1. What letters and memos have in common
2. Planning a letter or memo
3. Structuring your letters and memos
4. Formalities
5. Information content
6. Distribution and storage

Summary

Memos and letters are the most important and most formal kinds of writing that most of us have to do at work. Letters, in particular, are important in creating a good or bad image of the organization and the writer.

The basic rules of good communication apply, but letters have their own conventions and structure which we are expected to follow.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

When you have completed this module, you should be able to:

• Identify the main conventions where you work for internal and externalcorrespondence
• Know how to plan and structure your own correspondence
• Appreciate the significance of information resources to document convention
• Identify the key security and confidentiality issues affecting the way you produceand send documents
• Explain how documents are distributed and stored where you work