English 420Y - Business Writing Online

I wanted to discuss the articles about Mr. Patterson’s email that was sent to the employees of Cerner Corporation. I think that many people would look at an event like this in a negative way, but some of the aspects of it are actually positive. However, I think that we would all agree that his methods were unconventional in this email. I think that he should not have addressed a situation like this via email but should have called a meeting instead. Nevertheless, this is not what Mr. Patterson did.

After reading the 2 articles about Cerner, I think it is funny that a message like that can cause such an uproar with the employees and the stockholders of that company. It seems as though Mr. Patterson was displeased with his employee's work habits but to send an angry email was not the right approach to the situation. I think to better resolve the situation, calling a meeting with the managers and telling them that things needed to change would be safer than writing something that could come back to biting you in the butt later on.

Open to advice, opinions, criticism etc. . .

The signature information on page 616 was very helpful for me. Being as a lab intern, I have recently received and sent out numerous emails to co-workers. I never noticed the signature from the person writing the e-mail, but after reading this section I realized I did not have one and soon created one. I have also used some of the steps from the Ten Habits of Successful E-mailers on page 606. I already knew about half of the steps, the other half being very insightful information. Regardless of who it is one always has to reply rather promptly because in my eyes it shows responsibility.

A few weeks back at work there was an email out to the entire company about a guest speaker that was being hosted later in the week. This speaker was for Gay Pride week. One person found this email very offensive and responded to all people in the company expressing his anger in the fact that there was Gay Pride week and not a heterosexual week, soon after this person was fired. I think this person broke a lot of the ten habits of successful emails, and caused him his career.

First, I would like to comment on the Boss' Angry E-mail (Cerner Company). I didn't understand what growing up on a farm had to do with what he wrote. "You can take the boy off the farm," he said, "but you can't take the farm out of the boy."That puzzled me. I work on a farm and I work for someone who grew up on a farm in Oklahoma, and I just don't get the connection. Also, nothing about that whole situation surprised me. If that teaches anyone anything is becareful what you write because it's not like talking, all they have to do is print it out and show someone.

12-1 1. Research/Lab Assistant; General Farm/Green House Laborer March 2005 to Present Small Grains Plant Breeding and Genetics Dr. Ohm Laboratory (AgronomyDept.) Purdue University Crew Leader/Manager/Sales Representative/Customer Service June 1999 to May 2000 R and E Industry (Fortune 500) 2. no 3. FFR was an pasture breeding and seed sales operation. I helped plant the sprouts of alfalfa into the ground. I also hand cross pollinated alfalfa and soybeans. I analysised ground alfalfa plants for protein content.

The “Ten Habits of Successful Emailers” on page 606 of The Thomson Handbook were great tips to follow. I definitely agree with the first one, reply promptly to email that requires a response, ideally within 24 hours. I always try to respond to emails as quickly as possible and one of my pet peeves is when people ignore my emails or choose not to respond. However, I felt that the list was missing one of the main criteria when communicating with anyone. You must know your audience in order to respond properly.

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Feedback is always welcome!