The Encyclopedia of Business Letters, Faxes, and E-mail

4

Corresponding With Colleagues

You likely have many colleagues—from fellow members of trade associations to other businesspeople who work out at the same health club you do. Your relationship with them may be professional, personal, or both. But unlike coworkers, they don’t work for the same company you do. Therefore, your communication with them must not assume knowledge of the products, services, or organization with which you are involved. Furthermore, unless you’ve crossed the line from colleague to best friend, your correspondences with these colleagues should always remain professional. This chapter shows you how to craft such messages.

E-mail works well for much of the correspondence described in this chapter. The samples provided in ...