3-1. Writing a Memorandum

3-1. Writing a Memorandum

(/ˌmɛmə'rændəm/, 备忘录)

 

Fred: Morning, Linda. Whatare you busy with?

 

Linda: Moring Fred, I’mwriting a memo.

 

F: What is a memo?

 

L: A memo is an officialdocument, which is written to convey a brief message on a given subject. It’susually short, not more than one page.

 

F: What sections does amemo contain?

 

L: It usually contains: To,From, Date, Subject and Message sections.

 

F: Could you be morespecific?

 

L: Sure. The “To” sectioncontains the name of the receiver. For informal memos, we can just put thereceiver’s first name. But for more formal memos, we’d better use thereceiver’s full name. If the receiver is in another department, it’s better touse the full name and the department name.

 

F: I see. And the “From”section contains the name of the sender, and it is similar to the “To” section,is that right?

 

L: Right. The “Date”section is, of course, for the date. And as for the “Subject”, try to make itupfront (/ˈʌpˈfrʌnt/, 在前面的，重点的)and non-generic.

 

F: I guess the mostimportant part is the message.

 

L: Exactly. A well-organizedmemo message should contain an introduction or the purpose of the memo, theproblem, and the solution. The most important thing to remember is that thememo needs to be brief, to the point and clear.

 

F: Got it. Thanks Linda,I’ve learned a lot from you.

 

L: You’re welcome.