Assignment:
Write an organizational memo for a decision-making audience in a large
and complex organization, in response to Case 15, Farnsworth Paper
Works, Page 153, Assignment 2, posted to LMS. Consider both immediate
and more remote readers and the potential long-term file life of your
memo. Include a heading, introduction, and summary at the beginning of
your memo, and present the details of your discussion in a logical
order. Include headings and topic or main-idea sentences to clarify the
organization.
In your heading, include To, From, Subject, and Date information, plus
courtesy copies and attachments. For the To and From lines, include
both name and organizational title or role. For the Subject line,
include both the topic and purpose of your memo (e.g., to present
findings and recommendations).
In your introduction, include a statement of the organizational issue
or problem, your technical work completed in response to this issue or
problem, and your reason for writing, with more than one reason, if
appropriate (e.g., "to present my test results and my
recommendations"). Write the statement of the organizational issue from
the point of view of the decision maker, not just your own, or include
both points of view. In your summary, present your principal findings
or conclusions and your recommendations or requests (if any) and
include an overview of the organization of your discussion (e.g. "our
proposal meets professional standards, performance, and cost
criteria").
In the body of your discussion, establish a logical order (e.g., test
method, test results, discussion of test results, etc.), and place each
component of the discussion in a separate section or paragraph (test
method in one section, test results in another, etc.). Use headings to
clarify the organization, and begin each section and each paragraph
with a topic or main-idea sentence. For your topic sentences, do not
just point ahead to the information that follows (e.g., "this section
presents my results"). Instead, present your principal conclusions or
findings (e.g., "the results show that the design meets the criteria of
efficiency and cost").
Use Writing Guidelines: Organizational
Memo as a guide to your writing.
If you include text that is not your own (e.g., text that you have
found in print or on the web), please place that text in quotation
marks and include a full citation, using a standard format from the
American Psychological
Association,
The Chicago Manual of Style
(see the
Quick Guide),
or the
Modern Language Association.
Your organizational memo is due Friday, February 18, 6:00 p.m. Please
post your memo in .doc, .docx, or .pdf in your public_html directory
and make a link to it from your Writing in Organizations Web Page
or email it to me directly at zappenj@rpi.edu.
Sample Organizational Memos:
Wastewater Treatment Procedure, with bottom line last (posted to LMS).
State of Chaos, lacking context, introduction, summary, logical
organization, headings, topic sentences, etc. (posted to LMS)
Orange Grove Products Memo (posted to LMS)
Noise Control Engineering Original and Revision (posted to LMS)
Class Exercises:
Exercise 1: Write an introduction, summary, and main-idea sentences for
Case 13, Phototherapy Room, Page 135, Assignment (posted to LMS).
Exercise 2: Write a summary and a complete topic-sentence outline for
the Noise Control Engineering and WSU Guardrail Evaluation reports
(posted to LMS).
Exercise 3: Write a summary and main-idea or topic-sentence outline for
Case 14, Vacuum Freeze Dryer, Page 139, Assignment 1 (posted to LMS).
Please email me your completed assignment at zappenj@rpi.edu.
Latest Update: 2011-02-10
