Fluent Essays

linkedin Assignment Overview A context is a dynamic set of relationships among people, institutions, documents, technologies, information, et cetera. These relationships inform and are informed by certain standards, judgments, beliefs, assumptions, and values. Becoming a member of a professional or community-based context is a process that requires you to invest in and understand these relationships and the various ways in which they function. Building professional relationships also requires self-reflection on who you are and how your background will be incorporated into your professional identity. In turn, you also will need to recognize how professional identity is affected by cultural backgrounds and traditions. In short, you will need to develop a nuanced understanding of identity and how identity can influence professional writing contexts. The context of contemporary business and industry relies on writing, whether that be via mediated or traditional forms of written communication. Your job in this project is to better understand the role of writing in contemporary business contexts and the skills you need to successfully write on the job. LinkedIn Profile One of the most common ways members of a business community demonstrate their experiences and skills to other members of that community is through their LinkedIn profile. Like other social media sites, LinkedIn allows for networking with other professionals, sharing of articles and posts that are pertinent to an individual’s business outlook, and (of course) listing details that are often included in a resume. Many corporate recruiters utilize LinkedIn to find potential employees, and thus it is important to not only have a strong LinkedIn profile for yourself, but to also understand how others in your industry utilize LinkedIn themselves. For this part of the project, you will do two things: Analyze the LinkedIn profile of someone in your industry. This could be someone in management or someone in an entry level position. I don’t recommend examining the LinkedIn profile of the CEO (CEO’s have very different priorities than you will when you enter the job market yourself--focus on someone’s profile who you could see yourself working with). In this analysis, write about how this person uses LinkedIn (1 page, single-spaced, How do they list their past jobs, experiences, achievements? How do they utilize LinkedIn’s social media features? What kind of language do they use to represent themselves and their industry? Create your own LinkedIn profile using some of the same language and strategies that you see in the profile you analyzed. The goal here is for you to begin to understand how people in your industry write about themselves and their work in a public setting and to begin doing the same thing yourself. Rhetorical Analysis of a Business Document Your job in this project is to write a short report on a professional document. Your goal is to produce a report that thoroughly examines and evaluates the rhetorical context of the document. Here are some requirements for the document that you will analyze: The document must have an audience of more than one person The document must be produced in a corporate or business environment of the industry that you want to go into. The document must be used or produced in the course of work in your profession--it must be integral to work being completed in that context Examples: proposals, memos, reports, press release, product or service description, planning document, et cetera. If you are unsure about the choice of your document, please contact me and I can help you. You can find a document by either asking a professional in the industry that you want to work in or by searching on the internet. Some examples: Someone interested in structural engineering could analyze this engineering report from the Surfside Condo collapse Someone interested in the airline industry could analyze this Delta memo on the right to vote And someone interested in politics could analyze this White House memo on diversity training in the government In one sense, this project is about “reading” or analyzing the context for conveying information. We are going to need to examine reports, white papers, and other documents and “read” them with a critical eye using some of the rhetorical theories and concepts we are learning. In another sense, this project provides you with an initial opportunity to write a short report. Short reports are common in the workplace and are often requested on the “fly” to respond to an emergent problem, issue, or situation. For this part of the project, you will need to produce: Professional email to me proposing the document you will analyze, why you have chosen that document, and the larger significance of this document One single-spaced paragraph summarize the content of the report you will analyze Final report of 1-2 single spaced pages Professional Interview about Writing This assignment asks you to use your professional networks on LinkedIN to connect with a person whom you would like to interview about the writing they do on the job. This does not have to be someone who calls him or herself a professional or technical writer, but it does need to be someone in your industry or area who writes as part of their job. You will produce a short email proposal on whom you will interview. The proposal should contain information about the person, why this person was chosen, when, where, and how you will conduct the interview, how you will record the interview, and any correspondence you have had with the person. You will also need a list of questions you have generated that you will ask about writing in a professional setting. This can be done individually or collaboratively. Then, you will produce a transcription of the interview with a short analysis of what happened. In this short, one paragraph analysis, please include: an account of the interview, including location, time, and circumstances; a description of the interaction between interviewer and interviewee; and impressions of the interview. For this part of the project, you will need to do two things: Professional email to me by proposing whom you will interview, details on the interview, and questions Transcript and brief analysis of interview Final Report The final report for this project is a culmination of your LinkedIn work, rhetorical analysis, and interview. You will write a professional report that outlines writing in your particular business or industry. The audience for this report is someone who is interested in entering into this field and wants to be able to write effectively in it. Imagine you are educating this person about how people write in this field. Your report should be organized, written, and designed as a professional document (introduction, claims and evidence, title, headings, consideration of design, etc.). You can repurpose materials you prepared for the other deliverables. It should run around 5 single-spaced pages. You’ll need to address the following questions in your report: What is the importance of writing in your industry? What do professionals write in your field? Who are their audiences? What kinds of documents do they produce? Do they write digitally? Do they write for print? How much do they write each day? Do some members of your field write more than others? What kinds of rhetorical techniques do they use in their writing? What kinds of evidence or support do they use in their writing? What styles or characteristics of writing are most valued in your field? How important is the design of documents in your field? What is the level of formality expected in your writing? Does it change depending on audience and purpose? How so? How does writing circulate in the professional context you studied? What did you discover that you didn’t know? What did you learn from doing this project?