. Listing references on a résumé would take up valuable space and is generally not required at this stage of the process. Prepare a separate list instead. (Model Document 15.1) q. To create a LinkedIn profile résumé, include a headline, photo, profile, and recommendations. (Model Document 15.2) r.

To perfect a résumé and keep it honest, follow these guidelines: i. Condense information into as few headings as possible. ii. Study other résumés for formatting ideas. iii. Improve readability with capitalization, underlining, indenting, and bulleting. iv. Eliminate wordiness. v. Don’t distort facts or alter employment dates.

s. Once written, a résumé should go through a thorough proofreading process: i. Proofread, proofread, proofread. ii. Check for spelling, mechanics, content, and format. iii. Have a knowledgeable friend or relative proofread it again. iv. Be prepared to write and rewrite until you achieve perfection.

V.

Beating the Robots and Boosting Your Job Search (L.O. 15.5, PPT Slides 40–48, DISC: Communication evolution; Theory application) a. The first reader of your résumé may be an ATS. The higher your résumé ranks when it is evaluated, the more likely it is that it will be reviewed by a recruiter. b. The following techniques can boost the probability that your résumé will rank high enough to qualify for review by a human reader:

i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii.

Include job-specific keywords or phrases in context.

Focus on nouns.

Use variations of the job title.

Concentrate on the Skills section.

Keep the formatting simple.

Use conventional headings.

Choose ATS-friendly design elements.

c. Using a career e-portfolio—a collection of electronic files, images, multimedia, blog entries, and hyperlinks that demonstrate a writer’s talents, accomplishments, and technical skills—can spotlight a candidate’s qualifications.

(Figure 15.9) i. A career e-portfolio may include a copy of your career-specific résumé, reference letters, commendations for special achievements, awards, certificates, work samples, a complete list of your courses, thank-you letters, and other items that tout your accomplishments. ii. Post your e-portfolio to a dedicated space through your school or a learning management system, or on an Internet platform such as Squarespace, WordPress, Wix, or Weebly. d. A job seeker’s chances may be expanded with a video résumé: i. A video résumé enables a job candidate to present their experience, qualifications, and interests in video form. ii. It conveys public speaking, interpersonal, and technical skills. iii. Dress professionally and keep video to three minutes or less. iv. Done well, a video résumé might give you an edge. Done poorly, it could bounce you from contention. e. Prepare one basic print-based traditional résumé formatted to maximize readability. f.

Customize your résumé for various job prospects and formats.

g. Some employers prefer résumé information submitted in plain-text format, containing only standard keyboard characters and no special formatting. h. Most organizations request one of four submission formats: a Word document, a plain-text document, a PDF document, or an online submission that enters your information automatically into a company database.

VI.

Cover Letters—Do They Still Matter? (L.O. 15.6, PPT Slides 49–57, DISC: Purpose; Theory application) a. Despite the shift toward virtual recruiting and the widespread use of AI-enabled ATS, effective job-specific cover letters are still well worth the effort.

b. 87 percent of recruiters and hiring managers stated they do read cover letters, and 65 percent said they are influenced by them in their interview or hiring decisions. c. When creating a customized cover message, follow these tips: i. Opening: Captures attention; introduces the message; identifies the position ii. Body: Sells the candidate; focuses on the employer’s needs iii. Closing: Requests an interview; motivates action d. It’s important to gain attention in the opening of a cover message. i. Address the reader by name or replace salutation with a descriptive subject line. ii. For solicited jobs, use a direct approach. iii. For unsolicited jobs, use an indirect approach. e. When applying to an opening for a solicited job (Model Document 15.7): i. Refer to the name of an employee in the company. ii. Refer to the source of your information precisely. iii. Refer to the job title and describe how your qualifications fit the requirements. f.

If you are unsure whether a position actually exists (unsolicited jobs), you might use a more persuasive opening (Model Document 15.8): i. Demonstrate an interest in and knowledge of the reader’s business. ii. Show how your special talents and background will benefit the company.

g. Use the body of a cover message to promote a candidate’s strengths: i. Explain how your preparation and experience fulfill the stated requirements. ii. Describe your strong points in relation to the needs of the employer. iii. Discuss relevant personal traits that demonstrate qualities such as teamwork, showing initiative, and learning easily. iv. Refer the reader to your résumé. h. To motivate action in the closing, use these techniques: i. Ask confidently for an interview. ii. Tie your request to reader benefits or review your strongest points. iii. Sound sincere and appreciative. iv. Make it easy for the reader to respond and indicate the best time to reach you. i.

The following are common ways to send a résumé and cover letter: i. Upload your résumé and cover letter as .docx or .pdf files to an employer’s website. ii. Attach your cover letter and résumé to a brief e-mail that introduces them.

(Model Document 15.9)

iii. Paste your cover letter into an HTML e-mail and attach your résumé as a .docx or .pdf file. iv. Print your cover letter and résumé on high-quality paper stock and send both documents by traditional mail. v. Convert both documents to plain text format and paste them into a plaintext e-mail message. j.

Consider these final tips for successful cover messages: i. Revise to avoid too many sentences that begin with “I,” making activities and outcomes the subjects of sentences. ii. Strive for a comfortable style; don’t write unnaturally. iii. Use a traditional and professional letter style, such as block format. iv. Proofread your message several times and then have a friend review it for content and mechanics. v. Continue to revise until it’s perfect.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: Should Job Boards Be a Jumping-Off Point? (L.O. 15.2) Duration: 5 minutes. a. “If you are starting your job search with Monster.com, CareerBuilder, or similar search tools, then you are starting at the end of the chain,” claims job-search author Ryan Guina. b. What do you think he means? i. Answer: Writing from experience, job-search author Ryan Guina thinks it is a big mistake to start your search or pin your hopes on listings at job boards. He contends that organizations post jobs at job boards only as a last resort. A listed position may already have been quietly filled, but regulations required that it be openly advertised. Organizations much prefer internal hiring because it’s cheaper, easier, and faster. If no candidate can be promoted from within, organizations favor hiring someone who has been recommended, perhaps by a current employee.

When a position remains open, the company human resource department may work behind the scenes to screen résumés already in its database.

Organizations explore many avenues before listing a position on the big

boards. “In other words, that job you applied for on Monster.com – that was a leftover position that the company couldn’t fill any other way. To get that job, your résumé will need to get through layers of automated filters and rise to the top of a pile of hundreds of résumés. It’s inefficient and incredibly difficult,” claims Guina. Although you may find helpful information about jobs and companies on big board sites, you should not expect to truly find a job this way. A better plan is to spend time developing your brand and establishing a network of contacts.

2. Discussion: The Hidden Job Market (L.O. 15.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Why do you think some businesses avoid advertising job openings? i. Answer: Companies avoid advertising because doing so brings a flood of applications, many of which are from people who do not meet the qualifications. In addition, companies would prefer to bring on individuals who are recommended by current employees. b. If jobs are unlisted, how can candidates locate them? i. Answer: To locate jobs that are not listed (the hidden market), candidates must network and find people who are willing to give referrals. Luckily for many candidates, digital networking seems less intimidating than cold calling. Social networking sites broaden a candidate’s scope, and LinkedIn is especially important. Joining online groups and asking for advice expands one’s network, leading to potential openings in the hidden market.

3. Discussion: Is LinkedIn a Waste of Time? (L.O. 15.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. LinkedIn has 675 million registered users, but only 310 million are active each month. Although it is highly recommended that new grads complete a LinkedIn profile, some critics charge that LinkedIn is a waste of time because it has become bogged down with spam connection requests, posturing, and users’ attempts to market products instead of building relationships, as originally intended. b. As a job candidate, would you post your résumé information at LinkedIn? Why or why not? i. Answer: Supporters say that LinkedIn lets people connect with others in their industry. Your résumé can be seen by recruiters everywhere. It’s also a personal branding platform and an exceptional tool for recruiters to quickly find suitable candidates. It may fail as social media entertainment, but career coaches contend that it’s the best way for a job candidate to be discovered. c. How could candidates make better use of LinkedIn? i. Answer: To take advantage of LinkedIn, candidates should keep their profiles updated and regularly post content relevant to their careers.

4. Discussion: The Ethics of Phantom Job Listings (L.O. 15.2) Duration: 10 minutes. a. Phantom job listings are announcements for jobs that have already been filled through informal networking processes. The public job posting is necessary to comply with human resources department rules that mandate the advertising of open positions. Sometimes the job has been filled by an internal candidate who already had the position nailed down. Although not required by law, management policies and human resources departments at many companies demand that hiring managers list all openings on job boards or career sites. Often, hiring managers have already selected candidates for these phantom jobs. b. Do you believe it is ethical to advertise jobs that are not really available? i. Answer: From a job candidate’s view, it seems reasonable and fair that all jobs be advertised. From a company’s view, such a requirement seems unnecessary, restrictive, and unproductive. Human resources specialists point out that advertising jobs results in a broader, richer pool of applicants and may produce superior candidates. Hiring managers, however, often prefer to hire recommended candidates or known quantities from within the ranks. Internal hires fit in well and can become productive more quickly than those who must be trained. Also, with internal hires, the entire hiring process is faster and less complicated than sorting through the flood of applications resulting from advertisements.

Even though some organizations require the posting of all open positions, doing so does not increase the odds that an outsider will be hired. An unintended consequence of requiring that all jobs be advertised is the frustration suffered by applicants who apply for these phantom positions.

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES AND ASSIGNMENTS The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Maven of Jobs: Liz Ryan and the Human Workplace (Part 1): In this case study, students will learn more about a prominent career coach’s thoughts on job searching in today’s world. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. In opposition to many career experts, Liz Ryan believes job seekers should include statements in their résumé to help paint a more personal, more human picture. What are the benefits of writing a résumé with a human voice instead of a more traditional resume? i.

A résumé with a personal, human voice makes a candidate stand apart. By using short, full sentences instead of truncated résumé statements, the writer provides a context that goes beyond a mere list of skills and certifications. A personal voice helps animate the résumé and makes it less boring for the reader.

In addition, LinkedIn profile statements are increasingly blurring the line between traditional résumés and a full-sentence narrative. Most users write a short blurb that transcends the usual bullet points in old-school résumés. b. Typically, a résumé receives only 10-20 seconds of a reader’s time. Why do you think Ryan urges job seekers to use concise but poignant stories about their accomplishments to help their résumé draw more attention? i.

Telling brief success stories shows the reader how the candidate made a positive impact on an organization or team, and it allows the job seeker to link the relevant accomplishments to the desired role. Stories can deepen experiences, are more memorable, and actually illustrate how a candidate’s skills can add value to an organization. Finally, stories are interesting and help draw the hiring manager’s attention. Of course, the job application needs to contain key terms that artificial intelligence-based screening software will pick up before the résumé even ends up in the hands of a human; however, once it does, the personal touch is more likely to win over hundreds of bland applications. c. Ryan is adamant that job seekers tailor their job materials to a specific individual: the hiring manager. What are some ways to locate the hiring manager for a particular job so you can direct your cover letter to the individual who would be your boss? i.

Ryan suggests that candidates begin by researching the company on its website and LinkedIn pages, zeroing in on particular departments, and scouring the company directory. Since human resource people often include their job titles on social media, job seekers can also use relevant keywords such as “hiring manager” or “recruiter” to locate the decision-maker on social media.

Job seekers can also contact other employees in the company directly to find out the specific manager’s name. LinkedIn in particular can be quite revealing if carefully studied for clues. Many individuals in management are explicit about their philosophies and preferences. Furthermore, a search on Glassdoor and other confidential review sites can provide an unvarnished view of the company and its leadership.

A caveat: Nearly all large companies rely on robots before a human lays an eye on an applicant’s résumé. This means that job seekers must first take a huge hurdle by ensuring that an applicant tracking system (ATS) picks their résumé so that a human recruiter will actually read it. This chapter discusses the radically new rules for résumé writing.

Case Study: Maven of Jobs: Liz Ryan and the Human Workplace (Part 2): In this case study, students will take on the role of an intern to career coach Liz Ryan. Students are asked to provide input for an article Liz plans to write that targets recent college graduates. Break students into groups of three or four and have them complete the assignment as a team. You may wish to have students present their work to the class or submit their responses electronically.

To: Liz Ryan <liz.ryan@xyzdomain.com> From: Student Name Subject: Ideas for Article Aimed at First-Time Job Seekers As you requested, I have consulted friends, fellow students, and contacts on my social media, asking them about their knowledge of and attitudes toward the job search. Below are some responses to questions you have raised about how they view the job search.

Branding and Job Search Prior to Graduation In general, most soon-to-graduate students realize the importance of creating a positive personal brand to stand out as unique individuals or employers may overlook them. Students know they need to think about the job search and their résumés before they graduate. They realize that doing so gives them an advantage. By working on their résumés before leaving college, students can obtain expert critiques to help them fine-tune the documents. Several students understood that developing a solid résumé can help them land internships while in college. These internships may lead to jobs when they graduate.

Benefits of Networking Students also understand the importance of networking. They agree that knowing someone in an organization helps them gain access. I spoke to recent graduates who have learned that, if someone already knows them, that individual’s recommendation can provide the edge needed to open doors. Another benefit of networking is having someone who knows you vouch for your work ethic, which all employers like to hear. My peers understand that flooding the Internet and job boards with generic résumés is futile; it is also a waste of time and resources.

Résumés and Cover Letters My contacts were surprised and somewhat hesitant when they heard that you recommend using the first-person “I” and a narrative instead of bullet points and standard wording in résumés. You have taught us that it’s a rule worth breaking, and that jargon and tired phrases will not make us unique. Creating résumés that are precisely tailored to the targeted position is the way to go. Another idea new to us all is the use of “stories” to illustrate accomplishments, experience, and skills.

My peers were interested in what you had to say about cover letters—first off, that they are still relevant and that they too must be targeted to each hiring manager.

Most soon-to-be grads know that researching the company they want to work for is crucial for success. Thinking in terms of problem solving and essentially making the cover letter a “pain letter” is another fresh approach you have suggested.

I hope this feedback provides you with information that will help with your article.

Please let me know whether I can do further research to assist you.

Student Name

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1.

Breanden Beneschott is speaking to the fact that to a great degree finding a job is a matter of personality and fit. Not everyone projects “high energy” or even wants to. This particular trait might be nonnegotiable for software engineers and other candidates for fully distributed roles. After all, Toptal is entirely remote and interviews candidates solely

by Skype. This is why the recruiters look at every interaction leading up to the interview, believing that “how you do anything is how you do everything.”

In other words, all actions are perceived as indicative of a person’s interpersonal skills and other abilities. “[C]andidates need to communicate well both before and during the interview and be very capable when it comes to finding quiet places and good Internet connections,” Beneschott says. For core team positions, the top-talent recruiting firm tests applicants by assigning them pre-hiring projects [Beneschott, B. (2020). Toptal remote company Q&A: What traits do you look for in candidates for a remote job?

Remote.co].

2.

Some workplaces are extremely hard-driving and fast-paced, others not so much. This is where a thorough personality assessment comes in at the beginning of a job hunt. Job seekers need to figure out what type of work environment will best match their nature and inclinations and allow them to thrive.

The well-documented generational clashes in the contemporary workplace are narrowly focused here on distractions and multitasking. Gen Z workers are famously fond of juggling multiple inputs at once and believe that consuming various media while doing homework or studying doesn’t affect the quality of their work. A Western Washington University survey found that 81 percent of college students multitask while studying.

Studies of human brain activity have shown, however, that multitasking is impossible; the brain is fast switching from task to task because it isn’t equipped to execute two or more tasks simultaneously [Multitasking statistics to pique your interest. (2023, May 16).

What to Become].

Be it as it may, Gen Z workers are well accustomed to distractions and are able to work productively despite them. They prefer busy environments whereas baby boomers prefer quiet office spaces. Clashes are almost inevitable between the two generations at the opposite ends of the employment spectrum—between workers entering the workplace and workers nearing retirement age. Other negative perceptions of each other include

3.

4.

commitment to work. Gen Z employees are often viewed by their elders as selfish and not resilient, refusing to complete tasks that are “not in their job descriptions” whereas baby boomers are generally considered hardworking—to a fault. However, motivation has taken a hit across generations in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a majority of workers feel burned out. Generational issues and worker motivation could be fashioned into student research projects.

Student responses will vary on what branding means to them. You can guide the discussion by pointing out that branding is a form of self-promotion expected by recruiters so that they can learn about candidates quickly. A personal brand makes candidates more memorable. It also helps candidates explain their goals and qualifications as they meet people and expand their network. Assure your students that this chapter will help new graduates as well as others potential job seekers create an appropriate, compelling brand.

As with any kind of discrimination, employers are missing out on qualified diverse workers who could contribute their varied abilities and talents to workplaces that should reflect our multicultural, diverse society. The hidden bias in AI tools is a hot topic, one that is only beginning to emerge. Students ought to be concerned about their own chances of making it past the robots, often failing to be chosen for obscure reasons.

Students might understand how insidiously the hidden bias could be working against them.

AI vendors have argued that their robots are less biased than human hiring managers and render decisions with much greater objectivity. However, AI screening tools simply are not fail-safe. Harvard Business School professor Joe Fuller surveyed more than 2,250 international business leaders who use algorithmic tools for efficiency and cost savings. However, 88 percent of these executives admitted they know their tools reject qualified candidates [Schellmann, H. (2022, May 11). Finding it hard to get a new job?

Robot recruiters might be to blame. The Guardian].

Existing labor laws might be violated and need to be rewritten to reflect the new technologies. Lawyer and TED fellow Albert Fox Kahn leads a task force to understand the technology. He says, “I think a lot of the AI hiring tech on the market is illegal. A lot of it is biased. A lot of it violates existing laws. The problem is you just can’t prove it—not with the existing laws we have in the United States” [Video: How AI is deciding who gets hired. (2022, February 3). Bloomberg].

Lawmakers are taking note. The EU is calling for transparency and data protection. The Federal Trade Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have warned companies to “hold yourself accountable—or be ready for the FTC to do it for you.” New York enacted the first AI regulations in the country [Video: How AI is deciding who gets hired. (2022, February 3). Bloomberg].

A Pew Research survey half a decade ago found that 57 percent of Americans had no idea their résumés were screened by computers, and most considered the practice unacceptable. But the ship seems to have sailed, as 99 percent of Fortune 500 companies use an ATS [How AI is deciding who gets hired].

5.

Lying is never acceptable, regardless of how one rationalizes it. Although candidates may feel justified in inflating their qualifications because of stiff competition, it still comes down to lying. Imani was able to ace the interview, but the screening process often doesn’t stop after hiring. Sooner or later, the employer may discover the lies, causing Imani to lose credibility and possibly be fired. In addition, living a lie can ruin a person’s life. Instead of inflating the résumé, Imani should have sought to improve marketable skills to be more competitive, so that lying was unnecessary.

ACTIVITIES 15.1 Document for Analysis: Poorly Written Résumé (L.O. 4) Weaknesses a. Begins with the title “Résumé,” which is unnecessary. Includes “LinkedIn” unnecessarily instead of omitting it or providing a link to her profile. Fails to present the writer’s name so that it can be easily read by a scanner. b. Omits the area code for the telephone number. c. Fails to provide a professional e-mail address. d. Reveals sloppy formatting with headings that are poorly spaced and lack parallel form. e. Presents information in wordy, dense paragraphs and employs first person. f. Fails to organize experience chronologically and with easily recognizable job titles, dates of employment, and accomplishments. g. Includes high school reference, which should be omitted. h. Does not emphasize computer skills. i. Has series of words and phrases that are not parallel. j. Makes several typographical errors and punctuation errors; misspells words. k. Looks unprofessional and careless. l. Uses unusual lines that might throw off an ATS.

Revision Aspen Rodriguez-Sandoval 1121 Austin Bluffs Parkway, Apt. D Colorado Springs, CO 80907 (719) 000-0000 | arodriguezsandoval@gmail.com

OBJECTIVE Accounting associate position in which my recent accounting education and financial consulting experience can help the organization achieve its goals.

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS • Expect BA degree with accounting major and finance minor in June 2024 • AA degree/certificate of completion in accounting • Two years of experience as part-time financial consultant in the mortgage industry • Developed people, team, and leadership skills as line manager for Target • Experienced in Microsoft Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Excel; QuickBooks • Able to work well in stressful situations EDUCATION Colorado State University, Colorado Springs, CO BA to be conferred June 2024 • Major: Accounting; Minor: Finance GPA: 3.5 (A = 4.0) • Completed 64 upper-level units including courses in Analysis and Application of Accounting Data and Financial Reporting • Dean’s Honor List, Fall 2023 Colorado Mountain College, Salida, CO AA degree, Accounting, December 2021 EXPERIENCE Primerica Financial Services, Colorado Springs, CO | January 2022–present Part-Time Financial Consultant • Applied communication skills in assisting clients in obtaining mortgages, consolidating mortgage loans, and assessing life insurance needs • Praised by supervisor for reliability and painstaking work Target, Salida, CO | September 2020–August 2021 Line Manager • Developed team and leadership skills in supervising 12 cashiers and front-end associates • Honed organizational skills by preparing weekly work schedules • Expanded people and communication skills by conducting annual performance reviews and issuing disciplinary action notices as needed • Exercised attention to detail by maintaining change drawer and monetary exchanges with 100 percent accuracy • Substituted for manager as necessary, overseeing entire store • Named Line Manager of the Month, August 2020 and March 2021 Mr. K’s Floral Design of Denver | August 2019–September 2020 Teacher • Developed leadership skills by teaching courses in flower design to classes averaging 25 students • Maintained flower inventory; exercised supervisory skills in overseeing five florists • Made and delivered floral arrangements for weddings and other big events

ACTIVITIES • American Accounting Association (AAA), Chair, Spring and Fall, 2022 • Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán (MEChA), Webmaster, January–May 2024 15.2 Document for Analysis: Poor Cover Letter (L.O. 6) Weaknesses a. b. c. d. e. f. g. h. i.

Fails to use the receiver’s name in the salutation.

Neglects to identify the position title and specifically where the announcement appeared.

Fails to back up assertions with evidence of qualifications.

Offers little to show how her qualifications fill the position requirements.

Fails to promote her experience and special skills.

Overworks the pronoun I. Nearly every sentence begins with I. Fails to refer to her résumé and does not request an interview.

Does not make it easy for the reader to respond.

Makes several typographical, punctuation, and spelling errors.

Revision 1121 Austin Bluffs Parkway, Apt. D Colorado Springs, CO 80907 May 5, 2023 Ms. Catherine Monroe Director, Human Resources Felder & Associates, P.C. 835 South Prairie Avenue Colorado Springs, CO 80901 Dear Ms. Monroe: Please accept my application for the accounting associate position listed May 3 on the Felder & Associates website.

My work experience and university business courses have enabled me to develop the skills and qualifications listed for this position. Over 64 units of upper-level college work at Colorado State University, including eight courses in accounting, have helped me build a firm foundation for a career in this field.

Working as a financial consultant with Primerica Financial Services, where I assist clients in obtaining mortgages, consolidating current mortgages, and assessing life insurance needs, has taught me to be painstaking and detail oriented. As a line manager with Target, I honed my managerial and teamwork skills by effectively supervising 12 cashiers and front-end associates. My position as a floral design teacher with Mr. K’s Floral Design

of Denver helped me develop interpersonal and leadership skills. As you can tell, I am able to juggle multiple responsibilities including school and work.

To learn how I might contribute to the Felder & Associates team, please review the enclosed résumé. Because I recognize this as a genuine opportunity to contribute to an industry-leading accounting firm, I am eager to talk with you. Please call me at (303) 4555182.

Sincerely, Aspen Rodriguez-Sandoval Enclosure

Activity 15.3 Examining (Employment) Bias (L. O. 1, 4) Answers will vary. Some students may be brave enough to own up to some of their biased views. Others may claim they have no prejudices at all. Siegel would disagree, but he tries to assuage the anxiety some readers might feel when confronted with his assertions about universal bias in all of us. He explains, “It’s not your fault. You’re not a bad person and neither are [other people]. Study after study shows all humans make rapid instinctive judgments (measured in milliseconds to seconds) and those conclusions are highly unlikely to change with more information.” Siegel suggests that bias is a fact of life and job seekers should steel themselves by expecting bias and making it work for them, as he explains in his popular book, Get Hired Now! In other words, if we know that bias exists in all of us and we are judged on seemingly arbitrary characteristics in mere seconds, we can prepare for and work to counter such prejudgment as much as is possible, for example, by making a great first impression at every step of the job hunt, by dressing appropriately, and by otherwise thwarting negative expectations. Siegel believes that those job seekers “who embrace the reality of bias will give themselves an edge in every stage of searching for work” [Siegel, I. (2021). Get hired now! Wiley, p. 18].

As for the single-trait scenarios 1–6, Siegel offers alternative explanations that expose bias and its greatest limitation: the knee-jerk reaction, the automatic judgment. For example, Siegel says, the person who went to Stanford may have taken seven years to graduate. The Google employee may have been fired in less than a year. And the person who lives at home may be caring for an ailing parent. This assignment may serve as encouragement to dig deeper and at least try to become more aware of how we judge others.

15.4 Starting With Self-Analysis (L.O. 1) Although this assignment takes time, it is invaluable because it encourages the kind of introspection necessary for making valid decisions regarding career paths. Review students’ e-mail messages or memos and make comments on them, but don’t grade

them. Helping students during the preparation stages makes grading their résumés much easier in the long run. It’s gratifying to be able to point students in the right direction where they may explore their personality traits and inclinations and ultimately find the career that will be a good fit for them.

15.5 Examining Your Qualifications (L.O. 1–3) Be sure to have students prepare these worksheets. They may resist, but with your encouragement and insistence, they should do a good job. You may wish to divide students into groups of three or four to discuss the results. Collect their sheets and give some kind of credit for completing the work. This exercise should be one part of their total employment communication score.

College career and placement centers may offer personality assessments and worksheets gauging interests, values, and strengths of their own. Universities also provide career counseling, mentorships, informational interviews at the beginning of the job hunt and mock interviews for practice closer to graduation.

Shortcuts exist that can make this step less laborious. Students can use résumé building software that prompts them to populate questionnaire fields with their information.

Similarly, they can grab a template from Microsoft Word or off the Internet and adapt it to their needs. However, doing this inventory the “old-school” way is more likely to lead to a deeper focus on and understanding of the résumé categories and proper targeting.

15.6 Choosing a Career Path (L.O. 1) Unless they are actively in the job market, students may appear uninterested in this activity. However, most traditional and even nontraditional students know little about the kind of work done in various occupations. Encourage them to find out. Although jobs are changing rapidly, many positions still require basic skills, and students should know what these skills are. They should also know where the jobs are and how much they pay.

Users can browse and search over 900 occupations depending on their career goals and needs. The site also provides Career Explorations Tools and My Next Move for selfdirected career exploration.

15.7 Searching the Job Market (L.O. 1) Students are to download or print a job posting or announcement from (a) a social media site, (b) LinkedIn, (c) a job board, (d) a company website, or (e) a professional association listing. Students are to select a job posting or announcement describing the kind of employment being sought. Students should save this advertisement to submit with the résumé and cover letter they will create in Activities 15.8 and 15.9.

15.8 Posting a Résumé Online (L. O. 2, 4) Many websites encourage the posting of résumés, not all of them legitimate. Some of the most reputable sites for posting are LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor, Monster, ZipRecruiter, and CareerBuilder. Your student investigators should learn that candidates have the

option of making a résumé public or private. Making it private, of course, prevents employers from seeing it. If the listing is made public, hiring managers can reach the candidate more readily. Even with public listings, many sites will protect candidates by not disclosing street addresses, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers.

Before allowing candidates to apply for positions, most sites require them to register and upload a résumé. Then those candidates can apply for a job with one click. Students may report many additional helpful tips regarding posting résumés online. Students should know that the odds of obtaining an interview and getting a job by applying via a job board are quite low, lower than when using other job search options.

15.9 Putting Together Your Résumé (L.O. 4) Have students submit drafts until their résumés and lists of references are perfect. You might have them bring their completed résumés to class. Ask students to exchange their résumés after forming small groups. Each reviewer should provide at least two supportive comments and one suggestion for improvement. Students can learn a great deal from seeing how other students prepare their résumés. Encourage reviewers to be tactful and offer constructive criticism. Promote this activity as an opportunity to improve student résumés by asking for multiple rounds with several editors/proofreaders who can give helpful feedback.

15.10 Writing a Targeted Cover Letter (L. O. 6) Discuss with students whether a cover letter or e-mail is appropriate for the job of their choice. It might be wise to start with a basic targeted cover letter that students can adapt to an e-mail if necessary.

Ask students to revise their cover letters until they are perfect. You might have them bring their completed letters or e-mail drafts to class, along with the job posting. Have students exchange the cover letters. Each reviewer should assume the role of the hiring manager, read the job posting, and then read the message, offering constructive feedback about its effectiveness. Does the message capture attention in the beginning? Does it refer specifically to the listing? Does it focus on what the applicant can do for the organization?

Does it ask confidently for an interview? Is it error-free?

15.11 Searching for a Job on LinkedIn (L.O. 2) Encouraging students to join LinkedIn is the most important advice you can give them. It’s never too soon for them to build a professional LinkedIn profile.

LinkedIn extends networking in a way that works well for college students who might lose track of people who would be willing to help them in the future. By connecting with fellow students, previous bosses, and faculty members, students will have a head start when it’s time to begin a job search. In addition, LinkedIn establishes an opportunity to network in a professional setting, as opposed to Facebook, which is more frequently used for friends and family.

15.12 Give Your Résumé the Robot Test (L. O. 1, 4, 5) It sure is helpful to test whether one’s résumé is formatted right and contains the kind of information that an ATS would parse successfully. This test may give students peace of mind and help them finetune their documents.

Caveat: Students may scan their résumés for free in exchange for registering, but it is not difficult to figure out that the job boards want to draw customers to one of their paid memberships—not to mention that the résumés uploaded to these sites represent a treasure trove of data that these companies can sell to advertisers. Students need to know that this is the Internet’s business model. “Free” use means allowing Internet companies to dispose of user data in ways that aren’t always transparent.

15.13 Exploring Student E-Portfolios (L.O. 5) The goal of this activity is to introduce students to e-portfolios by showing them samples.

Then, if you wish to have them undertake a larger project, they could create their own career e-portfolios with assistance from school career specialists and the provision of appropriate server space.

A decidedly simple and free repository of portfolio content is Google Docs. Students can control whom they give access to their application materials and thus protect their personal information. Graphic designers and other creatives, for example, have four free hosting sites at their disposal: Behance, Dribbble, Coroflot, and Crevado. Wix and sites such as GoDaddy, Weebly, or WordPress offer customizable templates to help students build a free portfolio website.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1.

2.

3.

False. Recruiters, hiring managers, and human resources professionals are busy people.

Don’t waste their time and risk angering them with multiple applications. The ATS will reveal duplicate or multiple applications. Even if you apply for several different jobs at the same company, your commitment to a specific role will be questioned and you may be perceived as unfocused or desperate.

False. Sharing your decision to search for another job with coworkers may seem comfortable among colleagues, but you risk being exposed if a coworker slips up. Your boss might hear of your decision long before you are ready to leave.

True. This may seem extreme, but it is a recommendation that makes sense for individuals whose phone never leaves their side. Ringing or vibrating phones are disruptive and embarrassing during interviews. Hiring managers may be reluctant to invest in those whose lives revolve around their smartphones.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: A recent survey conducted by Cengage Group found that college graduates worry about the impact generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT will have on their ability to find a job. Meanwhile, employers are looking for candidates who can work with AI but also have interpersonal skills that robots don’t possess at this point, for example, emotional intelligence and communication skills. How do you feel about generative AI and your own employability? How can you ensure that you will appeal to future employers?

Topic 2: A survey of millennial managers and executives between the ages of 18 and 36 revealed that 75 percent of respondents believed that constantly changing jobs advanced their careers. The employee experience platform Akumina conducted the study “to understand the needs of millennials in the rapidly changing workplace.” How do you think frequent “job hopping” advances one’s career? Is it ethical?

Topic 3: Why do you think it is so important to customize your résumé for each employer and each job for which you apply? How do you think employers will respond to a customized résumé versus a generic résumé? Is creating a customized résumé for each position worth your time and effort? Share your opinions with your classmates.

Topic 4: Assume you have decided to prepare a video résumé to apply for positions.

What would you say and do in the video? What would you wear? What steps would you take in the video to impress potential employers?

Topic 5: Two students from your graduating class have been on the job market for many months without success. They say they applied on several job boards, but they are depressed and believe that their résumés have dropped into a black hole. What advice could you give to improve your peers’ job search?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Organization and Clarity

Grammar and Spelling

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Etiquette

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

CHAPTER 14

PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE OF THE CHAPTER The purpose of this chapter is to prepare students for the interviewing portion of the job-search process. First, we cover recent trends in interviewing as well as the purposes, sequence, and types of job interviews. Next, we discuss how to prepare for a job interview. Then, we explore what to do during an interview. Additionally, we cover what steps to take after an interview.

Finally, we explore additional employment documents and how to prepare them.

LEARNING OUTCOMES The following outcomes are addressed in this chapter: 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5

Explain the interview sequence and interview types.

Describe how to prepare before a job interview.

Describe what to do during an interview.

Describe what to do after an interview.

Discuss additional employment documents.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER The following elements are improvements in this chapter from the previous edition: •

• • •

• • •

In the introductory case, shared key tips from career expert Don Georgevich encouraging job seekers to stress transferable skills that show how their qualifications fit the targeted position.

Researched hundreds of articles and distilled the latest trends and techniques, synthesizing them into succinct guidance that readers can apply immediately.

Prepared job seekers to expect AI-powered psychometric assessment tests and games that measure a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses during the hiring process.

Revealed the latest interviewing trends including early-stage screening by AI-powered applicant tracking systems (ATS); longer, multiple interviews; virtual interviewing; hiring for interpersonal skills and potential; and group interviews.

Expanded the coverage of interview types by providing expert advice in coping with one-way and two-way video interviewing.

Revealed new suggestions on what to wear, how to respond to typical interview questions, and practicing answering out loud.

Prepared a For the Record photo essay about the top ten body language dealbreakers in interviews.

•

Reviewed and updated all employment questions to be sure they represent the latest employment trends.

Boosted advice on following up after an interview in view of what recruiters expect today.

Refreshed all end-of-chapter activities engaging students in applying chapter concepts.

• •

CHAPTER OUTLINE In the outline below, each element includes references (in parentheses) to related content. “L.O” refers to the chapter learning outcome and “PPT Slide #” refers to the slide number in the PowerPoint deck for this chapter (provided in the PowerPoints section of the Instructor Resource Center). Introduce the chapter and review learning outcomes for Chapter 16. (PPT Slides 1-2).

I.

Understanding the Interview Process and Interview Types (L.O. 16.1, PPT Slides 3–10, DISC: Communication evolution; Theory application) a. Careful preparation is critical to successful interviewing and can also greatly reduce interview stress. b. A job interview is a two-way street––not only are you being judged by the employer, but you the applicant are also evaluating the employer. c. There are seven hot trends in interviewing. (Figure 16.1) i. Increasing use of artificial intelligence tools: More and more companies are recruiting workers using AI-powered algorithms designed to measure personality. ii. Video interviewing: Structured videos save time, reduce expenses, avoid travel, and improve consistency. iii. Multiple and longer interviews: Employers take longer to hire as they seek the best cultural fit. iv. Hiring for interpersonal skills and potential: Creativity, adaptability, and ability to learn on the job are priorities. v. Project testing: Job auditions test the abilities of candidates in real-world scenarios. vi. Behavioral and situational questions: Interviews include requests that begin with “Tell me about a time when you …” or questions that pose what-if situations about issues that could arise on the job. vii. Group interviews: Employers may interview many candidates together, or multiple hiring managers may interview one candidate individually. d. Purposes of an interview for you as the job candidate: i. Convince the employer of your potential.

ii. Learn more about the job and the company. iii. Expand on the information in your résumé. e. Purposes of the interview for the employer: i. Assess your abilities in relation to the requirements for the position. ii. Discuss your training, experience, knowledge, and abilities in more detail. iii. See what drives and motivates you. iv. Decide whether you would fit into the organization. f.

The hiring process often follows a six-stage sequence (Figure 16.2): i. Application ii. Initial screening (AI tools, telephone, or one-way video) iii. Possible secondary screening (telephone or one-way video) iv. Proposal to hiring manager for preview v. Hiring interview (face-to-face or two-way video) vi. Offer

g. A screening interview screens candidates to eliminate those who fail to meet minimum requirements. i. They may be conducted during job fairs or by telephone or video. ii. Be prepared to provide details about your education and experience. iii. Secondary screening interviews are often conducted by a human resources specialist. h. There are several different types of hiring/placement interviews: i. One-on-one interview: Most common; sit down with a company representative and talk about the job and your qualifications ii. Panel interview: Conducted by people who will be your superiors and colleagues; interviewers take turns asking questions; save time and money and show how the staff works together; gather basic biographical information about each panel member prior to the interview iii. Group interview: Company interviews several candidates for the same position at the same time; used to evaluate leadership skills and communication styles; express yourself clearly and respectfully and make yourself stand out iv. Sequential interview: Meet individually with two or more interviewers oneon-one over the course of several hours or days; don’t assume that any interviewer knows what was said in a previous interview; keep your responses fresh v. One-way video interview: Candidate responds to a list of scripted questions prepared by the hiring organization through a video recording of the answers; saves time and money; enables candidates to practice and perfect their responses before recording vi. Two-way video interview/live video interview: Face-to-face interview conducted through video chat

II.

Before the Interview (L.O. 16.2, PPT Slides 11–19, DISC: Theory application) a. To prepare for a screening telephone call, follow these tips: i. Use a concise and professional outgoing answering message. ii. Stress professionality and message-taking with those who answer calls. iii. Don’t answer a call unless you are in an appropriate location for a conversation with the potential employer. iv. Use voice mail to screen your calls, then return the call organized and prepared. b. To make the first conversation impressive, consider these techniques: i. Keep a list nearby of the positions for which you’ve applied. ii. Treat any call from an employer just like an interview. If caught off guard, take a moment to get organized and then call back. iii. Have a copy of the job description, your résumé, references list, calendar, and a notepad handy. iv. Be prepared for any call to be a screening interview. v. Take good notes, obtain accurate directions, and verify the spelling of names. vi. Ask for an interview during what are considered the most opportune days of the week and windows of time. vii. Confirm the date and time of your interview before ending the call. c. Before the interview, learn about the target company by scouring the Internet for important company data, analyzing the company’s advertising, and locating inside information. d. Success stories are specific examples of your educational and work-related experience that demonstrate your qualifications and achievements. To rehearse a success story: i. Identify the skills, training, characteristics, and experience you want to emphasize. ii. Prepare a success story for each one. iii. Incorporate numbers such as dollars saved or percentage of sales increased. iv. Make success stories detailed but brief (30-second sound bites). v. Practice telling your success stories until they come naturally. e. Prior to the interview process, job seekers should clean up their digital presence. f.

One survey revealed that 70 percent of hiring managers use social media to investigate prospective hires, and 54 percent found information that caused them not to hire a candidate. Reasons for not hiring include: i. Inappropriate photographs, videos, or information ii. Content about drinking or doing drugs iii. Bigoted comments related to race, religion, and other protected categories

iv. Criticism of previous employers or colleagues v. Poor communication skills g. Clean up your online presence by: i. Removing questionable content. ii. Staying positive. iii. Being selective about who is on your list of friends. iv. Not discussing your job search if you are still employed. h. When deciding what to wear to an interview: i. Ask your interviewer what is appropriate. ii. Consult the research you’ve conducted on the company to gauge an appropriate level of formality. iii. Avoid anything too casual, too ill-fitting, too uncomfortable, too different from the company culture, too scented, and too revealing. i.

Make sure you can arrive at the employer’s office without being rushed. Arrive five or ten minutes early, but not earlier.

j.

In order to be seen as polite and pleasant, consider these techniques: i. Introduce yourself and be courteous and congenial to everyone you meet. ii. Take note of how you sit, what you read, and how you look.

k. Candidates should greet the interviewer and make a positive first impression. i. Make eye contact and smile warmly. ii. Instead of offering your hand, try a touchless greeting such as a head tilt or wave. iii. If the interviewer extends their hand, accept it graciously. l.

Fear is a natural reaction to the process. Use these techniques to combat anxiety: i. Practice interviewing: Get as much practice as you can with real companies, but don’t schedule interviews unless you are genuinely interested. Participate in mock interviews whenever they are offered. ii. Prepare thoroughly: Research the company and know how you will answer frequently asked questions. Rehearse your closing statement. iii. Understand the process: Find out how the interview will be structured. iv. Dress appropriately: Check with the interviewer in advance. When in doubt, choose something conservative and professional. v. Breathe deeply: This provides much-needed oxygen and helps you concentrate on something else. vi. Know that you are not alone: Everyone feels some anxiety during an interview. vii. Remind yourself that it’s a two-way street: You’re there to learn about them, too. Don’t forget that during some parts of the interview, you will be in charge.

III.

During the Interview (L.O. 16.3, PPT Slides 20–34, DISC: Theory application) a. During the interview, candidates can use the following techniques to send positive nonverbal messages and act professionally: i. Control your body language. ii. Exhibit good posture. iii. Practice appropriate eye contact. iv. Use gestures effectively. v. Smile enough to convey positivity. vi. Listen attentively. vii. Turn off your cell phone. viii. Don’t chew gum. ix. Sound enthusiastic but sincere. x. Avoid fillers. xi. Be confident, but not cocky. b. To prepare to answer interview questions, consider these tips (Figure 16.3): i. Prepare well-rehearsed responses to typical interview questions. ii. Use the interviewer’s name and title from time to time as you answer. iii. Elaborate beyond a “yes” or “no” response. iv. Keep your answers positive. v. Refocus or clarify questions when necessary. vi. Target your answers at the characteristics that interviewers seek, such as expertise, motivation, and interpersonal skills; focus on your strengths. vii. Use good English and enunciate clearly. c. During the interview, job seekers can expect to field a variety of question types: i. Warm-up questions to put you at ease ii. Questions to gauge your interest and understand your motivation for applying iii. Questions about your experience and accomplishments iv. Questions about the future to discover whether you are goal oriented and to determine whether your goals are realistic v. Challenging questions vi. Situational questions that describe a hypothetical situation and ask how you would handle it to test your problem-solving skills vii. Behavioral questions devised to prompt you to tell a story. To respond effectively to behavioral questions, learn to use the storytelling, or STAR, technique. (Figure 16.4) viii. Salary questions d. Job seekers should also be prepared for how to handle any illegal or inappropriate questions they may be asked. e. At some point in the interview, usually near the end, candidates will be asked whether they have any questions. The worst thing they can do is say No, which suggests they are not interested in the position.

f.

To end an interview on a positive note, follow these tips: i. Ask when a decision will be made and if you may follow up. ii. Summarize your strongest qualifications, show your enthusiasm, and thank the interviewer. iii. Ask the interviewer for a business card. iv. Thank the receptionist as you leave. v. Depart gracefully and enthusiastically.

Ethics Check: Absolutely No Ethical Dilemmas in Your Past?

Students may agree that job candidates should not lie by saying that they never were challenged ethically. But what should they say? Tim C. Mazur, integrity and compliance global investigator, recommends saying something like this: “I was part of a proposal team and the marketing people inserted language that overstated what we were doing. I argued that we shouldn’t include the language but I lost and it was left in. I signed off on the project.” That represents true commitment to ethical standards. A similar challenging experience is one in which a worker is asked to lie for a boss. For example, let’s say that Brock’s boss asks to tell callers and visitors that he is in a meeting, when Brock knows he is on the golf course. Instead of lying, Brock could respond simply by saying that he is out of the office. This is not lying. Job candidates should be prepared with authentic scenarios for questions involving ethics.

Ethics Check: Sneaky Questions About Age Yes, it is not only unethical but also illegal to solicit information about age by taking an indirect approach and asking when the candidate graduated from high school. Questions about age are prohibited unless it’s a legal requirement for the position. For example, a position in a bar may require that a candidate be 18 or over.

Ethics Check: Interviewer Demands Access to Applicant’s Social Media It is now illegal in nearly half of the U.S. states for employers to require applicants (and current employees, too) to share their log-in credentials or provide access to their social media accounts during an interview. Each year more states are considering passing laws that prohibit such intrusive behavior. Anna would need to consult an attorney in her state to learn whether the request is legal. However, she should think twice about working for this company. If it is willing to probe for private information before a candidate is even hired, what might it do after the person gets the job?

IV.

After the Interview (L.O. 16.4, PPT Slides 35–37, DISC: Theory application) a. After the interview, job candidates should write a thank-you message to each interviewer (Model Document 16.1), contact their references, and then follow up.

V.

Preparing Additional Employment Documents (L.O. 16.5, PPT Slides 38–41, DISC: Theory application) a. Although the résumé and cover letter are a job seeker’s major tasks, other important document and messages are often required during the job-search process. b. Job candidates should be prepared to complete an application form when required. i. Carry a card summarizing your vital statistics so you can prepare application forms accurately. ii. Look over all questions before starting. iii. Write neatly in blue or black ink. iv. Answer all questions honestly. v. Use accurate spelling, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation. vi. If asked for the position desired, give a specific job title. vii. Be prepared for questions regarding salary and reasons for leaving previous positions. viii. Review the application before submitting to make sure it is complete. c. Other documents to be familiar with are as follows: i. Follow-up message: Job seekers should consider sending a follow-up message if their résumé or application does not generate a response within a reasonable time. ii. Rejection follow-up message: Consider a follow-up message if you don’t get the job in case another position opens. iii. Job acceptance and rejection messages: Follow up a job offer with an acceptance message that confirms the details and formalizes your acceptance. When turning a job down, show your professionalism by writing a sincere letter. iv. Resignation letter: When leaving a job, document your resignation by writing a formal, professional letter.

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS The following are discussion questions that do not appear in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) – they are for you to use as you wish. You can assign these questions several ways: in a discussion forum in your LMS; as whole-class discussions in person; or as a partner or group activity in class.

1. Discussion: The Importance of a Thank-You (L.O. 16.4) Duration: 5 minutes. a. Put yourself in the shoes of an employment recruiter. You’re impressed by a job candidate’s résumé and references. During her interview, she responded well

and asked insightful questions about the company. She’s the best fit of all the applicants you have interviewed thus far. But, oh, no! She failed to send a thankyou after she met with you. Should you cross her off the list? Jessica Liebman, a publishing executive who has been hiring for ten years, did just that. Ms. Liebman followed her own simple rule: If someone doesn’t send a thank-you email, don’t hire that person. No thank-you, no job! She claims that a thank-you note differentiates the “bad eggs” from the “good eggs.” b. Do you agree with this reasoning? Why or why not? i. Answer: When Ms. Liebman, executive managing editor at Business Insider, expressed this view in an article, X (formerly Twitter) world blew up. Thousands of offended commenters lashed out. One chastised Ms. Liebman for treating a prospective employee like a child. Another said that as soon as you require it, a thank-you turns a courtesy into a petty demand. One commenter said that a thank-you note could backfire; it might irritate a busy executive and be viewed as ingratiating. Without citing any research, another argued that 99 percent of the population never send thank-you notes and refusing employment to all of them was unreasonable. This topic should generate healthy debate and thoughtful reflection as well. [Wilkie, D. (2019, April 10). No thank-you note? No job.

SHRM. Retrieved from https://ww.shrm.org] 2. Discussion: The Value of Soft Skills (L.O. 16.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. In a LinkedIn survey of over 5,000 talent professionals, respondents reported that they value so-called “soft skills” equally or higher than hard skills. Many recruiters, however, confess that they do not know how to measure emotional intelligence and other job-ready intangibles. b. How do you think a hiring manager determines whether an interviewee has strong emotional intelligence? i. Answer: Some organizations are turning to psychometric tests and games to measure skills, but most hiring managers must depend on their interviewing techniques to assess emotional intelligence. They can do this by asking questions related to the desired skills for the target position and then assessing the answers. They will be judging not only the specificity of the response but also the candidate’s communication skills in expressing responses.

3. Discussion: Social Media and Background Checks (L.O. 16.2) Duration: 15 minutes. a. Like criminal background checks and drug tests, social media background checks have become commonplace in today’s recruiting. b. What are the pros and cons of conducting such checks as a primary or sole means of screening applicants? i. Answer: This would make an excellent debate topic with some class members taking the part of employers and others taking the part of job

candidates. Some of the following arguments might be made. Employers argue that interviews often do not reveal the applicant fully. Résumés discuss only a person’s work history and skip that person’s temperament or personality. In supporting media checks, employers say that social media information reveals a person in his or her “natural habitat.” Such checks are also cheap and easy; they can be performed from any computer or mobile device. Those who argue against such checks say that they cannot be consistent or objective across the board for all candidates. Each person’s online presence and level of Internet activity is unique. Those who are highly active on social media may be at a disadvantage when compared with other candidates who are less active.

Social media may also reveal information that interviewers are not lawfully allowed to ask about, such as sexual orientation, race, religion, political affiliation, and gender identification. [Klazema, M. (2016, February 10). The pros and cons to strictly doing a background check on social media. Social Media Today.]

4. Discussion: Why Intention Matters (L.O. 16.3) Duration: 10 minutes. a. If you are asked an illegal interview question, why is it important to first assess the intentions of the interviewer? i. Answer: Most illegal interview questions are asked in true innocence.

Inexperienced interviewers are ignorant of the law. They do not know what questions are proper and are unaware of how others could use the information in a discriminatory way. Most illegal questions are asked when an untrained interviewer is just trying to be friendly and inquires about the candidate’s family or personal life. If you believe that the intentions of the interviewer are innocent, you should avoid being tempted to assert your constitutional rights.

5. Discussion: Private Information Leaks (L.O. 16.2) Duration: 15 minutes. a. A recruiter for an organization has an outstanding prospect for a position. As part of his screening process, the recruiter checks the online presence of the candidate and discovers from her social networks that she is 18 weeks pregnant—and happily so. He knows that the target position involves a big project that will go live just about the time she will be taking maternity leave. He decides not to continue the hiring process with this candidate. b. Is his action legal? Ethical? i. Answer: His action seems to violate numerous laws, such as Title VII, the ADA, GINA, and ADEA. Many of these laws were enacted to prohibit discrimination in the following categories: age, sex, religion, disability, genetic information, race/color, national origin, and pregnancy. These are referred to as protected classes. Employers should not make employment decisions based on information related to these classes. However, proving a case of discrimination might be extremely difficult. Although

rejecting this applicant may be illegal and unethical, from the employer’s view, it may be expedient. The employer probably knows that it would be difficult to prove discrimination. c. What lesson could be learned about posting private information online? i. Students should be aware that information shared with friends and family online is not private; it can leak out to the public with unfortunate results.

CASE STUDY The following are activities and assignments developed by Cengage but not included in the text, PPTs, or courseware (if courseware exists) — they are for you to use if you wish.

Case Study: Job Interview Jitters Be Gone (Part 1): In this case study, students will learn about what a leading authority on interviewing and résumé writing has to say about using preparation to reduce interviewing fears and to convert that anxiety into enthusiastic energy. They are then asked to answer a series of critical-thinking questions. a. Can novice job seekers predict what a job interview will involve? i. Surprisingly enough, even novice job seekers can closely predict what a job interview will entail. Most interviewers ask similar questions, sometimes in the form of an invitation such as Tell me about yourself.

This chapter will help candidates respond confidently by offering a pattern to follow. Job interviews tend to follow a traditional sequence, which is discussed in this chapter. The chapter also presents many categories of popular questions and even suggests responses to some. In this chapter, candidates learn what to do before, during, and after a job interview.

These tips can greatly reduce the stress that comes with making important career and life decisions. b. How is interviewing a two-way street? What does this mean for job candidates? i. Interviewing is indeed a two-way street. Candidates must promote their best qualities and impress the company. However, companies must sell the position and the company to candidates. Recruiters realize that good candidates are difficult to find and that they may have other offers. In addition, it is very expensive for a company to make a “bad hire”—that is, to hire someone who doesn’t fit in or decides to leave. Because candidates are evaluating the position, it is appropriate for them to ask questions about the company and the job. They should find out whether this position is the type of work they really want to do. Turn-around questions are expected in an interview. However, the candidate should maintain a sense of balance and not take over the interview by asking too many questions. In the end, however, candidates should ask enough

questions in the two-way flow to be sure they understand the expectations of the company. Recruiters and candidates alike want to be sure they are a good fit. c. How can job seekers show recruiters or hiring managers that they are invested in a position during the job interview? i. Job candidates can demonstrate their interest and investment in a position by doing considerable research to prepare for the interview. Job candidates should learn as much as possible about the company, the position, and even the recruiter before the interview. This chapter provides many helpful tips on how to effectively prepare for a job interview.

Case Study: Job Interview Jitters Be Gone (Part 2): In this case study, students will take on the role of assistant to career coach Don Georgevich. Don has asked his assistant to think carefully about the kind of work they want to do and the skills required for a position in that field.

Students should complete the assignment and then submit their work electronically. a. Students should identify three to five skills that employers seek among new hires in their career area. LinkedIn research revealed that the most important “soft” skills in demand today are creativity, persuasion, collaboration, adaptability, and time management. A list from the National Association of Colleges and Employers named the following six top attributes desired by employers: written communication skills, problem-solving, ability to work in a team, initiative, analytical-quantitative skills, and strong work ethic. In an e-mail memo addressed to Don Georgevich (but mailed to the instructor), have students describe a success story showing how they developed each skill or attribute that they named. i. Many students find it difficult to translate experiences from college course work or low-wage entry-level jobs such as babysitting, retail jobs, and waiting tables into anecdotes that illustrate skills necessary for higher-level positions.

Encourage students to think critically about the skills they have developed in school and how they relate to their chosen careers. Perhaps jobs such as dealing with a cranky toddler, a difficult retail customer, or an impatient pizza restaurant patron can illustrate good people skills.

Students will feel empowered once they realize that they do have skills employers will find attractive. Encourage them to write a scenario describing each skill or trait they have identified. Even better: Have students participate in a simulated job interview before the class. Encourage them to practice their success stories until they are perfect and can be told without notes. This kind of interview practice will pay off when new graduates will face job interviews that are extremely important to them.

END OF CHAPTER ANSWER KEYS CRITICAL THINKING 1. First off, asking someone about making others smile is an unexpected question even for the best prepared among job candidates. A confident but heartfelt answer might signal that the interviewee is able to react calmly under pressure and has emotional intelligence. The recruiter would be looking not only for the content of the answer but also how it is presented, whether with hesitation and awkwardness or with empathy, kindness, and a good success story.

The trouble with such “measures” of competency is that what constitutes a good answer is subjective. The quotation almost makes it sound as though the interviewer believes that judging a candidate based on the answer to this question is superior to scrutinizing traditional credentials. Let’s hope that it is only one of many factors Nitin Chhoda uses to select a suitable candidate.

2. Liz Ryan is a longtime proponent of the “human workplace,” and it is the name she gave her consultancy. Her take on the interview process is very different from the standard conception of the employer-employee (power) relationship. Ryan exposes many practices that she finds demeaning and is working toward a workplace that’s kind and dignified—where power is not seen as belonging solely to the employer.

3. When Ms. Liebman, executive managing editor at Business Insider, expressed this view in an article, the X world blew up. Thousands of offended commenters lashed out. One chastised Ms. Liebman for treating a prospective employee like a child. Another said that as soon as you require it, a thank-you turns a courtesy into a petty demand. One commenter said that a thank-you note could backfire; it might irritate a busy executive and be viewed as ingratiating. Without citing any research, another argued that 99 percent of the population never send thank-you notes and refusing employment to all of them was unreasonable. This topic should generate healthy debate and thoughtful reflection as well [Wilkie, D. (2019, Aril 10). No thank-you note? No job. SHRM. Retrieved from https://ww.shrm.org].

4. To stand out positively in the crowd of applicants, be polite and conduct yourself in an ethical manner. Saying thank you is common courtesy. Following up shows your commitment to the job and makes you memorable to the interviewer. Finally, responding politely to a rejection will give you a competitive advantage because few applicants bother to do so. Such tireless follow-up showcases your determination.

Surveys show that many recruiters think less of candidates who don’t send thank-you messages and, most likely, will decide not to offer them a job. The risk is that you may appear too pushy if you follow up too frequently or, from the point of view of an

overwhelmed recruiter, at a bad time. You want to appear eager and determined, not needy and annoying.

5. Although the practice of pre-employment screening of potential job candidates using social media is widespread and may seem harmless, some hiring experts fear bias and legal liability. They point out that social media give away users’ identifying and sometimes sensitive information such as race, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, disability, and other protected criteria not revealed in a résumé and off limits in interviews. It may be difficult for candidates to prove bias, but in cases where they succeed, the employer may be subject to anti-discrimination lawsuits. Going even further, say, by demanding login credentials from applicants is now outlawed in more than half the states in the U.S. Employers argue that their pre-interview snooping serves as a safeguard against “negligent hiring,” that is, giving a job to an individual who ends up presenting a danger to the organization. They point out that inappropriate behavior such as alcohol and drug abuse, for example, could signal irresponsibility, poor job performance, and higher healthcare and treatment costs. Opponents believe that social media information isn’t always accurate because AI search tools, out-of-date accounts, and identity theft could produce false information through no fault of the candidate.

Moreover, the screening practice undermines the so-called “blind hiring process” and creates more opportunity for subconscious and conscious bias, the experts say. They recommend screening social media accounts after meeting a candidate face-to-face and ensuring that the same search criteria are applied at the same point in the hiring process to all applicants equally to avoid discrimination [Bull, C. (2021, March 25). Candidate screening using social media: Is it ethical? LinkedIn].

ACTIVITIES 16.1 Document for Analysis: Marvin’s Interview Follow-Up Letter Needs Work (L.O. 4) Weaknesses a. Expresses excessive exuberance in opening (extreme pleasure, exceedingly), which is unprofessional in business writing. b. Fails to mention in the opening the date of the interview. c. Includes many writing and proofreading errors, such as the use of articles (a, an), inappropriate capitalization (account management), a missing apostrophe (your department’s need), careless errors (Maraposa instead of Mariposa), spelling problems (excellent instead of excellent, every day instead of everyday, and dutys instead of duties). d. Lacks conciseness; is wordy and long. e. Misuses commas and semicolons.

f.

Includes wordy phrases (despite the fact that instead of although; in the event that instead of if). g. Sounds needy and desperate by mentioning the need for the job to pay off student loans. h. Presents an unprofessional e-mail address (slinkywatts@gmail.com).

Revision Current date Ms. Daphne H. Vang Vice President Mariposa Agency 3522 West Van Buren Avenue Phoenix, AZ 85022 Dear Ms. Vang: Thanks for speaking with me on Tuesday, July 8, about the goals of the Mariposa Agency and the duties of the assistant account manager position. The position you described seems to be an excellent match for my training and skills.

Now that I’ve learned more about the specific tasks of this position and the creative spirit at the Mariposa Agency, I’m especially eager to join your staff. As we discussed, my administrative office training and experience will help me work with your staff and free you to deal with more pressing management issues.

During the interview, I failed to mention that I worked for two summers as a temporary office worker. This experience helped me develop office support and clerical skills as well as understand the everyday demands of a busy office such as that at Mariposa.

You will find me to be attentive to detail, enthusiastic, and eager to work on team efforts.

If you seek additional information about my qualifications, please send me an e-mail at marvin.watts@gmail.com or call me at (602) 000-0000. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely, 16.2 Crushing the Dreaded “Biggest Weakness” Question (L. O. 3) Answers will vary. This exercise is highly individualized. Students should be specific as outlined in the examples in the assignment. They could be asked to rehearse their concise answers to this pesky question and present them to the class or submit them in writing. This assignment will prepare your students for the moment when they might be

asked about their weaknesses in a job interview. The answer to a question that has been thoroughly contemplated and rehearsed is no longer scary.

16.3 Surviving Harrowing Group Interviews (L.O. 1) Although controversial, so-called “cattle-call” interviews have been conducted by organizations as varied as IBM, various airlines, and secondary school systems.

Students are likely to find articles and blog posts about group interviews in mainstream publications such as Fortune and Forbes or at career advice sites.

The key insight in this research will most likely be that group interview participants are being scrutinized from the moment they walk in. One manager said that he likes to observe people before the official starting time. He looks for behavioral cues about how people are going to interact in general. For example, he says, some candidates just sit by themselves, checking their e-mail or notes, whereas others strike up conversations with fellow applicants, the staff, or the interviewer [16 quick tips that’ll help you stand out in a group interview. (2020, June 19.) The Muse].

A commonsense recommendation to students might be that they behave courteously, are pleasant, and act naturally. Standing out among dozens or even hundreds of candidates can’t be easy, but whatever attention attendees draw to themselves should be positive. Very large group interviews are often conducted by breaking up the crowd into smaller groups for preliminary screening. These screening interviews eliminate unqualified applicants or those who appear to be a poor fit and may go into several rounds until a solid applicant pool is determined.

16.4 What Would Recruiters Find if They Researched You? (L.O. 1, 2) We tend to turn a blind eye to our own shortcomings but discover other people’s flubs and flaws much more readily. This exercise may sharpen students’ perceptions of the danger they may be courting with inappropriate social media content. Whereas friends may not feel the need to warn their Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook buddies about risqué online material, the critical eye of a classmate may help identify potential pitfalls.

If students are reluctant to show their social media profiles to strangers in the class, start a discussion of why they might be reluctant. Do they sense that they may have posted inappropriate content? If class participants are hesitant to reveal their full social media profiles, ask them to view their social media sites with active privacy settings, the way they might appear to a random stranger—a recruiter, for example. Quite a few students will probably not have activated any privacy settings or be aware that they may be sabotaging their job prospects. A Pew Internet Research study revealed that teens were sharing more than teens did when the survey was conducted previously. About 28 percent of young people share all, or almost all, of their wall posts with an audience wider than just their friends.

16.5 Preparing for Interviews and Finding Salary Data Using Glassdoor (L.O. 1, 2) Results will vary. Suffice it to say that Glassdoor is a terrific resource for any job seeker or anyone who wants to peek into the inner workings of human resources, company

culture, interview practices, salary information, and much more. Sites such as Glassdoor have eroded the prevailing notion that pay information is to be kept confidential. The anonymity of the site ensures that insiders speak frankly. Glassdoor monitors activity for fraudulent postings.

16.6 How Much Are Your Skills Worth? (L.O. 2, 3) Students should find ample salary information for a job title they choose. Consider having them present their findings in a class chat, within teams, or in a written message to you.

16.7 Preparing for Interviews With Worksheets (L.O. 3) This is an excellent activity to help students think about what employers are looking for in job applicants. The lists students develop for this activity will help them with Activity 16.8.

16.8 Rehearsing Success Stories (L.O. 3) Students must learn how important it is to develop success stories in advance of an interview. Consider having each student select and rehearse one success story to share with the class.

16.9 Cleaning up Digital Dirt: Projecting a Positive Presence Online (L.O. 2) This exercise should generate a lively discussion. It should also raise awareness in students who often don’t think twice about posting inappropriate photos of themselves and their friends. Young people may feel safe posting on social media even with minimal or no privacy settings, and don’t show much regard for potentially adverse effects on their job search.

A special threat to privacy is tagging, a popular feature on Facebook and other social media networks. Users can identify people shown in photos, videos, and status updates.

This means that friends can mark each other by name in any photo they choose to upload. Given that many teenagers and twentysomethings have hundreds, even thousands, of social media friends or followers, they are unlikely to know everyone on their list of friends, nor do they have complete control over what these individuals are posting. However, prudent users can adjust their Facebook privacy settings to prohibit tagging and instead approve individual tags.

Aside from questionable images on social media, job seekers should worry about inflammatory statements or controversial comments they may have made online.

Likewise, certain causes and associations that job seekers may have openly embraced could be viewed negatively by recruiters. Fairly or not, this “digital dirt” may come back to haunt job hunters. Whenever browsing the Internet, users leave behind digital footprints that websites can use to keep track of their activities, search history, and more.

Now, if students believe that recruiters will be happy if the search turns up nothing at all and the applicant is practically a blank slate, they need to think again. The absence of a footprint on the Internet raises suspicions too because it suggests that the job seeker has no positive accomplishments to show, either. The assumption today is that active

and accomplished individuals leave a trace. Experts recommend that applicants develop LinkedIn pages or start their own personal websites, using domains featuring their names (yourname.com), to which they post often. If maintained professionally and regularly, new activity and posts will push back any negative hits to the bottom of the search results.

16.10 Talent Assessments: Reviewing Test Scenarios (L.O. 1, 2) A careful search will reveal quite a few sources online that post sample talent or interpersonal skill assessments. The three scenarios in the activity come from the website Everything Soft Skills.

The answers are as follows: 1. Answer B: About 60-70 percent is correct. Any more than that would make the person uncomfortable, and any less than that would make that person feel that you are not paying attention.

2. Answer D: You can show your confidence and credibility even in the midst of senior coworkers by speaking first and a few more times at the meeting.

3. Answer B: The best way to deal with office gossip is to not participate in it at all.

A discussion of the questions and answers might reinforce chapter content and prompt further reflection on tact, workplace etiquette, and so on. Parts of the assignment could be completed in writing—for example, by having students devise their own scenarios and multiple-choice questions.

As for the effectiveness of such tests, some employers swear by them; others do not use them. Online posts reveal a lot of frustration among job seekers about such assessments, mostly in people who failed them. One self-appointed expert suggested in a forum that candidates should always answer the questions from the point of view of what’s good for the company, and when asked to evaluate something on a scale, to go for the extremes, either disagree or agree fully, no answers in between. Tips on how to ace such questions abound, although they may not always be reliable advice.

Here are additional questions without answers to spark a discussion of the purpose such questions may serve: a. b. c. d. e. f. g. h. i.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how happy are you?

Would you disturb a busy supervisor with a problem, or try to resolve it on your own?

How often do you yell at customers, colleagues, and your boss?

How much have you stolen from your employer?

Would you rather read a book or spend time with friends?

I enjoy working with other people. (How strongly do you agree/disagree?)

I enjoy working independently. (How strongly do you agree/disagree?)

I like my coworkers. (How strongly do you agree/disagree?)

Do you get angry easily? If yes, how long does it take before you get over it?

j.

What would you value most in an employer? Rank choices in order of preference (opportunity to travel, pay, etc.)

16.11 Rehearsing Answers to Interview Questions (L.O. 3) This activity could also be done in pairs or small groups. Have students select three questions from each category to ask their partners or teammates.

16.12 Anticipating Situational Interview Questions (L.O. 3) Students may enjoy writing their own situational interview questions and playing the roles of both interviewer and interviewee. Be sure to monitor the role-playing to make sure they have developed appropriate situational questions.

16.13 Analyzing Behavioral Interview Questions (L.O. 3) Students should list some of the following skill areas: analytical/problem solving, communication, creativity/innovation, decision making, goal setting, flexibility/adaptability, integrity/honesty, interpersonal, leadership/initiative, organization/time management, strengths/weaknesses, and teamwork. The STAR method involves focusing on a Situation or Task, Action, and Result.

16.14 Negotiating a Salary (L.O. 3) Have two students role-play a short scenario with preliminary interview questions before approaching the salary question. Encourage them to use their imagination in responding realistically. One student plays the role of the hiring manager, and the other is the candidate. Then they can switch roles and role-play again. You could pair up everyone in the class and have them conduct their role-plays simultaneously. The goal is to encourage students to try their skills at negotiating because practice improves performance.

16.15 Creating an Interview Cheat Sheet (L.O. 3) Preparing an interview cheat sheet is an excellent strategy, particularly for new job seekers. Once students have prepared their cheat sheets, have them share them with others for feedback. This will also allow students to share ideas.

16.16 Tackling Inappropriate and Illegal Interview Questions (L.O. 3) Students may be confronted with questions in interviews that they do not even realize are inappropriate or illegal. The same is true for many interviewers who have no human resources training and overstep unintentionally in the attempt to sound folksy. Moreover, most candidates don’t know how to properly handle such questions. This activity will help students prepare to handle such questions professionally and tactfully. One potential retort could be as recommended in this chapter—to ask the interviewer with a sincere smile in how far age is a factor in doing the job. Or you could say that you would be happy to describe your relevant experience proving that you have what it takes to assume your duties with distinction.

16.17 Asking Your Own Questions (L.O. 3) Students are sometimes caught off guard when asked if they have any questions at the end of a job interview and say they don’t. Careful preparation can help them ask appropriate questions that demonstrate their interest in the company and the position. Of course, the questions should signal to the interviewer that the candidate has prepared thoroughly. It shouldn’t be an “uninformed” question about something that simple research could have answered.

16.18 Role-Playing Mock Interviews (L.O. 3) Students will enjoy this activity and learn from it. Carefully observe these mock interviews to make sure they are giving appropriate answers that will reflect positively on them during an interview. Role-playing is one of the most effective methods to learn and internalize appropriate responses. If being more hands-on seems necessary, prepare a simple script for each of the actors without revealing the instructions to the other party.

16.19 YouTube: Critiquing Interview Skills (L.O. 3) In classrooms equipped with Internet access and video screens, students could watch instructor-selected video clips of successful and unsuccessful job interviews or share previously approved clips with their classmates. The Web is replete with examples that are both instructive and entertaining. Point out to students that what they find hilarious and outrageous actually happens in job interviews. Typical blunders are usually based on real interview experiences. Students could be asked to critique the videos they watch and summarize the strengths and weaknesses of the interviewees.

16.20 Thanking the Interviewer (L.O. 4) This activity enables students to prepare an interview thank-you message. If you wish, also assign a résumé follow-up message, a follow-up to a rejection message, and a job acceptance message once students commit to a career path and position they are targeting. If you assign the additional messages as well, consider asking the students to submit them to you in an employment portfolio, either on paper or in an e-portfolio. The students can then use the documents in this portfolio as models as they begin their job searches. Also consider having students exchange employment documents so they can give each other feedback and share ideas.

TEST YOUR WORKPLACE ETIQUETTE AWARENESS 1. False. The interview process is time-consuming and expensive. Using it just to gain experience in interviews with companies that a job seeker has no intention to work for is unethical because the interviewing occurs in bad faith and under false pretense. It wastes the interviewers’ time. In addition, few people are such good actors that they can pretend to be interested in a job they in reality don’t want. Practice is best left to mock interviews organized by university career centers or student clubs.

2. False. Taking a few notes during an interview conveys a sincere interest in what your interviewers have to say and gives you a chance to jot down a question to ask at the appropriate time. However, some hiring managers frown upon an applicant who shows up and starts taking notes on a mobile device. Doing so forces the interviewee to lose eye contact with the interviewer. This would be true of excessive notetaking in general.

3. True. Experts believe that making time for a face-to-face or video chat with one’s manager continues to be the best bet. Leaving on good terms—or prompting an attractive counteroffer—should not be discounted. Dashing off a text or Slack message might come across as cold or unprofessional. Leaving on a bad note could mean “burning bridges” and make it impossible to return to the same company at a higher pay later.

This said, there are those who would answer “it depends.” In some workplaces quitting over text or Slack might be acceptable—places with high turnover, no in-person time with the manager, and fully text-mediated interaction might not view a resignation via text negatively.

CHAT ABOUT IT At the end of each chapter, you will find additional open-ended questions related to the chapter material. You may assign these topics for discussion in class, in an online chat room, or on an online discussion board. You may also ask students to read and respond to postings made by their classmates.

Topic 1: Connie Steele, principal of Flywheel Associates and author of Building the Business of You, is convinced that “Employers are not realizing that what individuals are looking for is not just money. It’s also meaning and purpose.” Do you agree? What gives your work meaning and purpose?

Topic 2: A hiring manager gave this advice to candidates interviewing for jobs: Before an interview, check the LinkedIn profiles of the people you will be meeting. LinkedIn makes Premium members aware of who has been viewing their profiles. Many business power users are Premium members. Visiting their profiles will give the hiring managers the impression that you are doing your homework. Does this sound like snooping or cyberstalking to you? Is this good or bad advice?

Topic 3: Just before the interview, experts recommend, job candidates should try techniques such as playing a favorite song at full blast and letting loose to raise their energy level or

striking a superwoman pose, as a career expert suggested. One hiring manager’s advice is to try “box breathing,” that is, calming nerves by taking a deep breath, holding it for four beats, exhale, hold the breath again for four beats and repeat the process. What do you think of this advice? Can you share tips that have helped you overcome interview anxiety or the fear of public speaking?

Topic 4: Should job candidates be required to give their social media passwords to recruiters when asked? Explain your view. What does your state allow in this regard?

Topic 5: “Soft skills can make or break a hire—and they can also make or break a company,” said Mark Lobosco, LinkedIn vice president. “As automation and AI continue to reshape entire industries, companies and jobs, strong soft skills—the one thing that machines can’t replace—are becoming absolutely vital.” In your field, what special skills will be required that machines can’t replace?

APPENDIX GENERIC RUBRICS Providing students with rubrics helps them understand expectations and components of assignments. Rubrics help students become more aware of their learning process and progress, and they improve students’ work through timely and detailed feedback.

Customize these rubric templates as you wish. The writing rubric indicates 40 points, and the discussion rubric indicates 30 points.

STANDARD WRITING RUBRIC Criteria Content

Organization and Clarity

Meets Requirements The assignment clearly and comprehensively addresses all questions in the assignment.

15 points The assignment presents ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and

Needs Improvement The assignment partially addresses some or all questions in the assignment.

8 points The assignment presents ideas in a mostly clear manner and with a mostly strong organizational structure. The assignment includes an appropriate introduction, content, and conclusion. Coverage of facts, arguments, and

Incomplete The assignment does not address the questions in the assignment.

0 points The assignment does not present ideas in a clear manner and with strong organizational structure.

The assignment includes an introduction, content, and conclusion, but coverage of facts, arguments, and

conclusions are logically related and consistent.

10 points Research

The assignment is based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature, including peerreviewed journals and other scholarly work.

5 points

conclusions are mostly logically related and consistent.

7 points The assignment is based upon adequate academic literature but does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

3 points

References/Works Cited

The assignment follows the required citation guidelines.

5 points The assignment has two or fewer grammatical and spelling errors.

5 points

The assignment follows some of the required citation guidelines.

3 points The assignment has three to five grammatical and spelling errors.

3 points

Grammar and Spelling

conclusions are not logically related and consistent.

0 points The assignment is not based upon appropriate and adequate academic literature and does not include peer-reviewed journals and other scholarly work.

0 points The assignment does not follow the required citation guidelines.

0 points The assignment is incomplete or unintelligible.

0 points

STANDARD DISCUSSION RUBRIC Criteria Participation

Contribution Quality

Etiquette

Meets Requirements Participates in or submits discussion by the posted deadlines. Follows instructions for initial post and responses.

5 points Comments stay on task.

Comments add value to discussion topic.

Comments motivate other students to respond.

20 points

Maintains appropriate language. Offers criticism in a constructive manner.

Provides both positive and negative feedback.

5 points

Needs Improvement Does not participate in or submit discussion by the posted deadlines. Does not follow instructions for initial post and responses.

3 points Comments may not stay on task. Comments may not add value to discussion topic.

Comments may not motivate other students to respond.

10 points Does not always maintain appropriate language.

Offers criticism in an offensive manner.

Provides only negative feedback.

3 points

Incomplete Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points

Does not participate in discussion.

0 points