Assignment Paper

BUS301 Memo Rubric Spring 2020 – Student.docx
BUS301 Writing Rubric

Performance Dimensions

N/A

Not Met

Met

Comments

Organization (OABC)

O pening gets attention, provides context , and introduces topic

A genda previews content of the document

B ody

Sound paragraphing decisions ( length and development )

Paragraphs limited to one topic per paragraph

Complete discussion of one topic before moving to next topic

Transitions and flow between paragraphs smooth

The overall flow/logic/structure of document is apparent

C losing summarizes and concludes , recommends , if appropriate

Content

The content of the document is relevant ; information meaningful

The document is developed with adequate support and examples

The content is accurate and appropriate , with insightful analysis

Proofreading

The grammar and spelling are correct (proofread)

Punctuation— comma usage, capitalization, etc.—used correctly

The sentence structure and length are appropriate

Format

Appropriate formatting is used for type of document written

Good use of font , margins , spacing , headings , and visuals

[11/2016]

Example – Good – Corrected student example Spring 2020.docx
TO: Professor __________

FROM: Suzy Student

DATE: February 1, 2020

SUBJECT: Out of Class Experience – Cybersecurity Conference

Cybersecurity is a topic everyone should be concerned about, so I attended the 3rd Annual Cybersecurity Event held in the Grawn Atrium. I gained insight and knowledge from listening to the speakers that came from different kinds of industries. In this memo, I will discuss what I learned from the speaker and two takeaways: 1) cybersecurity is everywhere, 2) personal identifiable information, and 3) cybersecurity for the business student.

Cybersecurity is Everywhere

The conference was an opportunity to learn about cybersecurity. The first speaker talked about how companies are attacked in many different ways every day. The “bad guys” are trying to steal company information as well as employee information. Both kinds of information are valuable on the black market. The second speaker talked about the internet of things (IoT). These are things that are attached to the internet. The speaker talked about autonomous cars and medical equipment (heart) that talks to the internet. She talked about how cyber can and should influence designs. “Things” must be created with cybersecurity included in every step of the design. The last speaker talked about how my information has value. The “bad guys” steal my information and people want to buy it. Making money is one reason hackers steal millions of records.

Personal Identifiable Information

Personal Identifiable Information (PII) is any information relating to an identifiable person. There are laws in place to help make sure this information is secure. This topic is a takeaway for me because I had no idea my data had any value to anyone but me. The speaker talked about multi-factor authentication (MFA). When possible, MFA should be used on my accounts. She shared several stories about how this 2nd layer of protection will stop most amateur hackers.

Cybersecurity for the Business Student

Everyone must be cognizant of cybersecurity. Business students should learn about how they play a role in keeping the company safe. Helping with security was a take away for me because I thought this was an IT problem. I now understand that I play a role by being aware of who is sending me emails and clicking on the link.

Importance of Cybersecurity

I learned a lot from this conference. Before attending, I didn’t know what cybersecurity had to do with me as a business student. I have a new appreciation and a greater concern for keeping my information safe. I will think about security now when I see things talking to the internet.

Total # Words (350-400)

Number of Sentences

Avg # Words/Sentence

Number of Commas

409 – 14 = 395

395 / 29 = 13.62

Fundamental Writing Rules handout(1).docx
Fundamental Writing Rules – Dr. Hicks

Follow these rules to improve your writing!

This document should be used when watching the video recorded by Dr. Hicks.

Four Most Common Writing Problems

1. Comma usage

2. Indirect phrasing

3. Run on sentences/excessive sentence length

4. Lack of organization

Remember: The well-written sentence almost punctuates itself.

Comma Usage

Three most common (and frequently violated) comma rules:

1. When independent clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction, they are separated by a

comma. Place the comma before the coordinating conjunction.

Note: you may omit the comma if the first clause is short (five or fewer words); include the comma if

you want to force a pause in the reading.

-Coordinating conjunctions FANBOYS = for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so

Example:

· You may enroll in the course in the spring, or you may wait until summer to take the class.

2. When starting a sentence with an introductory phrase (dependent clause), use a comma after it.

Note: Commas can be optional after some brief prepositional phrases (three or fewer words). Use a

comma whenever confusion might occur without it.

Examples:

· After many interviews over the past month, we have selected a candidate.

· If Anna achieves the highest score, she will be “student of the month.”

3. To separate items in a series. The elements (items) must have parallel grammatical structure (words,

phrases, or clauses.)

Example:

· The chief financial officer, secretary, and treasurer attended the December 2 committee meeting.

Active vs. Passive Voice

Active voice = subject + verb + object (SVO); the subject is doing the action: I love Molly.

Passive voice – Molly is loved by me. or Molly is loved. (and you don’t know who loves her)

· He kissed her.

vs.

· She was kissed by him.

Passive voice always requires more words. The subject is not performing the action in passive voice.

· He threw the ball.

vs.

· The ball was thrown by him.

*Specific question? Read more about active voice vs. passive voice at this URL (podcast is also available): http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/active-voice-versus-passive-voice.aspx

Run-on Sentences; Excessive Sentence Length

Use the Rule of 8s (applies to paragraphs as well) as a measuring stick when writing:

8 words/sentence and 8 lines/paragraph

Short sentences increase rate of comprehension by readers:

e.g. 12 word sentence = 100% comprehension; 28 word sentence = 50% comprehension

Lack of Organization Source: Writing for Today’s Workplace,

Prepare to write – use an outline (pre-write) by William Baker

-Use the OABC framework for organized writing:

O = Opening

A = Agenda

B = Body

C = Closing

-Utilize the HATS design techniques:

H = headings (be sure you use informative headings to create skim value)

A = access (visuals like tables, charts, graphs, and photos)

T = typography (font, size, and alignment)

S = spacing (block format)

-Utilize CLOUD (the five attributes of good body paragraphs):

C = coherent; reads smoothly and flows logically

L = length; does not discourage reader (rule of 8s = 8 lines/paragraph)

O = organization; often top-down order with main idea (topic sentence) in first sentence

U = unity; each sentence discusses only information falling within scope of topic sentence

D = developed; who, what, when, where, why, how details related to topic sentence

Focus on these five tips for good business writing:

1. Use simple, concise sentences (and avoid punctuation errors)

-short sentences are clearer and eliminate the need for punctuation

2. Know the three most common comma usage rules

3. Be direct when you write; use active voice

4. Write from an outline – use the OABC framework to organize your writing

5. Utilize the HATS design techniques in all business documents

TEMPLATE – OABC Memo Report v1_.docx
OABC Memo Report Template

Align the heading information as shown here

TO: Recipient’s Name

Use 1” margins all around

Use 11 pt. font

1 blank line

FROM: You

DATE: Month day, year

SUBJECT: Provide Concise and Informative Subject Line

1 blank line

In your opening paragraph introduce your topic. Provide background information as needed. Include an attention getter that makes your reader want to continue reading. Introduce your agenda items in the last sentence of this paragraph by referring to your topic, e.g., I will discuss what I did during the rotation and two take-aways: (1) first agenda item, (2) second agenda item and (3) third agenda item.

1 blank line between para-graphs

Heading = bold,

left-aligned, Title Case

First Agenda Item Heading Here

Discuss your first topic (as identified in your agenda item). Be direct. Begin with a topic sentence that states your agenda item. Keep paragraphs relatively short in length, e.g. no longer than eight lines is a good rule of thumb for paragraph length. Better to use multiple shorter paragraphs than one long paragraph. Xxxxxx xx xxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxx xx xxx xxxxx xxxxxxxx xxxxx xxxxxx xx x x xxxxxxx x x .

· Xxxxxx x x x xxx x xxxxxx

Utilize bulleted or numbered lists to improve information access and make key information stand out

· Xxxx xx x x xxxx x x xxxxxxx

1 blank line

Second Agenda Item Heading Here

Discuss your second topic (as identified in your agenda item). Be direct. Begin with a topic sentence that states your agenda item. Keep paragraphs relatively short in length, e.g. no longer than eight lines. Better to use multiple shorter paragraphs than one long paragraph. Xxxxxx xx xxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xx xxx

Begin each paragraph with a concise topic sentence using direct phrasing. Xxxxxx xxx xxxxxx x x xxxxxx x.

1 blank line

Third Agenda Item Heading Here

Discuss your third topic (as identified in your agenda item). Be direct. Begin with a topic sentence that states your agenda item. Keep paragraphs relatively short in length, e.g. no longer than eight lines. Better to use multiple shorter paragraphs than one long paragraph. Xxxxxx xx xxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xx xxx x xxxxx xxx xxxxxx x x xxxxxx. x xxxxxx x x xxxxxxx x xxxx xx xxxxxx x xxxxxxxx xx x x x.

Begin each paragraph with a concise topic sentence using direct phrasing. Xxxxxx xxx xxxxxx x x xxxxxx x.

Informative Heading for Closing Paragraph Here

Provide a closing paragraph that accomplishes your goal for this memo. Begin with a topic sentence that reflects the heading you created for this paragraph. You can provide a brief summary of your content, a recommendation, and/or discuss additional work to be done, etc. Xxxxxxx xx xxx xxxxx xxxxxxxx xxxxx.

This is not part of a business memo but it is a requirement for this class. You must include and complete the following information. It should be located at the very bottom of the memo.

Total # Words (350-400)

Number of Sentences

Avg. # Words/Sentence

Number of Commas

388

11.7

Writing Statistics – How to compute Ver 1(2)(1).docx
Writing Statistics

Use the table below to record your writing statistics. Copy and paste this table at the bottom of your memo and include the stats for each item.

Total # Words (350-400)

Number of Sentences

Avg. # Words/Sentence

Number of Commas

How to Compute Writing Stats:

Step 1 – Compute total word count: Open your memo. The bottom left-hand corner of Word shows the total word count. Highlight the opening, agenda, body and closing. Review the left-hand corner again. It will now show the amount of words highlighted. This total includes the headings. Do not include your memo headings in the total word count. Manually count the words in the headers and subtract them from the word count. This is your Total # of Words. The total word count must be between 350 and 400 words. Step 2 – Determine total number of sentences: Click “Find” on the Home toolbar or use Ctrl + F to open the Navigation pane in Word. Type a period in the search box. A number will appear directly below the search box. The number represents how many periods are in the document. Subtract any periods used for other reasons other than to end a sentence. This is the number of sentences.

Step 3 – Determine average number of words/sentence: Divide the number of words (from step 1) by the total number of sentences (from step 2); for example, if you have 380 words/24 sentences = 15.8 average number of words/sentence. Your average sentence length should be less than 20. See the note below for details.

NOTE – IMPORTANT: If your average sentence length is not under 20 words, you should review your document. Look for ways to improve the conciseness of your sentences. The goal for any business is writing an average of 15 words/sentence. Research also shows that a 28-word sentence has a comprehension rate of 50 percent! An 8-word sentence has a comprehension rate of 100 percent! This doesn’t mean you have to have 8-word sentences, but it does demonstrate the significant role conciseness plays in effective communication. Research shows that the longer the sentence, the more likely there will be errors in grammar, punctuation, and clarity. It will benefit you and your audience if you use concise sentences.

Step 4 – Determine total number of commas: Replace the period in the Navigation pane with a comma. A number will appear directly below the search box. Subtract for any commas not used within sentences, like in the date line.

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