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. 79 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
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.
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.