Business Communication and Strategy

This assignment examines the critical role of business communication skills in the context of strategic management. It delves into the significance of clear and concise communication for conveying strategies, fostering collaboration, and building strong relationships with stakeholders. The assignment also explores concepts such as core competencies, resources, and distinctive capabilities as essential drivers of organizational success. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of diversity in the workplace and its impact on communication effectiveness and strategic decision-making.

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Business Communication and Academic Writing
Name
Instructor
Course
Date

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PART A: Portfolio of Communication Materials
i) Invitation Email
Subject – INVITATION TO COMMONWEALTH’S END OF YEAR DINNER
Dear Sir/Madam
On behalf of Commonwealth Bank, I would wish to invite you to attend our end year dinner
slated to be held at Westin Hotel; Martin Place, Sydney on the 15th of December 2018. The
occasion will start at 6pm and end at 11pm. We will have a three dinner course served and a
range of entertainment too.
As you all know, Commonwealth Bank has been an instrumental tool in providing financial
assistance to our growing and established enterprises alike. The organization has also been a
source of motivation and inspiration to our citizens, helping them start their own ventures. At
the end of every year, the organization coordinates a dinner for ell the stakeholders in and
beyond the city to share the moment and celebrate achievements as well as interact to
promote cohesion and togetherness for the health of our organization.
However, this year we will have a guest among us. Mr. John Marcus; an online entrepreneur (25
years of age) making a net profit of $40,000 per month, will speak to us. He will lightly touch on
the topic- Using online marketing to take your business to the next level.
Kindly send us your feedback by December 10th 2018 to help us make further arrangements.
Commonwealth Bank looks forward to receiving a consideration that is favorable from you. For
more information, contact us at 111-888-9999.
Yours sincerely,
David Elba
Communications Manager
Commonwealth Bank.

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www.commonwealthbank.org
111-888-9999
ii) Invitation Letter
Michael James
Writing Specialist
ABC Corporation
#14, Manhattan Street
New York City
Dear Michael,
On behalf of Commonwealth Bank, I would like to invite you to our end year dinner slated to be
held at Westin Hotel; Martin Place, Sydney on the 15th of December 2018. The occasion will
start at 6pm and end at 11pm. We will have a three dinner course served and a range of
entertainment too.
This dinner is organized as a moment sharing and achievement celebratory event. Secondly,
this dinner is a way of rewarding all of you for the support you have given us over time. We aim
to unite every stakeholder to work for a common goal; with this being part of a bigger plan to
ensure that our goals are achieved.
In the meantime, the dinner will be limited only for the stakeholders. However, we are on the
rampage to organize another party as from next year where stakeholders and the community
would also be invited. However, Commonwealth would like to hold such events for its
stakeholders alone. We hope you would understand.
Because this dinner is an event organized by the organization, we would request you to be in
formal attire. However, you are free to determine your specific style as long as code is formal.

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For confirmation or questions, you can contact David Elba at 111-888-9999. You can email as
well to www.commonwealthbank.org for more inquiries. Kindly send us your feedback by
December 10th 2018 to help us make further arrangements.
The organization would appreciate your presence in the dinner.
Yours sincerely,
David Elba
Communications Manager
Commonwealth Bank.
iii) Progress Report
To,
The Chief Executive Officer,
Commonwealth Bank.
Dear Sir,
RE: PROGRESS REPORT
Sir as you know that Commonwealth Bank has been an instrumental tool in providing financial
assistance to growing and established enterprises alike, this year’s annual dinner will be held at
Westin Hotel; Martin Place, Sydney on the 15th of December 2018.
Through time, we have realized that the organization has also been a source of motivation and
inspiration to our citizens, helping them start their own ventures. To ensure that we carry out a
smooth event this year, we have assembled a working team that is coordinated by me. Below is
a report summary showing the activity to be conducted and the level of completion of each
work.

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Progress Report # 001
Reporting Period:
1st Jan
2018 to
24th Jan
2018
Submittal Date 30th Jan 2018
Project Name: Annual Commonwealth Bank Dinner
Under penalty of Law, I certify that this document inclusive of any other document attached
was either directly prepared by me or under my direction regarding conditions and terms of
Grant Agreement Exhibit (Mitel, 2017). On the basis of my inquiry regarding the individual
managing this project; or those directly and (or) indirectly responsible for information
gathering, whatever information submitted is, to the best of my belief and knowledge,
accurate, true, and complete. The information and the attachments are in accordance with the
federal and state laws and I so here certify with my signature (McKay, 2017).
Project Director: David Elba
Printed Name Signature
Summary of Work Completed To Date (See sample table below)
ITEM Review Due Date
%
Completion
Submission
Date
Information
Dissemination and
Confirmations
1.1 PAEP 10th Dec
2018
15% 30th Jan
2018
1.2 Monitoring 10th Dec
2018
5% 30th Jan
2018

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ITEM Review Due Date
%
Completion
Submission
Date
1.3 Documentation 10th Dec
2018
15% 30th Jan
2018
Venue Setting 6. Quality Assurance 10th Dec
2018
2% 30th Jan
2018
List of Review Items
 Monitoring
 Documentation
Progress Narrative
- Under information dissemination and confirmations, we focus on ensuring that everyone
is briefed about the event before the actual day beckons.
- Under Documentation, we focus on ensuring that necessary formal documents are sent
to stakeholders before the D-day beckons (McArthur, 2010).
Information Dissemination and Confirmations - Project Administration (Cumulative 15.2%
complete)
Venue Setting - (Cumulative 2% complete)
I would be glad to receive a confirmatory report from you.
Thanks in advance.
Yours sincerely,
David Elba
Communications Manager
Commonwealth Bank.
iv) Table of Content

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DECLARATION
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF FIGURES
OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
ABSTRACT
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background
1.2 Problem Statement
1.3 Justification
1.4 Research Questions
1.5 Objectives
1.5.1 General objective
1.5.2 Specific objectives
2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW
3.0 MATERIALS AND METHODS
3.1 Study site
3.2 Study design
3.3 Study Population
3.3.1 Inclusion Criteria
3.3.2 Exclusion Criteria
3.4 Sample Size Determination
3.5 Sampling Method
3.6 Procedures

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3.7 Quality Control
3.7.1 Pre-analytical Quality Control
3.7.2 Analytical Quality Control
3.7.3 Post Analytical Quality Control
3.8 Data Management
3.8.1 Data collection
3.8.2 Data analysis
3.8.3 Data presentation
3.9 Limitations of Plan
3.10 Review
BUDGET
PLAN
REFERENCES
APPENDICES

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PART B: REFLECTION ON ACADEMIC PROGRESS
Whether in an argument or a debate, the presentation of evidence accompanied with
reasoning is important. Such is known as a rebuttal. A rebuttal should undermine a claim or
weaken an opinion. However, in my critique assignment, a rebuttal is a discourse with norm to
provide a unique critique. The word is, at times used in association with refutation. Refutation
is all about providing statements that are contradictory in an argument of any kind. However,
the two terms are different in a strict argument. While rebuttal involves the provision of
evidence, refutation will only rely on opinion that is contrary. Any comment that is agreed or
disagreed with should be support using reasons or evidence. In arguments, lack of evidence
would poorly reflect on one’s point of view (Doyle, 2017). The articulation of counterargument
is the most effective rebuttal any opinion with which a writer agrees or disagrees. Just like in
everyday forums pertaining to philosophy, review of arguments and critiques is vital.
Arguments are meant to persuade people in everyday life. In this case, the assignment provided
is an irrationally convincing one and should have its characteristics changed. However, I have
come to realize that an article with an argument referred to as a logical argument and truly
good is supposed to be persuasive and rational (Hofstrand, 2017). This is not because it is
intended to be appealing to irrational people or force rational thinking into people, but because
it is convincing. Logics and evidence need to be communicated appropriately. The reason for
argumentative communication in philosophy is to solicit criticism. Such critiques would help in
determining if an argument is sound, fallacious, unsound, or irrationally convincing. In as much
as arguments that are irrationally convincing may also persuade with practical uses, spotting
problems and fallacies is easy. Such fallacies can be spotted in rational point of view (Saxena,
2014). To enhance my argument, there are four general elements that should have been
incorporated. By referring to the argument as ‘good’, I mean that the assignment is made in a
genuine attempt to be rationally convincing and logical and not the irrationally convincing kind
of an argument (Kader, 2017).
The four elements of rational argument are:
1. Premises

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Any form of argument referred to as logical should have premises. Such premises should be
clearly stated or identified. By definition, premises are statements that are declarative, also
known as propositions. Such propositions are sources from which conclusions are made. They
are also known as the assumptions (Price, 2011).
2. Sources
An argument that is good and convincing should have sources for premises. In any case any of
the premises is false, the argument is considered irrational. Therefore, if the ready doubts any
of the premises, the argument won’t convince. Even if something is obviously true or common
knowledge to the writer, the reader might not be clearly sure if it is. Besides, it is always
assumed that things commonly believed to be true are often not true. Sources are at times
exempted from premises considered to be self-evident. Good sources are not provided for
reasons of self-evidence. However, if a source is found from a true definition or self-evidence, it
can be used (Kaplan, 2017).
3. Inference
Inferences are fallacies or logics used for concluding arguments. Such references may either be
fallacious or logically valid. As a matter of fact, an argument can still be considered logical even
if the premises are false (SanDiego, 2017).
4. Conclusions
The deductions from premises are referred to as conclusions. They are determined from logical
inferences. From a logical perspective, if the premises are true, the conclusions will also have to
be true. In such a case, the argument is considered logically valid. Such a case means that if the
argument is illogical, the conclusion may be false and so does the premises. On the contrary,
the conclusion, through sheer coincidence, may be true even for illogical arguments. The truth
is that it is a fallacy to have proposition concluded as false because it is part of an argument
that is unsound (Ethics, 2017).

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My argument has left the reader in dire need of rebutting it. As a result, the truth in the
argument must be attacked through its premises or validity of its logic. By attacking the
credibility of the sources of the argument, the truth of the premises can be determined. On the
other hand, the validity of the logic can be determined by pointing out the fallacy’s logical.
Evidence, in an argument, should be the focal point (Pirtea, Nicolescu, and Botoc, 2009). Also, a
proper rebuttal should rely on elements as a way of winning arguments. Last but not least,
communication ethics is vital. In every argument, writers should be able to identify and resolve
ethical concerns (Careerizma, 2017). In an attempt to do so, the basis of a strong argument
would be needed. There are hidden curriculum lessons that may affect the ability of students to
express themselves without causing ethical conflicts. Ensuring that students are nurtured to go
through such situations with a lot of ease, the curricula designers need to determine the
circumstances in which students would have difficulty addressing ethical issues. Afterwards,
students should be provided with proper skills of communication. There are several studies that
show that students have challenges under this topic (Ethical Standards, 2017). Others argue
that students perceive ethical conflicts in their everyday studies. On the contrary, studies
haven’t determine if the comfort of students challenging what they think to be unethical
behavior shifts with regards to specialty rotations or the reasons behind students’ difficulties in
bringing up ethical issues. A proper guide to any developed curriculum should determine the
areas that students find comfort or discomfort when it comes to raising ethical concerns.
Through teamwork, aspects of group work that lead to such difficulty should also be
determined. Through the specialty of students, I can hypothesize that level of comfort
pertaining to challenging ethical issues is likely to vary (Capabilities and Competences, 2017).

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Reference
Capabilities and Competences (2017) Capabilities and Competences. [online]
Ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk. Available at: http://www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/research/dstools/capabilities-
and-competences/ [Accessed 20 May 2017].
Careerizma (2017) Communications Skills. [online]. Meaning, Examples, Types, Importance and
Training. Available at: http://www.careerizma.com/skills/communication-skills/ [Accessed 14
Dec. 2017].
Doyle, A. (2017) Communication Skills for Workplace Success. [online] Employers Look For
These Communication Skills. Available at: https://www.thebalance.com/communication-skills-
list-2063779 [Accessed 14 Dec. 2017].
Ethical Standards (2017) IMPLEMENTING EFFECTIVE ETHICS STANDARDS IN GOVERNMENT AND
THE CIVIL SERVICE’. [online] Available at:
https://www.oecd.org/mena/governance/35521740.pdf. [Accessed 20 May 2017].
Ethics (2017) Importance of Ethics in Accounting & Financial Decision Making,” . [online]
Available at: http://yourbusiness.azcentral.com/importance-ethics-accounting-financial-
decision-making-4394.html [Accessed 20 May 2017].
Hofstrand, D. (2017) Improving Business Communication Skills. [online] Organizational
Communication & Structure. Available at:
https://www.extension.iastate.edu/agdm/wholefarm/html/c5-116.html [Accessed 14 Dec.
2017].
Kader, M. (2017) Strategic Management (StratMgt). Open2study.com. Available at
https://www.open2study.com/courses/strategic-management [Accessed 20 May 2017].
Kaplan (2017) Critical success factors and core competencies. [online]
Kfknowledgebank.kaplan.co.uk. Available at: http://kfknowledgebank.kaplan.co.uk/KFKB/Wiki
%20Pages/Critical%20success%20factors%20and%20core%20competences.aspx [Accessed 20
May 2017].
McArthur, E. (2010) Diversity in the Workplace - Leading Association for Diversity Conferences
and Collaboration. Workforcediversitynetwork.com. Available at
http://www.workforcediversitynetwork.com/res_articles_managingdiversity_mcarthur.aspx
[Accessed 20 May 2017].

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McKay, M. (2017) Effective Business Communication Skills. [online] Communication & Etiquette.
Available at: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/effective-business-communication-skills-
2865.html [Accessed 14 Dec. 2017].
Mitel (2017) Improving Your Business Communication Skills. [online]. Available at:
https://www.shoretel.com/improving-your-business-communication-skills [Accessed 14 Dec.
2017].
MSG (2017) Resources, Competencies and Distinctive Capabilities. [online]
Managementstudyguide.com. Available at:
http://www.managementstudyguide.com/resources-competencies-distinctive-capabilities.htm
[Accessed 20 May 2017].
Pirtea, M., Nicolescu, C., & Botoc, C. (2009) THE ROLE OF STRATEGIC PLANNING IN MODERN
ORGANIZATIONS. Annales Universitatis Apulensis, Series Oeconomica, 11(2). [Accessed 20 May
2017].
Price, S. (2011) Qantas unions stand up to management. [online] Greenleftweekly. Available at:
https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/qantas-unions-stand-management [Accessed 23 January
2018].
SanDiego (2017) Business Communication Skills. [online] Extension. Available at:
https://extension.ucsd.edu/courses-and-programs/business-communication-skills [Accessed 14
Dec. 2017].
Saxena, K. (2014) Capabilities versus Competence: How are they Different?. [online] Available
at: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20141123155439-7430899-capabilities-versus-
competence-how-are-they-different [Accessed 20 May 2017].