MEMORANDUMS & EMAILS,

MEMORANDUMS

SIGNPOSTS

ADVANTAGES OF A MEMO
1. The same message is communicated accurately to many
people at the same time.
2. It takes little time to construct because it is informal yet
provides a written record for filing and reference.
3. It allows the writer to convey detailed or difficult
information logically and accurately.
4. It can indicate, by a company letterhead, that it is an
internal piece of communication and part of company
procedures.

FORMAT OF MEMOS

EXAMPLE OF MEMO 1
To
:
From :
Date :
Subject :

Mr. Rajakumar, Head of Research and Development

Ms. Vega, Administrator
7 April 2012
Installation of Air-conditioning Units

In response to your departments request to improve the air-conditioning in

your department, I am pleased to inform you that work will soon commence
to put up two new units. However, the technicians are only free to install
them next week, 13 April, between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Please inform your
staff of this, and I apologize for any inconvenience.

VT Usually the sender initials a memo rather than signs it.

EXAMPLE OF MEMO 2
To: Joanne
From
: Jaafar JF Senders can initial here instead of at the end of the
memo.
Subject : Move to new premises in Jalan Melor
Date
: 7 April 2012
Please check the following and get back to me by 10 October, 12 noon.
1. Do the interior designers know that we should move into the new
premises before 28 April, and will they finish their job before that date?
2. Has the logistics company sent the quotation?
3. Have you informed those involved in helping to move the furniture?
4. Will all the computers be able to function and be internet-ready by 29
April? Check with the IT managers.
5. Is additional insurance needed for moving to the new premises? Check
with our insurers.

C.C? OR B.C.C?
C.C CARBON COPY
IS INSERTED AFTER FROM
YOU CAN ALSO INSERT B.C.C AFTER C.C
COPY OF MEMO WILL BE RECEIVED BY
THOSE IN B.C.C LINE
RECEIVER TO AND C.C WILL NOT KNOW
THAT A COPY IS SENT TO B.C.C.
THEIR COPY OF MEMO WILL NOT INCLUDE
THE B.C.C LINE.

EXAMPLE 1
To
From
C.C
Subject
Date

:
:
:
:
:

Leong, C.K. HOD, Finance

Maria Rashid, HOD, Human Resources
Tan B.J., Chief Accountant
Amendments to Annual Budget
7 April 2011

EXAMPLE 2
To
From
C.C.
B.C.C
Subject
Date

:
:
:
:
:
:

Leong C. K., HOD, Finance

Maria Rashid, HOD, Human Resource
Tan B.J., Chief Accountant
Leonard Rajan, Managing Director
Amendments to Annual Budget
7 April 2011

PURPOSES FOR WRITING MEMORANDUMS

ORGANIZATION OF MEMOS
INTRODUCTION
Example 1:
In view of the increased number of deaths due to dengue fever in New
Town, the Management has organized a talk to inform all staff about the
symptoms of dengue and how to prevent it.

Example 2:
I am recommending one of my staff to attend a conference on
International Law for Financial Controllers in Lisbon, Portugal from May
17 to May 25, 2006.

THE BODY
Sample Introduction
In view of the increased number of deaths due to dengue fever in
New Town, the Management has organized a talk to inform all staff
about the symptoms of dengue and how to prevent it.

BODY:
The details of the talk are as follows:
Place : Main Auditorium, Ground Floor
Date : 19 April 2011
Time : 10.30 a.m.
Speaker: Dr. Balbir Singh
Director of Public Health
Pahang General Hospital

THE CONCLUSION
You can write:
You are strongly encouraged to attend this talk.
or
Your presence is greatly appreciated.
Only write your initials at the end of the memo.
Do not sign. Do not use Yours faithfully,
Yours sincerely and Yours truly in the memo.

SUMMARY- PARTS OF A MEMO

Memorandum

HEADING

BODY

TO
:
FROM
:
DATE
:
SUBJECT :

Lorraine Chin, Office Manager

Oliver Smith, OA/ CIS Consultant
27 March 2012
Memorandums for Internal Correspondence

A memorandum is an internal form of communication that is send within the

organization. It is a means by which managers correspond with employees and
vice versa. Memos are filed as records of announcements, request for action,
policies and procedures.
Templates, or preformatted forms, are often used for keying memos.
Templates give a uniform look for company correspondence and save the
employee the time to construct and format each memo. Word processing
software also has a customized memo template.

REFERENCE
INITIALS

Xx

ATTACHMENT
NOTATION

Attachment

EMAILS

Before writing the email

MAKE
A
PLAN

Think about the purpose of the

email
Think about the person who will
read the email and how you want
him or her to react
Make an outline or list of the
main points and details you want
to include in the email
Double check any facts, dates,
times, or other specific details
that will be included in the email

Things to consider when doing

business correspondence

1. Who are you writing to and what is your

relationship with the person?

If the person you are writing to is in a higher position

than you, your email should use more formal language
than if the person is someone in the same level position
than you.
If you have never met the person receiving your email
before, you should use formal language in the first email
to him or her.
Once you have sent the first email and received a reply,
you can choose to continue using formal language or
choose to use less formal language in future emails.

2.

What is the situation:

Think about the reason you are sending the email and
decide if formal or informal language is better.
If you are requesting a service or asking a favor, you
should use formal language.
If you are making a complaint, you should use strong
words to express your dissatisfaction or problem but you
must be polite.
If you are introducing yourself, you should use formal
language but you can use words or phrases that let your
personality show through as well.
If you are writing a customer relation letter, you should
use formal language.

3.

What do you want to accomplish:

Think about the reason for writing the email and what you
want the person who receives the email to do with it.
If you want the receiver to do something for you, make it
clear. Tell the receiver exactly what action you want to be
done.
Tell the receiver if no action needs to be taken.
If you want the receiver to respond by a certain date, write
the response date.
If you are negotiating or rearranging a meeting, write
your demands or available times clearly.

Points to remember :
1.

Get right to the point

2. Use simple sentences

3. Pay attention to word choice
4. The subject of the email

The FOUR (4) Parts of a Business E-mail

The Opening

Tells the reader why you are writing

The Focus

Tells the details about the topic

The Action

Tells what you want to happen and

gives a time frame

The Closing

Thank the reader and mention

future communication

Basic Email Format

The receivers
email address
Carbon copy
Blind carbon
copy
Email subject

wednesdaysensei@hotmail.com
joeshmou@youknow.net
July 5 meeting time change

Type your email message in the text box, then click

send and it will be sent to the receivers you have
indicated in the to, Cc, and Bcc areas.

Netiquette:
Refers to etiquette on the net. It maintains and promotes goodwill
between the writer and the receiver. A professional e-mail message
should be courteous and confident.
Net Addresses:
Contains the users ID at a site or domain. The domain identifies the
organization running the site and the kind of site. The organization
suffix at the end of the e-mail address identifies the type of
organization:
Com
Commercial business
Org
Non-profit organizations
Gov
Government organizations
Net
Companies or organizations that run large
networks
Mil
Government and military organizations

Example 1
Dear John,
Tq 4 ur email. Glad 2 c that the problem in ur office has been sorted
out. If u need more help, I know of a good consultant who may be able
2 help u.
Tim.

Example 2
Dear John
Thanks for your e-mail. Glad to see that the problem in your office has
been sorted out. If you do need further help, I know of a good
consultant who may be able to assist you (dont worry, his charges are
low). He has helped me to do trouble shooting in my company.
Regards,
Tim (ext. 7121)

SUMMARY :E-MAILS
Concise, meaningful and appropriate subject line.
Start with a greeting and sign off your e-mail.
Present information clearly, and use bullet points
instead of long paragraphs.
Check your grammar and spelling. Using e-mail is
not an excuse to be careless.
Do not use SMS language, such as r for are and
u for you, or emoticons such as
Add information, such as your telephone number or
fax number in the e-mail signature, so the receiver
can contact you easily.

References:
Nor Azni Abdullah (2008). Communication
Skills for the Workplace. Petaling Jaya:
August Publishing Sdn. Bhd.
Riordan D.G. (2005).Technical Report
Writing Today (9th ed). USA: Wadsworth,
Cengage Learning
Taylor, S. (2005).Communication for
Business (4th ed). U.K. Pearson Education
Limited.