THE MANAGERS COURSE – OUTLINE
This course is aimed at managers who are reasonably confident writers themselves, and who want to develop better writing skills amongst their teams. All delegates complete a pre-questionnaire to establish their particular needs.
A. Introduction
Good and bad writing: what do we mean
Issues in quality of business writing
Review of pre-questionnaires
B. Exercise 1: clarity; copy analysis
C. Understanding how “business language” is different
Good writing vs good business writing
Establishing writing norms for employees (“how we write”)
D. Exercise 2: conciseness; reduction; polishing
E. How business English has changed
Understanding how and why these changes occur
The “formal-o-meter” and how to use it
Using the “formal-o-meter” with employees
F. Exercise 3: tone; register; informality
G. Correctness and the avoidance of “errors”
Review of the standard English rulebook, including fallacies
Five myths debunked, twenty usages to avoid
Resources for resolving disputes about correctness
H. Exercise 4: levels of correct; dealing with personal peeves
I. Subtext: how written communication affects relationships
Key factors in understanding subtext
Using role-play exercises to deepen understanding
J. Subtexting scenes; identifying strongest factors
K. Writing formats: how to choose
Deciding between report, email, letter, proposal etc
What are the core strengths/weaknesses of each format?
L. Exercise 5: the difficult staff email
analysis via formality, length, tone, subtext
M. Coaching staff about writing – issues
getting a benchmark established
gaining permission for critiquing/ improvement
critiquing approaches – five pointers
ongoing programmes for improvement
