Consider the request below:

Our department is short-staffed right now, as a number of employees were selected to participate in the current training program. This has coincided with a flood of paperwork that we must complete by the end of the week to fulfill the new compliance requirements. Without some divine intervention, our team won't be able to make this month's regularly scheduled meeting.

-What is the biggest problem with this message?
A)It leads with details instead of the request.
B)It inappropriately uses indirect organization.
C)It fails to include its main idea at the beginning of the message.
D)It implies its request, leaving its message too ambiguous.
E)It is delivering bad news without the proper build-up.

Question

Consider the request below:

Our department is short-staffed right now, as a number of employees were selected to participate in the current training program. This has coincided with a flood of paperwork that we must complete by the end of the week to fulfill the new compliance requirements. Without some divine intervention, our team won't be able to make this month's regularly scheduled meeting.

-What is the biggest problem with this message?
A)It leads with details instead of the request.
B)It inappropriately uses indirect organization.
C)It fails to include its main idea at the beginning of the message.
D)It implies its request, leaving its message too ambiguous.
E)It is delivering bad news without the proper build-up.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

D) Wherever your request is placed, it must be phrased so that your audience knows exactly what you are asking and will be able to answer easily. In this case, the request is unclear. Is the writer asking to be excused from the meeting? To have the meeting rescheduled? To get some additional help in the department to ease the workload? If the audience doesn't know what you want, you are unlikely to get it.

Consider the Request Below