from message to MEMO

Exploring memo content, organization, and format

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

A memo is...
a document with a purpose; a form of internal communication; and, informative, organized, and well designed.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

a document with a purpose

Memos are used within organizations to... report results; instruct employees; announce policies; disseminate information; and, delegate responsibility.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011

a form of internal communication

Memos communicate with formality and authority. Memos can be used for routine correspondence, but also for short reports, proposals, and other internal documents. Memos are typically for internal communication.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

informative, organized, and well designed

Header Opening Statement Content Task Summary Discussion
Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Closing Necessary Attachments

Memo example:
a document with a purpose; a form of internal communication; and, informative, organized, and well designed.
! Wolfpack Industrial
Memorandum Date: To: From: RE: Sept. 12, 2010 Employees of Wolfpack Industrial Toby Flenderson, Vice President of Human Resources New Employee Benefit, Time for Charity
To Wolfpack Industrial, community is an integral part of business. We appreciate our employees who donate their time and energy to local charities, and hope to make that opportunity available to more of our dedicated staff. With our new program, Time for Charity, we hope to make volunteerism easier for WI employees. This information outlines the actions employees can take to register for Time for Charity benefits.

A memo is often: 1-3 pages; organized by sections with headers; and easy to scan.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Program Overview
Beginning December 1, employees can take advantage of Time for Charity, a new program developed by the Human Resources Department. Through this program, staff members can continue earning their hourly wage while volunteering with one of our communitys many nonprofit organizations. Employee volunteer work will be featured in future company publications.

Use of Charity Hours

One hour for every 40 hours worked may be spent with a charitable organization. Hours can be broken down to: 1 hour every week, 2 hours every other week, or 1 half-day every month. Hours will not carry over from month to month. Employees who enroll are not required to use all or any of their charity hours in a given month, and may continue with the program no matter how often they are able to use hours.

Pay for Charity Hours Applicable Charities

Employees will be paid their regular hourly salary during this time.

We are currently developing a list of applicable organizations. Employees may continue working with organizations they are already be involved in. Each organization, event, or volunteer action must be approved through HR before it can be applied to Time for Charity.

Program Enrollment

Applications for Time for Charity will be available on the employee website beginning October 15. To enroll, you must be a full-time employee. The application primarily consists of contact information and questions about the charity or charities that you would like to work with. If you have any questions about Time for Charity or if you are curious about whether an organization you are involved with is applicable to this program, e-mail your HR Department at TobyF@wolfpackindustries.com

Header
Company name, logo Include memo
! Wolfpack Industrial
Memorandum Date: To: From: RE: Sept. 12, 2010 Employees of Wolfpack Industrial Toby Flenderson, Vice President of Human Resources New Employee Benefit, Time for Charity
To Wolfpack Industrial, community is an integral part of business. We appreciate our employees who donate their time and energy to local charities, and hope to make that opportunity available to more of our dedicated staff. With our new program, Time for Charity, we hope to make volunteerism easier for WI employees. This information outlines the actions employees can take to register for Time for Charity benefits.

Program Overview
Beginning December 1, employees can take advantage of Time for Charity, a new program developed by the Human Resources Department. Through this program, staff members can continue earning their hourly wage while volunteering with one of our communitys many nonprofit organizations. Employee volunteer work will be featured in future company publications.

Use of Charity Hours

One hour for every 40 hours worked may be spent with a charitable organization. Hours can be broken down to: 1 hour every week, 2 hours every other week, or 1 half-day every month. Hours will not carry over from month to month. Employees who enroll are not required to use all or any of their charity hours in a given month, and may continue with the program no matter how often they are able to use hours.

Pay for Charity Hours Applicable Charities

Employees will be paid their regular hourly salary during this time.

We are currently developing a list of applicable organizations. Employees may continue working with organizations they are already be involved in. Each organization, event, or volunteer action must be approved through HR before it can be applied to Time for Charity.

To, From, Date, Subject Format correctly.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Program Enrollment

Applications for Time for Charity will be available on the employee website beginning October 15. To enroll, you must be a full-time employee. The application primarily consists of contact information and questions about the charity or charities that you would like to work with. If you have any questions about Time for Charity or if you are curious about whether an organization you are involved with is applicable to this program, e-mail your HR Department at TobyF@wolfpackindustries.com

Opening Statement
Include: (1) purpose, (2) context or problem, and (3) specic task. Gives the reader a brief overview. Important: Goodwill statement.
! Wolfpack Industrial
Memorandum Date: To: From: RE: Sept. 12, 2010 Employees of Wolfpack Industrial Toby Flenderson, Vice President of Human Resources New Employee Benefit, Time for Charity
To Wolfpack Industrial, community is an integral part of business. We appreciate our employees who donate their time and energy to local charities, and hope to make that opportunity available to more of our dedicated staff. With our new program, Time for Charity, we hope to make volunteerism easier for WI employees. This information outlines the actions employees can take to register for Time for Charity benefits.

Program Overview
Beginning December 1, employees can take advantage of Time for Charity, a new program developed by the Human Resources Department. Through this program, staff members can continue earning their hourly wage while volunteering with one of our communitys many nonprofit organizations. Employee volunteer work will be featured in future company publications.

Use of Charity Hours

One hour for every 40 hours worked may be spent with a charitable organization. Hours can be broken down to: 1 hour every week, 2 hours every other week, or 1 half-day every month. Hours will not carry over from month to month. Employees who enroll are not required to use all or any of their charity hours in a given month, and may continue with the program no matter how often they are able to use hours.

Pay for Charity Hours Applicable Charities

Employees will be paid their regular hourly salary during this time.

We are currently developing a list of applicable organizations. Employees may continue working with organizations they are already be involved in. Each organization, event, or volunteer action must be approved through HR before it can be applied to Time for Charity.

Program Enrollment

Applications for Time for Charity will be available on the employee website beginning October 15. To enroll, you must be a full-time employee. The application primarily consists of contact information and questions about the charity or charities that you would like to work with. If you have any questions about Time for Charity or if you are curious about whether an organization you are involved with is applicable to this program, e-mail your HR Department at TobyF@wolfpackindustries.com

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Content
Content: Well organized Follow with task, summary, or discussion
Wednesday, January 19, 2011

! Wolfpack Industrial
Memorandum Date: To: From: RE: Sept. 12, 2010 Employees of Wolfpack Industrial Toby Flenderson, Vice President of Human Resources New Employee Benefit, Time for Charity

To Wolfpack Industrial, community is an integral part of business. We appreciate our employees who donate their time and energy to local charities, and hope to make that opportunity available to more of our dedicated staff. With our new program, Time for Charity, we hope to make volunteerism easier for WI employees. This information outlines the actions employees can take to register for Time for Charity benefits.

Program Overview
Beginning December 1, employees can take advantage of Time for Charity, a new program developed by the Human Resources Department. Through this program, staff members can continue earning their hourly wage while volunteering with one of our communitys many nonprofit organizations. Employee volunteer work will be featured in future company publications.

Use of Charity Hours

One hour for every 40 hours worked may be spent with a charitable organization. Hours can be broken down to: 1 hour every week, 2 hours every other week, or 1 half-day every month. Hours will not carry over from month to month. Employees who enroll are not required to use all or any of their charity hours in a given month, and may continue with the program no matter how often they are able to use hours.

Pay for Charity Hours Applicable Charities

Employees will be paid their regular hourly salary during this time.

We are currently developing a list of applicable organizations. Employees may continue working with organizations they are already be involved in. Each organization, event, or volunteer action must be approved through HR before it can be applied to Time for Charity.

Program Enrollment

Applications for Time for Charity will be available on the employee website beginning October 15. To enroll, you must be a full-time employee. The application primarily consists of contact information and questions about the charity or charities that you would like to work with. If you have any questions about Time for Charity or if you are curious about whether an organization you are involved with is applicable to this program, e-mail your HR Department at TobyF@wolfpackindustries.com

Closing
! Wolfpack Industrial
Memorandum Date: To: From: RE: Sept. 12, 2010 Employees of Wolfpack Industrial Toby Flenderson, Vice President of Human Resources New Employee Benefit, Time for Charity
To Wolfpack Industrial, community is an integral part of business. We appreciate our employees who donate their time and energy to local charities, and hope to make that opportunity available to more of our dedicated staff. With our new program, Time for Charity, we hope to make volunteerism easier for WI employees. This information outlines the actions employees can take to register for Time for Charity benefits.

Program Overview
Beginning December 1, employees can take advantage of Time for Charity, a new program developed by the Human Resources Department. Through this program, staff members can continue earning their hourly wage while volunteering with one of our communitys many nonprofit organizations. Employee volunteer work will be featured in future company publications.

Include summary statement. Encourage action. Provide contact information.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Use of Charity Hours

One hour for every 40 hours worked may be spent with a charitable organization. Hours can be broken down to: 1 hour every week, 2 hours every other week, or 1 half-day every month. Hours will not carry over from month to month. Employees who enroll are not required to use all or any of their charity hours in a given month, and may continue with the program no matter how often they are able to use hours.

Pay for Charity Hours Applicable Charities

Employees will be paid their regular hourly salary during this time.

We are currently developing a list of applicable organizations. Employees may continue working with organizations they are already be involved in. Each organization, event, or volunteer action must be approved through HR before it can be applied to Time for Charity.

Program Enrollment

Applications for Time for Charity will be available on the employee website beginning October 15. To enroll, you must be a full-time employee. The application primarily consists of contact information and questions about the charity or charities that you would like to work with. If you have any questions about Time for Charity or if you are curious about whether an organization you are involved with is applicable to this program, e-mail your HR Department at TobyF@wolfpackindustries.com

Today, we learned...
A memo is a document with a purpose, a form of internal communication, and informative, organized, and well designed. A memo should look organized so that it is easy to scan. Information should be organized into appropriate sections, including: Header, Opening Statement, Content (Task, Summary, Discussion), Closing, Necessary Attachments.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011