Professional Documents
Culture Documents
claiming them as your own without documenting (or even inadequately documenting) the
source (Kolin, 2017).
2. Types of E-Communications
a. Email
Email is the lifeblood of every business or organization nowadays because it speeds
up the communication process. It allows a person to send short messages about routine
matters and enables quick dissemination of longer documents though file attachments.
benjie.tito@deped.gov.ph
Precise
Attend EduTECH Conference on my behalf
subject line
Appropriate
salutation
Good morning, Benjie:
Starts with
context of I would like to inform you that EduTECH Philippines sent me an invitation regarding a conference that
the request will be held on February 20-21 at SMX Convention Center, Pasay City. I am sending you there on my
and basic behalf because I have a business meeting with H2O Technologies on that day. I attached the event’s
information brochure for the program and registration details.
Provides Also, do not forget to file an Official Business Trip leave for the said dates once you receive this email
clear as I have to arrange your transportation allowance with our HR Department as soon as possible.
Kindly notify me regarding the progress of your registration and leave approval before lunch break.
explanations
and
Thank you,
instructions
John I. Ramos, LPT, MAEd
Learning Resources Production Manager
Detailed Learning Resources Production Division | Department of Education Central Office
signature DepEd Complex, Meralco Avenue, Pasig City 1604
line : + (02) 636 1663 loc. 802 | : john.ramos@deped.gov.ph
you are blogging about and why. Providing them with firsthand information about
the topic implies that you are knowledgeable and sincere and will increase your
credibility. In case you are writing about a new product or service highlight its
improvement and/or special features. Facts and statistics would also help in
persuading your readers
• Write concisely and sincerely.
Keep your posts short and easy to read. Through adopting a casual and
conversational style of writing. Your blog post should not look and sound like a
technical report.
• Document your sources.
Always cite your sources especially when you are using someone else's
statistics, surveys, illustration, or ideas.
Attention-
grabbing
A Must-Have App for STI Students
Friday, Dec 14, 2018
headline. Contributor: Cedric Gabrang
Posted by: Rollie M. Flores
Informs the Introducing the One STI Student Portal, an app exclusively for STI students to view their grades, tuition
readers balance, and more.
about the
functions of
the app.
Includes an
image which
shows how
does the app
look like.
Provides Developed by the MIS team, the One STI Student Portal is a free must-have app for STI students
detailed where they can access their student records on their Android devices. Through the app, senior high
information school and college students can now:
about the
• View their grades and monitor their academic performance in their subjects;
app's • Know their day-to-day class schedule complete with room assignments and professors;
accessibility • Get tuition balance updates, payment schedules, dues, and assessment balances;
and • Catch up on current STI news and announcements from campuses nationwide.
usefulness.
The student will only need their STI Microsoft O365 account to enjoy its full features on their phone or
on their tablet. Students will not need to fret about their first-year experience in the campus – an
Addresses
important milestone which can impact academic and future professional success, according to studies.
the reader
directly but Keep an eye out for more features coming soon!
sincerely.
Figure 2. An article in an external blog
d. Social Media
Social media websites and applications enable users to create and share content and
participate in social networking through their mobile devices or personal computers. With
the help of technology, companies can now reach the consumers through posting
advertisements and status updates and gauge market trends through browsing different
forums and analyzing the online reviews about their products and services.
Tips in Managing a Social Media Page
• Know your customers and what they like.
Monitor visitors' likes, retweets, or repins. Ask for the readers’ favorite image, story,
product, etc. to give them a strong sense of having participated in your marketing plan
to serve them better. You may also promise readers a reward for visiting your site such
as giveaways, discount sales, prizes, exclusive promotions, etc. Keep your readers
updated by posting new content regularly, which may be twice (2) a day or four (4)
times a week.
• Choose your content carefully.
Stay away from giving away your personal opinions in areas such as politics,
religion, and sports. Save those posts in your personal social media site. Always
remember that you post as a representative of the company so you should observe
the ethics and etiquette in e-communications.
• Style
Keep your posts short but interesting. Your audience could easily move on to other
posts if you do not grab their attention quickly. The medium or channel should also be
considered in posting as different sites emphasize different communication strategies
(e.g., Twitter is for status updates or "microblogs" while Facebook is a blend of weblogs
and messaging). Choose what is best for your content.
• How to respond to criticism
First, have a clear Page/Community Guidelines that will cover issues such as
bullying, hate speech, racism, violence, spamming, and harassment. If there are
negative comments or complaints in your page, you have to respond to them promptly
(at least 15-60 minutes from the time the comment was posted) and professionally. Be
courteous and thank the person for his/her post, comment, or question. Then, provide
a simple and straightforward solution to address the concern. Going out of your way to
accommodate a customer's need by offering complimentary gifts or services would
help in saving your company's reputation. Lastly, do not be afraid to admit a mistake
but make sure that you will learn from it.
According to Polaczyk (2016), there are three (3) things a person needs to do when
talking with an angry customer:
1. Thank them for their opinion (try not to be formal, short “thanks for reaching out
to us” should be fine);
2. Apologize for the inconvenience (“sorry to hear that you’re having problems with
our product / you didn’t like our services”); and
3. Encourage them to send you a private message.
C. Writing Letters
1. Elements of a Business Letter (Colorado State University, n.d.)
a. Heading
This part contains the return address to which the recipient will refer when sending a
response. Indicate the writer's street, city, state, zip code, and date in this part. To reduce
the chance of the response being sent to an incorrect address, words such as street,
avenue, corner, circle, and drive should be spelled out rather than abbreviated.
b. Inside Address
Located two (2) spaces below the date (or four [4] spaces for very short letters) and
justified to the left margin, the inside address contains the mailing information belonging to
the recipient.
c. Salutation
The salutation is an indicator of respect and sets the level of formality between the
sender and the recipient. Usually, it begins with Dear followed by a title such as Mr. or Ms.,
but this formality can be dropped if the sender writes on a first name basis with the recipient.
Remember that the titles Mr., Ms., Mrs., and Dr., are always abbreviated while
Professor and Senator should be spelled out. Also, women should always be addressed
as Ms. except when she has personally expressed a desire to be addressed as Miss or
Mrs. Do not use gender-based salutations if you are uncertain whether the recipient is a
man or a woman. Dear Student or Dear Customer are acceptable for gender-neutral
correspondence.
09 Handout 1 *Property of STI
student.feedback@sti.edu Page 7 of 13
GE1711
e. Complimentary Close
The customary expressions used to close a formal business letter are Thank you,
Sincerely yours, and Yours truly. Less formal expressions such as Regards, Best regards,
and Best wishes should be used only when addressing a business associate that is also a
friend.
f. Signature Block
Allot four (4) spaces between the complimentary close and the writer's full name. The
space between is reserved for the handwritten signature. Always sign your name in black
ink. According to Kolin (2017), "an unsigned letter indicates carelessness or, worse,
indifference toward your reader. While a stamped signature tells readers you could not give
them personal attention." The writer's position or title should appear directly below his/her
name.
Sincerely yours,
Pablo S. Empleo
Logistics Officer
g. Additional Notations
There are situations which call for a business letter to be marked with a notation. These
notations should be placed two (2) spaces below the position of the sender. First, when a
letter references one or more documents that are enclosed for the recipient, it is noted
using one of the following ways:
Second, when a letter has been dictated to an assistant, it should be initialed. The
writer's name will appear in uppercase letters (PSE for Pablo S. Empleo), and the
assistant's name will appear in lowercase letters (esp for Emilio S. Pedrigon) in one of the
following ways:
• PSE: esp
• PSE/esp
Lastly, when copies of a letter are sent to other parties, the copy recipients are
acknowledged with their full name as in the following example:
choose appropriate words and to write the letter as promptly as possible upon making your
decision, so the recipient can have time to search for other means to solve his/her problem.
j. Sales Letter
This letter aims to persuade the reader to “buy” a product, service, idea, or point of
view. It is also used to introduce a new product/service to new customers and past clients.
One essential technique in sales letters is to outline an important consumer problem that
needs to be solved and provide the solution in the letter. A sales letter can be improved
through the use of personalization in some means to ensure the reader’s attention.
k. Special Request Letter
The way your present your request is crucial in this type of letter since your reader is
not obliged to give you anything. When asking for information in a special request letter,
state precisely what information you need and when you need the information, but give
your reader sufficient time to process the request. If you are asking for information to
include in a report or other document, you may offer to forward a copy of the finished
document as a courtesy to the reader. State that you will keep the information confidential
if it is necessary.
Note: You may refer to 09 Handout 2 for the sample of each type of letter mentioned
above.
D. Memorandum
1. Definition
Usually shortened to memo, the memorandum is a Latin word which means "something to
be remembered." Its main function is to "record information of immediate importance and
interest in the busy world of work" (Kolin, 2017). It is also defined as a "written report that is
prepared for a person or committee to provide them with information about a particular matter"
(Collins Dictionary, n.d.). On the other hand, Nordquist (2019) emphasized its scope and use
when he defined it as "a short message or record used for internal communication in a
business."
b. Message or Content
The message is divided into three (3) parts: introduction, body, and conclusion. First,
the introduction should state the reason for the memo and explain briefly any background
information. It can be one paragraph or several paragraphs, but it needs to explain the
purpose of your memo clearly. Second, the body should develop the major point of the
memo with supporting complete details (e.g., dates, times, locations, costs). It should state
why a problem should be solved, who will be affected by it, what caused it, and why did it
happen. Lastly, the conclusion should be fairly short and should state specifically how the
reader should respond. You may also provide a list of recommendations that the readers
are to approve, follow, revise, or reject (Kolin, 2017).
Note: You may refer to Page 1 of 09 Handout 2 for the sample of the minutes of the meeting.
• Traditional interview
In this type of interview, the candidate is interviewed by one (1) person. The candidate may
be asked a series of questions that may or may not be standardized. The best preparation for
this is to research the employer and industry before the interview. This is the most common
type of interviewing (Atlantis University, n.d.).
• Panel interview
This is conducted by a group of two (2) or more interviewers. At a minimum, the
interviewers will expect you to know the job role, the company, its products, services and
competitors, how it is viewed, and issues within the market. Researching the job roles, career
background, and recent work success of the panel members might also help in the interview
(Kirkpatrick, 2014). Also, try to engage with all interviewers and do not just focus on the person
who asked the question.
• Group interview
In this type of interview, the candidate will be put in a room with other job applicants. This
type of group interview is not very common (Schweitzer, 2017). The goal here is to stand-out
among others in the group through your appearance, communication skills, and critical thinking.
• Stress interview
In a stress interview, the interviewer creates an emotionally chaotic setting, which puts
candidates under psychological stress to see if they will crack, remain calm, or even thrive
under pressure. The key to getting through this process is remaining calm and unemotional
throughout the interview by clarifying the question, requesting more details, and focusing on
your problem-solving method rather than devising the correct answer (Doyle, 2019).
2. Application Letter
An application letter is written to provide detailed information about someone applying for
a job. Also called a cover letter, it accompanies another document such as a resume or
curriculum vitae to provide additional information on a job applicant’s skills and work
experience.
Note: You may refer to Pages 2-3 of 09 Handout 3 for the sample of resume and application letter.
References
Atlantis University. (n.d.). Traditional interview. Retrieved from https://www.atlantisuniversity.edu/traditional-interview
Bernales, R., Balon, W., & Biligan, R. (2018). Purposive communication in local and global contexts. Malabon: Mutya
Publishing House, Inc.
Colorado State University. (n.d.). Elements of a business letter. Retrieved from
https://writing.colostate.edu/guides/page.cfm?pageid=1477&guideid=72
Doyle, A. (2018, December 10). What is a functional resume? Retrieved from
https://www.thebalancecareers.com/what-is-a-functional-resume-2061997
Doyle, A. (2019, January 13). Stress interviews: Tactics to handle the pressure. Retrieved from
https://www.thebalancecareers.com/what-is-a-stress-interview-2062108.
Ethics of withholding information. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://pagecentertraining.psu.edu/public-relations-
ethics/ethics-in-crisis-management/lesson-2-access-to-information-during-a-crisis/ethics-of-withholding-
information
Kirkpatrick, S. (2014, September 22). How to prepare for and succeed at a panel job interview. Retrieved from
https://www.theguardian.com/careers/careers-blog/how-prepare-succeed-panel-job-interview-advice-careers
Kolin, P. (2017). Successful writing at work (11th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
Memorandum. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/memorandum
Office of Research Integrity. (n.d.). Definition of research misconduct. Retrieved from
https://ori.hhs.gov/node/1468/printable/print
Polaczyk, J. (2016, April 13). How to handle negative comments on social media like a pro. Retrieved from
https://www.livechatinc.com/blog/how-to-handle-negative-comments-on-social-media
Schweitzer, K. (2017, July 16). Group interviews: How to deal with group interviews. Retrieved from
https://www.thoughtco.com/how-to-deal-with-group-interviews-466634
The Glossary of Education Reform. (2017). Data suppression. Retrieved from https://www.edglossary.org/data-
suppression
Wide, P. (2017). Mastering technical communication skills: A student's handbook. Singapore: Pan Stanford Publishing
Pte. Ltd.
What is a conflict of interest. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/conflict-of-interest.asp