This blog post is about how to write good emails, memos, briefs and reports…or how to teach your team to do this.
By ‘boss’ I mean a line manager, client, board, committee, etc. This is pretty much anyone you are serving, advising, trying to convince of something or seeking a decision from.
Please note that I am being creative with my grammar and punctuation here for a more pleasant and impactful read. It is a blog post, after all.
Does this sound familiar?
If you’re the boss, have you ever been forwarded a 10-page email trail with your staff member just asking you to ‘see the correspondence below and please advise how you want to proceed’? Or a 20-page document with a lot of information but no clear advice or required action?
If you’re the staff member, have you been asked to ‘look into [something] and report back’, with minimal instruction? Or maybe you’re not sure how to summarise a massive undertaking into only a few pages…or even two to three paragraphs in an email.
My top ten tips
My tips are written with the staff member (that’s tasked with the writing) in mind but can be used by ‘bosses’ when instructing their teams.
1. Upfront clarity is key.
The clearer you are on the objective and target audience of the document, the better the result will be. Does your document need to inform them of the pros and cons of multiple options so that they can make a decision? Is it purely for their noting and so a summary will do? Does the person have lots of background knowledge so only an update is needed? Or is this the first time they are reading about this?
In terms of the format, see if there is a template that needs to be used for governance purposes so that you don’t miss key components. Talk to someone that is experienced in writing similar documents and ask to see their successful submissions.
The best advice I can give you here is to have a quick chat to your boss and just ask them what they’re after. Try to negotiate the rough contents (e.g. headings, key points) instead of wondering (read: stressing) on your own. This can save you so much time. You may think they are seeking a 5-page report when all they need is a 1-page summary with a couple of bullet points on the best way forward.
Most bosses will appreciate your initiative. However, if you are worried that your boss will see your questions as incompetence, explain that you are trying to make sure you don’t waste their time and that you want to get them what they need.
2. Less is more.
This goes back to the objective: only include what is needed to achieve the aim of the document.
You will need to forget your ego here. You may have gone through a lengthy (and impressive, if you may say so yourself) process of getting to the answer but your reader may not care about that. They most likely need you to just get to the point. Focus on what matters to them and what they need to make a decision, take an action, etc. Remember, it should be about them and not you.
If you have trouble summarising your text, one tip is to practice telling someone about it. You will be amazed at how clear and succinct you can be when you know your friend only has 15 minutes for this practice run. Take notes as you’re doing this and use them as an outline that you can flesh out into the full document.
I once had to collate six weeks’ worth of work into one report that had to convince a committee of something. There was so much information and so many components I was asked to look at. I used the ‘talking technique’ above. I sat down with a colleague and quickly ran them through each component. What was good, lacking, my tips for improvement and how it fits into the overall recommendation and decision required. After 30 minutes (because this person had another meeting directly afterwards), I was clear on how I needed to tackle the report. Magic!
If you don’t have anyone to talk to, hide in a meeting room and record yourself on your phone, like you are making an audio memo or interviewing yourself, then listen back to see (hear) if it makes sense. I did that recently when I was drafting bits of my website. Awkward but effective!
3. Always aim to add value to the process.
When putting options forward, clarify which one you recommend and why. It shows initiative and that you’ve thought things through. Anyone can pull information together but it takes leadership to make a recommendation.
It’s also a good way to drive the agenda, should you be so inclined. If your work is considered and makes sense, it will make it easier for your boss to just approve your suggestion.
4. Show your process and/or references.
Depending on the topic, you may need to demonstrate you’ve consulted with the right stakeholders or subject matter experts. Or maybe you need to tell your boss under which policy or delegation you are approaching them for a decision. This avoids the ‘toing and froing’ between yourself and your boss and shows initiative (i.e. that you’ve already thought of and covered all the bases).
5. Have a clear, logical structure.
One that often works well is:
why you are writing to them and what you are asking of them
some background information, tailored to their knowledge of the subject matter or the requirements of the organisation (policies, processes, etc.)
the options and the impacts
your recommendation
the next steps.
This provides an easy flow and helps the reader digest it quickly.
6. Ask a colleague to review it.
In some cases, this may be a formal requirement where some documents need to be cleared through IT, Finance, Legal, Risk, etc. If not, it’s always a good idea to take the initiative yourself.
In any case, if you are writing something for the first time and a decision depends on it, consider sharing it first with a colleague / peer to check whether it reads clearly.
7. Test it – and early!
If it’s a larger document, consider setting up the headings and bullet points with key points under each, then testing this with your boss before you proceed further. You could also write a sample section to see if they’re happy with where you are headed.
Don’t wait until your gigantic report is fully written to test whether it meets the mark.
8. Proofread.
You may not be able to catch every error but don’t leave it up to your boss to find 15 spelling errors and 12 grammatical mistakes. This is another way to show initiative and to be taken seriously.
If you can afford the time, write up your document, then do a final proofread the next day before sending it off.
9. Resist perfectionism.
Although you should do the best you can, there is the risk of working on something too long to get it ‘just right’. Your boss doesn’t need the perfect document next month. They need an adequate document today.
To battle your perfectionist tendencies, test an early draft with a colleague or even your boss. You may find that what you have is already good enough and that only a few more tweaks are needed to wrap it up.
10. Final weird (possibly counterintuitive) tip: skip the lengthy writing process altogether.
Sometimes it’s better to just make a meeting with your boss, run through some high-level thoughts or hand-written bullet points as to the pros and cons of the options, then follow up with a few sentences in an email on the key outcomes from the meeting (as a record). Bam! Done!
any thoughts?
Did any of the above resonate with you? What are your good and bad writing experiences? Any other tips for getting it right? Contact me and share your thoughts.
Thanks for your time.