(Developing Your Professional Voice

(PLEASE REMEMBER TO INSERT YOUR OFFICIAL NAMES)

MEMO 1

TO: STEPHANIE SIMS, VICE PRESIDENT OF SALES AND MARKETING

FROM: REGIONAL SALES MANAGER

DATE: October 17, 2019

SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR APPROVAL AND FUNDS

I have 18 sales representatives who work under me. As you know, these representatives previously worked in personalized offices that aided in housing their administrative functions. However, this changed whereby the company closed all offices while on the verge of implementing a cost reduction initiative. All the administrative functions have now been moved to a central corporate office in Boston. Currently, the sales representatives work from home offices and this has made them responsible for their writing.

It is apparent that before work functions were centralized to Boston, the sales representatives would help each other in creating professional writings such as emails before sending them to clients. However, the representatives have now been forced to work independently which has shown some weaknesses especially when it comes to creating a professional piece of writing. The writing quality has significantly dropped down which illustrates that there is a need for action to improve.

Recently, I heard a presentation from Ken Wilson, a communication consultant who coaches sales representatives on writing skills. I arranged a meeting with the coach and illustrated some of the challenges that my representatives were facing. I was impressed with his critique and his suggestions on how their writing could be improved. The plan is to have a two-day workshop in which the sales representatives will be coached individually on how to create a professional e-mail and a voice call that will create more leads for the organization. Ken’s Company known as Write Right, will carry out a ninety-day follow-up to ensure that the staff members perfect their writing skills. Regional VPs in the country have also speculated that they are facing a similar issue hence they can be included in the workshop.

Several costs will be incurred during the pre and post-training evaluation of the sales representatives. An estimated $4, 000 will be spent on the two-day workshop and $2, 000 will be used in the follow up coaching. Other costs to be incurred include those of; travel, meeting room, hotel booking and for the meals consumed during the two-day event. All these costs will approximately amount to $ 6, 000. The total cost required is, therefore, $ 12, 000 and an extra amount for miscellaneous costs. Approaching VPs from other companies is one way of outsourcing these total costs.

Based on the rave reviews that have been provided about Write Right, I feel that this is the right company to train our sales representatives. Their writing skill needs to be perfected since it is one of the best means of approaching clients. I would like to request that you consider approving and funding this training as a pilot project that may be applied in other departments of the company. I can assure you that the consideration of this project will act as a return on investment. Kindly consider my request and expect exemplary results from my sales representatives after the training.

MEMO 2

TO: JOHN SUAREZ, INTERNSHIP SUPERVISOR

FROM: (FIRST NAME, SECOND NAME)

DATE: October 17, 2019

SUBJECT: IRRELEVANT USE OF TIME ON GAMES

It has come to my attention during the six months of my internship in the organization that most employees have been using work time on Google microgames. This memo is a reminder that workers should be productive during work hours to avoid the misuse of resources.

According to the attached article, it is shocking that the estimated number of employees who collectively play Pacman games while at work is tremendous. The companies whose employees engage in the activity, lose over $120 million which is a calculation based on average time used in the Google home page. If the estimates are applied in our offices that have 600 employees, the company experiences an approximate $700 weekly loss.

Time management in any company is a prerequisite that plays a huge role in obtaining better results. Even though Amato & Zimmerman is a highly regarded firm, there is a need to regulate the activities carried out by employees while on their devices. The firm has typical workflows and firm business processes that require extensive concentration and high workforce input. Amato & Zimmerman have an exemplary workplace culture but the management has not yet realized the numerous time spent on unproductive activities such as playing games and visiting social media sites. The latter may not only affect A&Z but it may affect individual professions due to low productivity. Playing games while at work is a common trend that ought to be shunned. It is interesting how the management is not able to recognize the amount of time lost by workers who opt to sneak into their devices and play an addictive game such as Pac-Man.

I suggest we address this issue by analyzing the amount of time and money lost in Amato & Zimmerman when workers opt to carry out unproductive activities. By collecting this information, the firm can view how games such as Pac-Man affect the productivity and profits of the company. As earlier mentioned, time management is of relevance, which should be inculcated into the firm’s system. The management should understand a better way of monitoring how workers spend their time during work hours. Before this, the employees should be assembled to get a glimpse of why the company wants to monitor their time while at work. The meeting should be open to obtain their views and also to note down any better suggestions on how work time should be managed.

It is eminent that no company wants to implement drudgery rules into its system. I encourage the adoption of fun activities occasionally at Amato & Zimmerman. However, the management should be in a position to ensure that employees do not use productive hours to indulge in games or other unnecessary activities. The company should reinforce time management tools and encourage employees to be productive during working hours. URL: https://blog.rescuetime.com/the-tragic-cost-of-google-pac-man-4-82-million-hours/