Business Communications in English

Read the message very carefully. Even though Dorsey says he’s going to “give it to us straight, ” he does in fact use an indirect approach. We know from that very statement (in a buffer!) that bad news is coming, but it is actually not delivered until the fourth paragraph. Instead, he states the reasons and describes the situation that leads into the bad news first.

But he also shows sensitivity to the concerns of both the employees being laid off, and the remaining employees who might be losing workforce friends. He goes into some detail about how these employees will be treated.

Please read carefully. Though Jack Dorsey is in a position of power and therefore can “get away” with a bluntness that many of us can’t, there is much that we can learn from this message, I think. But then, is he really being blunt?

Does the world really need a stronger Twitter?

I would love to know what you think – how would you feel about Jack Dorsey if you received this message? About Twitter? What techniques used in this letter would you emulate? Or avoid?

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