Business Spotlight 08.2019

(Nancy Kaufman) #1
LANGUAGE 55

Fotos: iStockphoto/iStock.com; privat


6/2019 Business Spotlight

Answers
Here are the answers to the
questions we asked:
1. IM communication tends
to mirror spoken communi-
cation in style. There are im-
provements that Tony could
make in each case:
Example A: Tony’s style in
the first example is too formal
and doesn’t mirror Marina’s
informal style. He could write,
“What do you need it for?” in-
stead of “For what purpose do
you need it?” and “No problem”
instead of “I don’t have any ob-
jections”.
Example B: In this case, To-
ny’s message is too long and
contains too much informa-
tion. Also, his sentences are
very long. He should have
written more sentences and
shortened them.
Example C: Tony doesn’t give
Sara time to answer his ques-
tions. Firing multiple ques-
tions in quick succession is
not helpful or effective.


  1. In Example C, there is a risk
    that Sara won’t answer one or
    more of Tony’s questions or
    that she won’t send him the
    budget forecast.


KEY TIPS!
Use instant messaging (IM) for short
messages. If you’ve got something longer to
say, consider sending an email instead.


  • Write like you speak. Don’t be too formal.


  • As with spoken dialogue, give the other person
    time to respond.




  • IM can be very useful for group
    communication, as replies from people will be
    seen by all, in chronological order. This is not
    always the case with email.




Useful phrases for
short written
communication

A. Asking for something
⋅ Do you have...?
⋅ Could/Can you send me...?
⋅ Could/Can you tell me about...?
⋅ Are you free to meet later?
⋅ Have you got/seen...?
⋅ Hi, team. Does anyone know
where/how...?

B. Providing information
⋅ I’m attaching...
⋅ Can I send it to you later?
⋅ You should ask... I think s/he’ll
know.
⋅ You’ll find the info in the...
⋅ Sorry, I don’t know.

C. Using short forms
⋅ RU there? = Are you there?
⋅ AFAIK = as far as I know
⋅ IMO = in my opinion = I think
⋅ BTW = by the way
⋅ Thx = thanks
⋅ CU later = see you later
⋅ TTYL/ttyl = talk to you later

D. Ending your messages
⋅ I’ll send you an email.
⋅ Hold on, I’ll call you.
⋅ OK. See you at 11.
⋅ I’m back on Friday. I’ll talk to you
then.
⋅ Cheers!
⋅ See you!

Instant message:
keep it short

attach sth. [əˈtætʃ]
, etw. anhängen
by the way
[)baI DE (weI]
, übrigens
cheers
[tʃɪəz] UK ifml.
, tschüss;
hier etwa: Gruß
fire multiple questions
(at sb.)
[)faɪə )mʌltIp&l
ˈkwestʃənz (Ät)]
, (jmdn.) mit vielen
Fragen bombardieren
hold on
[)həʊld (ɒn]
, warte(n Sie) einen
Moment
instant messaging
[)ɪnstənt ˈmesɪdʒɪŋ]
, Nachrichtensofort-
versand
mirror sth. [ˈmɪrə]
, etw. widerspiegeln
succession
[səkˈseʃ&n]
, (Ab-)Folge

Grammar
Direct and indirect
requests/suggestions

You can make requests and
suggestions in various ways.
Being indirect is often seen
as more polite, though there
might be a risk of misunder-
standing if you are too indirect.
Direct requests/suggestions
are clearer and more efficient
but might be seen as too direct
or even as impolite. Look at
these two indirect examples
from the messages and their
more direct alternatives:

Indirect requests
⋅ Can you / Do you think
you can send me the
budget forecast today?
⋅ Could we meet next week
for you to...?

Direct requests
⋅ Send me the budget
forecast today, please.
⋅ Let’s meet next week for
you to...
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