Bulletin of the Association for Business Communication articles from June 1994

Bulletin of the Association for Business Communication archives from June 1994

Managing the drafting process: creating a new model for the workplace.
June 1, 1994... Most business communication teachers who have studied process approaches to writing recognize the value of "drafting" as part of that process. By "drafting," we mean the recursive activity of writing multiple versions of a document, each...

The performance appraisal interview: a multi-purpose communication assignment.
June 1, 1994... The performance appraisal has become a standard topic in the business or management curriculum, most frequently covered in personnel, management, human resources, or organizational behavior classes. Students learn such things as the types of...

A role-playing exercise for analyzing intercultural communication.
June 1, 1994... Getting the message right the first time is fast becoming the motto of successful businesses in today's highly competitive environment. Although this concept typically is applied to total quality management (TQM), it is equally relevant to...

A real-world project for a desktop publishing course.
June 1, 1994... College students who learn to use the tools of desktop publishing can put them to use in a variety of ways. They can create a professional-looking resume, a flier to advertise a meeting, or a poster to sell a car. A course in desktop publishing...

The communication audit as a class project.
June 1, 1994... Off-campus experiences enhance students' eductional experience and learning process. One such class involves students in conducting a "communication audit" or assessment of an off-campus organization. Classes employing the communication audit...

Another look at teaching the external negative message.
June 1, 1994... Many traditionally aged students who take our business communications course lack business experience. As consumers themselves, however, most at some time have bought an unsatisfactory product or received an unsatisfactory service. Thus, they...

Increasing the relevance of class assignments by responding to real needs.
June 1, 1994... Today's pragmatic college students expect to see the relevance of the out-of-class writing assignments. I have discovered that students are more motivated and write business letters more conscientiously when the letter meet legitimate needs and...

Exploring references for improved writing.
June 1, 1994... Students often have little idea of the variety and volume of written references available for the struggling writer. With the emphasis in technological innovations, students have learned to use computer programs to check spelling, to search a...

Using small groups to develop editing skills.
June 1, 1994... Writers who are competent editors are more likely to communicate effectively than writers who are not good editors. The ability to edit - to correct surface-level errors - contributes to strong writing. Often, however, students fail to correct...

Developing collaborative insights and skills. (Collaborative Learning: Three Strategies)
June 1, 1994... In their quest for increased productivity and greater employee satisfaction and commitment, many organizations are increasingly implementing participatory management concepts such as quality circles, self-directed work teams, matrix teams, and...

The traditional model and the collaborative model. (report writing) (Collaborative Learning: Three Strategies)
June 1, 1994... For years, teachers have known that most report writing in professional environments is collaborative, and many commentators have discussed the societal currents which in recent years have made collaborative writing more common (Jorn & Duin,...

Mapping: a collaborative activity for fun and profit. (Collaborative Learning: Three Strategies)
June 1, 1994... In Physical Eloquence and the Biology of Writing, Robert Ochsner notes that "good language learners typically adopt a child-like personality; they reset the biological clock, becoming open to new experiences..." (1990, p. 33). In his...

Some gentle reminders. (publishing an article) (What Makes an Article Publishable?)
June 1, 1994... I'd like to make three suggestions to authors: (a) Read the instructions; (b) remember the audience; and (c) talk to the Editor. These suggestions may seem mundane. But my experience working with The Journal persuades me to offer these gentle...

The three D's of denial; the three A's of acceptance. (What Makes an Article Publishable?)
June 1, 1994... No magic formula guarantees an article's acceptance for publication - at least not if the journal's editor understands what scholarship is about. Yet anyone who has served as a reviewer, associate editor, or editor knows successful articles...

Thoughts on research. (reviewing research articles) (What Makes an Article Publishable?)
June 1, 1994... During the three years I've been an associate editor for The Journal, I've worked with many excellent reviewers. Most put their heart and soul into the manuscripts they critique, offering many constructive comments. They comment on the...

Doing a cost-benefit analysis of your writing. (What Makes an Article Publishable?)
June 1, 1994... What I have to say here has to do mostly with decisions you make as you write up your research, though it could be helpful as you plan your research as well. As you draft and revise, consider what it would cost readers to read what you've...

Turning a presentation into an article. (research articles) (What Makes an Article Publishable?)
June 1, 1994... Many articles begin as conference presentations. Presenting what you hope will become an article at a conference can give you both a deadline for finishing the first draft and elicit useful comments and questions which can help you revise. But...

Four parts to a publishable piece. (research articles) (What Makes an Article Publishable?)
June 1, 1994... Research articles are built around four sections: the literature review, research methods, data analysis, and interpretation. The labels and organization are typical of quantitative work, but even qualitative research such as case studies and...

Effective Communication in Business.
June 1, 1994... This tenth edition of Effective Communication in Business has been revised to include updated exercises, case studies, discussion questions, and new information concerning technology. As the authors point out in their preface, this text is...

Business Communication.
June 1, 1994... Wolford and Vanneman's Business Communication intends to "teach business students how to write and speak well." The authors say that their book is oriented towards students studying any business-related field - accounting, engineering, science,...

The Confident Speaker: How to Master Fear and Persuade an Audience.
June 1, 1994... The purpose of Ray Harlan's book The Confident Speaker is to assist the inexperienced, nervous, or timid speaker through the actual steps of researching, drafting, and making a speech or presentation. Harlan's intended audiences are persons...

Signs, Genres, and Communities in Technical Communication.
June 1, 1994... Noting the interest of both professional communicators and academics in developing a theory of technical communication that acknowledges the rhetoricity and socially-constituted nature of written texts, M. Jimmie Killingsworth and Michael K....