Week 5
• Writing Employee Relations Letters
• One common type of business letter is an employee relations
letter. There are three main types of employee relations letters:
– Letters of reference / recommendation
– Employee announcements
– Letters of introduction
• These letters describe an employee in an honest, sincere,
truthful, and positive way.
• Before you write the letter, make sure you have all the facts.
These letters are an important source of information about a
person, and the must be accurate.
Week 5
– A. Getting Started
• 1. Read the e-mails between an executive and his assistant.
They discuss several employee relations letters.
• 2. Complete the Employee Correspondence Checklist. Write a
check ( √ ) if the assistant wrote the letter. Write To do if the
assistant has not written the letter yet.
Week 5
– B. Model Letter of Reference
• Look at the different elements of a letter of reference.
– Useful language
• It is my pleasure to write this letter of reference for ______ .
• ______ was a ______ at [company name] from ______ to
______ .
• ______ was responsible for ______ .
• I recommend ______ for ______ .
Week 5
– C. Composing Your Message
– The body of a letter of reference generally has four parts
• Part 1, Opening
– Content: Introduce the person you are writing about.
» Ex: It is my pleasure to write this letter of reference for
Matsuo Yukiko.
• Part 2, Focus
– Content: Give relevant details about the person.
» Ex: Ms. Matsuo was a summer intern at Bozeman
International from May to August this year.
………………………..
Week 5
– C. Composing Your Message
• Part 3, Action
– Content: Discuss the future.
» Ex: I recommend Ms. Matsuo for any position that
requires a self-starter who is able to follow through on
a task.
• Part 4, Closing
– Content: Restate the main idea. Ask the person to contact
you if necessary.
» Ex: Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have
any questions.
Week 5
» Practice 2
» Write O if the sentence is for the Opening, F for Focus, or A
for Action.
– Well Said
• In China, Japan, and Korea, the family name comes first, so
Matsuo Yukiko is Ms. Matsuo.
• However, when a person uses an English first names, Western
order is used, as in Raymond Hu.
Week 5
– Writing Your Message
• Adjectives and Adverbs
– Letters of reference describe employees and how they
work. These letters often contain many adjectives and
adverbs. Remember that adjectives describe nouns, and
adverbs describe verbs.
» Practice 3
» Choose the correct adjectives or adverbs to complete
the sentences.
Week 5
– That’s Good Business
• There are two types of reference / recommendation
letters.
– To whom it may concern
» You write a general recommendation that can be used
in more than one situation.
– Direct / Specific names
» You reply to a specific request to recommend
someone for a job.
Week 5
– D. Model E-Mail: Employee Announcement (New
Employee)
• Look at the different elements of an employee announcement.
– Useful language
•
•
•
•
We are pleased to announce ______ .
______ comes to our company with ______ .
She has worked at ______ .
Let’s all welcome ______ .
Week 5
– E. Composing Your Message
– The body of an employee announcement generally has
four parts
• Part 1, Opening
– Content: Introduce the person you are writing about.
» Ex: We are pleased to announce that Michelle Fung
has joined our firm as senior account specialist.
• Part 2, Focus
– Content: Give relevant details about the person.
» Ex: Ms. Fung comes to our company with 22 years of
accounting experience. ………………………..
Week 5
– E. Composing Your Message
• Part 3, Action
– Content: Discuss the future.
» Ex: She will be calling on you in the next few weeks
to introduce herself and to discuss any questions you
have about your orders.
…………………………………………….
• Part 4, Closing
– Content: Restate the main idea.
» Ex: Let’s all extend a friendly welcome to Michelle
Fung.
Week 5
» Practice 5
» Read these opening sentences for letters announcing a new
employee. Then circle the letter of the sentence that gives a
relevant detail about the employee.
– That’s Good Business
• A letter announcing a new employee or an employee’s
promotion should clearly outline the person’s qualifications. It
is appropriate to include information from employee’s résumé.
– Well Said
• The expression call on means to visit someone for a short time.
Week 5
• The Simple Past and the Present Perfect
– When you refer to a specific past time, use the simple past
verb form.
– When you refer to an unspecified past time, use the
present perfect verb form.
– The exact time is not important.
» Practice 6
» Choose the correct verb form to complete the
sentences.
Week 5
– F. Model Letter of Introduction
• Look at the different elements of a letter of introduction.
– Useful language
• This letter will introduce ______ .
• I hope you will able to meet with ______ .
• ______ has been with our company for ______ years has
______ .
• Thank you in advance for meeting with ______ .
Week 5
– G. Composing Your Message
– The body of a letter of introduction generally has four parts.
• Part 1, Opening
– Content: Introduce the person you are writing about.
» Ex: This letter will introduce Lee Ming-Tang, our sales
manager, who will …………………………………..
• Part 2, Focus
– Content: Give relevant details about the person.
» Ex: Ming-Tang has been with our company for ten years
and has rapidly moved up …………………………….
Week 5
– G. Composing Your Message
• Part 3, Action
– Content: Discuss the future.
» Ex: If you have any leads he might pursue or
suggestions about contacts in your are, I’m sure he
would be glad to hear them.
• Part 4, Closing
– Content: Restate the main idea.
» Ex: Thank you in advance for meeting with MingTang. ………………………………………………
Week 5
– That’s Good Business
• A letter of introduction explains why you are introducing the
person. Readers need to know how the new person may help
them or their business.
» Practice 8
» Read these opening sentences for letters of introduction.
Then circle the letter of the closing sentence that best
restates the main idea.
– That’s Good Business
• In a letter of introduction, it may be appropriate to give
personal information about the person if it is directly relevant
to the reader.
Week 5
– Not only …… but also
• The expression not only ….. but also emphasizes that more
than one item is related to a topic. Not only …… and ……..
but also are placed directly before the parallel elements they
join in the sentence.
» Practice 9
» Combine the sentences using the expressions not only …..
but also.
– That’s Good Business
• In the model letter on page 105, the writer (Ray) uses the first
name of the person he is introducing (Ming-Tang). When he
signs the letter, he uses only his first name. Ray known MingTang and the reader of the letter for a long time and has
worked closely with them.
Week 5
– Homework Assignment
» On a separate piece of paper, write an employee relations
letters for one of the following situations.
» 1. Write a letter reference for one of your co-workers or
classmates. Use real descriptions and specific examples of
this or her work and work habits. (You don’t have to use his
or her real name.)
» 2. Write an e-mail announcing a new employee. The new
employee is you. Use information about yourself in the email.
» 3. Please look definitions of these words in the glossary at
the end of the book: a). branch, b). contact, c). employee
announcement, d). employee relations, e). extend, f). follow
through, g). letter of introduction, h). letter of reference, i).
reliable, j). under pressure, k). unspecified.