Online Management Communication - Essay Example

Working in a different culture, speaking in a different language and competing with people having completely different norms and values, is extremely difficult for a migrant like me. Although I migrated from Pakistan to the States 3 years ago, I’m still adapting to the different lifestyle each day. You, I believe, would also be experiencing the same difficulties with language and culture that all people coming from other countries face during the early days of adjusting to the new environment. The matter doesn’t get any easier especially for an immigrant coming from a developing and a Muslim country like Pakistan in our case. Locals looking at us with a suspicious eye, jobs not easy to secure, investigation teams just around the corner waiting for us to make a wrong move etc are some of the problems that we have to cope with. Apart from this, there comes the problem of communication gaps that exist between the locals and people like us who use English as a second language. Writing applications, interview letters, and even writing and speaking simple words may elicit negative and undesired feedback due to inappropriate usage of grammar. Sometimes using correct sentence composition may land us in trouble since the usage did not convert to the same context in the local’s minds due to cultural differences.

Having experienced these issues myself, I have some encouraging news for you about how to avoid landing in tricky situations in front of your peers. Leafing through my computer files yesterday I found my solution to the cultural and language problems I had faced during my initial days in the United States. The solution was a simple Online Writing Lab called ‘OWL’ for short. An OWL is an always available facility which provides you with free writing resources and instructional material on the internet. It is a portal where students, members of the community, and global users can find information to assist them with many writing projects while teachers and trainers can use the material for in-class and out-of-class instructions.

Every country has its own set of rules and expectations about the ways to communicate in a business setting. In some countries, they may place less emphasis on written materials and more emphasis on verbal communication. However, in the United States, memos, letters, and emails are important and play a role in creating a person's business reputation. The ‘OWL at Purdue’ has a special section relating to how Non-Americans should go about writing for a business audience. It includes information on how to approach a topic by getting to the point, keeping the message simple, how and when to use active and passive voice with special emphasis on nondiscriminatory language, and a guide on using verbs rather than keeping the message vague.

The best part of the Online Writing Lab is that it provides a teacher-student relationship as in a school yet a completely professional online environment just like in the case of distance learning. You can write a letter for your business purpose, but send it first to your teacher at the OWL from where you will receive instructions and training on how to improve your business writing. As a result, you can then send the convincingly written revised letter for the business purpose you initially intended and get a firm response. Not only this, there is a lot more available on their website including basic formatting and referencing styles for business reports, demo letters and memorandums, and writing guidelines. Your reputation remains safe while all the time you learn how to make your writing skills even better. And while your writing skills improve, you are assured that your spoken language gets better.

Your convenience is the key here. You can send emails, write letters or memos, and make corrections and revisions all at a time and place that suits you. All you need is an internet connection which is easily available in the office and your home. With absolutely no charges, you don’t need to worry about paying your bills. Taking assistance from the online writing lab you can even become better at written and inevitably spoken English than Americans themselves.

The Online Writing Lab at Purdue University is one of the most diverse and complete online writing resources that I have come across! The OWL can be accessed on their website which is available 24/7 for students and teachers alike. The website has a very simple and user-friendly layout and navigation screen and provides you instant access to all that you want to know regarding written English. Follow the simple process and you’ll be on your way to achieving the greatness that Citibank expects from you.