must be in Times New Roman. The body of the document should be printed in standard 12-point font size. Indent paragraphs in all assignments and use double spacing between and within paragraphs. Moreov
Rakesh Mittoo Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 1 THE UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA Inter - Departmental Correspondence DATE: May 12, 2021 TO : All Students of Business Communications, GMGT 2010, A01 FROM: Rakesh Mittoo, Instructor SUBJECT : Writing Assignment #2: Interview Write - Up Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 2 Interviews with people help you to learn from their expertise, discover something interesting and vivid in their lives, solve a problem, or find answers to your questions. By interviewing someone knowledgeable in a field, you can gather relevant information on a topic and enhance your understanding of it. As a form of research away from the library, an interview can also help you to generate ideas on a topic. To be successful in this form of oral communication, you will be required to use appropriate questioning, responding, and listening skills . For this assignment, think about something that touches our lives — in university, at work, or at home — and interview someone who can speak with the authority of experience or knowledge. For instance, you may decide to interview an employer on the differences in the management styles of male and female managers. You will conduct an interview with someone from one of the following categories of people: Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 3 a manager, a supervisor, a co - worker a parent or an adult in a family other than your own a professional: an athlete, an accountant, a lawyer, etc. a student from another faculty who has a job an entrepreneur, a volunteer, a community worker Conduct an interview on aspects of his or her job that you and your audience — your instructor or other students — will find informative and interesting. Also, prepare questions on the topics or responsibilities of the interviewee’s job so that you can elicit good information and insights from their perspective. Then you will submit an Interview Write - Up (see guidelines on the next page. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 4 In addition, follow these instructions for the interview and your report on it: Determine your purpose or goal for this interview. Your goal is to gather information on the interviewee’s work role and/or discover his or her perspective on issues related to interviewee’s job? Read the attached handout, “Types of Interview Questions” and “Tips for Interviews.” Decide on categories for your questions and generate primary (open - ended) and secondary (follow up) questions. Arrange these questions in a meaningful sequence. Submit this questionnaire at the end of your Interview Write - Up. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 5 Conduct your interview and, based on your notes, write a short report that meets the following requirements : Provide adequate background information for the audience to understand the significance of the role and the purpose of your interview. (One paragraph: six to seven lines) Describe the interviewee chosen to answer your questions: occupation and or position, education, work experience, knowledge in his or her field or job -related topics/issues you’ve begun to investigate. (One short paragraph: do not exceed 3 lines.) Summarize the information you’ve obtained from the interviewee, using some principle of organization to give it a coherent shape. ( Avoid reporting in a question -and -answer format. ) One such pattern of organization may move from generalizations to specifics or vice versa. Support the ideas or opinions with the interviewee’s explanations, observation, and examples.(Four to five paragraphs ) Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 6 Discuss your own observation about what you’ve learned from this interview. To prepare for the last para, consider any ONE of these questions: What is implication of one of the interviewee’s opinions? Did your findings from the interview conform to your expectations, or did they surprise you and why. Note : focus on one of the interviewee’s observations or one of the interviewee’s ideas for discussion. Use either Personal Tie - in or SEC strategy to develop and support your claim. These strategies were explained in class (See Lecture on Response - to - Reading Guidelines ). (One paragraph ) Wherever appropriate, use transitions to link sentences and paragraphs, and edit your final draft carefully before handing it in. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 7 IMPORTANT NOTE: Either at the end of your Interview Write - Up or on a separate sheet, provide the following: the interviewee’s name, phone number and e - mail address, and the date of the interview. LENGTH: 4 pages maximum (1200 words). Follow the guidelines about the title page and formatting of assignments as explained in the course outline. The required length does not include the title page and the list of questions at the end of the paper. DUE DATE: See Course Outline Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 8 The key to successful research is often to interview an expert on your subject. But this may be easier said than done. Just finding an expert requires patience and persistence -- and once found, such a person must be persuaded to help you. Years ago someone gave me “four magic words” for success in communication. I have used them in letters and in person. They are “I need your help.” If you get this idea across simply and sincerely, you’ll find you are seldom refused. Getting an expert to agree to an interview is one thing; the actual interview is quite another. Here are a few tips for making the most of your opportunity: Know exactly how the expert can help you . Inform the interviewee of the nature of the interview and the agenda to be covered. Use printed sources to get a basic understanding of your subject, and then ask the expert to update your facts or to give you insights into specific aspects of the issue or group. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 9 Make a positive first impression . Be warm and cheerful, self - confident, and respectful. Also, be sure to be on time for the interview appointment. Be open . State what you’re after and why. Not explaining your needs and motives may make your source hesitant to provide information. Do not overstate your knowledge of the subject . Once you have demonstrated your basic understanding of the subject, let the interviewee take over. Most people do not mind your being uninformed about specifics and may even help you more if you acknowledge your lack of knowledge. Do not be too quick to accept a no . You may have to ask a question several different ways to get an answer. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 10 Ask for names of other contacts and other places to look for information . If you don’t get all the information you need out of an interview, you may get a name. The next person or resource may provide what you need. Be respectful and considerate . Let interviewees know that you realize their time and their good name are precious. Clear the taking of notes or the use of a tape recorder with the interviewee. Be sure to express your appreciation . A handwritten thank - you note to the person who has helped you is not only courteous, but also may encourage cooperation in the future. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 11 The purpose of the interview and the nature of the participants determine the types of questions that are asked. When you plan the interview, bear in mind that you ask questions (1) to get information, (2) to motivate the interviewee to respond honestly and appropriately, and (3) to create a good working relationship with the other person. To obtain both factual information and underlying feelings, you will probably want to use various types of questions: Open -ended questions . Questions like “What do you think your company wants most from its suppliers?” invite the interviewee to offer an opinion, not just a yes, no, or one -word answer. You can learn some interesting and unexpected things from open -ended questions, but they diminish your control of the interview. The other person’s idea of what’s relevant may not coincide with yours, and you may waste some time getting the interview back on track. Use open -ended questions to warm up the interviewee and to look for information when you have plenty of time to conduct the conversation. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 12 Direct open -ended questions . This type of question suggests a response. For example, “What have you done about...?” assumes that something has been done and calls for an explanation. With direct open -ended questions you have somewhat more control over the interview, yet you still give the other person some freedom in framing a response. This form is good to use when you want to get a specific conclusion or recommendation from someone. Closed -ended questions . Closed -ended questions require yes or no answers or call for short responses: “Did you make a reservation for the flight?” “Tell me your age group: 18 -25, 26 -35, 36 -45, 46 -55, 56 and over.” Questions like these produce specific information, save time, require less effort from the interviewee, and eliminate bias and prejudice in answers. The disadvantage is that they limit the respondent’s initiative and may prevent important information from being revealed. They are better for gathering information than for prompting an exchange of feelings. Restatement questions . Restatement, or mirror , questions invite the respondent to expand on an answer: “You said you dislike completing travel vouchers. Is that correct?” They also signal the interviewee that you are paying attention. Restatements provide opportunities to clarify points and correct misunderstandings. Use them to pursue a subject further or to encourage the other person to explain a statement. You can also use restatement questions to soothe upset customers or co -workers. By acknowledging the other person’s complaint, you gain credibility. Dr. Rakesh Mittoo 13
