Module 8 The real reason Now what? When Sanjay, one of the accounting technicians on your team, sent an email asking for two weeks' vacation next month to visit a friend's cottage, you had to say no - not because you needed him for the ongoing project to integrate a new module of the human resources information system into the weekly management reports your team generates, although that's what you told him. The real reason was because of a fast- approaching project, still confidential, which Sanjay is the only one with enough experience to lead. In his follow-up email, Sanjay discounted your reason for saying no: "Don't worry about the human resources project. Julie has been helping me, and is just as familiar with it as I am. Besides, it's winding down now; it won't need two people from our team by next month. Julie can handle it while I'm at the cottage, and I'll make sure she can reach me in case anything comes up. So can I take those two weeks off?" Reply to Sanjay's follow-up email professionally maintaining your original decision. The external designer Elana sent another email to ask again if you need her design help with any promotional material. For the third time in row, you're going to have to say that you and the rest of the marketing team can handle the current workload. You're part of a small marketing department, and you usually have to call on an independent designer like Elana during exceptionally busy times, such as preparing for a product launch or a trade show. Your company recently finished a busy stretch, though, and you're not aware of any large projects coming up for the next few months. Still, Elana did good work, she knows your marketing colleagues and your company's product managers now, and she was always there when you needed her during the last busy period. So you want to make sure she'll be available the next time you need her, especially since large projects typically arrive with little advance notice and tight deadlines Write a response to Elana's inquiry politely declining the immediate offer for help, but keeping her in mind for future work as required. No computer camp Everyone was sure the city council would approve your grant application for $10,000 to run a two-week summer computer camp for Grade 1 and 2 children from low-income families. After all, who better than the YMCA to demonstrate a solid track record of working with children and managing funds responsibly? Your proposal was a winner, too - you'd followed all the proposal-writing techniques you learned in the recreation and leisure program at college, and Ginny, your boss, had loved it. The councillors said the city couldn't afford it, though. They suggested that a $2,500 or $3,000 grant might be possible, but you had researched the costs carefully for your proposal, and you know you can't run a computer camp for less than the amount you requested. Ginny is away at a conference. When she returns, though, she is expecting to find planning for the computer camp underway. You don't want her to get a nasty shock when she comes back, and you know she'll be very disappointed, so you decide to call her with the bad news. You check the conference itinerary to find a pre-dinner break when Ginny will likely be back in her hotel room. Now you need to draft a script for the points you'll cover when you phone. Plan out how you are going to present her with the bad news