ENGLISH FOR PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION PBI 1072 Monaliza Sarbinii-Zin szmonaliza@unimas.my Office Tel. Number: 082-581737

Course Briefing & Housekeeping Rules Please refer to the course outline for course content. Morpheus will be used as the main platform to disseminate and share information regarding the course. Make sure you enroll in the group under your instructor

Attendance policy- if you missed your class twice without valid reason, a warning letter will be issued to you. If you missed class three times without any valid reason, you will be barred from taking the final examination. The main text book is sold at RM38. The sales of book will begin on the 5th September for 4 weeks in the FLSCS main lobby.

Course Briefing & Housekeeping Rules Class Attendance-ONLY attend classes with the group you are registered with. All students are required to attend classes starting from Week 1. Please sign the class attendance and DO NOT SIGN IN FOR YOUR FRIEND(S)- ever! Students who have appealed to join the course are allowed to join any one of the EPC groups temporarily. However, once your appeal is approved, you must attend classes ONLY with the group that has been assigned to you.

Course Briefing & Housekeeping Rules Make sure you MEMORIZE by heart your group number and your instructor’s NAME correctly. The add and drop week will start from the 30 August- 30 September 2016. You can drop out of course starting from 4th October – 28th October but you will have to pay RM100 for it.

ENGLISH FOR PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION LEARNING UNIT 1 Introduction to Workplace Communication

LEARNING OUTCOMES At the end of this unit, students should be able to State the purpose of workplace communication Define criteria for effective messages Distinguish verbal and non-verbal communication Recognize myths about workplace writing Differentiate business and school writing

Basic Purposes of Workplace Writing Workplace writing can have one or more of these basic purposes: To inform To request/persuade To build goodwill

When you inform, you explain something or tell readers something. When you request or persuade, you want the reader to act. The word request suggests that the action will be easy or routine; persuade suggests that you will have to motivate and convince the reader to act.

When you build goodwill, you create a good image of yourself and of your organisation—the kind of image that makes people want to do business with you. Now, take a look at the next few examples of e-mails. Can you determine the purpose of the writer?

Build goodwill

To inform

To inform

To persuade

What does workplace communication accomplish? Communication whether it is oral, nonverbal, and written goes to both internal and external audiences. Analyse your internal and external audiences carefully when composing your message.

What does workplace communication accomplish? Internal audiences- people who work in the same organisation External audiences- people outside the organisation

What makes a message effective? Is clear – reader gets the meaning intended by the writer Is complete- reader’s questions are answered and the reader has enough information to evaluate and act on it Is correct- information given is accurate and message is free of errors in punctuation, grammar, word order, and sentence structure.

What makes a message effective? Saves the reader’s time- document is organised well and help reader to read, understand and act on the document as quickly as possible. Builds goodwill- presents a positive image of the writer and the organization which builds positive relationship between the reader and the writer.

Verbal and Nonverbal Communication Face-to-Face/Phone Conversations/Meetings E-mail/Voice-Mail Messages Letters, Memos, and Reports Nonverbal Communication Pictures/Company Logos Gestures/Body Language

Myths About Workplace Writing Myth 1- “Secretaries will do all my writing.” Reality: Because of automation and restructuring, secretaries and administrative assistants are likely to handle complex tasks such as training, research, and database management for several managers. Managers are likely to take care of their own writing, data entry, and phone calls.

Myths About Workplace Writing Myth 2- “I’ll use form letters or templates when I need to write.” Reality: A form letter is a prewritten fill-in-the-blank letter designed to fit standard situations. Using a form letter is OK if it’s a good letter. But form letters cover only routine situations. The higher you rise, the more frequently you’ll face situations that aren’t routine and that demand creative solutions.

Myths About Workplace Writing Myth 3- “I’m being hired as an accountant, not a writer.” Reality: Almost every entry-level professional or managerial job requires you to write e-mail messages, speak to small groups, and write paper documents. People who do these things well are more likely to be promoted beyond the entry level.

Myths About Workplace Writing Myth 4- “I’ll just pick up the phone.” Reality: Important phone calls require follow-up letters, memos, or e-mail messages. People in organizations put things in writing to make themselves visible, to create a record, to convey complex data, to make things convenient for the reader, to save money, and to convey their own messages more effectively. “If it isn’t in writing,” says a manager at one company, “it didn’t happen.” Writing is an essential way to make yourself visible, to let your accomplishments be known.

Workplace Writing VS Academic Writing Workplace writing and academic writing differ based on Purpose. Audience. Information. Organisation. Style. Document design. Visuals.

While all good writing shares basic principles, workplace writing is often different than school writing. For instance, workplace writing prefers shorter sentences and paragraphs, a more conversational tone, and more dynamic document designs than a typical college essay. While essays may be written primarily for instructors, workplace writing often has multiple audiences.

To summarise; Ensure that you know the purpose of your workplace communication and the audience it is intended for. Writing is an essential component for workplace communication and you must strive to write effectively. Workplace writing and academic writing serve different purposes and what you write for your lecturers may not be suitable for your audience at the workplace.

Main Reference Locker, K.O., & Kaczmarek, S.K. (2013). Business Communication: Building Critical Skills. 6th. Ed. McGraw Hill Int. Ed.