Writing Consultation involves what?
If you are the owner of a business, the manager of a department, or an executive in charge of a team, chances are your employees write quite a bit in the course of the work week, communicating internally and externally for a variety of purposes. According to the National Writing Project’s Writing: A Ticket to Work or a Ticket Out: A Survey of Business Leaders, “As advanced technology in the workplace plays a more significant role, good writing skills are increasingly valued” by businesses. In fact, according to the leaders of 120 American companies (that employee nearly 8 million people), “Writing is a ‘threshold skill’ for hiring and promotion among salaried (i.e., professional) employees. Survey results indicate that writing is a ticket to professional opportunity” (nwp.org). Consider that two-thirds of salaried employees in large American companies have some writing responsibility.
“Manufacturing documentation, operating procedures, reporting problems, lab safety, waste disposal operations—all have to be crystal clear,” said one human resource director. Even more sobering is one executive’s concise observation that “You can’t move up without writing skills.” (Writing Ticket to Work)
You know this to be true: An employee who writes well is a valuable asset to your business by presenting a professional image to clients, customers, and internal co-workers. Employees who write well make you and your business more credible and trustworthy. If you have silently struggled with great employees who just need to brush up on certain skills such as email etiquette, formal report memo writing, persuasive sales letter composition, or any other business communication required in your company, contact me today to start the conversation.
I offer a variety of writing consultation services for clients, but work with you to customize a plan to meet your needs. Such a plan may include time spent with staff (either in person or online) on a specific project to ensure that the writing is crystal clear, accessible to a varied audience, and to guarantee that the structure of the document is well-organized. Another plan might involve editing a document for clarity, sentence structure, and word choice, and then conducting a series of two-hour writing workshops to teach your team editing tips and proofreading techniques to improve their skills. Whether you want your team to understand the importance of audience, purpose, active voice, and appropriate tone in written documents, or you want select employees to become better skilled at communicating company messages in digital environments such as Facebook, Twitter, and blogs, I can tailor a plan to address your needs.
Email Amanda today to start the conversation: amandamorrisphd (at) gmail (dot) com or complete the contact form below.
Amanda Morris, Ph.D. 