In 2014, Stephen Elop of Microsoft announced layoffs of 12,500 employees. Read his email to employees: https://news.microsoft.

com/2014/07/17/stephen-elops-email-to-employees/.

Then, answer the following questions:

A. Is the bad news delivered immediately? Do you think it is delivered too directly? Too indirectly? Explain.

B. Is there a buffer? Is there an attempt to soften the blow?

Explain.

C. How effective is the opening paragraph?

D. How effectively does the message explain immediate impacts?

E. Is the tone appropriate?

F. Conduct a FAIR test of the message.

G. Overall, what three changes would you suggest to make the bad-news message more effective?