Abstract
Notwithstanding the availability of business writing instruction in academia, employers continue to voice their concerns about the significant gap between their expectations for employees’ writing skills and the actual skills employees possess (Lentz, 2013). Organizations are reporting lower levels than “meet expectations” related to employees’ written communication skills at the time an employee is hired (Suvedi, M., Ghimire, R.P., & Millenbach, K.F., 2016). Consequently, employers spend a considerable amount on remedial training to address the poor writing skills among their employees (White, A.V., 2015). Employers expect that written communication skills are taught in college. Data demonstrates, however, that this is not occurring or at least not to the level of competence that employers are seeking (Carnes, L., Awang, F., & Smith, H., 2015). Colleges and universities need to evaluate their curriculum and outcomes; integrating new initiatives into the curricula and programs to improve the written communication skills of their students.
Highlights
According to Rentz and Lentz (2018), “timely and clear transfer of information is critical to businesses, more than ever” (p 22)
A question to be asked is, “Are Business students graduating from colleges and universities with the written communications skills required to be successful in today’s organizations?” Institutions of higher education have a responsibility in preparing students to have the proficiency to think critically so that they can be effective citizens and for preparation in entering the workforce
Educators and employers alike continue to voice their concerns about the significant gap between their expectations for individuals’ writing skills and the actual skills they possess (Lentz, 2013)
Summary
According to Rentz and Lentz (2018), “timely and clear transfer of information is critical to businesses, more than ever” (p 22). A question to be asked is, “Are Business students graduating from colleges and universities with the written communications skills required to be successful in today’s organizations?” Institutions of higher education have a responsibility in preparing students to have the proficiency to think critically so that they can be effective citizens and for preparation in entering the workforce. For the purposes of this paper, the importance of written communication is addressed in the academic year 2017-2018 It is the first year of collecting student writing samples, evaluating the data, and implementing interventions. Students in the Business Management and Accounting programs are required to complete two Writing Intensive (WIP) courses offered within their perspective programs: Business Communications and Organizational Behavior These two classes will incorporate new interventions with the goal of improving student written communication skills. Instructional videos (APA) are included in the required Writing Intensive courses
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