Between language extremists: find a happy medium for business memos.
As business communicators, human resources managers must convey messages to many different people-their subordinates, upper-level management, all employees, or the public. In performing this function, human resources managers, like most managers, frequently find themselves caught in the conflict between language purists and language libertines. Author Ronald Dulek, associate professor and coordinator of management communications, and James Suchan, assistant professor of management communications-both at the university of Alabama-contend that on way out of this dilemma is to use two touchstones (clarity and persona) for determining the appropriate language to use in writing corporate communications. Thus, while it is imperative that managers maintain their "persona,' or image by, for example, making sure that their subjects and verbs agree, it may be perfectly all right for them to use split infinitives or to end sentences with preposition-almost everyone does-as long as the message is clear and the language conveys the image they wish to project. Such a touchstone approach gives managers a checklist for evaluating and guiding others' prose and evaluating and defending their own. Human resources managers, in particular, can incorporate this approach in training.
D000288:Administrative Personnel; D007802:Language; D014481:United States; D014956:Writing