Introduction
Interoffice memos refer to short messages sent between individuals in different departments in an organization or institution. Generally, these memoranda are used to share confidential information, policy updates, project briefings, and news regarding departments. Nevertheless, they can share any information, including informal updates on non-business activities. Regardless, they observe the ethical and structural guidelines used to design formal letters. The following memo is addressed to committee members about a meeting to discuss a party to mark the upcoming holiday.
Email Draft
- To: Members of the Committee
- From: Chair of Party Planning Committee
- Date: 8/6/2022
- Subject: Scheduled Meeting to Discuss Planning the Upcoming Holiday Party
I hope this letter finds you well since our initiatives over the coming weeks require notable efforts from your end. I am writing to inform you of a scheduled meeting, on 15th June 2022, from 2:00 Pm to 5:00 Pm, at the main department’s symposium. You have been selected to represent your department and aid in the party planning to mark the coming holiday. Therefore, your participation will be highly appreciated.
This year has been successfully compared to the previous years. Therefore, we aim to brainstorm and come up with a theme that reinforces the need to hold on to the top position and do better. On that account, you can begin thinking about some practical approaches that we can adopt to make the party worthwhile. Subsequently, we have all the resources we need at our disposal. Thus, the company expects us to make the most out of our talents and create a memorable experience.
Upon attending the meeting, you will meet other members of the committee and discuss the best way forward. On that account, I hope to receive your confirmation of attendance as early as possible. You can use the following contact information to reply to this memo.
Yours Faithfully,
Chair of Party Planning Committee
Main Body
The point that I considered including in the message is the main reason for the scheduled meeting and the obligations of the committee members involved. Moreover, I informed the committee members of the requirements of the meeting. Since it will be the first meeting, disclosing this information is crucial as it prepares committee members for their responsibilities. According to Baker (2020), “Emails contain subject lines that are brief and specific to allow the recipient to understand the message easily and respond to the prompt effectively.” Therefore, I only included the main issues to be discussed in our meeting and obligated the committee members to reply to the message when they got a chance. The members’ responsibilities during the first meeting were important to include since it facilitated the right mindset to tackle underlying issues. This information will help them prepare and come up with practical solutions and themes for the party.
The information that I chose not to disclose was the potential setbacks that we would experience during the party planning process and news that could create conflicts or differences between committee members. Susan, Mark, John, and Cathy have all been given an equal opportunity to contribute to the planning. Therefore, it would be irrelevant to disclose information about who might be difficult to work with and who will be best. Moreover, there are several constraints that the team is likely to encounter. Nevertheless, through collaboration, the team can achieve all the program’s objectives. Sánchez-Cardona et al. (2018) suggest that “leaders should continuously motivate and encourage their team members to act and think in new ways by challenging preconceived beliefs.” Thus, as the committee chair, my role was to support innovative solutions and new ways of action by encouraging positivity throughout the project.
The formality of the email was a principal concern because as much as it shared information about an informal event to mark the holiday, it also constituted an organizational memo, thus obligating high levels of professionalism. Baker (2020) supports that emails can take a non-formal approach when in personal settings. However, “emails used in organizational settings require attention to detail since they reflect on the organization and the sender” (Baker, 2020). Hence, regardless of whether an email or organizational memo has an informal feel, its tone, and language should adhere to professional standards because any executive can access the information. While crafting the memo, I carefully chose my words to represent the appeal of the informal function and portray it as a fun activity while maintaining professional standards and sticking to the topic.
A blind carbon copy refers to an email sent to several recipients without indicating who else has received the email. Although blind carbon copies are beneficial when distributing information to invisible recipients, it is unethical since it hides information about who else has access to the information. Most individuals perceive a blind carbon copy as offensive, and in some instances, it may be a violation of laws and regulations (Guffey & Loewy, 2018). However, in some scenarios, like in the case above, a blind carbon copy might come in handy since it will entice the selected members to attend the meeting and avoid negative attitudes due to preconceived beliefs about working with people like John. Hence, a blind carbon copy can be adopted in cases where it will not be destructive.
Team leaders have a role in streamlining individuals’ relationships and ensuring that they collaborate to achieve the best outcomes. Therefore, it would be wise to communicate with John and obtain information about why others think that it is difficult to work with him. According to Guffey & Loewy (2018), team leaders should adopt effective solutions to accommodate the needs of all team members. Thus, meeting with John and communicating about the underlying problems will place me in a better position to address his issues and design a strategy that will maximize collaboration. A face-to-face meeting is critical to obtain relevant information from John. Guffey & Loewy (2018) suggest that personal contact in such meetings is critical because the subject matter involves an exchange of information and ideas between individuals (p 49). Therefore, acknowledging the issue before the initial meeting will facilitate better preparation.
Conclusion
Internal and external organizational memos send information about various issues to involved parties. However, they adopt a formal tone regardless of the message being sent because they constitute business messages. Although the information presented in the email above is about a party and informal, it adheres to a business structure because it represents the organizational norms and culture. Additionally, the text avoids any information that could result in a conflict of interest since leaders should prioritize collaboration and accommodate the needs of all members for the best results. Nevertheless, addressing potential issues by meeting and communicating with individuals can improve outcomes.
References
Baker, S. (2020). Unit 5 Emails, Memos & Letters. Professional and Technical Writing.
Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2018). Business communication: Process and product. 9th Edition, Cengage Learning.
Sánchez-Cardona, I., Soria, M. S., & Llorens-Gumbau, S. (2018). Leadership intellectual stimulation and team learning: The mediating role of team positive affect. Universitas Psychologica, 17(1). Web.