Pesky Prose Problem at Pristine Pedi During your first year working at Pristine Pedi, a chain of day spas and nail salons, you have impressed your boss Frank Foote with your business writing skills, despite the fact that this is your first career-path job after graduating from DePaul University. One day your phone rings and on the other end is Foote, asking you to stop by his office the next day at 10:00 a.m. to discuss a new project that he is thinking about. He mentions very little at this time except to say that your involvement may be an opportunity to become an even more integral part of Pristine Pedi. The next day in his office Foote fills you in. I know you're probably curious about why I asked you here. You assent that yes you are. Well, several of us have been discussing our concerns about the poor written business communication skills of some of our employees. While we were brainstorming possible solutions, I mentioned that I was particularly pleased with how well one of my newer, younger employees was handling letters and memos. When they asked me how this person, YOU, had managed to acquire this ability, I remembered back to your initial interview and your telling me about how much you learned from a business writing class at DePaul, Professional Business Writing. "Yes, that was the WRD 202 class; it was a real hands-on experience. Manny Stevenson, the director of human resources, and I considered trying to remedy this situation by staying in-house, but we really don't have the resources here at Pristine to do that for the number of employees this will probably affect. So we started considering other possibilities, and we think we've got a workable Idea. But there's a roadblock, and thats where you come in." "What's the idea?" you ask. "Were considering forming a relationship with DePaul University, especially since they're just a couple blocks south on Jackson, to have them teach a business writing class on-site here at Pristine Pedi HQ." "Sounds good, " you say. "What's the hurdle?" Gregory Grills, president of staff development You've heard stories about "Gruff Gregory," though you havent actually met him. Foote continues. "Gregs from the 'old school.' He believes that you learn in the field, through experience, a sort of baptism under fire. Thats how he came up through the ranks here. I'm not even sure that he has a college degree. But he does have the power to fund or veto just such a project as this." He might approve the cost of $975 per student if he were given a strong proposal. "How can I be of help?" you inquire. "Well, keeping in mind the principles and strategies that you learned in your DePaul class, Id like you to write a memo to Grills outlining the benefits of such a course and highlighting what it covers. And of course your memo must demonstrate these things as well. Send a copy to Stevenson--and to me. Grills is a tough audience, but I know youll do just fine. Hes a no nonsense guy who appreciates the direct approach: If we get this project going, there's a good chance that you can be our liaison with DePaul. You like the sound of that word, partly because you expect that a liaison may earn a little more than a marketing assistant. You thank Foote for his confidence in you; you assure him that youll do a fine job, and off you go to start your memo because you only have until noon tomorrow to finish it.

* The Memo is from you * Your title is Marketing Assistant * Memo is to Gregory Grills * His title is President of Staff Development * Copies go to Sheri Stevenson, Director of Human Resources and Frank Foote, Director of Marketing * Program cost is $975 per student, with a 50 student minimum to start

1 page long memo