Do Business Well

Write efficient memos

Want to get information up, down or across your organisation? Send a memo.

Memos are the ideal way to transmit your ideas and suggestions for approval, pin down decisions that were made orally, keep all the members of your team informed of developments or offer or seek instructions or advice. A memo is an efficient way to request help or co-operation from colleagues in another department. Management uses memos to introduce new procedures or policies throughout the organisation.

Most organisations have preprinted forms for memos. If you have none at hand, use a word processor to create a basic format and keep it on the word processor for duplication. Here are practical guidelines for efficient memo writing:

The name of the organisation is not required on memos for internal use.

• No salutation or close is necessary. A signature or initial will suffice.
• Date your memo and cite all references required.
• List in alphabetical order at the end of the memo, the names of people to whom you are sending copies.
• Avoid ambiguity and careless or emotive language.
• Get straight to the point.
• Keep sentences simple and concise.
• Group ideas into paragraphs and use headings where necessary.
• Cover all details. Answer all possible questions. Ask every question to which you need an answer.

Write the perfect report

Do you want to influence decisions made in your organisation? Write a perfect report.

The main purpose of a report is to keep management informed of relevant developments within and outside the organisation so that it can make decisions based on accurate facts, expert advice and well-considered opinions.

Reports may summarise investigations into the causes and effects of problems or trends and recommend solutions or look into the feasibility of suggested innovations. Factual reports may provide statistical or financial summaries or information for legal purposes.

Reports are normally written to provide a record of communication but, wherever possible, you should present your report orally for maximum impact.

Anyone who can write accurate and clear reports is an asset to the company.

Reports of a high standard reflect both the quality of the work discussed in the report and the competence of the writer. Your efficiency will be judged by the way you write reports and your next promotion could well depend on the way you tackle report writing.

Assess your ability to write reports

Poorly written reports are left unread to gather dust. Avoid this possibility by assessing your report-writing abilities today.

Find a report that you wrote during the last month. Give it to a colleague with a request to complete the following questionnaire. Colleagues will be better able than you to judge the standard of your reports.

Your report-writing checklist

• Is there a title page?
• Is there an executive summary of less than a page at the beginning?
• Is the language usage straightforward, without unnecessary jargon?
• is it free from typing and spelling errors?
• Has the aim of the report been clearly stated?
• Are there clear headings and subheadings?
• Is there a clear statement of the problem?
• Are the findings clearly stated?
• Are the recommendations clearly stated in point form?
• Are graphs, tables and diagrams simple and clear and is each of them accompanied by a key?

Don’t despair if your colleague gives you a devastating evaluation. Avenge yourself by taking a critical look at his or her report-writing ability with the same checklist.

Study the steps to successful report writing and join forces to set goals for improvement.

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