Writing Memos

Adapted from Cain, The Basics of Technical Communicating,American Chemical Society:Washington, 1988

Introduction

Memoranda (singular memorandum) are used commonly in industrial, research and academic settings to communicate information. In your professional life, you probably will receive them and need to write them. Memos are used for many purposes such as

• to request information or services from another person or group within your organization
• to share or provide information such as policy announcements or when and where a meeting will occur
• to document or record an activity such as the details of a phone call or meeting
• to serve as a reporting tool for a site inspection, business trip or research/test results

Memo Format

Organizations often have a standard, pre-printed form for memos in which the organization's name and logo are present at the top with spaces provided for filling in the name(s) of the memo recipient(s), the name of the memo's author, the date, and the subject of the memo. When formality is needed, the titles of the recipient and sender should be included in the header. Except for very informal situations, memos should be typed. If you do not have a pre-printed memo form, you can create your own. Word processing programs such as MS Word and Wordperfect have stock templates for generating memos.

Writing Style

The title (subject line) and first sentence of a memo are very important if you don't want your memo to be filed in the circular file without being read. This is what often happens if the preliminary information does not convey the importance of the memo.

The body of the memo follows the header information. The body is where you convey your message. The rule of thumb in memo writing is the shorter the memo the better. However, the memo should be of an appropriate length to convey all of the important information. Your message should be clear and to the point. Although memos are by nature a somewhat informal writing product, they should be free of grammar and typographical errors. If done on a word processor, use the grammar and spell check features on your completed memo. If your memo has more than one page, each succeeding page should have a header which includes the recipient's name, the date and the page number. Memos are different than letters and do not have a closing other than a summary sentence. A signature is not put at the bottom. If necessary, the memo author initials or provides a signature along side his/her name in the header. If someone other than the author typed the memo, his/her initials are placed at the end of the memo along with a notation of added attachments and a distribution list (alternately, individuals to whom the memo is also being distributed may be listed in the header.)

Get the Microsoft Word memo template for this assignment. All you have to do is download the template, type your information where the instructions in brackets are located, and add your narrative.