Managerial Writing

Section 2: Weakening your position by communicating the

wrong attitude

The purpose of your report is to convince top management to…

• Open a dialog about the topic with YOU as a participant– Not necessarily the only other participant, and

not even as the “loudest” participant

• To make clear-headed, informed decisions

• To see you and your team as solutions to problems

Attitude mistakes that permeate your writing

• False humility and arrogance – two sides of the same coin - weakness

• Recognition that reality is far more complex than your research and knowledge

• Acknowledgement that hard work and persistence are still needed to realize success (both your own and others)

Style mistakes that weaken your position

• Presenting alternatives in place of recommendations or conclusions

• Using weak words

• Regurgitating trivia

• “Cheerleading” and hype

Presenting alternatives rather than “speaking” with a single, cohesive,

well-supported voice

“…another positioning strategy for our automobiles produced for the Chinese market would be to get an early start on…”

Making your proposal in weak words

• Should• Could• Maybe• Can• Might

Words like these signal weakness and lack of confidence in your analysis and conclusions (to both the CEO and other readers). If you’re preparing such a report to be passed up the line to the CEO, it’s next to useless. Your boss has to extensively rewrite it as well as check your analysis. To an instructor it means you’ve started too late and cannot “digest” what you’ve discovered in your research.

Presenting the CEO with trivia

“Business cards are generally printed in English, as that is the accepted language in the Indian business world.”

“(Chinese w)orkers involved in assembly operations are typically paid monthly with wages earned of $60 to $85 monthly.” [This project did not propose mfg in China]

“Cheerleading” or “hype”“Chile is an effective and safe place to start a

business. Chile has a transparent and predictable government; the government is actively working to increase its GDP by improving trade relations with other countries.”

“…With relatively high educational attainment and progress in high-tech industries, much of the expansion will be internally generated; consumption will increase its share of the economy in line with rising incomes (Ryan, 2003) giving the [product] success immediately after introduction into the market.”

“Cheerleading” or “hype”

“The individual income of households in France and the percentage they spend on health related products is bound to make us money.”

“Cheerleading” or “hype”

“We have found a place that is ready and willing to accept our superior product in their country. The following is our team’s concluding facts and opinions of our computer product’s success, as well as a possibility of endless prosperity in the country of Chile.”

A special form of “cheerleading” occurs when students feel

compelled to write a conclusion.

Too often compulsive conclusion writing ends up producing a product dominated by excessive statements

that destroy credibility.

(example of a conclusion)“We feel after reviewing and researching the

demographics of the population, land, economy, government, and work force we know we will have a very “profitable” environment to succeed in for our business. The [product] for the retail stores and manufacturing companies will provide an open market ready for expansion. We fell [sic] that we have the resources, the capital and smarts to capture this market and give large returns on investment. This is a market that we will retain for a long time if we can get in, do it right and do it quickly. That way at the end of two years we will all be living the high life and driving ‘Beamers’.”