SNHU Determining Audience Needs For New Product Memorandum

IT 520 Module Five Short Paper Guidelines and RubricThis course includes five short writing activities that will require you to create different types of technical communications. These are designed to actively test
your understanding and to apply your knowledge to potential real-world situations. These writing activities also provide practice in communicating your
reasoning in a professional manner.
Determining Audience Needs (Module Five)
As the new corporate communications manager, you have developed a good idea of the various internal and external audiences for communications across the
enterprise.
You have learned that IG is organized into six main areas, and each area has its own structure:
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Research and Development (R&D): New Product Development and Product Enhancement teams
Manufacturing: Detroit, Shanghai, and Purchasing teams
Sales and Marketing: U.S. Sales, U.S. Marketing, European Sales, European Marketing, Partner Management, and Online Sales teams
Technical Support: the exception, as there is only a single team handling this function
Finance/Accounting: Corporate Finance and Corporate Accounting teams
Human Resources: Corporate HR team with ties to HR representatives at each work site
In addition to the internal departments, IG staff interface with a wide range of external entities and individuals, including customers (large accounts, individuals
via web sales), distribution partners, component suppliers, subcontractors (design and occasional manufacturing). IG also contracts with Amazon to handle all its
product logistics—warehousing, packaging and shipping, and returns.
IG will soon launch a new accessory for the OfficeDrone: Speaker+. Speaker+ attaches to the OfficeDrone and allows the person controlling the OfficeDrone to
have a voice conversation with a person near the OfficeDrone. The Corporate Communications team is responsible for developing communications for all
stakeholders to announce the launch of this new product.
Write a memo to your communication team that uses specific details to address the following:
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Analyze IG’s internal and external audiences.
Recommend how the new product announcement for Speaker+ can be tailored to the needs of each of IG’s audiences.
Company Background
International Gadgets (IG) is a multinational company of 1,300+ employees and over $4 billion in revenue. Headquartered in Manchester, New Hampshire, the
company designs, manufactures, sells, and supports a variety of low- and high-tech business productivity tools.
IG has manufacturing facilities in Detroit, Michigan, and Shanghai, China, and sources component parts from suppliers in Vietnam, China, Brazil, and the United
States. While IG maintains sales offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Munich, Paris, Moscow, and Brussels, its products are sold throughout the
United States and all of Europe and in China through a partner firm. IG employs a direct sales force targeting its top 1,000 customers, and it also sells via its
website. Sales offices also include service and support operations, managed separately from the sales teams. The company is considering expanding more
directly into China and exploring the possibility of opening a sales office in Beijing.
IG’s current top-selling product is the OfficeDrone, designed for workplace monitoring. The OfficeDrone is a small, unstaffed aerial vehicle for indoor use that
includes real-time video monitoring and a targetable built-in water pistol and reservoir. The OfficeDrone is marketed to management and security teams to
break up water cooler conversations and other nonproductive behaviors among groups of workers.
IG has introduced several new products and experienced rapid growth during the past year, with many new employees in all departments. The management
team has greatly expanded as well, including several first-time managers, and is experiencing difficulties in functioning as effectively as in the past.
Communications within and between all parts of the organization, external partners, and suppliers and customers are at serious risk of completely breaking
down.
In a recent example, Detroit Manufacturing was unable to meet a product delivery deadline because of parts shortages from supplies. (The component parts
originated in Brazil and had been seriously delayed due to a dockworkers’ strike at U.S. West Coast ports.) Manufacturing believed they had informed Sales of
the delay, but Sales indicated they had never received that information and ended up losing the customer to a competitor. In another example, European sales
were impacted when Switzerland unexpectedly devalued its currency, impacting IG’s profitability. Revised profitability forecasts were provided by several of the
European sales offices, but others did not understand the request from the corporate office because of how it was worded, and the delay in response led to
unnecessary costs.
Rubric
Guidelines for Submission: This memo must be 2 to 3 pages in length (plus a cover page and references) and must be written in APA style. Use double spacing,
12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. Integrate at least one resource cited in APA format. Review Purdue Owl: Memo for suggestions and
formatting guidelines on memo structure.
Critical Elements
Audience Analysis:
External and Internal
Exemplary (100%)
Meets “Proficient” criteria, and
ideas are substantiated with
specific and relevant details
Recommendations
Meets “Proficient” criteria with
substantial detail for the
rationale
Articulation of
Response
Submission is free of errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, and
organization and is presented in
a professional and easy-to-read
format
Proficient (90%)
Accurately identifies internal
and external stakeholders and
draws conclusions about that
audience’s needs, supported by
specific detail
Provides a discussion
highlighting the
recommendations for how the
new product announcement
can be tailored to the needs of
the audience, with sufficient
detail for rationale
Submission has no major errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
Needs Improvement (70%)
Accurately identifies internal
and external stakeholders and
draws conclusions about the
audience’s needs, but does not
support with specific detail
Provides a discussion
highlighting the
recommendations for how the
new product announcement
can be tailored to the needs of
the audience, but lacks
sufficient detail for rationale
Submission has major errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
that negatively impact
readability and articulation of
main ideas
Not Evident (0%)
Does not identify internal and
external stakeholders
Value
40
Does not provide a discussion
highlighting the
recommendations for how the
new product announcement
can be tailored to the needs of
the audience
40
Submission has critical errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
that prevent understanding of
ideas
20
Total
100%