Unit II:

Chapter 1 - CORPORATE CULTURE AND COMMUNICATION

Lesson 1: The Principles of Professional Communication

Objectives:

 Describe the purpose and features of the register of professional communication

 Know the principles that guide professional communication and
 Apply these principles by revising professional documents excerpts from these

-Professional purpose
 Related to the workplace setting
 Record important workplace information, for example via minutes of meeting, secretarial
notes and official documentation proceedings
 Give or ask for information from people within the company via memos, outside the
company via business letters, or either of the two via professional reports.
 Persuade readers to take action
- Audience of Professionals
 Targets a specific audience, sometimes one reader, sometimes multiple readers
- Consider the level of knowledge of the single reader or audience
 When writing for a specific discourse community of professionals, like lawyers,
engineers, or architect, the writer may use technical terms that are familiar to the readers
without having to explain what these mean.
- The Style of Professional Writing
 Adopting a professional style means adopting reader perspective in writing.
*You-attitude- it is a style of writing which looks at things from the reader’s point of
view, emphasizing what the reader wants to know , respecting the reader’s intelligence ,
and protecting the reader’s ego.(Locker and Kienzler,2013)
The examples here demonstrate the differences between an I-attitude and you-attitude in writing.

I – Attitude You- Attitude

If I can answer any of your queries, I’m perfectly If you have any questions, please ask.
willing to do so.
We delivered the order to the provided address this Your order was shipped to your address this
morning. morning.
I’m happy to tell you that… You’ll be happy to hear that…

 Emphasis on the positive in order to build a positive image and goodwill.

Examples:
Negative Wording
We cannot process your reimbursement request
because your documents are not complete.
We do not reply to emails on weekend.
Positive Wording
Your reimbursement request will be processed as soon
as you submit all the required documents.
You may contact us via email at any time from Moday
to Friday.

 The Professional style uses bias- free language.

- Professional Language
 Professional documents require language that is appropriate to the workplace setting:
polite, professional rather than overly personal, and grammatically accurate.
1. Polite language is essential in a context wherein there are power asymmetries.
2.Both personal matters and overly friendly language should not appear in workplace
correspondence.
3. Professional Writing should exhibit grammatical accuracy in the use of Standard
English.

Example:
 Overly Personal
Hey, I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but I’ve been
having a bunch of family problems lately. My son
was recently expelled, my daughter is in rehab, and
to top it off, my wife hasn’t spoken to me in days!
So, I really need a few days off to try get my home
situation straightened out. Please help me out by
approving this request.
Professional
I am willing to request a three-day leave. I have some
urgent personal business to attend to, and I would
certainly appreciate your approving this request.
Thank you very much for your consideration.

4. Professional writing can be made clear and direct by the avoidance of what is called “business
jargon”.
5. Emojis or emoticons and shortcuts that are commonly used in text messages and electronic
communication have no place in professional writing.

Genres of Professional Writing

According to William Pfeiffer in 2013 business letters and memos are two of the most common forms
of professional correspondence.

- A letter is a document that conveys information to a member of one organization from someone
outside of that organization.
- Memo (short for memorandum) is a document written by a member of an organization to one or
more members of the same organization.
For any type of professional document, the writer should also know the mechanics or the conventions
governing the writing aspects such as punctuation, capitalization, the use of numbers versus figures
and abbreviations.

(To be provided p144-145)

The Design Principles of Professional Writing

(To be provided p147-153)

1. Intercultural Issues in Workplace

-Culture is a way of thinking and living whereby one picks up a set of attitudes, values, norms, and
fact that they share some similarity. Each individual can practice culture of the community he grows
up in.
-There is work culture at his work place.
-When two people of different cultures encounter each other, they not only have different cultural
backgrounds but their systems of turn – talking are also different. Cross cultural communication will
be more effective and easier if both the speakers have knowledge of the turn taking system being used
in the conversation

Communication and the Twenty-First Century Workplace

-The advances of mass media, particularly telecommunication systems like email, text

messaging, and social networking sites means that people across the planet can communicate and

share information with each other.

-“The world is getting smaller” – Gloria S. Chan

 -Cross-cultural or intercultural communication – people who speak different language or who

come from different cultures will have to deal with each other.

Cultural Differences

-Having a multinational or cross-cultural communication has its challenges and benefits.

(What do you think the benefit of having different cultures? And its challenges?)

EmyPascasio (1999)

-Cross-cultural faux pas result when we fail recognize that person of other cultural background

have diferent goals, customs, traditions, thought pattern, and value, from our own.”

-“value given to time”

-how “no” and “yes” are said or expressed by people from different cultures.

Effective Intercultural Communication

• It should be clear how important it is to be culturally aware and culturally sensitive when navigating

intercultural communication.

• The key is to be aware of the existence of cultural differences and managing such differences.

Directness Versus Circumlocution

• Brevity, clarity, directness of communication are favored in American and British cultures.

As Chan (1999)

Explains it, “that means that a message, an idea, a request, etc. should be conveyed to the

audience or recipient clearly and in as few words as mandatory.” when communicating a refusal or
rejection to Westerns, Asians, should avoid circumlocution or indirectness and instead, state a polite

yet clear “no”.

When an American communicates in a typically direct way to a Filipino, this can be viewed as too

“brutally frank”.

Parcasio (1999)

Paraphrases Frank Lynch’s definition of SIR as “a facility at getting along with others in such a

way as to avoid outward signs of conflict”.

Parcasio is an American who is aware of the value of SIR can them make an attempt to both

clearly convey a rejection but also “soften” this with buffers , for instance an explanation or good

news preceding the outright “no”.

Personal/Friendly Language Versus Respectful Language

Language

-Respectful language makes communication more effective in many ways, since it prevents

misunderstanding and conflicts. It also reassures patients that you see them as people who have

personal and social needs as well medical needs respectful language . Shows attention, uses

descriptive word and is problem oriented.

Chan (1999) calls attention to emphasis in western context on using friendly on personal rather than

impersonal language in workplace.

Example:

In American workplaces colleagues are encouraged to use first name when conversing with

each other and even with their employers pascasio notes that “ informal addresses are use only with

peers or those of lower status such as rank and file”(pascasio 1999) speaker from the rank this context

are therefore conscious of addressing people with titles or labels such as Boss, Doctor, President,

Attorney, Manager, Judge, Engineer, Commissioner, and Professor (Pascasio,1999; chan1999)

For intercultural communication to be effective writers and speakers from both eastern.

Synthesis

-Gloria S. Chan says that “intercultural communication is more challenging than intercultural

communication because there is greater mastery of one’s own language and culture.”

Intercultural communication to be effective, adaptations to a cultural different from one’s own are

necessary. One also needs to “abide by the cultural norms and standards English imposes on the users

of Language” (Chan 1999).

2. Simulating the Philippine Workplace

Professional Correspondence

- Memos
- Business Letter
- Work email
(Samples will be provided p161-170)

Lesson 1 of this chapter already introduced the basic format for memos and letter and gave examples

that you were asked to revised. This section will provide additional tips, evaluation exercises, and

composition exercises for memos and letters. It will also discuss the principles guiding email

communication in the workplace, followed by an email evaluation and writing excercises.

Memos

The memo follows a specific format designed for internal communication (see the template in lesson

1). It tends to be brief (one page is usually enough), and its contents arranged into paragraphs.

Exercise:
1.

A. Subject: We will have an important meeting about the Proposed GE Reform on Monday at 10

a.m

B. Subject: Proposed GE Reform Meeting on Monday at 10 a.m.

C. Subject: Meeting

Starpower Data Associates

Memorandum

To: Raissa Mendoza, Coordinator of Employee Relations

From: Sherwil Jose, Manager, Legal Support Services

Date: June 24, 2012

Subject: Reactions to Proposed Daycare Facilities

Here are many reactions to your inquiry in your memo of June 21 about the possibility of setting up a

daycare facility within the college premises.

• Establish a daycarecenter? I agree with you that there is a need for this. In my department as

well we have a large number of employees with young children. They have also expressed

their desire for such a facility for day when they have no option but to take their children to

work. I think setting up a center and program could definitely benefit the company.

• Use the old employees lounge? That is a good suggestion as the space is currently being

underutilized as you pointed out. However, it will take some time to clean and refurbish the

room, perhaps two weeks.

A daycarecenter guidelines or its use can be beneficial and improve employee morale. We should get

started immediately in setting up and drafting the guidelines. Let me know if I may assist you further

any way.

Business Letter
The business letter, like the memo, should be clear, concise, and organized. Typically , it contains a

brief introduced paragraphs establishing the context and purpose of the letter, a middle section

conveying details of the message in a logical sequence, and a brief concluding paragraph politely

requesting action, thanking the reader, or providing any additional pertinent information.

Opening should be clear and direct.

Example:

Indirect: Thank you for your email of May 11 in which you inquires about the availability of sprinkler

H640B

Direct: You will be glad to know that we have an ample supply of H640B parts.

While the closing or the concluding paragraph should wraps up the main points while building

goodwill by forward-looking final message.

Example:

“I’m glad to have been of help”

“Feel free to call me again”

“I’m looking forward to…”

Exercise:

1.

a. Yes, the Enterprise Cruise Club is Planning a 15-day Caribbean cruise beginning September

20.

b. This will acknowledge receipt of your letter of December 2 in which you ask our Caribbean

cruise schedule.

2.

a. We sincerely appreciate your recent order for plywood wallboard panels.

 b. The plywood wallboard panels that you requested were shipped today by Jolly-Bee Cargo

Express and should reach you by November 28.

3.

a. Pursuant to your letter of Febuary 10, I am writing in regard to your inquiry about wheter we

offer our Star Wars umbrella in other coloersbesided green and blue. This unique umbrella is a

very popular item and receives a number of inquiries. The light sober umbrella is the ultimate

geek chic, cool accessory! It is 45” long and has a built-in LED light up features that allows the

user to choose between green or blue!

b. At this time, the Star Wars umbrella we are offering is available in the colors green and blue.

Work Email

Many companies today use as an alternative to memos. As Mary Ellen Guffey (2000) notes in

Essentials of Business Communication, email messages and memos are “standard forms of

communication within organizations” and “will probably become the most common business

communication channel”. Email messages have several advantages over print communication

The use of emails comes with challenges, however. Because of the ease of sending, one click of the

“send” button for a message that contains factual, grammatical, or typographical errors, may result in

the writer’s loss of credibility.

The use of emails comes with challenges because of the emails that contain factual, grammatical, or

typographical errors that may result for the write’s loss of credibility

In sending emails we should always be aware of the dangers. According to Guffey (2000), even when

deleted, emails “can remain in multiple servers that are backed up by companies or internet service

providers.”

Email messages should be warm and friendly, but not too conversational, emotional or intimate. The

goal is a professional tone– neither too formal nor too conversational.

There are guidelines specific to email correspondence. It is called “Netiquette”.

Netiquette- refers to etiquette on the internet or the acceptable ways of communicating on internet

platforms.

Netiquettes:

1. Review Your Message Before You Send

After you enter your recipients' addresses, create an appropriate subject line, write your message, and

attach a couple of supporting documents, go back and make sure you did it right:

• Review the message.

• Check your sources.

• Look at the recipient names.

• Look at your address.

• Determine the message priority.

• Add supporting documents

2. Don't Always Reply All

Reply All is a handy feature when used correctly. Think of it as a need to know option. If everyone in

the original email (the one you're responding to) needs to know what you have to say, use Reply All.

3. Write Effective Subject Lines

The subject line of your email should briefly capture the essence of your message.

4. Explain Why You Forward

When you forward an email message from someone else, explain to the new recipient why you're

doing it and how you expect them to benefit from it.

5. Explain Why You CC

Similarly, if you cc (copy) anyone on a message, explain to the primary recipient that you're doing so,

and why.
6. Let the Sender Know Their Message Has Been Received

Email messages can get lost in the mail or in the spam filter. As a courtesy, especially with important

messages write a short note to let the sender know their message has been received.

7. Use Acronyms Sparingly

Not everybody knows every acronym, so use as few as possible. Example of acronyms use in

business:

ASAP: As Soon as Possible

BTW: By the Way

EOD: End of Day

EOM: End of Message (typically used in the subject line to indicate there is no email body to follow)

EOW: End of Week

FYI: For Your Information

IMO: In My Opinion

OOO: Out of Office

Y/N: Yes or No

8. Be Careful With Sarcasm and Humor

Because you don't get the context of facial expressions and tone of voice in email, it's not a good

medium for expressing sarcasm or humor, especially with recipients you don't know well.

9. Choose an Appropriate Ending

Sometimes it's hard to know how to end an email message. Here are a few suggestions, based on the

situation:

Thanks or Many Thanks: If you're asking a favor.

Cheers: If you want to wish the recipient good cheer.

Love or Hugs: If you love the recipient.

Best or Warmly: If you like the recipient.

Sincerely: If your message is formal.

Best Regards or Kind Regards: If you want to maintain a formal business tone.

Workplace emails still follow the standard format minus the automatic components.

Automatic components are: email systems automatically insert the date of incoming message, the

name of sender and the email address of the sender.

-The writer input the name and email address of the recipient.

-The subject

-if the sender and recipient has close working relationship the titles are dropped and names are used.

-information should be only what is necessary

-Opening fillers such as “there is, it is” long lead-ins “I am writing this memo to inform you that…”

should be avoided.

Exercises:

What email address do you mos frequently use?

____________________________________

Do you think that it is an effective one for professional correspondence?

____________________________________

Do an internet research of the meaning of “cc” and “bcc” fields in email? Why should you be

particular wary about these email features?

_____________________________________
Write an email to a workplace supervisor regarding a report on the use of zetero, bibliographic

manager app to input the company’s library files. You have also been asked to prepare a report

outlining the use of this app and your progress so far. In this email, you should:

1. Provide an update on the information you have gathered: You have created a Zotero

Standalone account, have learned how to input entries, and have managed to input 25% of the

company’s files.

2. Ask for the deadline of submission to be extended by one week.

Explain why you need more time.

The Job Application Process

This section cover documents sand guidelines specific to one area of workplace communication: the

job application process. First , the two main professional documents area discussed in detail. Then,

guidelines and tips for taking part in a job interview are outlined. Finally, preparations required for the

mock job interview are provided.

The job application is filled out offline in a pen/paper format or, increasingly, online. The job

application provides a consistent format with the same questions that must be answered by each

person who applies for an open position.

Some question in the job application forms:

• Name

• Address, city, state, zip code

• Phone number

• Email address

• Social security number

• Are you eligible to work in the United States?

• If you are under age eighteen, do you have an employment certificate?

 • Have you been convicted of a felony within the last five years?

• Availability for the week

• Desired income

Cover Letter and Resume

Cover Letter and Resume

The first two workplace d

ocuments any person has to accomplish upon or even before graduation are the cover letter (or letter of

application) and the resume. This section gathers guidelines and examples from Aristo’s English for

Profession (2009), Wallace’s Adams Media Resume Almanac (2005), and Write for College: A

Student Handbook, written and compiled by Patrick Sebranek, Verne Meyer and Dave Kemper

(1997).

A Cover Letter is a “letter you write to a prospective employer to persuade him/her to give you a job”

(Arinto, 2009). It literally covers or goes on top of the applicant resume. Mostly just one page long

with massage conveyed in about 3 to 5 paragraphs and usually printed in 8.5 x 11 inch bond paper

white or ivory color depends on the company.

In the book Cover Letter Almanac by Richard J. Wallence (2006) ,A good cover letter can be even

more important than a resume. If a prospective employer isn’t impressed by your cover letter, you

won’t get that interview no matter how polished your resume is.

Remember!

In writing and to have a good cover letter

-it is important that the letter does not contain mistakes when it comes to the information about the

company and Employer.

- provide adequate information about the position you apply.

- provide top qualification of the applicant

- contact information

- how the applicant stands out from the other applicant

Format:

First the date and inside address should be provided including the contact person’s name and position

and the company name and address.

The letter should start with “Dear” followed by appropriate courtesy (e.g., Mr., Mrs., Dr., Prof., Atty.,

Engr.,Hon., ect.)

In the first paragraph the applicant should immedietly stat his/her interest in the company.

In the second paragraph, the qualification should be supported with concrete and specific details.

In the closing paragraph , there should be a request for an interview or some follow up action.

Closing complimentary should be formal (e.g., “Sincerely,” Respectfully, or Very Truly Yours”
Résumé

Locker and Kaczmarek (2009) define résumé as a document attached to a cover letter to serve as “a

persuasive summary of your qualifications for employment” ( as cited in Robinsin-Easley,2013).

-Less important content should be trimmed or omitted.

-When there is more than one page, each pages should have the applicant’s name and a page number.

There are many types of résumé depending on the requirements of the job, but only 3 main types will

be covered here.

-Chronological résumé

-Functional résumé

-Chrono-Functional

Chronological résumé

It is the traditional and most accepted résumé format. Items are listed in reverse chronological order,

with the most recent work or schooling. Names, dates, and places of employment are listed, and

education and work experience are grouped separately.

Functional résumé

It focuses on the skills and talents developed by the applicant and does not emphasizes job titles,

employer names, and dates. This is used when the gaps in the writers work or study history , when

such experiences are not that relevant to the position for which he/she is applying, and when the writer

wishes to combine experiences from paid jobs, activities, volunteer work, and courses to show the

extent of his/her experience in a particular are.

Chrono-functional résumé

It is a combination of the two types: It is chronologically list job history and education but also allows

the applicant to highlight certain marketable qualifications. This is used by fresh graduates who have

some job experiences and by those who are returning to work or are changing careers.

The difference between the 3 formats is:

Chronological résumé: For candidates with rich, consistent professional experience.

Functional résumé: For candidates with several gaps or changes in their career.

Chrono-Functional résumé: For candidates with a diverse background of experience or when skills

and abilities are more relevant than work experience.

Keep in mind that:

-For recent college graduates, education should appear first and be outlined in detail. (degrees, honor,

special awards, relevant courses or projects )

-For chronological résumé, the dates of the employment education are on the left side of the page

while the companies worked and school attended are few space to the right of dates.

-Some companies like to see personal data such as interest, hobbies, and sports.

-When including refences, there should be at least 3 listed.

-Lastly, an effective résumé

should look good, with effective use od space, and other typeface features (e.g., font size, bold).

Information should be neatly devided into clear labeled sections.

Exercise: Provide the tight version for the items given

Wordy: Member, University Debate Team, 2013-14

Member, University Debate Team, 2014-15

Member, University Debate Team, 2015-16

Captain, University Debate Team, 2015-16

Tight:__________________________________

Wordy: Over a period of time, the cources of the months of December 2014 and January 2015, I

completely revamped the inventory system at my workplace, which resulting in a total final savings of

a large amount of money, roughly around 15,000 pesos. This also made it considerably easier for

people, not only myself, but also my co-workers at the store, to perform tasks around the office

efficiently under the new arrangements.

Tight: Dec-Jan 2014:_______________________________________

Wordy: Over a period of time, the cources of the months of December 2014 and January 2015, I

completely revamped the inventory system at my workplace, which resulting in a total final savings of

a large amount of money, roughly around 15,000 pesos. This also made it considerably easier for

people, not only myself, but also my co-workers at the store, to perform tasks around the office

efficiently under the new arrangements.

Tight: Dec-Jan 2014:_______________________________________

THE DOCUMENTED ESSAY ON A CONCEPT
1. Academic Research and the Documented Essay in the Twenty-First Century

Academic Writing

“academic”

- refers to a student’s informed, scholarly, and insightful contribution to ongoing discussions of relevant topics or
issues
- must be specific and have clear language
Academic Writing should not sound pompous. Pompous language obscures meaning, as given in this
example:
- Scintillate, scintillate, globule auric
- Strongly resembling a gem carbonaceous.
(Rocco & Hatcher, 2011)
Academic Writing should not be difficult to read because academic knowledge is meant to be shared to
others.

Table 1. Informal/Non-standard versus Formal/Standard Usages

Informal/Non-standard Usages More Formal/Precise Equivalents

alright, a lot, result to, discuss about, cope up with (non- all right, a lot, result in, discuss, cope with (acceptable
standard, informal, or unique to certain varieties of usages in Standard written English)
English)
can’t, won’t, I’ll, she’s, didn’t (conversational, speech-
cannot, will not, I will, she is, did not (spelled out as two
based contractions) words)
gonna, gotta (conversational, speech-based contractions)
going to, have to (spelled out)
anyways, boring as hell, bored to death, major downer anyway, boring or uninteresting, extremely bored,
(conversational/informal) depressing (more formal/precise/uncluttered)
ASAP, BTW, SOP (acronyms that may not be as soon as possible, by the way, standard operating
universally known) procedure
(spelled out)
lol, afk,nrn,#feels (informal Internet or text messaging laugh out loud, away from keyboard, no reply necessary,
language) a wave of emotions (spelled out for explained)
Note: Other terms one should avoid or use with care are technical or specialized terms that are specific to a
professional discourse community.

Academic Writing should not be stiff or stilled and somber in tone.

A Balanced and Credible Voice

The writer’s voice need not disappear entirely, but this voice should sound credible and, therefore, balanced, objective,
and not overly emotional. In academic writing, this means doing away with emotive punctuation points, whether
single (!) or multiple (!!!), and dramatic ellipses(…) used as a way of trailing of. Emoticons or emojis, which in the
Internet speak and text messaging are meant to convey facial expressions, do not have a place in academic writing.

Examples

Cluttered Writing:

I found the Dulaang UP play Hearing Lear (King Liar) to be not just entertaining but also insightful because I felt
that the Tagalog translation effectively and humorously conveyed the spirit of Shakespeare original dysfunctional family to
a contemporary Filipino audience.
Tighter Writing:

The Dulaang UP play Haring Lear (King Liar) was not just entertaining but insightful because the Tagalog
translation effectively and humorously conveyed the spirit of Shakespeare’s original dysfunctional family to a
contemporary Filipino audience.

Writer –focused:

Our group conducted a survey on 100 University of the Philippines freshmen to find out their opinions on the new
academic calendar.

Focus on the subject:

A survey was conducted on 100 University of the Philippines freshmen to find out their opinions on the new
academic calendar.

Academic papers deal with topics that are likely to bore both the writer and the reader.

Socially and Culturally Relevant Topics

- Writer should begin by considering the topics that are particularly interesting and relevant for him/her. These are
topics he/she would like to find out more about.
- It is also essential to consider such topics or research areas in light of the social and cultural significance.

Documented Essays

- It is another term for “academic paper”; here, the term “documented” emphasizes that any kind of scholarly or
academic writing requires the writer to (1) read and gather information from a variety of relevant sources on
a chosen topic, (2) clearly acknowledge these supporting sources, and (3) add to scholarship by selecting,
arranging, commenting on, or even debunking the information from these sources.
- It consists of an introduction with an explicitly stated central argument or thesis, three or more supporting
paragraphs, and a conclusion.
- It requires concrete supporting information from relevant sources.
- There is an explicit acknowledgement or citation of sources, especially when the material is quoted, paraphrased,
or summarized. Failure to properly cite a source results in the deadliest of academic sins: plagiarism.
(To be providedp87-97)
2. Critical Thinking, Collaboration, and the Writing Process
(To be provided p99-111)

3. Concepts of Social and Cultural Significance in the Philippines

(To be provided p112-115)