MEMOS Title slide.

“internal correspondence”

JEAN RICA
S. VELAS
 Slide 1

COMPARISON PEER
-CONTRAST EVALUATION
Topics To Discuss MEMO MEMO
CHECKLIST
PROBLEM- WIZARDS
AND TEMPLATES
SOLUTION
MEMO
 Slide
TEACHING 4
SUGGESTIONS
When teaching about
writing letters, the focus
is usually on types
(such as cover letters,
sales letters, and
letters of inquiry. Students could write
a problem/solution,
comparison/contrast,
argument/persuasion,
a cause/effect,
It is suggested a classification or
analysis memo, etc.
that the instructor
use modes to
teach memos.
Memos
Memos differ from letters in
two significant ways:

First, Memos are internal

correspondence, written by
employees in a company to
employees in the same
company.
Letters, in contrast, are
external correspondence,
written from within a company
to outside vendors, clients, or
colleagues. Secondly, memos
have a different format than the
letter essential components.
Memo
components

Memos replace the

eight letter
essential
components with
the following memo
identification lines:
 Slide 2

TO
02
01E 3
DAT 0 ROM
F

04
SU
BJE
CT
 Slide 3
FROM
• Is your name.
TO
• Names your reader.

SUBJECT
DATE
(typed in all capitals)

• The month, day, and year • Provides your audience two

in which you are writing. things: a topic and a focus.
Memo
components
For example,
a successful subject line
would read as follows:

Subject:
VACATION
SCHEDULE
FOR ACCOUNTANTS
Memo • Accountants is the
components topic of the memo;
vacation schedule is the
Subject:
focus. The focus aids
VACATION
communication more
SCHEDULE FOR than the topic. The topic
ACCOUNTANTS of a memo, for instance,
can stay the same,
while the focus changes.
Look at the • In each of these
following
examples: instances, the topic stays
the same: Accountants.
Subject: Notice, then, how
SALARY important the focus
INCREASE FOR
ACCOUNTANTS comments are. We see a
huge difference between
Subject: salary increases,
TERMINATION OF vacation schedules,
ACCOUNTANTS and termination.
In addition to the
identification lines,
memos differ from
letters in one other
subtle way.
Whereas letters are
signed (essential
component #7),
memos are
initialed next to
the From line.
Though memos and
letters differ as noted,
they are similar in all
other ways. Successful
memos, like letters,
have an introduction,
body, and conclusion.
Like letters, successful
memos are clear,
concise, accessible,
accurate, and achieve
audience recognition.
 Memo Components

Citing of the Problem

Suggesting or Presenting
the Solutions

Sample Problem/Solution Memo

 Memo Components

Sample Table for citing

Comparison and Contrast

Sample Comparison/Contrast Memo

MEMO
Wizards /
Templates
Microsoft Word’s
Wizards/Templates
might help your
students more
easily write memos
(and letters, fliers,
resumés, etc.).
MEMO • Students can access
Wizards / Wizards/Templates by
Templates clicking on File,
scrolling to New, and
Microsoft Word’s then clicking on the
Wizards/Templates Memos tab. Inside this
might help your
students more file, they’ll find
easily write memos templates for
(and letters, fliers, contemporary,
resumés, etc.).
professional, and
elegant memos.
Wizards/Templates are good and bad. On the good side,
these templates help students format memos and provide the
standard memo components. On the bad side, however,
templates are restrictive, limiting the students’ options.
MEMO
Wizards /
Templates

Wizards provide
your students
optional layouts
for memos.
MEMO
Wizards /
Templates

An example of what the

Contemporary Memo
template looks like.
In a Nutshell:
Memos Slide
Problem / 5
Comparison Memo
• Memos are
internal
Solution / Contrast Wizards /
correspondence, Memo Memo Templates
written by • States the problem and • Usually uses a table to • Optional layouts
employees in a suggests solutions. compare/contrast and for easier and more
weigh in options. convenient way
company to of writing memos.
employees in the
same company.
 Slide 1

End of Topic