Luke C's Ethical Issues In Professional Writing

The topic of ethical issues in professional writing is an important and expansive one. I will go over some information presented in the class textbook as well as draw upon personal experience in the business world.

One ethical concern is the format of the documents that you plan to produce. This topic is prevalent in scholastic writing as well as professional writing. Different fields such as medicine, science, management and government all have commonly accepted formats for which documents should follow. This is much like how certain classes require a student to use MLA or APA style.

Plagiarism is another ethical concern that presents itself in school and professional environments. Plagiarism is taking another person’s ideas and passing them off as your own. When using another person’s work is necessary, it is paramount to use quotations and cite it properly. There are all most always certainly stiff consequences for plagiarism in both school and business.

Ethical Issues can result from a writer not taking into account the perspective that which his or her audience will view their work. It is important to be professional at all times and be clear and concise. I have an example from my personal experience that exemplifies this sentiment.

I became a supervisor of 8 employees at a large electronics retailer at the age of 19. My team ranged in age from 21-32 years old. About a month into my position I sent out a weekly email that went over business and behavioral results and expectations. A few days later an employee (A 26 year old former manager) approached me to express concern over comment in the email directed toward him. I am a very sarcastic and joking person by nature, and without even realizing it I made a comment in the email that concerned the employee. I was horrified and expressed my regret to the employee. To this day we have a very strong and honest business relationship and learned a very important lesson that has stayed with me throughout my career.

This situation shows how important it is to read your writing with a third party point of view. Being able to effectively communicate ideas to people with a range of personalities is the key to becoming a good leader. The way you say things to friends and family is not always the way you should communicate with employees! Please Post any similar stories or tips!