This guide outlines why business writing skills are increasingly important for managers in any industry. Effective communication is key to get things done and in the manner which is in-line with the organization goals and ethical standards.
Workplace communication has to involve both verbal and written form of communication. Be it recruitment and selection, or compensation and benefits, a HR manager is always expected to be sharp with both these formats of business communication. If you have to write job advertisements; you will need superior writing skills to attract quality candidates.
Whether it is offering feedbacks to employees on work done by them or handling discrimination issues at the workplace, managers need good communication skills to execute their plans. Even the key tasks of dealing with unreliable employees requires a manager to deal with them with precision. One needs to work on their business writing skills in order to be successful at their work.
As a manager, one is expected to oversee the performance of the employees of the organization. Based on these documents created, specific business decisions are taken to meet one or more of the goals of the company. Based on the requirement, these reports take multiple forms of documents be it compliance report, recommendation report or an inductive business report. This is why writing a formal business report is key to the roles and responsibilities of a manager or HR leader. One can benefit from many online tools that have been designed to make business writing skills simpler to imprpve.
Key reasons business writing skills are crucial
1. Growing importance of business writing skills
Writing was historically considered to be a rather formal form of communication. You would need business writing skills to create documents and reports, letters and appointments. This had changed drastically with the introduction of time-saving forms of communication in our modern day life like the email, SMS and instant messenger.
So, now much of the interactions between workers and employers and also among co-workers themselves take place through text messages, emails and instant messages. Verbal communications appear to have receded to the background.
In the new work environments, business writing skills are found to be indispensable, no matter which profession you belong to. So, it is probably a good idea for professionals to take time out to learn the art of writing crisp and effective business communications.
2. Prevent misunderstandings at your workplace
When you fail to write in clear language, you are often misunderstood. You may end up sending messages, which you do not wish to send. If you fail to convey your thoughts & opinions properly, the lack of communication accuracy can heavily influence the effectiveness of your negotiation strategies.
So, it is very important in today’s age to be able to use appropriate words and to structure your sentences correctly to be able to send across the right meaning. Unless you can explain your points clearly, you are likely to be misunderstood. This shows why you need to brush up on your writing skills to avoid workplace misunderstandings.
3. Writing prowess stands for professionalism
No one can overlook the intricate bond between professionalism and good business writing skills. This is because when you can write concise and lucid messages, you are able to convey your thoughts and views better. There is less chance of discrepancy and misinterpretations.
Managers who have superior business writing skills are considered far more professional than those struggling to express themselves properly. You will only be regarded as being competent and able, when your writings reflect quality content and form. This is why in the corporate space, good writing is invariably associated with professionalism and business acumen.
Based on importance of a human resource executive, all communication in written format is seriously considered as a commitment, once conveyed over a digital or a hard copy format. That is why an otherwise talented and competent employee may be construed as sloppy, if she cannot show business writing skills. Her real potential can only be uncapped if her colleagues get to see her business insights through her authored reports. Hence, one can only excel in her career if she is good at writing business reports.
4. Needed for promotions
As a professional moves steadily upwards in her career ladder, she will find that writing skills become all the more significant. She is expected to create so many formal documents or HR policies, as she gets promoted to higher roles. Whether it is writing employee appraisals or creating customer proposals, a manager needs to know business writing skills.
Employees lacking these business writing skills are usually not considered for promotions. Since you are responsible for creating documentation, which will represent your company, it is imperative that you write accurately. Documents filled with grammatical and spelling mistakes will show you in poor light.
5. Concise writing has become a necessity
Writing is not only limited to any one profession, as you will need good communication skills in almost every aspect of daily life. Since technology has dramatically changed the ways in which we communicate nowadays, the focus on concise writing skills has also increased. This is because, the recipients have lesser time today to understand the key objectives of an email. So, it may be a worthwhile investment on your part to improve your business writing skills to be able to quickly convey your message in a brief yet functional format.
You will find that there are many useful tools online, which can help you achieve better writing prowess. For instance, the Hemingway app helps to review the grammar in your writings. You can use this tool to create concise and lucid documents free from unnecessarily long sentences. Many professional writers help business writers locate mistakes and even suggests edits, irrespective of the type of content. Even a basic dictionary or stylebook can go a long way in improving one’s business writing skills.
Using many online tools, it is indeed possible to enhance your business writing skills. When you write better, you can convey your opinions and feedbacks better. This is critical when it comes to managing employees in the workplace and the tone of your written communication. Your feedbacks must be phrased in such a manner that they do not feel dejected; rather, they are motivated to do better.
Likewise, your business writing skills will make a huge difference when it comes to handling workplace disputes. As a capable HR manager, you need negotiation skills and multitasking abilities; so, being able to write better can only make this easier for you.
