College of Business Dean Lynne Richardson
Read the latest column in The Free Lance-Star written by Lynne Richardson, Dean of the College of Business, titled Lose the Bureaucratese, Please!
I RECEIVED an email recently from a government agency. I didn’t think the email was mine, as this office doesn’t normally send me emails, but I began reading it to make sure.
The first paragraph was written in such bureaucratic jargon that I could not figure out what it meant. After re-reading it a second time, I still didn’t really understand what it was saying, but figured out to whom it should have been sent, and promptly forwarded it to the correct person.
This experience got me thinking about how many times we create documents that are difficult for the average person to read. Whether the document is an instruction manual or legal purchase agreement, writing so an eighth grader can understand the message is important.