Leadership Communication
Chapter 2: Creating Leadership Documents

＊ Select the most effective communication medium.
＊ Create individual or team document.
＊ Organize document content coherently.
＊ Conform to content and format expectations in correspondence.
＊ Include expected contents in reports.
＊ Format business documents effectively.

In business documents fall into one of two broad types:
(1) correspondence(e-mails ,memos ,and letters)
(2) reports(proposals ,progress reviews ,performance reports ,and chart packs)

Selecting the most effective communication medium
＊ Select the medium best suited for the context and your message.

Creating individual and team documents
Whether we are creating our document alone or in collaboration in a team, having some plan will help us be more productive and streamline.

(1) Individual documentsh
The brain cannot be creator and critic at the same time.
Govern how u approach the process and how complete it.
Step1: Analyzing and planning
Step2: Creating and Developing
Step3: Refining and proofing

(2) Team documents
It uses one of two ways to divide the tasks:

1. One person on the team doses all of the writing with others providing the content t0

the scribe.
2. The team divides the writing among the team members according to the sections for

which they have provided most of the content.
The single-scribe approach
Ensure consistency in style and format.
The members must share in the ownership of the document by reading and contributing to

the drafts.

Also make sure scribe’s contribution is recognized, and that he or she included in all team

meeting.

The multiple-writer approach

In aspect of advantage: the work will usually go much faster than the single-scribe approach.

The team members know the content well and can ensure that it is complete and correct,and

they avoid the delays caused when a team memeber has to rewrite his or her section

because the scribe,who is often not close to the content.Collaborative writing makes team

labour more efficient and make it more equitable.In aspect of disadvantage:Team maybe

confused about the precise scope of individual assignments,resulting in duplication of effort

or neglected tasks.Have trouble dividing the sections equitably,and the resulting sections

mabe uneven and inconsistent, the style and tone will probably differ from section to section.

The document can easily come a cross as fragmented and even incoherent.

• Controlling version
  When creating a team document, since multiple team members will touch the document at various times during the writing process.
  All the members have to get in the habit of inserting their initials in the footer and save document.
  Make sure higher quality and save you times such procedures will help team avoid some of conflict.
  
  Organizing the content coherently
  Specifically creating coherence when writing typical business documents by organizing your content and including the content expected by your audience.
  
  Organization and content
  Organizing device that best matches your purpose and content , such as deductive ,inductive ,or chronological .The logic of the entire document, as well as that of each section, should be obvious to your readers. If you have a hostile or resistant audience and decide it is best to take an indirect approach by explaining and presenting your evidence before stating your main message or recommendation.
  
  Opening with power
  Most of the time you should begin strongly by quickly stating your main message, but let your analysis of your audience guide you.
  Use your analysis of your audience to determine how best to begin ,but try to state your main point as early as possible in your document so that reader knows your reason for writing. Don’t let reader said so what after read anything that you wrote.
  
  Developing with Reason
  The logical structuring should be MECE, which is called as Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive, it means your supporting topics do not overlap ,and you have to provide adequate justification for each one. It also suggests a balance for your sections. In solving many of the business problem that u tackle , you will collect more information than you can or should present to your audience.
  
  Closing with grace
  Once you have taken your audience through your discussion, you should end as quickly and directly as you began. You should, however, provide a sense of polite, unrushed closure. Traditional academic writing requires closings that restate or summarize what has already been said.
  
  Conforming to Content and Formatting Expectations in Correspondence
• Determine the actual content of your letters, memos, and e-mail based on your purpose, strategy, and audience.
• These types of business communication do carry with them some expectations of what you should include.
• Use a format that follows standard business writing conventions.
• It designed to make your document accessible as well as attractive.

The examples provided here follow these conventions.
*Letters: Most businesspeople today prefer block format letters illustrated in the letter of transmittal with simple “Sincerely” to close the letter.

*Memos: Should include all of the preliminary elements of date, to, from, and subject.

*E-mails: Emails follow a format similar to that of a memo, but they do have some special guidelines that should follow to ensure that they are effective.

Including Expected Content in Reports
(1)The type of report, the company style, as well as the industry standards will often dictate content and organization.

A Formal Full-Length Report
*A formal full-length report should have a table of contents.
*The table of contents reveals the organization of your report.
*It allows your readers to see the overall content and select the sections relevant to their need and interests.

Including Exhibits in Reports
*Exhibit Placement:
It is best to insert the exhibits as close as possible to the text that discussed it.
The exhibit may supplement your message but not be immediately necessary to the understanding of it, in which case you may place it in an appendix at the end of the document.
*Exhibit Labels: Exhibits are always numbered consecutively.

Handling Research Information in Reports
(1)If you have used information that you gained by reading what others have said or written, you must include notes and bibliography, which would come just before appendix.



Proposal and Progress Reports
(1)A Proposal: A proposal maybe written as a formal report with a letter of transmittal, executive summary, and so fourth, or it may be presented as a formal letter.
(2)A progress Report: Allow you to highlight progress on a project or task and also, if appropriate, to showcase your work. They will usually include the following sections:
*Introduction.
*Project description.
*Work completed.
*Work in progress.
*Work remaining.
*Overall appraisal of progress.

Executive Summaries
· An executive summary must accurately, yet concisely, summarize the major message of the original document so that your reader understands the substance of your report without reading further.


Formatting Business document effectively
· It makes them accessible to your audiences and easier for them to read.

Document should conform to the following business wring standard
· Layout: A letter or memo should follow standard conventions. Allow adequate margins, which usually means at least one inch on all sides.
· Spacing and alignment: Business documents should be single-spaced with double-space (the equivalent of a one-line gap) between the paragraphs.
· Font Type and Size: Times New Roman has become the preferred font and is used most frequently in business documents.

Using Heading
*Your goal with heading is to make it easier for the audience to access the information in the document.

Formatting Lists

*Lists are formatted using bullets or numbers. One rule of thumb on the use of bullets is that you have more than five items in your list, you should use numbers instead since it make it easier for the reader to keep track.

by Jeff (chihao chen )