Textbook(s) Cardon, P. (2013). Business communication: Developing leaders for a networked world. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

There are two important rules to remember in order to avoid plagiarism: 1. Only “common knowledge” statements need not be cited in your work [e.g., Washington was the first president, the Civil War ended in 1865, the FBI is in the Justice Department, etc.], 2. If in doubt as to whether to cite a source, cite it—better safe than sorry!

APA format Complete assignment = minimum 1000 words (total) and at least 3 scholarly sources.

1. Communicating Across Cultures

Choose a country of interest to you. Conduct research on that country using the Bethel library and credible web sources. Analyze the country in terms of the following 8 cultural dimensions:

● Individualism and collectivism
● Egalitarianism and hierarchy
● Assertiveness
● Performance orientation
● Future orientation
● Humane orientation
● Uncertainty avoidance

● Gender egalitarianism

2. Developing Effective Business Messages

Describe each of the three components in the AIM planning process for business messages: audience analysis, idea development, and message structuring

3. Choose a business message to evaluate. You could find a recent letter you have received from a business, go to a website or choose a message for customers or a message specified by your instructor. Select a message that contains at least three or four paragraphs.

Evaluate the message in the following ways:
A. How effectively are facts and conclusions written?
B. How effectively is the message targeted to its audience? Do you have any suggestions for how it could have been better adapted for the audience?
C. Does the message portray a tone of positivity? Other-orientation? Describe your viewpoint with examples.
D. Assume that you are a consultant to the company that produced this message (the one you just examined). What advice would you give to create a more effective message in terms of content and tone?

4. Writing Style and Design

Identify three writing principles from this chapter that you most need to work on. For each principle, write a paragraph about why you want to improve in this area and how you will go about doing it. Choose from the following writing principles: be specific; be accurate; control paragraph length; use short sentences in most cases; avoid redundancy; avoid empty phrases; use action verbs when possible; use active voice; use short and familiar words and phrases; avoid buzzwords and figures of speech.