I’ve spent much of my time on this blog explaining how to write content: organizing it, shaping it, researching it, imbuing it with just the right facts or tone. But after a discussion with ChatGPT, it occurred to me that my superpower might not be helping others understand content, but context, i.e., the circumstances under which content is created. THAT is the key thing they do not teach you in college/university, so today I’ll talk a little bit more about that to help you avoid land mines in the workplace.
Context Scenarios
When I taught Business Writing 301 at University of Alabama at Huntsville (waaaaay back in 2012), one of the earliest and most popular exercises I shared with my class was all about context. Business writing exercises in college typically will ask you to write a memo and focus on the facts. I asked my class to think about the other situations surrounding the facts because it’s not just about audience, but the circumstances under which your audience will receive and possibly share the information. I share them for your consideration.
Company Picnic
Background
Situation: A company’s annual picnic will be happening in a month and they need volunteers to help with setup.
Audience: All 500 employees
Deadline: One month
Outcome(s): High turnout, enough volunteers for the event to run smoothly
Discussion
Media: How should this information be shared? (Note: this means how should it be shared–verbally, in a group setting, via email, posted on the company website, etc.)
Tone: What sort of language/tone should be used to share this information?
Content: What does the workforce need to hear/know?
How would the content be different if the company had only 20 people?
How would the content be different if the company recently had a major layoff?
Guest Complaints
Background
Situation: A hotel at the Walt Disney World Resort has received a number of complaint letters recently stating that the front desk staff has been talking among themselves rather than checking in guests.
Audience: All front desk “cast members”
Deadline: Immediate
Outcome: Front desk cast focuses on the guests when on the desk.
Discussion
Media: How should this information be shared?
Tone: What sort of language/tone should be used to share this information?
Content: What does the cast need to hear/know?
How might this be handled differently if this was a non-Disney hotel?
Program Cancellation
Background
Situation: A major program has just been cancelled and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has to announce to the workforce that major layoffs are coming.
Audience: All MSFC employees
Deadline: Two weeks
Outcome: Explain the situation to the workforce
Discussion
Media: How should this information be shared?
Tone: What sort of language/tone should be used to share this information?
Content: What does the workforce need to hear/know? What other factors might affect how this message is received?
Safety Issue
Background
Situation: There is a conflict over how to protect a particular piece of equipment on an uncrewed rocket, with one group claiming that the other’s approach could create serious damage to the launch vehicle.
Audience: Engineers, engineering managers, technicians, and safety personnel responsible for designing, managing, building, and overseeing the hardware.
Deadline: The hardware won’t be installed for six weeks, but a decision must be made in the next week to prevent the program from falling behind schedule.
Outcome(s): A face-to-face meeting is held to resolve the design issue creating the problem.
Discussion
Media: How should this information be shared?
Tone: What sort of language/tone should be used to share this information?
Content: What does the audience need to hear/know?
If this issue has been left unresolved for a while, how might that affect the tone?
How would the tone be different if this vehicle was carrying a human crew?
Presenting the Company’s Annual Report
Background
Situation: The end of the fiscal year is near, and it is time for your CEO to present the company’s status, which has improved marginally despite a bad economy.
Audience: Company shareholders, employees, and Wall Street analysts.
Deadline: Two months.
Outcome(s): Company shareholders feel positive about the company’s future.
Discussion
Media: How should this information be shared?
Tone: What sort of language/tone should be used to share this information?
Content: What does the audience need to hear/know?
How might the content or tone be different if company were not doing well?
How would the content be different if the company were not doing well but the economy was fine?
How can context affect a piece of writing
You can no doubt identify other scenarios in your own work. The point of the exercises above is to help you understand how academic business writing differs from business writing in the field.
There are even situations where the correct action is not to communicate. Example: a customer is sharing a lot of sense-free comments like “I control 1/4 of the world’s economy”, “I want nothing to do with roses or the Rose Chapel”, “Mae West’s biographer is slandering me”, and “Until recently I was held prisoner in Luxembourg.” You’re reading the email and wondering where it’s going when they close the letter, “And I absolutely want nothing to do with your company!” Given the off-their-medication direction of the comments and the closing, the safest response is not to respond. (Actual story…some items changed to protect the original author.)
The point here is simply that the context of business writing and technical writing go a long way toward shaping what you say and how you say it. “Just the facts” might feel like the right approach, but there are other things to think about…being flexible to changing or unusual circumstances will help you stand out as a professional writer.
