Business Writing I

Agenda, Schedule, Inventory

Agenda

Agenda – a list, plan, outline, or the like of things to be done, matters to be

acted or voted upon, etc.

Agendas are used to organize meetings, schedule events, and so on.

They are used in the business world to keep meetings orderly and effective.

How to Write a Meeting Agenda

Your agenda will include a list of items to be dealt with. Follow the guidelines on the next slides to prepare an effective agenda.

1) Phrase each agenda item as an imperative – For instance, not "Marigold" but "Resolve issues in

Marigold." This sets a mental framework for attendees to actually do something.

2) Allocate time to each agenda item.– This ensures that the meeting does not go too long.

3) Exploit order – If one item is likely to smoke out information that will

help other items or make them pointless to address, do it first.

4) Address emotionally charged items early – Charged items require energy, and they're also

dangerous. Address them while everyone is fresh. Leaving them for the end as a way of managing time doesn't actually work. The tension will only build if you leave them for the end.

Personal Agenda (sample)

Meeting Agenda (sample)• Sometimes

the meeting is for a set time (e.g. 7-9 PM) and the items are listed in order by priority.

Weekend Conference

Agenda (sample)

Schedules

Schedule – a plan of procedure, usually written,

for a proposed objective, esp. with reference to the sequence of and time allotted for each item or operation necessary to its completion.

A schedule is like an agenda, except that it involves all stages of a project – beginning, middle, and end. It is an outline for what will happen, and lets you see all the stages.

Sample Schedules

There are many different kinds of schedules, and they can be arranged any number of ways. Some samples include:

A project schedule. (e.g. your portfolio!)A sports playoff schedule.A student’s course schedule.A personal schedule (daily/weekly/monthly)A concert schedule for a particular venue.

Inventory – a complete listing of merchandise or stock on hand, work in

progress, raw materials, finished goods on hand, etc., made each year by a business concern.

Businesses keep inventories in order to track what they buy and sell, so they can always provide what a consumer needs.

Inventories are not limited to businesses; people make inventories of all sorts of things.

Inventory

Sample Inventory

Assignment

Choose one of the types of writing looked at today: agenda, schedule, or inventory.

Draft your choice. Make the information on it as complete as possible. Use your imagination!

At the bottom, write a couple of sentences about how you could make the piece look interesting (i.e. if it were part of your portfolio).

If you are finished, work on genre pieces or your short story.