Writing Homework Help

USF A Practice Scenario

 

The exercise helps you get started on drafting professional correspondence by giving you the opportunity to analyze a scenario and write a practice document that will prepare you for work on Project 1. Begin by carefully reading the scenario below.

The PRACTICE Scenario:

You are the product manager of Dynaflow, a tool and dye company that makes parts for medical equipment suppliers. Your team includes people from several different countries and often collaborates online using Slack. One week ago, in a Slack channel, one of your team members, Neelam Cottrell, posted a meme that another team member, Maryam Huff, found offensive. As an international team, cultural sensitivity is vital to productively collaborating. You have had a one-on-one conference with Neelam Cottrell regarding the offense. You also have written an apology to Maryam Huff. Additionally, you have scheduled everyone on your team for Diversity and Inclusivity Training. Now you must report to your boss, who takes equality and inclusivity very seriously.

Your task is to write a correspondence to your boss explaining the situation and your actions.

PART I

1. Select Correspondence Type: Which genre (letter, email, memo) do you think is the most appropriate for this situation? Explain the reasons for your choice.

2. Pre-Writing: After choosing your genre (email, letter, or memo). Perform a PAD analysis (Purpose, Audience, and Design) of your chosen correspondence by answering the following questions:

  • What’s your purpose? More than just the stated purpose? What’s the goal, the desired outcome?
  • Who’s your audience? More than just a name, what’s their stake in the situation? How are they disposed toward your correspondence? Are they an internal or external audience? What’s the power dynamic between you? What level of formality do they expect? What tone is appropriate?
  • What design will be most effective? Think about genre (i.e., letter or memo) and why you think this genre is appropriate. Think about style and format and length. Think about structure and organization.

PART II

Drafting: After you have done your PAD analysis, write a draft of the correspondence.