Business Communication

Following Up at WEC

Bringing   a Message to Life with Better Writing Style

Topics

· Writing   Style

· Navigational   Design

· Tables

Reference

· Chapter   6

· “Design   Effective Tables” in Chapter 12

Who’s   Involved

· Sabrina   Zambreskie, president of Workforce Engagement Consortium

· Jen   Asksins, HR manager at Sorenson Materials and Supplies

The Situation

Sabrina Zambreskie is the president of the Workforce Engagement Consortium. The consortium is a collection of local businesses that focuses on improving employee performance and morale. The consortium provides workshops and training, networking events, and business discounts.

Yesterday, Jen Askins called Sabrina inquiring about the consortium. The five-minute conversation covered the basics of the consortium. Sabrina decided to send a follow-up email to Jen to summarize the benefits of the consortium and encourage her to join it (see her message beginning on the next page).

Task 1

Rewrite a total of twelve sentences from Sabrina’s message to improve writing style on a sentence level. For each sentence you revise, identify the sentence number and the type/s of changes you made (some sentences require several types of changes). At a minimum, make at least three of each of the following types of changes:

· Changing I-voice to you-voice

· Changing passive verbs to active verbs

· Converting nouns or be verbs to action verbs

· Removing it is/there are statements

Example: (20) You may choose from three membership levels. (Changing I-voice to you-voice)

Task 2

Rewrite the message. While retaining all the essential content from the original message, rewrite the message to make it more concise and effective. In addition to sentence-level changes, consider combining some sentences, adding formatting to make the message easier to read, and using a table.

SUBJECT: Follow Up to Call

Hello Jen:

(1) I want to express my appreciation for your     call yesterday. (2) It was my great pleasure to finally have a chance to     have a conversation with you after so many back-and-forth emails. (3) It     sounds like your company is really amazing. (4) I believe you would be greatly     benefited by joining the Workforce Engagement Consortium (WEC).

(5) There are many things we talked about, and     I just wanted to provide a brief summary of the many benefits that are     received by the member companies in the Workforce Engagement Consortium     (WEC). (6) I believe that this summary will be of help as you are in the     process of making a decision about becoming a member of the consortium. (7)     I think the most basic benefits that are received by members include     training and workshops, networking opportunities, and business discounts.

(8) Training and workshops are our most     popular service, with over 95 percent of member companies participating on     at least a monthly basis. (9) We hold bi-weekly workshops on a variety of     performance management topics. (10) All workshops are placed online for     any-time viewing. (11) There are also over 140 online training sessions     that are offered to members. 

(12) We are proud to have weekly networking     events that are hosted each Tuesday evening by one of our member companies.     (13) The average number of professionals at these events is typically     around 50 to 60. (14) There are many ways to increase professional network     size, especially because there are professionals from all industries. (15)     Also, there are all types of fun activities, including trivia contests,     wine-tasting, and many other fun activities. (16) These activities are     perfect ways to build camaraderie and excitement with employees of member     companies.

(17) We also have negotiated deep discounts     for our members with more than 60 nationwide companies. (18) There are     discounts of between five and eight percent that are available from various     consumer and B2B vendors. (19) Our average member company last year was     able to save approximately $7,000 by using these discounts.

(20) We offer three membership levels. (21) A     platinum membership allows employees of member companies to attend up to 10     workshops and 50 online training sessions per month. (22) Platinum member     companies are allowed up to 10 employee admissions at networking events.     (23) Platinum memberships come at a $5,000 annual fee. (24) A gold     membership allows employees of member companies to attend up to 5 workshops     and 25 online training sessions per month. (25) Gold member companies are     allowed up to 5 employee admissions at networking events. It comes at a     price of $3,000 annually. (26) Finally, a regular membership allows     employees of member companies to attend up to 3 workshops and 10 online     training sessions per month. (27) Regular member companies are allowed up     to 3 employee admissions at networking events. (28) It costs $2,000 each     year. 

(29) Once again, I want to express my     gratitude for your interest in the consortium. (30) It would be our honor     to have in you the consortium. (31) I am always available to provide     responses about any questions you might have. 

Best wishes,

Sabrina