UNIT 11: INTERNAL BUSINESS

CORRESPONDENCE-II
Structure

11.0 Objectives
11.1 Warm up
11.2 Reading
11.3 Vocabulary
11.4 Listening and Speaking
11.5 Writing
11.6 Grammar: the Simple Past Tense
11.7 Pronunciation: Word Stress
11.8 Let Us Sum Up
11.9 Answers

11.0 OBJECTIVES

In this unit you will learn about:

• More kinds of downward, non-interactive internal correspondence
• Types and functions of internal correspondence:
- Notice
- Agenda
- Minutes
• How to write them

11.1 WARM UP

Activity 1
i Does a notice put up in college perform the same function as a notice
in a business organization?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….…………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………….
ii The word ‘agenda’ is often used in more than one context. The
government may have ‘hidden agenda’ while a notice for a meeting in
a company also has an ‘agenda’ in it. What is the difference between
the two?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………. 41
 Business iii ‘Minutes’ is another word which has more than one meaning. Do you
Correspondence
know them?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….…………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………….

11.2 READING

Read the text given below and then answer the questions that follow:

11.2.1 Notice

A notice is like a circular but there is a slight difference between the two
forms. While the former is put up on the notice board or on the company’s
website for viewing by employees, the latter is usually distributed by hand or
mail.

A notice for a meeting, also called a notification, is sent well in advance so

that all members attending it can come well prepared and contribute their
utmost to the deliberations. It contains information about the following:

• Who is to meet whom

• Nature of the meeting (whether it is routine, emergency, special,
extraordinary etc.)
• Day, date and time of the meeting
• Venue of the meeting
• Purpose or agenda of the meeting
• Signature of the Secretary
• Date on which the notice was issued
• How long will the meeting take (optional)
• Whether tea/lunch will be served (optional)

If the secretary of the MD of India Garments has to write a notice for a

meeting of all managers with the MD, then s/he would probably write like
this:

India Garments
5, Okhla Industrial Estate
New Delhi 110023

NOTICE
The MD would like to meet managers of all departments on Tuesday, the 28th
of February, 2010 at 11.30 am in the Committee Room in order to discuss the
problems and possible solutions relating to the last batch of garments sent to
Serangoon Garments, Singapore.

42 24 February, 2010 Secretary

cc: Internal Business
i Mr. Raman Kumar, Manager (Production) Correspondence-II
ii Ms. Ratna Ahmad, Manager (Sales)
iii Ms……………………
iv Mr.…………………..
v etc.

Enclosure:
A copy of the letter from Serangoon Garments regarding the problems of the
last consignment

11.2.2 Agenda

An agenda is a list of items to be discussed or of official things to be done at a

formal meeting. This list is prepared in advance of the meeting, by the
secretary in consultation with the Chairperson. The agenda is the backbone of
any meeting and helps to focus the members’ attention on the matter at hand
and thereby channelizes the discussion to a fruitful outcome. Thus, there is an
optimum utilization of time and members’ energy. An agenda contains the
following items:

™ The letterhead of the organization

™ The date, time and place of the meeting (It is not necessary to include
this if the agenda is sent with the notice which has all these details)
™ Apologies for absence
™ Confirmation of minutes of previous meeting (if applicable)
™ Matters arising from the minutes
™ Items for discussion
™ Any other matter
™ Date, place and time of next meeting (if required)

11.2.3 Minutes of a Meeting

All formal meetings require a written record of the discussions held and
decisions reached. For this it is essential to record what happened in a meeting
so that members are reminded of the outcome of the discussions held
regarding different issues. Notes have to be taken during the meeting in order
to prepare the minutes. Minutes are prepared by the secretary of the
Chairperson. S/he requires certain skills like note-taking, use of reported
speech and the technique of summarizing in order to compile them. All
discussions during the meeting have to be converted into reported speech and
the sequence of ideas; proposals, suggestions etc. have to be noted in a logical
manner. The prepared minutes should follow a definite format and the
sequence of the agenda.

11.2.4 Format of Minutes

The following information is given in the minutes:

ƒ Name of the body; nature of the meeting; day; date; time and place of
the meeting e.g. Minutes of the first meeting of the MD and
43
 Business Managers of all Departments held on Tuesday 29th April, 2009 at
Correspondence 11.30 am in the Committee Room.
ƒ After the above information, the names of people (with their
designations) who attended the meeting are given, beginning with the
Chairperson.

Present:
Shiv Sareen (MD, Chairperson)
Raman Kumar (Manager, Production)
Ratna Ahmad (Manager, Sales)

Names without designations can be given when the meeting is

informal. But minutes of formal meetings should carry the
designations as well.

ƒ There should be a separate mention of the people who attended the

meeting in a special capacity like the secretary. Information about the
people who may have been invited specially to participate and assist in
the proceedings of the meeting by virtue of their special expertise. e.g.
an auditor, solicitor, designer etc.

In Attendance:
Raj Gopal (Secretary)
Reena Kirmani (Computer Consultant)
Om Gupta (Auditor)
Reba Choudhary (Designer)

ƒ After giving these details the minutes will follow the agenda closely.
Now the person making the minutes will report any apologies for
absence from those persons who were unable to attend the meeting.
Usually these names and their apologies are announced or read out
during the meeting. This will be recorded as follows:

Apologies for Absence: Apologies were received from the following

persons:
K. S. Subramanyam
A. Ahluwalia

ƒ Ratification of the Minutes of a previous meeting (if any) e.g. The

minutes of the last meeting held on ………… were confirmed and
signed. In case there are any accepted amendments to these minutes,
they should be recorded as follows: It was pointed out that item no.
..…. should read as “a tax rate of 50%” instead of “a tax rate of
35%”.

With the acceptance of this amendment, the minutes were

confirmed and signed.

ƒ If any discussion arises out of the minutes of the previous meeting, it is

recorded in the present minutes as:

Matters arising out of the minutes:

44
 1 Manager (Sales) reported that the figures of the last
quarter had been delayed due to unavailability of figures
from different departments.
2 Manager (Quality Control) informed members that a Internal Business
breakdown in one of the machines had created a problem Correspondence-II
with the quality of production but the matter was resolved
shortly.

ƒ After reporting the above information, the items for discussion in the
agenda are recorded. Each item is recorded separately, e.g. in the item
given above, the agenda consists of a discussion of the problem
consignment and possible damage control measures.

1 Manager (Sales) reported that the problem with the

consignment could have been due to a computer breakdown
and suggested having an annual maintenance contract with
a company with good credentials.

2 Manager (Production) informed members that a workers’

strike had created a problem with production and hence
the consignment contained a reduced quantity of dresses.

3 …………………………….. etc.

ƒ If any other matter requires discussion, it is taken up with the

permission of the Chair.
ƒ If another meeting is fixed, it is recorded in the minutes.

Language and Style of Minutes

Minutes of formal meetings should be recorded in a specific language

and in a particular format. They are supposed to represent a reliable
record of all important matters discussed, resolutions moved,
recommendations made, decisions taken, and action taken or to be
taken in the meeting. Therefore, the language used should be simple
and clear, free from ambiguity, and precise so that the contents are
easily understood.

Usually, the decisions taken in meetings are a result of collective

activity. Thus, the language used should also reflect this. While
important suggestions and proposals can be ascribed to individual
members, it should not assign decisions to individuals.

The language of minutes should be concise and precise. Only the

major points of discussion, resolutions reached, and decisions taken
are included. Names of proposer and seconder, and tasks assigned to
particular individuals / committees are incorporated into the minutes of
a meeting.

Minutes are an official record of a meeting and may be used for

reference by other agencies and institutions including the courts of law
in case there is a dispute. Hence, care should be taken to ensure that
the language conforms to standards of formality and impersonality that
publicly used language requires. 45
 Business
Correspondence The language of minutes uses simple past tense, and passive voice. For
example, “The matter was raised…..”, “It was agreed …….” etc. This
helps to make the minutes impersonal and objective.
The language of minutes should be free from ostentation and literary
flourishes.

Minutes should also be presented in a well-organized manner by using

a systematic layout.

Each section of the minutes should be presented in a separate

paragraph. Double space lines should be used between two paragraphs.

Headings of sections or of agenda items should be in bold letters. In

case there are sub-sections or items within a section, they should be
numbered and presented in separate paragraphs. If there is an action
item, it should be put in a separate paragraph with the heading
‘Action’.

Whenever there is a summary of a discussion, the different contents

should be itemized. This will enable the reader to understand the main
points of the argument.

Check your progress 1

Now that you have read about the different types of downward, non-
interactive internal communication, answer the following questions briefly in
your own words:
1 When are notices written?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….…………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………….
2 Who issues the notice for a formal meeting?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
3 What is the difference between a notice and a circular?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….…………………………………………………
4 What is the importance of having an agenda?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….…………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………….
46
5 Why should minutes be written in a particular style?
……….…………………………………………………………………
……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….………………………………………………… Internal Business
…………………………………………………………………………. Correspondence-II

……….……….…………………………………………………………
……………….……….…………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………….

6 Check which of the following items of information should be included

in a notice for a meeting? Delete the incorrect ones:

i The name of the person who is calling the meeting

ii Only the date of the meeting should be given
iii The agenda of the meeting
iv Signature of the person calling the meeting should be given
v The time of the meeting
vi Names/designations of the persons attending the meeting
vii The place of the meeting
viii Enclosures should not be sent

11.3 VOCABULARY

Activity 2

Read the passage given below:

Ms. Ratna Ahmad said that the promotional pamphlets, posters and
brochures of the company had become outdated as they did not make any
reference to the new models the company had brought out since 2008.
The older models had undergone modifications and changes which did
not find a place in the promotional literature of the company’s products.
Thus while the company was spending a lot of energy and expense in
updating its products, it was failing to communicate its achievements to
the public. As a result, the increased development and research effort was
not getting translated into increased sales of our products.

This passage is quite elaborate and stylized. The main idea is that the
promotional literature of the company needs to be updated in order to
incorporate the new products and changes in the old ones. This kind of
language is quite inappropriate to the style of minutes. Rewrite it in a clear,
simple, concise and yet formal manner.

Activity 3

Match the idioms given in the box with their meanings:

47
 Business a against your better judgement b on the fence
Correspondence c come to the table d put your cards on the table
e draw a line at doing something f take the plunge
g give and take h between a rock and a hard
place
i hammer something out j meet someone halfway
Meanings:
1 to meet for discussion 2 to make a decision that is
difficult or risky
3 to explain what you think and 4 to be undecided
want
5 to decide not to do something 6 to make a decision that you
believe is not the best
7 to have only bad choices 8 to create an agreeable
solution
9 the exchange of some of what 10 to accept part of what
you want for some of what someone else wants
someone else wants

11.4 LISTENING AND SPEAKING

Activity 4

Listen to the audio recording and then respond to the instructions.

1 Fill in the blanks with appropriate words.

i All formal meetings require that a record should be maintained

of the …………… held and the …………… taken in it.

ii This is important in order to avoid …………………….

iii It is required by the law that some meetings like the …………
……….…………………and ………………… ……………….
of companies keep a written record.

iv There are ………. ways of organizing the content of minutes of

meetings.

v The first one is called the ……………...……………………….

vi The second one is termed as ……..……………………………..

2 Say whether the following statements are true or false. Correct the
false ones.

i Writing the minutes of a meeting is an inessential requirement.

ii Minutes of a meeting help only those who are present at the
meeting.
48 iii Even a non-formal meeting requires minutes to be recorded.
 iv In the first kind of minutes writing, the leading points of
discussion are arranged in the following way:
a title of the point in the agenda
b the ideas, agreements and disagreements of members
c statements of the chairperson regarding the matter Internal Business
Correspondence-II
under discussion
d the final resolution
v The second way of arranging the content of minutes follows the
order given below:
a title of item on the agenda
b decision or resolution arrived at

11.5 WRITING

Activity 5
1 Based on tape script of 11.4 Listening and Speaking, draft a notice
calling a meeting for the situation given below. Include an agenda and
then write the minutes of the meeting.

The Board of Directors of Energy Conserve had a meeting on 27th

February 2010 in order to discuss a new policy measure for their
employees. The policy is regarding establishing a recreational area for
all employees in the factory premises. The place has to be an eco-
friendly zone as well as utilize all measures to save energy.

11.6 GRAMMAR: THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE

Activity 6

Tick the sentences which are correct. Say why the others are wrong.

i Before the wheel was invented, people have traveled long distances on
the backs of animals.
ii I go to a very interesting presentation last week.
iii Yesterday, a fire broke out in a cloth shop.
iv The fire has destroyed all the other shops in the market.
v The door opened suddenly and armed men rushed in.
vi Did you checked the figure?

Form: The Simple past (positive) is formed by using the past tense form.
Regular verbs add –d or –ed to the bare infinitive to form the past
tense. For negatives and questions we use the auxiliary did and the
infinitive.

I/you/he/she/it/we/they worked / did not (didn’t) work.

Did I/you/he/she/it/we/they work? (Yes, I/you/etc. did./No, I/you/etc.
didn’t.)

The verb to be follows a different pattern.

49
 Business I/he/she/it was/was not (wasn’t)…
Correspondence We/you/they were/were not (weren’t)…
Was I/he/she/it …? (Yes, I/he/she/it was. / No, I/he/she/it wasn’t.)
Were we/you/they …? (Yes, we/you/they were. /No, we/you/they
weren’t.)
Functions:
We use the Simple Past Tense for an action or an event that occurred at a
definite time in the past and is over at the time of speaking. Adverbs of time
are commonly used:

Yesterday on Monday last week in the 1960s

at 6:30 in January a few days ago
Example:
1 On June 15, 2006, Microsoft announced that effective July 2008
Gates will move out of a day-to-day role in the company
2 Minutes of the first meeting of the MD and the Managers of all
Departments held on Tuesday 29th January, 2010

We use the simple past to refer to an action which took place over a period of
time in the past, or which took place regularly and repeatedly, but is over now.

• Manager (Sales) reported that the figures of the last quarter had been
delayed…
• William (Bill) H. Gates was the Chairman of Microsoft Corporation.
• Sunit and I frequently studied together when we were in class VII.

Activity 7
1 Use the verbs in the box to complete the sentences. Some of the
sentences are positive statements, some are negatives and some are
questions. You may use some of the verbs more than once.

eat be visit start go

realize accept complain place ring

i ________ you ________ the Red Fort when you went to Delhi?
ii On Monday, last week, the tenth class students _________
their board examination.
iii I ________ her up yesterday, but she _____________ at home.
iv I am writing with reference to the order I _____________ with
you last month.
v Last week a number of customers _____________ about the
tardy service.
vi Oh I am sorry. I _____________________ you had visitors.
vii When _____________ they ____________ the new company?
50
 viii When _________ you ____________ abroad last year?
ix She _____________ _________ the job because the timings
didn’t suit her.
x We _____ ___________ the food as it had gone bad.
2 Write a short paragraph of about 10 lines about your father’s career, Internal Business
giving dates where possible. Correspondence-II

For example:
My father’s name is Shri Virender Sahgal. He went to University in
1973, where he studied Architecture. He graduated in 1978 and started
his own architecture firm.

…………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………..

11.7 PRONUNCIATION: WORD STRESS

Activity 8

Put the correct stress mark on the following words:

i organize organization
ii maintain maintenance
iii recommend recommendation
iv secretary secretarial
v manager managerial
vi office official
vii utility utilization
viii confirm confirmation
ix suggest suggestion
x inform information

11.8 LET US SUM UP

In this unit you have learnt about some more types of downward non-
interactive internal business correspondence. You now know what a notice is
and how you should write it. You have also become familiar with what an
agenda means and how it should be drafted. You are aware that discussions or
decisions taken during any meeting are recorded in the form of minutes. You
have read how a particular style and language is used to write down minutes.

11.9 ANSWERS

Activity 1 51
 Business
Correspondence i The notice put up in a college is read by a large number of students
who may or may not respond to the notice whereas in the case of the
business organization all or some members definitely have to respond
to the notice. For e.g. a notice in a college informs about an inter
collegiate quiz competition while a notice in an organization informs
about a meeting of the employees with the management.
ii The word ‘agenda’ refers to a list of items to be dealt with especially at
a meeting. It gives direction to the proceedings of the meeting. It helps
to save time and ensures that the meeting takes place in an organized
manner.
‘Hidden agenda’ refers to a secret plan or an ulterior motive. For e.g.
the government’s hidden agenda in imposing heavy taxes on processed
foods is to encourage people to turn to natural food products.
iii The familiar meaning of the word ‘minutes’ is one sixtieth of an hour.
For example: It will take ten minutes to get to the bus stop.
The other meaning of the word ’minutes’ is a written summary of the
points discussed at a meeting. It is a written record of the proceedings
of a meeting.
Check your progress 1
1 Notices are written to give information to the public. It is a sheet or a
placard displaying information about a meeting or decisions taken by
the management.
2 Usually the Secretary of the Managing Director issues the notice for a
formal meeting.

3 The notice is usually put up on a notice board or on the company’s

website for viewing by employees while a circular is usually
distributed by hand or mail.
4 An agenda is the backbone of any meeting as it gives direction to it. It
helps the members to focus attention on the important matters and
therefore channelize the discussion to a fruitful outcome. This ensures
optimum utilization of time and members’ energy.
5 The minutes should be written in a particular style because they are an
official and reliable record of all important matters discussed,
resolutions moved, recommendations made, decisions or actions taken
during a meeting. Therefore, it should be simple, clear and free from
ambiguity. Since it indicates collective activity the language used
should also reflect this. Rather than being verbose the language should
be concise and precise and thus should focus on the main points of
discussion of the meeting. Simple past tense and passive voice should
be used. It should be well-organized with headings of sections or of
agenda of items in bold letters. If there is an action item, it should be
put in a separate paragraph with the heading “Action”. Whenever there
is a summary of the discussion, contents are itemized to enable the
reader to understand the main points of the argument.

6 The incorrect ones are (ii), (iv) and (viii)

52
Activity 2
Suggested answer:
The updating of promotional literature to include the company’s new models
was suggested by Ms. Ratna Ahmad. She pointed out that some changes had
also been made to older models and this information needed to be included in
the promotional literature.
Activity 3 Internal Business
Correspondence-II
a – 6; b – 4; c – 1; d – 3; e – 5; f – 2; g – 9; h – 7; i – 8; j – 10

11.5 Listening and Speaking

Tape script

All formal meetings require that a written record of the discussions held and
decisions reached be prepared and kept for possible future reference. This is
necessary in order to avoid disputes about what was exactly said or decided at
a meeting. It is no surprise that certain meetings like the Annual General
Meetings and meetings of Board of Directors of companies are required by
law to record the minutes of their proceedings. Even non-formal meetings like
a face-to-face meeting of two officials of a company, may find it necessary to
keep at least an informal record of their decisions in the form of a memo.
Records of meetings also help other people who need to know but are not
required to be present at the meeting, to find out what transpired at the
meeting.

There are two ways in which the content of the minutes of a meeting can be
written – the first one is the minutes of narration and the second one is the
minutes of resolution. In the former, the leading points of the discussion are
arranged in a particular way. The title of the point on the agenda is written
first, and then the statements of the chairperson regarding the matter under
discussion are recorded. After noting these items, the ideas, suggestions,
agreement and dissent (if any) of the various members are written. Finally,
whatever is the final resolution or decision taken in the meeting is recorded.
The second way of writing minutes, that is, the minutes of resolution, is when
only the title of the item on the agenda and the decision or resolution agreed
upon is recorded.

Activity 4
1 i discussions, decisions
ii disputes
iii Annual General Meetings and meetings of Board of Directors
iv two
v minutes of narration
vi minutes of resolution
2 i False (Writing the minutes of a meeting is an essential
requirement)
53
 Business ii False (Minutes of a meeting not only help those who are
Correspondence
present at the meeting but also those who need to know what
happened but are not required to be present there)
iii True
iv False (The correct order is: a, c, b, d)
v True

Activity 5
Energy Conserve
33, J Block
Saket
New Delhi-110066

NOTICE
The Board of Directors would like to meet the employees’ representatives of
the various departments on Thursday, the 27th of February, at 2.30 p.m. in the
Committee Room. This is to discuss new policy measures regarding a
recreational area for the employees in the factory premises.

25th February 2010 Secretary

cc: i Ms. Reshma James, Director (Sales)

ii Mr. Akhil Kumar, Director (Production)
iii Mr. Aijaaz Muhammed, Director (Marketing)
iv Mr.----------------------------------------
v Ms.----------------------------------------

Enclosure: A copy of the agenda of the meeting.

AGENDA

Items for discussion:

• Need for a recreational area for employees.

• Feasibility of such an area within factory premises
• Locating a suitable area
• Allocation of Budget for the recreational area.
• Developing it as an Eco-friendly zone
• Energy saving mechanisms to be deployed in this area

MINUTES
Minutes of the first meeting of the MD, Board of Directors and Employees’
Representatives held on 27th January 2010 at 2.30 pm in the Committee
Room.

54 Present:
Mr. Shivdutta Sen (M.D.)
Mr. Akhil Kumar, Director (Production)
Mr. Aijaaz Muhammed, Director (Marketing)
Mr. Anesh Gupta, Director (Finance)
Ms.----------------------------
Mr. Prashant Sharma (Employees’ Representative)
Mr. Sukhdev Singh (Employees’ representative)

In Attendance: Internal Business

Correspondence-II
Aruna Kapoor (Secretary)
Shruti Samuel (Architect)

Apologies for Absence: Apologies for absence was received from the
following person.

Ms. Reshma James, Director (Sales)

Proceedings

· Meeting called to order at 2.30 p.m. by Chair, Mr. Shivdutta Sen

Need for a recreational area for employees.

1 The Managing Director recommended the need for a recreational area

for all employees in the factory premises. He emphasized that the
company was concerned about the employees’ welfare and thus such a
step was being taken. The Board of Directors seconded the framing of
the new policy after debating over the feasibility of such a facility
within the factory premises.

2 Director (Production) suggested that the recreation centre could be

constructed near the canteen for easy accessibility. The others
approved of this decision.

3 The Employees’ representatives gave inputs on the facilities to be

provided within the recreation centre such as a mini screen for
showing movies, a library, play area for children, etc.

4 The Director (Finance) informed that a budget of 30 lakhs can be

allocated for this recreation center.

5 The architect gave her suggestions about the location and design of the
facility. She advised that the building should be eco friendly and gave
suggestions for the same. She also highlighted how energy saving
mechanisms could be deployed in this center.

The suggestions were taken into consideration. The next meeting to discuss
the plan of the recreation center is to be held on 3rd February, 2010

Meeting adjourned by 4.00 pm.

Minutes submitted by Aruna Kapoor (Secretary).
55