V.

WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION

MEMO
 What is a MEMO
• MEMORANDUM, USUALLY SHORTENED TO MEMO, IS
A LATIN WORD FOR “SOMETHING TO BE
REMEMBERED.” THE LATIN MEANING POINTS TO THE
MEMO’S CHIEF FUNCTION: TO RECORD IN-
FORMATION OF IMMEDIATE IMPORTANCE AND
INTEREST IN THE BUSY WORLD OF WORK.
• A MEMO IS A DOCUMENT TYPICALLY USED FOR
COMMUNICATION WITHIN A COMPANY.
• MEMOS CAN BE AS FORMAL AS A BUSINESS LETTER
AND USED TO PRESENT A REPORT.
 MEMOs
Memos are brief, informal, but can contain official announcements that serve
a variety of functions, including:
• making an announcement
• providing instructions
• clarifying a policy, procedure, or issue
• changing a policy or procedure
• alerting employees to a problem or issue
• offering general information
• providing a brief summary
• making a request
• offering suggestions or recommendations
• providing a record of an important matter
• confirming an outcome
• calling a meeting
 PURPOSE OF A MEMO

• USUALLY YOU WRITE MEMOS TO INFORM

READERS OF SPECIFIC INFORMATION.
• YOU MIGHT ALSO WRITE A MEMO TO
PERSUADE OTHERS TO TAKE ACTION,
GIVE FEEDBACK ON AN ISSUE, OR REACT
TO A SITUATION. HOWEVER, MOST
MEMOS COMMUNICATE BASIC
INFORMATION, SUCH AS MEETING TIMES
OR DUE DATES.
 FORMAT OF A MEMO
Basically, the memo consists of two parts: the header,
or the identifying information at the top, and the
message itself. The header includes these easily
recognized parts: To, From, Date, and Subject lines.
TO : ALL TESDA Officials and Employees
FROM : The Chief of Staff
DATE : October 30, 2023
SUBJECT : Clarification on Memorandum Circular
No. 38 from the Office of the President
 FORMAT OF A MEMO
• On the To line, write the name and job title of the individual(s) who
will receive your memo or a copy of it. If you are sending your
memo to more than one reader, make sure you list your readers in
the order of their status in your company or agency.
• On the From line, insert your name and your job title (only to higher
personnel). Handwrite your initials after their typed name to verify
that the message comes from you and that you are certifying its
contents.
• On the Date line, do not simply name the day of the week — Friday.
Give the full calendar date — June 1, 2009.
• On the Subject line, write the purpose of your memo. The subject
line serves as the title of your memo; it summarizes your message
 FORMAT OF A MEMO
Introduction
The introduction of your memo should do the following:
• Tell readers clearly about what prompted you to write.
• Explain briefly any background information the reader needs
to know.
• Be specific about what you are going to accomplish in your
memo.
• Do not hesitate to come right out and say, “This memo
explains new e-mail security procedures” or “This memo
summarizes the action taken in Evansville to re- duce air
pollution.”
 FORMAT OF A MEMO
Discussion

In the discussion section (the body) of your

memo, help readers in these ways:
• State why a problem or procedure is
important, who will be affected by it, and
what caused it and why.
• Indicate why and what changes are
necessary.
• Give precise dates, times, locations, and
costs.
 FORMAT OF A MEMO
Conclusion
In your conclusion, state specifically how you want the reader
to respond to your memo. To get readers to act appropriately,
you can do one or more of the following:
• Ask readers to call you if they have any questions
• Request a reply—in writing, over the telephone,
via e-mail, or in person— by a specific date
• Provide a list of recommendations that the
readers are to accept or revise or reject.
 MEMO vis-à-vis EMAIL
• Memos are formal, internal company
communications used for conveying information,
policies, or decisions, while emails serve as a
more informal and versatile method of
communication.
• Memos follow a specific format with a header,
body, and closing, whereas emails can be
customized and personalized with various
formatting options.
• Emails can include attachments, hyperlinks, and
multimedia, while memos are generally limited
to text and basic formatting.
 MEMO vis-à-vis EMAIL
• Memos, short for memorandum, are
written messages that are commonly
used for internal communication within
an organization. Email is a versatile
tool for communication that refers to
an electronic message that
is sent through the internet and can be
used for both internal and external
communication.
 MAKING THE MEMOs
READABLE
• It is good to know
– how to come up with the best memo
• So that whatever you are trying to pass across to your
audience
– is clear.
• In most cases, a memo is usually used to address
– very critical matters and
– therefore it has to come out clear
– so that the content of the information being
passed is not distorted
 MAKING THE MEMOs
READABLE
Writing Tips
• Make it as short as possible
• The memo should not be lengthy because
– it will be tiresome to read.
• Most people would want to go through it
– with the shortest time possible
– but acquire all the information.
• You need to summarize
– as much as you can.
• The shorter your memo will be, the more the
readers
 MAKING THE MEMOs
READABLE
USE SIMPLE ENGLISH
• You should not use
– Complex language while writing your
memo
• Because
– the readers may end up missing up
important points and
• Your memorandum will not have served
– its purpose.
• Avoid too much use of vocabularies in your work.
 MAKING THE MEMOs
READABLE
AVOID SIMPLE GRAMMAR AND SPELLING
ERRORS
• you should be very cautious in memo
writing because a simple spelling mistake
may confuse the intended information that
you needed to pass and that would be chaos
especially if it is a critical matter that affects
an organization. You should go through your
memo after writing to ensure that
everything reads as required.
 TYPES OF MEMO

• THERE ARE MANY TYPES OF MEMOS WHICH OF THE ARE

FOLLOWING.
⮚ DIRECTIVE MEMO
⮚ TRIP REPORT MEMO
⮚ RESPONSE MEMO
⮚ FIELD REPORT MEMO
 DIRECTIVE MEMO

• A DIRECTIVE MEMO STATES A POLICY OR PROCEDURE

YOU WANT THE READER OR CO-WORKER TO FOLLOW.
 EXAMPLE OF DIRECTIVE MEMO
TO: DESIGN TEAM #362

FROM: W.B. WORKING

DATE: MAY 27, 1997

SUBJECT: PROJECT SCHEDULE

AS A RESULT OF YESTERDAY'S MEETING, I SUGGEST WE FOLLOW THE

PROJECT SCHEDULE LISTED BELOW. REMEMBER, WE MUST SUBMIT A
PROPOSAL BY NOON ON JULY 2.

SCHEDULE

TASK
COMPLETION DATE

• DIVIDE RESEARCH INTO GROUPS

AND COMPILE INFORMATION
JUNE 6

• REVIEW DESIGNS FROM KATE AND BILL.

JUNE 11

• WRITE PROPOSAL
JUNE 23
 TRIP REPORT MEMO

• A TRIP REPORT MEMO IS USUALLY SENT TO A

SUPERVISOR AFTER AN EMPLOYEE RETURNS FROM A
BUSINESS VENTURE. THE STRUCTURE IS LISTED BELOW:
• PURPOSE STATEMENT
• SUMMARY
• DISCUSSION
• ACTION
 EXAMPLE OF TRIP MEMO
TO: Design Team #362
FROM: W.B. Working
DATE: June 27, 1997
SUBJECT: Weekly Meeting

This memo presents my impressions

Purpose:
of the meeting last week.

In general, I felt that the meeting

Summary: went well and much progress was
made.
Barb and Jeff were able to make
progress on the graphics and should
Discussion: have them finished next week.
Kyle and Sandy are on Chapter 2 of
the user manual.
Kyle will meet with Jeff to see how
Recommendation: they want the graphics integrated
into the text.
 RESPONSE MEMO

• THE PURPOSE OF THIS MEMO IS TO PROVIDE THE

AUDIENCE WITH DESIRED INFORMATION. IT USUALLY HAS
FOUR PARTS:
• PURPOSE STATEMENT
• SUMMARY
• DISCUSSION
• ACTION
 EXAMPLE OF RESPONSE MEMO
TO : DESIGN TEAM #362

FROM: W.B. WORKING

DATE : MAY 27, 1997

SUBJECT : PROJECT SCHEDULE

PURPOSE : THIS MEMO RESPONDS TO YOUR REQUEST THAT THE WEEKLY MEETING BE

MOVED FROM 9AM TO 10AM.

SUMMARY: THIS REQUEST IS SATISFACTORY AS LONG AS IT IS APPROVED BY

MANAGEMENT.

DISCUSSION: MANAGEMENT USUALLY HAS NO PROBLEM WITH THE INDIVIDUAL TIME

CHANGES IN MEETINGS, AS LONG AS MEETING MINUTES ARE TURNED IN BY NOON TO

CATHY.

ACTION : I HAVE ASKED CATHY IF SHE THINKS THIS WOULD BE A PROBLEM AND SHE

SAID NO, SO ALL WE NEED TO DO NOW IS GET APPROVAL FROM STEVE.

 FIELD REPORT MEMO
• MEMOS ARE OFTEN USED TO REPORT ON INSPECTION AND PROCEDURES.
THESE MEMOS, KNOWN AS FIELD OR LAB REPORTS, INCLUDE THE
PROBLEM, METHODS, RESULTS, AND CONCLUSIONS, BUT SPEND LESS
TIME ON THE METHODS SECTION.
• A FIELD OR LAB REPORT MEMO HAS THE FOLLOWING STRUCTURE:
• PURPOSE OF MEMO
• SUMMARY
• PROBLEM LEADING TO THE DECISION TO PERFORM THE PROCEDURE
• METHODS
• RESULTS
• CONCLUSIONS
• RECOMMENDATIONS
 EXAMPLE OF FIELD REPORT MEMO
TO: DEAN OF JOURNALISM

FROM: STEVE NASH

DATE: JUNE 27, 1999

SUBJECT: COMPUTER LAB

PURPOSE: THIS MEMO PRESENTS MY THE FINDINGS OF MY VISIT TO THE

COMPUTER LAB AT CLARK C252.

SUMMARY: IN GENERAL, I FELT THAT THE LAB NEEDS MUCH NEW

EQUIPMENT AND RENOVATION.
PROBLEM : THE INSPECTION WAS DESIGNED TO DETERMINE IF THE
PRESENT EQUIPMENT WAS ADEQUATE TO PROVIDE GRADUATE
STUDENTS WITH THE TECHNOLOGY NEEDED TO PERFORM THE TASKS
EXPECTED OF THEM BY THEIR PROFESSORS AND THESIS RESEARCH.

METHODS : I RAN A SERIES OF TASKS ON SPSS AND WORDPERFECT AND

RECORDED MEMORY CAPACITY AND PROCESSING TIME FOR EACH TASK.

RESULTS : THE INSPECTION FOUND THAT THE HARDWARE USED TO RUN

THE COMPUTERS IS OUTDATED AND THAT THE COMPUTERS ITSELF ARE
VERY SLOW.

CONCLUSIONS : THIS LAB IS INADEQUATE FOR THE EVERYDAY NEEDS OF

GRADUATE STUDENTS IN THIS DEPARTMENT.

RECOMMENDATIONS : FOUR NEW COMPUTERS RUNNING ON WINDOWS

98 AND A PROCESSING SPEED OF AT LEAST 233MHZ SHOULD BE
PURCHASED IMMEDIATELY.
 SOME BUSINESS MEMO
TYPES

• OPERATIONAL MEMOS
• ENVIRONMENTAL MEMOS
• DRESS CODE MEMOS
• FINANCIAL MEMOS
• COVER MEMOS
Operational Memo

A written policy for the Department of Corrections (DOC)

that applies to one (1) or more of the units and outlines
the general uniform procedures.

A written memo that applies specifically to an institution or

unit and outlines the procedures regarding the topic area
 Environmental Memo

Material of Environmental Concern means and includes

chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, waste, toxic or
hazardous substances, oil, petroleum and oil and petroleum
products and any other polluting substances, the release,
discharge, disposal or emission of which into the
environment is regulated, prohibited or penalised by or
pursuant to any applicable environmental law.
 COVER MEMORANDUM

Cover memo or memorandum, as it is sometimes called, can be defined as

some written document that is meant for internal communication within the
organization. Added to internal communication, the memo can also be used for
a background prelude to your resume. A cover memo template is a shorter
version of a cover letter.
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