Assignment #3: Effective Document Design for an Executive

The purpose of this memo is to explain your next assignment, a memo designed for an executive reader who has no immediate interest in your subject. This assignment requires you to view a YouTube video and take notes on the speaker's ideas.

You may have to view the video a few times to fully understand the speaker's purpose and main topics. Please read the following information carefully.

This assignment will be due in class on Monday, February 19. This needs to be handed in at start of class.

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Some Helpful Context on this Assignment

Steven Price is the President and CEO of FINCorp, an upstart financial services firm in Richmond, Virginia, that offers online personal finance products, tax consulting and retirement and investment recommendations to its clients. Since its incorporation in 2009, FINCorp has been very successful, growing from a workforce of 15 accountants and financial analysts to over 150 staff members, including economic forecasters, six marketing teams, 35 accountants and tax specialists and investment banking professionals. The average age of Price's employees is 30.

As the director of FINCorp's human resources department, you oversee the company's hiring and staffing processes. In the last six months, you have realized several problems that you fear will eventually hurt the company's bottom line: newly hired staff members in all sectors of the company are staying in their positions an average of only a year and a half. Also, a recent company engagement survey, sent to all employees online to gauge morale, personal work interests and fulfillment as well as work habits, revealed that over 60% of all employees are not satisfied with their work and their impact. The conclusion of the survey reveals that millennials in your company are not happy, engaged and, therefore, not productive.

You share this news with your boss, Mr. Price. Naturally, he is concerned. He has heard of a popular series of talks given by Simon Sinek, an expert on business leadership. Mr. Sinek speaks all over the world about the millennial generation and their work/life habits. Your boss believes Mr. Sinek may have some answers for FINCorp, so he asks you to view one of these videos and report back to him.

Specifically, he wants to know the following:

1. What does Mr. Sinek believe is the main problem inherent in managing a millennial workforce?
2. What are specific reasons this generation struggles in the workplace? Summarize these.
3. What does Mr. Sinek recommend that leaders in business should do to engage this millennial generation more effectively to motivate and encourage their productivity?

How Can You Get Started?

View the video in which Mr. Sinek speaks on the topic of millennials and corporate work. You can paste the following YouTube link into your browser:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hER0Qp6QJNU (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

I would recommend that you watch the video once without taking any notes, just to get a feel for the subject and the overall opinions of the speaker. Then, take careful notes as you watch it a second and, possibly, a third time.

You need to make sure you understand what this speaker says about the three points requested by your hypothetical boss (described on page

1).

The video lasts approximately 15 minutes. Once you feel you have a handle on the content of Mr. Sinek's talk, begin planning your memo to Mr. Price. In your planning, please consider the following:

Your purpose is to explain how the 15-minute talk can help your company solve its

problem.

Your audience is your boss, Mr. Steven Price, President and CEO of FINCorp. He is an executive reader, so your decisions about how to craft, and design, your message should include your understanding of executive audiences and their

needs/interests/motivations.

Answer the questions your boss has asked.

Design your memo with a busy decision-maker in mind. Make sure your ideas are

clear, accurate and accessible.

Limit your memo to one page. Remember to single space paragraphs and double

space in between!

Use your notes, slides, the textbook material and examples to help you plan and design your memorandum for this interested but busy reader.

Good luck, and enjoy the video!