Simulation Overview
The purpose of this simulation is for you to apply writing principles from Management Communication while responding to business email. During the simulation, you will practice:
Reading and prioritizing email
Making decisions about whether and how to respond to email
Writing messages under pressure
Evaluating the effectiveness of email you receive.
When the simulation begins in class, you will receive several messages. You will have about 30 minutes to respond to your email and track your decisions. At the end of the simulation, we will discuss your feedback about email you received and how you made decisions about prioritizing and responding to messages.
To prepare for the simulation, please read the following information about the case.
Background Information
The emails you’ll receive simulate internal and external correspondence at Writeaway Hotels, an independent group of hotels that serves primarily business travelers and prides itself on fast service. The culture at Writeaway is also fast paced and fairly informal, so—as you might expect—employees rely heavily on email. While speed is important, high value is also placed on precision: All of your email responses should be grammatically correct and error-free.
In the simulation, most of you will play the role of Pat Gibson, the Catering Director, for Writeaway. You took this job a year ago and are busier than you ever imagined—running from meeting to meeting every day. You have a 30-minute break between customer meetings and decide to check your email. As usual, you have a flood of messages which all seem critical. Your challenge during the simulation is to:
Respond to all of your email within 30 minutes
Prioritize messages
Write clear responses
Respond to additional emails you receive during the simulation
Send emails to others in the organization, if you choose to
Determine when to use instant messaging.
Keep a log of your feedback about email you receive during the simulation and decisions as you make them.
How to Prepare: The Day Before the Simulation
Prepare for the simulation by familiarizing yourself with Writeaway’s organizational structure, described in Who’s Who.
If you’re playing a role other than Pat Gibson, please do the following the day before class:
Access your email for the simulation
Look at your sent email
Think ahead of time:
What do you think is an appropriate response to your message? For example:
Do you think people should respond? If so, within what time frame?
What information do you think should be included? What might be inappropriate for this type of message?
How long should an appropriate response be? What would you consider too long?
How, if at all, should you respond, in kind? Do you think that people would expect to receive another email from you? What are the consequences of not responding?
