Examining Bad-News Strategies

Unfavorable news in business doesn't always fall into neat categories. To successfully convey bad news, writers must carefully consider the audience, purpose, and context. Experienced business communicators understand that their approaches to negative news must be flexible.

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate answer.

Ethical communication lies in the  of the sender.

Read the following scenario, and answer the following question.

Printing and copying costs have skyrocketed at your company, and the company will begin charging employees for all hard copies of documents related to internal use. The message informing employees of this change uses an indirect approach and focuses on the environmental benefits of going paperless.

Is the sender using an indirect approach in an ethical or unethical manner?

• Unethical
• Ethical

At some point, everyone will have to deliver bad news. The bad feelings associated with this type of message can be alleviated if the receiver knows the reason for the bad news, feels the news is revealed sensitively, thinks the matter is treated seriously, and believes that the decision is fair. When applying these strategies, make sure to follow the writing process and determine whether to use a direct or an indirect pattern in your message.

Determine what strategy should be used in the following situation.

You are going to deliver your product 24 hours late this month.

• Direct
• Indirect

You are sending an email that announces company layoffs. If you put the announcement in the last paragraph of the email you  .