MEMO Writing Skills: Negative Employment Messages

Elaine Bridgewater, the former professional golfer you hired to oversee your golf equipment companys relationship with retailers, knows the business inside and out. As a former touring pro, she has unmatched credibility. She also has seemingly boundless energy, solid technical knowledge, and an engaging personal style. Unfortunately, she hasnt been quite as attentive as she needs to be when it comes to communicating with retailers. Youve been getting complaints about voice-mail message gone unanswered for days, confusing emails that require two or three rounds of clarification, and reports that are haphazardly thrown together. As valuable as Bridgewaters other skills are, shes going to cost the company sales if this goes on much longer. The retail channel is vital to your companys survival, and shes the employee most involved in the channel.

Your task: Draft a brief (one page maximum, in memo format) informal performance appraisal and improvement plan for Bridgewate. Be sure to compliment her on the areas in which she excels, but dont shy away from highlighting the areas in which she needs to improve, too: punctual response to customer messages; clear writing; and careful revision, production, and proofreading. Use what youve learned in this course so far to supply any additional advice about the importance of these skills.