Managing the “communication situation”

1. Business Writing Workshop Managing the “communication situation” Developed by Frank Hurley and Donna Kain

2. Session Topics What this session covers Audience and Task Analysis Writing Considerations Reviewing Questions

3. Audience and Task Analysis 5 Critical Questions About Audience 1. Audience: who is yours? 2. Reception: what do they want/not want from you? 3. Message: what do you want to convey? 4. Effect: what do you want them to think, say, do? 5. Delivery: what content, tone, style, and organization will be most effective?

4. Think about a writing task that you need to do soon or that you have completed recently. Thinking Woman by Jiri Hodan

5. What is the communication task? • What issue, situation, or problem are you responding to specifically? • What do you need to write about? • The answers here determine a lot about WHAT you communicate.

6. What do I need to accomplish? • What is the main purpose for your task? • Inform? • Solve a problem? • What else do you (REALLY) need to do? • Give bad news, good news, annoying news? • Persuade? • Start or maintain relationships?

7. What do I need to accomplish? • What outcome do you need from this communication? • What do you want the audience to do based on your communication? • The answers determine HOW you communicate.

8. Who do I need to communicate with? • An individual? A group? • More than one audience? • The answers determine your choices in tone and style.

9. Who do I need to communicate with? • What organizational role(s) are involved? • What are THEIR purposes for reading your message?

10. Who do I need to communicate with? • Initial audience person to whom you submit a document, not necessarily the decision maker • Primary audience person for whom your document is actually intended, the decision maker

11. Who do I need to communicate with? • Secondary audience(s) other people affected by the information or by decisions based on it • External audience(s) people outside the immediate organization affected by the information; people in other areas (legal, marketing)

12. What is the audience’s purpose? • What will the audiences need to do as a result of your message? • How will you make it clear to them what you need them to do now or in the future? • Is your communication responding to someone? • How are you responding to their needs?

13. What is the audience’s attitude? • About the topic? • About the company? • Are they comfortable communicating with you? • Attitude determines how motivated the audience is to read your message and

14. What affects audience reception? • Are you giving them good news or bad? • How will the audience be affected by your message and how might they feel about that? • Will they agree or disagree with you? Do you know? • What might offend them?

15. Will the audience understand? • What background will you need to provide? • Does your audience have all the facts they need to understand your message? • Does your audience have the experience and background to understand your message? • The audience’s knowledge of the facts and level of experience determine how much background you need to provide.

16. What other factors affect audience? • Level of education and preparedness • Culture—national, community, organizational • Language • Are you communicating in your audience’s first language? In your first language? • Gender

17. Be careful about assumptions Chris Jackson Creamo Supplies100 E. Arlington BlvdGreenville, NC 27858 July 30, 2012 Dear Mr. Jackson: We received your invoice dated June 12, 2012. The first

18. Be careful about assumptions Meet Chris Jackson:

19. What is the audience context? • Where will the audiences access and use your communication? • What distractions will the audience face? • What are the audiences’ working conditions.

20. Writing Considerations • Approach and type of communication • Content • Length • Tone • Style • Correctness

21. Writing Considerations • The $2.13 million comma2002, Rogers Communications Inc. versus Bell Aliant, a telephone company in Atlantic Canada,

22. Writing Considerations Subject to the termination provisions of [the Agreement], [the Agreement] shall be effective from the date it is made, and shall continue in force for a period of five (5) years from the date it is made, and thereafter for successive five (5) year terms, unless and until terminated by one (1) year prior notice in writing by either party.

23. Writing Considerations Can the contract be terminated by either party at any time after providing one year’s notice (ss Aliant argues)? Or, can the contract only be terminated at the end of a five year period (as Rogers argues)? A court ruled in favor of Aliant (reversed on appeal based on original French version)

24. Reviewing Questions Getting to know about your key writing tasks Who did you write for? What did you consider as you wrote for this audience? Where/what in your writing sample demonstrates consideration of audience?

25. Reviewing Questions Getting to know about your key writing tasks Why do you write to accomplish most often? Who do you write to most often? What types of documents do you write? What do you find most challenging? What would you like to do better?