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This order has been set on revision status. Please press the Confirm button to tell us you are aware of this revision, and will complete it within the time provided. Order #155610887 (Status: Writer Assigned) no title. Just follow the instructions (5 pages, 0 slides) Reassign this order · Instructions  · Files (5)  · Messages  Type of service: Writing from scratch Work type: Memorandum Essay (policy brief) Deadline: 2 Oct, 04:00 PM (1d 3h) Extend deadline Academic level: College (3-4 years: Junior, Senior) Subject or Discipline: Public Administration Title: no title. Just follow the instructions Number of sources: 7 Provide digital sources used: No Paper format: APA # of pages: 5 Spacing: Double spaced # of words: 1375 # of slides: ppt icon 0 # of charts: 0 Paper details: Information on how to draft a policy brief memo is attached. The memo should be adress to the mayor Rawson. Please find all the instructions attached. Use as many as sources needed. Please note that this is not a tipical essay. Its a memo. Also make sure that you read the guideline for writing a memo. Comments: # Files Who Uploaded   1 155610887_writ_tr_3.pdf Guidelines for writing 38 KB 1 Oct, 03:58 AM Customer 2 155610887_Policy_Brief_Exercise_1.docx Order instructions 104 KB 1 Oct, 03:58 AM Customer 3 155610887_memo_tr_2.pdf Guidelines for writing 55 KB 1 Oct, 03:58 AM Customer 4 155610887_Chapter_1_4.pdf eBook 1 MB 1 Oct, 03:58 AM Customer 5 155610887_Analysis_and_Alternatives_5.pdf eBook 2 MB 1 Oct, 03:58 AM Customer Policy Brief Exercise   Instructions:   Your response to the questions raised in the Policy Brief Exercise should be written in an essay format. The rules relating to plagiarism apply fully to this paper, as they do to all other student work products.  The papers will be run through Turnitin.  Please cite when relying on or paraphrasing another person’s work.   Use an appropriate citation style (APA preferred).  If needed, put the bibliography at the back of the paper. Papers are to be typed, double-spaced, and utilize an easy-to-read font-size (Times Roman 12 point preferred).  Papers should be approximately 4-5 pages in length.    Policy Brief Exercise The Pornography Ordinance:  What’s a Mayor to Do?   Frustrated by an increasing number of adult entertainment businesses and the rise of prostitution in lower-income sections of a large mid-western city, religious leaders, business groups, and community activists decided to fight back. These groups maintained that the increased visibility of pornography in the city was a threat to women and caused neighborhood devaluation and decay.  They decided to enlist the help of a legal clinic at a local public university to help them address this public policy problem.  Two feminists’ lawyers working for the clinic proposed a controversial piece of legislation that defined pornography as sex discrimination and as such violation of a womans civil rights. More specifically, the ordinance defined pornography as “a form of discrimination on the basis of sex.”  The ordinance went further by adding a controversial section on trafficking. This provision of the ordinance stated that the production, sale, or distribution of pornography is discrimination against women by means of trafficking.   Essentially, this meant that any woman could file a complaint to the City’s Civil Rights Commission against someone who produced, sold, or distributed pornography.  In effect, a woman could sue a business owner who engaged in pornography for monetary damages, or she could obtain an injunction to prevent the pornographer from selling any more of the material. This rather broad definition of pornography and the provision stating the production, sale, distribution was a form of trafficking led the American Civil Liberties Union to contend the proposed ordinance impinged upon the constitutional right of freedom of speech.  Despite the concerns raised about the constitutionality of the ordinance by the ACLU, business associations, religious organizations, community activists strongly supported the ordinance. It was passed unanimously by the city council. When the proposed legislation arrived at his desk, the mayor, George Rawson, had three options he could take. He could veto it, sign it, or ignore it and allow proposed ordinance to become law without his signature.  Rawson, a lawyer, was concerned about the constitutionality of the proposed ordinance.  In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court defined obscenity within the context of pornography in the landmark case of Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15 (1973).  The Miller decision established three criteria for considering pornographic material obscene and unconstitutional.  The material had to lack any serious artistic or social value, it had to portray sexual conduct in a blatantly offensive way, and it had to be considered obscene using contemporary community standards.  In effect, the Court’s holding in Miller created burdensome procedures for taking civil or criminal action against pornographers so as to avoid excessive censorship. The implementation strategy that cities commonly used to limit pornography sales was through zoning laws. However, zoning regulations were often struck down by the courts for being unconstitutional because they violated freedom of expression.  In addition, Mayor Rawson was concerned about the likely administrative costs that would be imposed on the city’s Civil Rights Commission by the proposed ordinance.  The city’s Civil Rights Commission was to be the agency responsible under the proposed legislation for hearing any complaint related to pornography.  Both proponents and opponents of the proposed pornography ordinance tried to persuade the mayor to support their position.   However, the mayor has chosen to without any decision regarding the recommendations by both the proponents and the opponents of the proposed legislation.  Instead, he turns to a member of his staff and asks you to frame the problem and provide him the information and advice he needs to make a decision.     The mayor wants this information in a short policy brief.  This brief should provide him with key information (findings, analysis, and/or recommendations) regarding this complex public policy issue.  The policy brief will also serve as the basis for any public statements that Mayor Rawson may make about the proposed ordinance.   The policy brief must convey information succinctly and cogently.  See the section below detailing the steps involved in drafting a policy brief.  Put the policy brief in the form of a memorandum and direct it toward Mayor Rawson.  The policy brief should be between 4-5 pages.  C a s e T e a c h i n g R e s o u r c e s F R O M T H E E V A N S S C H O O L O F P U B L I C A F F A I R S T h e E l e c t r o n i c H a l l w a y ® Box 353060 · U n i v e r s i t y o f W a s h i n g t o n · Seattle WA 98195- 3060 www.hallway.org ________________________________________________________________________________________________ This teaching resource has been provided for members of the Electronic Hallway with the express permission of the author, Talitha May, Writing Instructor at the Graduate Writing Center, at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, University of Texas, Austin. The Electronic Hallway is administered by the University of Washingtons Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs. This material may not be altered or copied without written permission from The Electronic Hallway. For permission, email [email protected], or phone (206) 616-8777. Electronic Hallway members are granted copy permission for educational purposes per Member’s Agreement (www.hallway.org). Copyright 2004 The Electronic Hallway WRITING EFFECTIVE MEMORANDA: PLANNING, DRAFTING, & REVISING Memoranda are a common form of correspondence sent within an organization. Memos are concise, focused examples of persuasive writing because they typically require a particular course of action, and are audience specific. Prior to writing, it is necessary to take the time to plan your memo. Planning your memo will actually save you time rather than if you merely start composing without a clear sense of direction. Planning: Purpose, Audience, and Organization Purpose and context Consider the following planning steps: § Determine your specific purpose for writing the memo § Determine some of the ideas you want to convey § Develop your purpose into a focused, and concise working statement Audience Analyzing your audience will help you make effective writing decisions. Consider the following questions: § Journalistic “w” questions: who, what, when, where, why, and how § Who is your audience? o What characterizes your audience? Think in terms of age, culture, education, gender, geographical region, interests, language, marital status, occupation, politics, religion, etc. Writing Effective Memoranda 2 § What are your audience’s expectations? § How much does your audience know about the background of what you are writing about? Develop an organizational pattern You may organize your memo in various ways depending on the context of your memo; however, most memos are chronologically organized and answer the following questions: 1. Current situation: What is the problem or the issue? Describe the background of your issue by means of a concise executive summary. If your memo is one page or less, provide a one to two sentence purpose statement. 2. Past situation: How have you addressed the issue in the past? 3. Future action: What should your organization do about the issue in the future? Make a feasible recommendation or ask for a particular course of action. Additional Organizational Strategies For more organizational ideas, refer to “Tip 24 of Phillip E. Bozek’s book, 50 One-Minute Tips to Better Communication: A Wealth of Business Communication Ideas. Drafting Clearly state your purpose The first sentence of the body should explain the purpose of the memo. Use verbs that specifically and directly communicate what you want your memo to accomplish, such as to explain, to authorize, or to request: § I am requesting travel funding to Boulder, Colorado to meet with the Governor. § This memo presents the results of the internal audit of the executive branch. § I want to congratulate you on your superior contributions to the EPA. Develop an executive summary for memos longer than one page A summary has four main goals: 1. To help the writer stay focused 2. To give readers an overall sense of the memo 3. To remind readers of the main points 4. To enable readers to skip the body if necessary The executive summary should reflect the tone, content, and 10\% of the length of the memo. For one-page memos, it may simply be a concise statement of purpose: Writing Effective Memoranda 3 § In August, we completed the first draft of the policy research project on schedule. We presently do not anticipate any delays that would jeopardize our projected completion date. § This memo outlines a mediation and negotiation process between the conflicting groups. Write an effective closing statement Aim to avoid writing overly general closing statements, but end with direct statements of action. If necessary, make sure your memo provides detailed information by attaching tables, charts, tables, or other detailed information as attachments. Be sure to refer to your attachments in your memo and add a notation about what is attached below your closing statement. § Attached: Fiscal Reports, August–September 2000 § Attached: Applicant’s résumé Visual Organization To aid readability, and organization, consider the following document design techniques: § White space: use to organize information and emphasize important information § Headings: use as navigational tools to assist readers scan for main ideas, or quickly find key information at a later time § Ordered and unordered lists (bullets): use to condense information § Italics: use to emphasize key words § Specific subject line in boldface type : use for emphasis and quick reference Revising Memoranda Revising allows you to re-see your memo by examining global issues such as audience, purpose and focus, organization, and development. Review the following checklist when revising and your memoranda: Writing Effective Memoranda 4 CONCERN Revision Questions Audience § Is your reader familiar with the memo’s topic, and if not, did you provide descriptive background information? § Is the tone courteous? Would you feel comfortable allowing anyone to read or quote your memo? Purpose and Focus § Is the statement of purpose clear? § Could your reader tell what the intended purpose of the memo is? § Could your reader immediately tell what prompted the need for this memo? § Is the memo appropriate for your writing situation? § Does each paragraph have a central idea that supports your statement of purpose? § Is the subject line specific? Does it provide your topic and purpose? § Are your headings specific enough for your readers? Organization § Do the most important ideas come first? § Does your organization mirror the sequence of ideas in your statement of purpose? § Will your readers understand the relationships among your headings? § If your memo is one page, does it follow a deductive organization? § Did you provide transitional devices to maintain coherence? Continued on next page. Writing Effective Memoranda 5 Visual Organization and Format Continued from previous page. § Did you use a template or your organization’s preferred form? § Did you use bulleted or ordered lists to discuss step-by-step procedures? § Did you provide enough white space to aid the memo’s readability? § Did you provide headings for major sections? Development § Did you describe the current situation with sufficient details? § Did you provide relevant and credible examples to support your recommendations? § Did you provide your reader(s) with all the information they may need? Editing Memoranda In contrast to revising, editing focuses on the effectiveness of your words and sentences including topics such as “accuracy,” “economy,” and “consistency” (Palmquist, Bedford 231). Review the following checklist when editing your memoranda: Correctness or Accuracy § Are the names spelled correctly? § Are the job titles correct and up-to-date? § Did you write out the date rather than use the all- numerical format? § Are the times and dates in your memo accurate? § Is your contact information current? § Is your memo free from clichés and does it use precise words that accurately express your main ideas? § Is each sentence complete? § Did you remember to include your attachments if necessary? Conciseness § Did you remove “unnecessary modifiers” (very, really, somewhat, quite, sort of, etc.)? (Palmquist, Bedford 241) § Did you remove unnecessary introductory phrases (there are, it is, there is, these have, these are, here are, here is)? (Palmquist, Bedford 241) § Did you remove or reduce the use of stock/wordy phrases? Continued on next page. Writing Effective Memoranda 6 Consistency Continued from previous page. § Did you use concepts consistently? § Did you use numbers consistently? § Did you format your memo consistently? § Are your headings consistent in form? § Did you maintain the same form of each name? Lunsford states, if you refer to someone as Susan in one sentence, dont switch to Sue in the next (483). Tone and Language § Is the language non-sexist? § Is your memo free from technical jargon? § Did you avoid using pompous diction? § Did you use action verbs rather than “to be” verbs? § Are your sentences varied in length and structure? § Are your sentences simple and not too complex? Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation § Did you maintain parallelism in bulleted lists? § Rather than relying on your computer’s spelling, and grammar tools, did you ask a colleague to proofread your draft? § Did you consult a contemporary dictionary or recently written handbook? § Is the language active, or did you suitably use the passive voice? § Did you read your memo out loud to find any omitted words? References Lunsford, Andrea A. The Everyday Writer. 2nd ed. Boston: Bedford/St.Martin’s, 2001. Bozek, Phillip E. 50 One-Minute Tips to Better Communication: A Wealth of Business Communication Ideas. Revised ed. Menlo Park: Crisp Publications, 1998. Markel, Mike. Technical Communication. 6th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2001 Palmquist, Mike. The Bedford Researcher. Boston: Bedford/St.Martin’s, 2003. ---. Overview: Writing Memos. Dec. 2002. Dept. of English and Composition, Colorado State University. 20 Dec. 2002 <http://writing.colostate.edu/ references/documents/memo/>. T e a c h i n g C a s e R e s o u r c e s f r o m t h e E v a n s S c h o o l o f P u b l i c A f f a i r s T h e E l e c t r o n i c H a l l w a y ® Box 353060 · University of Washington · S e a t t l e W A 9 8 195-3060 www.hallway.org This teaching resource was written by J. Patrick Dobel, Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs, University of Washington; Richard Elmore, Harvard University Graduate School of Education; and Laurie Werner, Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs, University of Washington. The Electronic Hallway is administered by the University of Washingtons Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs. This material may not be altered or copied without written permission from The Electronic Hallway. For permission, email [email protected], or phone (206) 616-8777. Electronic Hallway members are granted copy permission for educational purposes per the Member’s Agreement (www.hallway.org). Copyright 2003 The Electronic Hallway MEMO WRITING This note introduces memo writing to students training for careers in public service. It focuses on memos rather than research papers or essays, because memos pervade the daily life of any public servant. A memo is a relatively short, written document. Memos address specific people or groups for the purpose of recording an agreement, transmitting information, making a case, or enabling action. Brevity is essential; most decision makers have little time and must assimilate memo contents quickly. Long memos don’t get read. Think of a memo as a precision tool. Tools may be beautiful things in themselves, but we measure their value by how well they perform a task. In practical terms, every aspect of a memo – its prose style, organization, appearance on the page and content – should have a direct relationship to its purpose. Long flowery introductions, technical jargon, casual chit-chat, and showy vocabulary all distract from a memos essential purpose: to inform or to enable action. This note deals with four topics: identifying your audience or principal; getting yourself engaged in writing; using language; and organizing the final product. Added to these are notes on e-mail communications. Know Your Audience or Principal Specific people read memos. The more vaguely defined the target audience, the more difficult for the writer to decide what to say. Knowing your audience is of primary importance in memo writing. Ask yourself three questions about your audience: who are they, what do they need to know, and how should you present it to them? • Who is the audience of your memo? Memos are directed at decision makers. Usually you write a memo for an individual or group to help them make a decision. To influence decision makers, you must give considerable thought to who they are. You have a duty to provide them with timely, accurate, and comprehensive analysis. 2 • What do they need to know? To meet the obligations of memo writing, you should ask: what type of information do they need to make a good decision? § Start writing your memo by considering the position of your readers and their responsibilities, constraints, and pressures. You should keep in mind how much knowledge they already have and tailor your information to their level of expertise. § Decide how much and what type of information they need to make a good decision. Keep four things in mind when considering this: 1. Your audience relies on you for accurate and relevant information. This reliance places strong obligations upon you to choose information well and present decision makers with all sides of the issues. Unless you are designated as an advocate or identify yourself as such, you must strive for an unbiased presentation of the information. Individuals are often tempted to push their own agendas without regard to the requirements of a good decision by the principal. This is legitimate when so acknowledged in the memo. All memos however, should do justice to complex issues and to your principals. They are making the decision, not you. 2. Provide the bad news as well as the good. You should alert your principals to the dangers, problems, and implications of decisions, as well as to the advantages. Although memos drive people toward decisions, you may have the unhappy but vital duty of telling readers they need more information to make a good decision. Often memos can only be summaries of arguments and reports, like the tip of an iceberg. The author should have supporting arguments and information to provide to the principals when needed or requested. 3. Before making a recommendation, make sure you have laid out honest and realistic alternatives. Dont fall into what Henry Kissinger called the war, surrender, my way memo. It violates your responsibility to your principal, and a thoughtful reader will dismiss your analysis. 4. In recommending a course of action, clearly lay out the reasons. Anticipate questions, address them honestly, and compare your recommendation to other options. It is your job to anticipate needs and support the decision maker. • How should you present the information to them? Present all information with economy and clarity. Effectively writing a memo is a task that requires a special emphasis on clear formatting and accessible writing. Serve the reader’s need to access information quickly with judicious use of headings and bullets. 3 How to Get Engaged in Serious Writing Writing is difficult, frustrating work. As a craft, it entails a set of specific, learnable skills, and results in a tangible product. The harder you work, and the more determined you are to master the skills, the better you will become. Like any craft, writing requires practice. When you sit down to write your memo, two steps will help engage you in writing: developing a system for writing, and getting help when necessary. • Because writing is difficult, you need an explicit system for getting started and finished. Most memo writing is done under pressure. Under these conditions people can get stalled, confused, and side-tracked by psychological stress. Having a deliberate system gives you the self-discipline to plunge ahead in the face of this stress. In the absence of a system, you will find that you spend large amounts of time trying to figure out what youre doing. It doesnt matter particularly what system you use, so long as you have one and use it. Some people start with an outline and produce progressively finer drafts until they have a finished product. Some people “dump” everything they know about a given subject and then start culling and sorting, until they produce a coherent piece. Others begin with a few simple statements or assertions and then frame an argument around them. Experiment with a variety of methods, until you find one that suits your temperament. • If you are having genuine difficulty and find that you dont know what to do, get help. Writing workshops are plentiful. Get together with a group of students for the express purpose of talking about writing problems. Get suggestions from your professors. Dont retreat from the problem. You will need to write well in every job you have. Using the Language Remember that your written work presents you to others. Your use of language will shape their assessment of you. Sloppy phrasing, bad grammar, and incorrect spelling, for example, demonstrate unreflective thought. Respecting yourself, your ideas, and your principal should motivate you to master this essential means of communication. Your writing should strive for five important qualities: simplicity, straightforward sentence structure, clarity, clear action and responsibility, and correctness. Simplicity is the mark of good writing. Complex sentence structure and organization is a sure sign of confusion or hidden agendas. A well-written memo will be so simple and straightforward in language and structure that it will leap off the page. Don’t, however, make the mistake of equating simplicity with ease of production. The harder you work, the simpler the prose gets: the more you shirk, the muddier it will be. Consider the following example: 4 Whether it is true or not, and there are strong indications that it is not, the allegation by the County of substandard performance against the contractor is premature and certainly serves no useful purpose. This author tried to write in a “conversational” tone. Conversational language tends to be more complicated, elliptical, and indeterminate than good written prose. Written prose has to be edited to be good. Novice writers often respond to tough editing by complaining, “Youve taken all the creative words out of my writing. Now it looks like something anybody could have written.” In fact, tough editing does exactly the opposite. It makes your writing very distinctive. Remember, the message carries the mark of your individual creativity. Straightforward sentence structure is essential to clear communication. First, get the basic elements of the sentence straight: subject, verb, and object. Who is the actor? What action is the actor performing? On what or whom is the actor acting? What is the writers purpose in describing the relationship between actor and action? The county has accused the contractor of poor performance. This accusation is premature and possibly untrue. County, accuse, contractor – these are the elements. By stressing them, we cut the number of words roughly in half, from 37 to 16. We specified the nature of the action (accuse); we exchanged bureaucratic fuzz-words (allegation, substandard) for simple ones (accuse, poor); and we allowed the writer to express some uncertainty about the conclusions (possibly). The reader now captures the spirit of the writer’s message much more readily. These are the simplest writing techniques. Strip sentences to their elements, and make those elements drive your sentences. Subject first, then verb, then object. Apply the techniques to this example: With respect to problems of interim financing, and in consideration of the fact that short-term interest rates are prohibitive, the decision was made by the Finance Committee that the project should not be pursued beyond stage three of the design process until appropriate long-term financing can be secured through established capital market sources.1 Clarity in word choice marks good writing. Clarity means three things: (a) choosing the right word; (b) preferring simple words or combinations over complex ones; and (c) avoiding unnecessary technical jargon. • Choosing the right word is more difficult than it appears. When you begin writing something, certain stock phrases and terms roll out of your head onto the paper. These phrases and terms are cues to what you want to say, but often they 1 The Finance Committee considered interest rates for short-term loans too high. It therefore decided not to pursue the design process beyond stage three until lenders agree to long-term financing. (31 words v. 55) 5 do not convey what you actually mean. To communicate clearly, sort through alternative ways of saying what you mean. Get something on paper. Then, use your vocabulary, the dictionary, or a thesaurus, and deliberately substitute simpler words for complicated and ambiguous ones. Give special attention to verbs, and use the active voice. • Complex phrases that have mushy meanings often litter memos, because writers get caught in a cycle of “bureaucratese.” Take the following example: Current fiscal management techniques and control practices are keyed to the fiscal-year budgeting processes of the government cycle. They result in inefficient resource utilization because administrators increase expenditures toward the end of annual budget cycles in order to assure zero-balance results and reporting, rather than maximum efficiency in resource utilization. This example features many quasi-technical terms: “fiscal management techniques,” “resource utilization,” and “budget cycles.” These are common in bureaucracy but dont communicate much. In a more active, direct form the example reads: Administrators tend to spend more at the end of the fiscal year, because they will lose the money they don’t spend. Typically, they are not allowed to carry money forward into the following year. This results in expenditures that often are not the best use of public money. Weve left “fiscal year” in, because it is a technical term that has important meaning. Beyond that, we stripped out all the quasi-technical terms and replaced them with simpler words. Certain complex and mushy words creep into the language of public servants and become standard usage. Because bureaucrats use these words routinely, the public begins to think that bureaucrats are evasive. They are probably not – just insufficiently critical of their own language. Here is a list of some common bureaucratic words and their standard English equivalents. Bureaucratic English facilitate help/assist prioritize rank indicate say/show impact affect/effect concept idea 6 Another recent trend has been turning nouns into verbs. The trend started in computer circles where people “interface” with each other and “multiport” data. Today public officials “outsource” functions and “task” people to perform jobs. Such jargon separates public officials from citizens and creates a mystifying and unnecessary code to hide bureaucrats from accountability. A similar common practice is turning nouns and verbs into adjectives and running them together as strange compound words. These words often sound very important, but mean almost nothing. The following words come directly from the papers of students trying to sound like bureaucrats: Nouns into Adjectives Verbs into Adjectives program initiation diagnostic review programmatic decision making circumvention practice definitional terms allocation routine problem areas elimination criteria personnel involvement decisional alternative For each of these compounds, someone took a noun (program, definition, problem, etc.) or a verb (diagnose, circumvent, decide) and stuck it in front of a noun, giving it the function of an adjective. You can make adverbs the same way: programmatically initiated, diagnostically reviewed, etc. This clumping however, creates unwieldy, often unintelligible, prose and leaves little regard for a word’s root meaning or function. The skill required to avoid this kind of clumping is simple. First, learn the difference between nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. Second, dont use compounds when a simple construction will suffice. Look at a number of alternative ways of saying something, and choose the simplest way, rather than jamming words together because they sound authoritative and bureaucratic. Principals need lucidity, not jargon. • Technical jargon becomes a barrier to clear communication. When someone writes, “The purpose of our new thrust is to facilitate a more credible interface between clients and service deliverers and to indicate to top management how they ought to prioritize agency functions according to standard management concepts,” you know he is not writing for real human beings. Fellow citizens will have a difficult time trying to decipher the jargon. Automatically translate the words into English. If it doesnt make sense in English, then you have an important piece of information – the person doesnt know what he is saying. If it does make sense, then there is a better way to say it. As trustees of the common good, public officials have a special obligation to write in language that acknowledges and includes all members of the community. 7 A civic language should include the entire population. This requires that we avoid language that limits the citizenry to certain groups and implicitly excludes the rest of the population. In a more positive way, it obligates us to search for language that respects and acknowledges all individuals. Inclusive language, however, does not mean we must resort to awful English. Only muddled good intentions create these bureaucratic monstrosities: s/he, or his/her. In this case, inclusive language involves using plural pronouns, using both pronouns connected by or (he or she) or alternating the pronouns by section or example. The English language is evolving in the attempt to develop a more inclusive public vocabulary. Public officials should take the lead in this effort without reducing the language to trendy or bureaucratic neologisms. Clearly assigning action and responsibility will characterize skilled writing. Bureaucrats notoriously use language to obscure responsibility. They often think they are being clever by saying things in a way that hides who is supposed to be doing what. The typical means of obscuring responsibility are the passive voice and the editorial “we.” • The classic device to hide responsibility is the passive voice, where the subject is driven (by the agent). Passive construction diffuses your analysis and backs into major points. Remember that the strength of the English language resides in verbs. Use strong, active verbs. A good editor tries to eliminate as many copulatives (there... is, are, was, were) and weak verbs as possible. Verbs carry action and significance. Good verbs in the active voice eliminate the need for mindless space fillers such as “in order to,” “with respect to,” or “in consideration of.” The distinction between active and passive is something every public servant should understand. In active construction, the subject clearly acts on a specific person or thing. For example: boy takes apple. In passive construction, action is taken on the subject (by an agent who may be left unidentified) – apple is taken (by the boy). Consider the following examples from student memos: We recommend that specific operational details of the tools ad- dressed in this report and any others to be used in implementation of amended policies be clearly stated. (Very cagey. The “we re- commend” makes it sound quite active, but the construction ob- scures the responsibility for specifying details. Who specifies?) If it is decided that some therapeutic programs within existing in- stitutions are required, the personnel needed to run those programs must be fully informed as to the nature of the programs and their 8 roles in them. (This is a triumph in passive construction. Not only does it fail to say who decides; it also fails to say who informs.) Once you understand the difference between active and passive voice, you understand exactly what questions to ask about ambiguities in responsibility and action. Dont use passive construction to conceal action or responsibility, even when you suspect that other people dont understand the difference. Someone usually knows. Another bureaucratic device for concealing responsibility is the editorial “we”: We have always argued that rapid transit is the best long-run solution to urban transportation problems, given finite energy resources. In the short run, though, we are faced with the immediate problem of how to accommodate the city to the automobile. Notice how the writer uses the first (editorial) “we” to communicate what she thinks and then uses the second (generic, or perhaps civic) “we” to implicate you in a point of view. You are supposed to miss the distinction and find yourself seduced into agreement. If you understand the editorial “we,” however, youll ask yourself immediately who “we” is. Once you ask that question, the whole charade collapses. The credibility of the memo and its author collapses as well. To clearly assign action and responsibility, specify who is supposed to be doing what; then structure the sentence to reflect that. Who or what (subject) does what (verb) to whom or what (object)? Correctness in grammar, spelling, and punctuation requires that you proofread your work carefully. Remember not to rely solely on spell check, either. Many words can be spelled in more than one way, preventing the spellcheck software from finding the error. Examples are “principle” and “principal”, or “complement” and “compliment.” Each of these is spelled correctly, and therefore spell check will not alert you if you have used the incorrect one. For example, if you write the following sentence, spell check would consider it to be correct: “The principle of the school gave Julie a complement about her new dress.” This sentence utilizes the incorrect form of the words, but spell check did not alert us as we wrote them. Therefore it is necessary to proof your work thoroughly and not rely solely on the spelling and grammar check of your software. 9 Organization and Argument A good memo – indeed, any good piece of writing – has a clear structure. It progresses as a set of well-defined, logically connected statements that lead to a clear conclusion. This is the “argument.” If you dont have an argument, you dont have a memo. In addition, a good memo has a clear format that calls the readers attention to important steps in the argument. After the first reading, the reader should be able to return to key points without re-reading the whole document. In other words: Tell me what youre going to say (topic sentence or paragraph); say it (body of memo); then tell me what you said (conclusion). The three principal skills of organization and argument are: (1) putting the important things up front, (2) making the transition from one step of the argument to another clearly, and (3) using a clear format in your presentation. • Putting the important things up front is a common technique in journalism. Its called the “inverted pyramid” style of writing. Write the first paragraph, or “lead,” as though your story could be chopped off at any point after it. This puts a premium on specifying the problem, setting up the decision that follows from it, and presenting the important evidence quickly and succinctly. It also means that a reader can look at your memo and immediately know what youre doing. • Making the transition from one step of the argument to the next clearly means that you never pass from one subject to another without clearly identifying the new subject. “Blocking” is a term commonly applied to this practice. Tightly worded conclusions and clear headings alert the reader that you are changing subjects and moving to the next phase of your argument. Each major subdivision should have a new topic heading to help the principal know where you are going and find the points fast, if needed. • Using a clear format is essential to writing a solid memo. Again, this requires skills in simplification. Your useful guides are: define, order, connect, and conclude. § Definition of your word choice neednt be cumbersome. If there is any doubt about the meaning of the words you are using, just say “x means y.” This practice will save you a lot of grief and misunderstanding. Dont try to fuzz over the weaknesses in your argument by using vague terms. Someone will figure it out. § Ordering is simply finding the logical relationship of the topics you want to discuss and devising a clear set of headings. The skill resembles writing headlines for the newspaper, only with fewer words. 10 § Connecting and concluding give your reader clear messages about what youve said. The major message of this article, for example, is clarity – about the process of writing, the use of language, the assignment of responsibility, and the structure of the argument and format. Hows that for a summary? Conclusion Remember your obligations to yourself, your principal, and the information you are presenting. A memo communicates. Good communication strives for accuracy, clarity, and honesty. It means taking your audience seriously and letting their needs discipline your presentation. The quality of presentation reflects the quality of your own mind and preparation. Poorly conceived, badly written, imperfectly edited, even misspelled memos do an injustice to all concerned. They also destroy your credibility as an advisor. Good writing takes time and practice. No one gets it right in the first draft. That’s why, in this note, we have laid out some precise features to focus on in writing your memos. You must know your audience, what they need to know, and present it to them in a clear fashion. To do this you must develop a system of writing and be willing to search for help if necessary. In your writing, strive for five important qualities: simplicity, straight- forward sentence structure, clarity, clearly assigned action and responsibility, and correct- ness. Finally, organize your memo well, by putting the important arguments up front, using clear transitions, and allowing your format to help the information flow smoothly. By including these features, your memo will communicate what you want it to. Most decision makers have little time; they value clarity, conciseness, and accuracy. They appreciate clear formats that enable them to find summaries and needed information quickly during a discussion. Above all, they respond to well-crafted memos that account for their needs and help them make and defend a good decision. NOTES ON E-MAIL COMMUNICATIONS E-mail is no longer a form of communication limited to the scientific and university communities. Today, people use the internet widely for day-to-day communication in both the private and public sectors. While this note refers to the need to write memos clearly and succinctly, owing to the small amount of time your principal has to read them, e-mail correspondence is more rushed, necessitating even greater brevity and clarity. Many organizations now default to email communications in lieu of traditional memos as decision making tools. 11 Not only is e-mail communication often rushed, but its clarity is also complicated by variations in e-mail software and hardware platforms. When composing memos for e- mail, it is therefore important to remember and think about the following: E-mail is an “official” form of communication in a workplace. “Official” means that e-mail messages are legal business documents. Beware of writing anything that you would not write in a paper document for distribution. E-mail messages are now regularly subpoened in courts and most public organizations are subject to the Freedom of Information Act. Many public figures like Oliver North and Bill Gates find themselves trapped by public revelations of inappropriate e-mail. Think before you type! Many argue that e-mail should be a spontaneous, free flowing form of communication. Because of the potential legal ramifications, however, do not get pulled into E-mail Wars by responding immediately to negative messages you receive. If the message’s intent or meaning is unclear, wait before responding. E-mail is faceless and interpreting the intent and feelings of senders can be very difficult. Think through your concerns or anger, and compose your response in a professional manner. Better yet, consider talking to the sender in person to assure that neither party further misinterprets written words or intentions. Be clear and concise, and use formatting tools and spacing to increase legibility. What you write in an e-mail should be just as clear and contain the same level of professionalism as any written document you produce. If your inter-office e-mail software allows it, use bullets, italics and bold text to help your readers find what they need quickly. Be aware, however, that when you send messages to people outside your workplace, many of your special formatting features may not appear on their screens the way you see them. Using line breaks (space between paragraphs) instead of long, continuous paragraphs makes your messages easier to read on a computer screen. The easier and more visually accessible your message is, the more likely it is to get read in its entirety! Beware!!! Most e-mail programs do not check spelling and grammar! Always check your spelling and sentence structure, and read carefully for typographical errors before hitting the “Send” button! …