Written Communication

Dr. Jeff Butterfield holds a PhD from the University of Texas-Austin and an MBA from Indiana University, and currently is a faculty member in the Information Systems department at Western Kentucky University. Previously, Dr. Butterfield worked as an electronics engineer with several Fortune 500 companies. He quickly discovered that his writing and public-speaking abilities contributed much more to his professional success than his technical skills. This important discovery has significantly influenced his teaching and Dr. Butterfield has spent more than 15 years in higher education helping technical students develop professional skills. As technology becomes more tightly integrated with business functions, students with well-developed soft skills will enjoy a strong competitive advantage. Dr. Butterfield has worked with Cengage to develop the SOFT SKILLS FOR A DIGITAL WORKPLACE series. These titles are designed to complement any course you teach, regardless of the subject.

Part 1: Communicating with E-Mail and Memos
1: Understanding E-Mail Messages and Memos
2: Composing the Main Elements of Messages
3: Creating Professional E-Mail Messages
4: Constructing Professional Memos
5: Writing Request Messages
6: Writing Response Messages
7: Writing Bad-News Messages
8: Writing Documentation Messages
Part 2: Uncovering the Secrets of Clear Writing
9: Clarifying Written Communication
10: Writing Solid Sentences
11: Developing Effective Paragraphs
12: Mastering Punctuation
13: Laying Out Your Documents
14: Illustrating Data
15: Adding Tables and Figures to Documents
16: Proofreading and Revising
Part 3: Developing Reports and Proposals
17: Understanding Reports and Proposals
18: Planning a Report or Proposal
19: Writing the Beginning
20: Writing the Body
21: Creating the End Matter
22: Writing Short Reports
23: Writing Proposals
24: Citing Sources
Part 4: Writing for Employment
25: Understanding Job Searches
26: Writing Effective Cover Letters
27: Planning Resumes
28: Writing Chronological Resumes
29: Writing Functional Resumes
30: Requesting Letters of Reference
31: Sending Follow-Up Messages
32: Accepting or Rejecting Job Offers
Part 5: Writing Professional Letters
33: Understanding Professional Letter Writing
34: Writing Business Letters
35: Using Salutations
36: Closing Business Letters
37: Writing Routine Letters
38: Answering Request Letters
39: Writing Persuasive Letters
40: Writing for Goodwill