http://www.rpi.edu/web/writingcenter/memos.html
The Writing Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Internal Memo
TO: Employees of the Endoscopic Center of Southern Nevada
FROM: Dipak Desai, chief administrator
DATE: February 6, 2008
SUBJECT: Actions being implemented after discovery of reused vials of medicine.
Throughout investigations done by the Southern Nevada Health District, our company has been found to have been practicing illegal endoscopic procedures. Employees were found to have been reusing vials of anesthesia on patients, allowing patients to become exposed to HIV, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C. Due to these horrific findings our company is now researching and implementing corrective practices so that this will never happen again. These corrective strategies involve informing the patients, but also changing and redirecting employee training.
Informing Patients
I would like to make it clear that as employees, it is not your job to fix the problems at hand. We are taking the necessary actions to ensure that all of our patients are informed of their rights as well as risks. As an employee of the Endoscopic Center of Southern Nevada, you are to avoid the press and remain silent when questions are asked of you. We will be contacting the patients through our website, the media, and widely viewed press releases. Our public relations staff is working diligently and our company is doing everything we can to regain the trust of our patients. We are offering patients that were potentially infected testing at the expense of our company.
Improved Employee Training
It is unbelievable that our company has become subject to bankruptcy because of the lack of diligence of our employees. The future is not definite in regards to your employment, but for the time being we are going to continue as if we are still in business. While we still have the ability to train and employ personnel we are going to take the precautionary measures to ensure that procedures will always be followed correctly and to the fullest extent. Within the next few weeks there will be a brand new and health certified employee training session. All employees are to complete and pass the training session. It is mandatory to be able to continue working for this company. We are doing all that we can in regards to our existing employees to create a safe environment for all future patients.
Our hope is that our company is able to stay in business and that we can ultimately regain the trust of all patients. It is not something that will happen overnight, but we are continuously doing all the things that have been advised of us. Our goal is to maintain all of you as future employees, but unfortunately we are unable to make that promise to you as of now. By implementing the new employee training regiment, following future rules, and regulations hopefully there will be no need to close down our business for good.
Team SSS Response
Your memo looks good, and conforms to our examples standards as well as including some other useful information. For one, you added the "From" line. While our example did not deem it necessary to provide that, it does seem very logical that one would do so. The only criticisms I could offer would be that there is no instructions for distribution at the bottom of the memo. Our example closes with such directions, for example, "please distribute this amongst your employees," or something like that. The paragraphs might be a little long too, but thats a matter of personal preference. Other than that, good job.
Firestone Response
Following the OWL at Purdue memo sample, your memo was really well organized. I liked how you divided it up. The intro provides a good background on the situation and the two paragraphs do a good job explaining what actions the company plans to take. The only thing I would say to change is to capatalize Chief Administrator since it's Dipak Desai's title and to capatalize key words in your subject line.
Our source commends you for
Our source commends you for staying away from the tone of a formal letter and sticking only with a business related tone.
Our source recommends using a short thank you at the end of the memo, for consuming your readers time and energy.
ACORN Respone
Your memo was organized very well. The headings above the body paragraphs make it easy for the reader to skim for those sections of the document. You might consider breaking up those long paragraphs into numbered or bulleted lists. Lists make it easier for the reader to skim for what they're looking for.