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Fundamentals of Business Writing

  • Course Code A-FBW
  • Duration 2 days

Course Delivery

Additional Payment Options

  • GTC 2

    GTC, Global Knowledge Training Credit, please contact Global Knowledge for more details

Public Classroom Price

$58.00

Request Group Training Add to Cart

Course Delivery

This course is available in the following formats:

  • Company Event

    Event at company

  • Public Classroom

    Traditional Classroom Learning

Request this course in a different delivery format.

Course Overview

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Recognize “good” writing and how it differs from writing that is difficult to understand. Produce reports, letters, memos, e-mail, faxes and short articles that are effective and clearly organized.

Course Schedule

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Target Audience

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  • Managers, supervisors, and administrative officers
  • Technical personnel, program officers, and information officers
  • Professionals who are expected to produce clearly written text—including e-mails
  • Anyone wanting to learn how professional writers approach business writing, or seeking to refresh their writing skills

Course Objectives

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  • Increase your productivity by eliminating “writer's block” and other time-wasting barriers.
  • Improve readability: in your own writing and other people’s, through editing techniques that most professional writers use
  • Update your grammar, punctuation and usage: many rules have changed, but this workshop will show you what's acceptable now—and why

Course Content

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The Elements of “good writing”

  • Four characteristics of “good” business writing
  • How to analyze your writing samples to see if they meet these characteristics

Getting Started

  • “Quick-fix” techniques to use every day on all your writing
  • How to break out of writer’s block
  • Four editing techniques that are easy to learn and will improve anybody’s writing

Now the Basics

  • Two questions that every writer must answer before beginning to write:
  • What’s my purpose?
  • Who is the target audience?

Mastering the greatest enemy of clear writing: inappropriate use of the passive voice

  • What is the passive voice and what’s wrong with it?
  • Why do writers use it so frequently?
  • Learn to use it appropriately

Keeping to the point: harder than you think

  • Eliminate unnecessary words and phrases
  • “Gobbledygook and jargon”
  • Artful punctuation techniques

The Final Touches

  • Learn to use formatting to catch reader interest:
  • How to use subheads to guide your reader
  • Using “pull-quotes” to emphasize points
  • Dealing with background
  • Developing templates

Develop and Apply Checklists

  • Eliminate embarrassing errors by developing editing checklists that you automatically apply to each piece you send out

Further Information

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  • You'll eliminate embarrassing errors by developing editing checklists that you automatically apply to each piece you send out.
  • You will be exposed to writing examples that demonstrate the points under discussion
  • Group size is limited to 18
  • Participants will receive a Global Knowledge Certificate of Completion