Casual dress in professional offices has been coming under attack. Your boss, Elizabeth Sommer, received the e-mail shown in Figure 5.1. She thinks it would be a good assignment for her group of management trainees to help her respond to that message. She asks your team to research answers to the first five questions in President Aiden Rebol’s message. She doesn’t expect you to answer the final question, but any information you can supply to the first questions would help her shape a response. 

Diago Enterprises, LLC, is a public CPA firm with a staff of 90 CPAs, bookkeepers, managers, and support personnel. Located in Cypress, California, the plush offices on Valley View Boulevard overlook Oak Knoll Park. The firm performs general accounting and audit services as well as tax planning and preparation. Accountants visit clients in the field and also entertain them in the downtown office. 

Your Task. Decide whether the entire team will research each question in Figure 5.1 or whether individual team members will be assigned certain questions. Collect information, discuss it, and reach consensus on what you will report to Ms. Sommer. As a team write a concise one-page response. Your goal is to inform, not persuade. Remember that you represent management, not students or employees.

Figure 5.1

Transcribed Image Text:

Provides concise, clear subject line and REQ to remind receiver that a response is required Opens with receiver's name and greeting to express friendliness and to mark beginning of message Uses bullets to improve readability Closes with full contact information Eile Edit Maiboy Message Transfer Special Tools Window Help BUE AA A To: Elizabeth Sommer From: Aiden Rebol Subject: REQ: Please Answer Questions About Our Casual-Dress Policy Cc: Bcc: Send Good morning, Liz, Should we revamp our casual-dress policy? I'm asking you and other members of our management team to consider the questions below as we decide whether to change our policy at Diago Enterprises. As you know, we adopted a casual business attire program several years ago. Some employees saw it as an employment benefit. To others it was a disaster because they didn't know how to dress casually and still look professional. Since we originally adopted the policy, times have changed and the trend seems to be moving back toward more formal business attire. Here are some questions to consider: • What is acceptable to wear on dress-down days? • Should our policy restrict body art (tattoos) and piercing? • How should supervisors react when clothing is offensive, tasteless, revealing, or sloppy? • Is it possible to develop a uniform definition of acceptable casual attire? • Do the disadvantages of a dress-down policy outweigh the advantages? • Should we refine our dress-down policy or eliminate it? Please give careful thought to these questions and be ready to discuss them at our management meeting April 17. Aiden Aiden Rebol, President Diago Enterprises 9300 Valley View Blvd., Suite 250 Cypress, CA 90630 Phone: 213-439-9080 | Fax: 213-439-7819 | Cell: 213-336-6535 X Tips for Formatting E-Mail Messages • After To, insert the receiver's electronic address. In most e-mail programs, this task is automated. If done manually, enclose the receiver's address in angle brackets. • After From, type your name and electronic address, if your program does not insert it automatically. • After Subject, present a clear description of the message. • Insert the addresses of anyone receiving courtesy or blind copies. • Include a salutation (Liz; Hi, Liz) or honorific and last name (Dear Ms. Sommer), especially in messages to outsiders. • Double-space (skip one line) between paragraphs. • Do not type in all caps or in all lowercase letters. Include full contact information in the signature block. © 2016 Cengage Learning: Courtesy of Mary Ellen Guffey and Dana Loewy; Used with permission from Microsoft