Leave your comments here for my paper

Writing in the Field of Business

Joseph Nathe

University of Iowa

“Be brief. Get to point quickly. Be concise and organize thoughts for others to easily follow.” (Earnest) Writing in the field of Business has a drastically different style of writing style than any other. These few rules are some of the most crucial parts when it comes to writing in Business and are quite easy to follow. As an undergraduate student at the University of Iowa who’s looking to major in Marketing, I wanted to take an in depth look at how writers in this field properly write as well as learning specific genres and formatting. Throughout finding further information of writing in this field, I conducted an interview with Brian Earnest, President & CEO of AMPERAGE Marketing & Fundraising, who gave me his personal opinion on which strategies have helped him to get to where he is today, as well as sharing with me how to properly write emails in the Business field. I also investigated multiple academic journals and non-academic articles and found how the language and structure differs from both areas. For this analytical report, I will be focusing mainly on the topic of academic journals and non-academic articles as well as explaining how they differ through structure, language and references.

Academic Writing

            Academic writing in the Business field is mainly done through studies in academic journals as well as various letters and presentations. Structure, language and references are all important to remember when writing a proper article.  

Structure

            The structure of an academic writing, such as a business journal, is the similar format as if a scientist was conducting an experiment. They begin by showing the research they have done prior to the study and explain to us, as the readers, what exactly they are hoping to find. They mention what they are hoping to find and compare and contrast different possible outcomes. In S. Tamer Cavusgil’s business study, Introducing Products into Export Markets: Success Factors, she mentions how faster growing businesses with newer technology are the most likely to succeed, but older businesses with a solid foundation would be just fine as well. A business journal has three main parts which consist of an introduction, data analysis and a conclusion.

            Through the introduction, the writer will explain what they are looking for/ conducting research on. They may mention other research, if previous research has been done, and proceed to make an argument which should briefly mention what the journal is about. Cavusgil mentions previous research done in her study stating,” Previous studies on international market product entry have been undertaken when the world marketplace was less competitive and/or were based on limited samples of exporters. This article probes a larger number of more recent instances of reported success.” (Cavusgil et. al, 1993, pg. 1) The topic will then begin to be narrowed down and brought to a specific area which they are studying. When the introduction begins to come to an end, the writer will begin to acknowledge specific questions answered throughout the journal and how this study will affect us or what it will do for us in the present and possibly the future.  

            The second part of these business journals mentions their data and will usually provide a visual aid, such as graphs and tables, to help show what they found. An example of this could be seen In S. Tamer Cavusgil’s business study, as she used a graph showing small and large firms seeing which would be more successful internationally. The study proved that smaller companies were more likely to be successful overseas while larger companies were more likely to have a higher success rate. 

            The conclusion of business studies states all information that the writers found throughout their research rather that be what they were hoping for or not. More likely than not, business researchers will find more information than they believed they would find, so multiple outcomes in a study isn’t seen as uncommon. In Cavusgil’s study, she found many different conclusions for her study of the success of large and small businesses internationally due to the many different hypothesis’ she considered. This is one of the many possible outcomes that can occur in business journals.

Language

            Scholarly business articles are meant to be directed to employers high up in the business filed which can make it difficult for anyone to be able to understand exactly what is going on.  However, this isn’t always the case. One journal that I came across, “Explaining the formation of international new ventures: The limits of theories from international business research” (Patricia Phillips McDougall, et. al) is a business journal that can be read by anyone that is interested. There are many terms in this journal that wouldn’t be recognized by a regular audience, except McDougall is concise and explains quite thoroughly using a great variety of word choice what these terms are and why they’re relevant for her study. This will help the journal widen into many more audiences. 

            When going through business journals, the tone that will be prevalent through most of them will be seen as formal. As previously mentioned, these are scholarly articles and are meant for people high up in the business field. In McDougall’s study, there are many theories that are mentioned that are relevant to the research she’s conducting. This helps the audience see what exactly she’s working with and shows what a high level of reading she is writing at. Rather than just stating the theories and moving on, McDougall takes the time to go in depth about each one to make sure every detail is mentioned.

            An active voice is likely to be seen in business journals since most of the times, the writers are the ones doing the experiments! Through an active voice the writers are able to explain first hand to the audience what is going on and take them through their trail and error. Through McDougall’s vigorous studies she takes us with on many of her experiences, “We now turn to an explanation of why founders of INVs seek the form of international business activities that they do. Here again we draw on the logic of the resource-based view of the firm and add to it research on entrepreneurship.” (McDougall, et. al, 1994, pg. 482) Business journals make the audience feel as if they’re doing the research with them, keeping them interested.

Reference

              Business Journals are mostly written in APA format. This seems to be not just the standard for business journals, but all journal writings. APA format helps with these journals because the use of subheadings takes the organization of these to a whole new level. Business journals can be extremely long, so being able to section it off with subheadings can make a huge difference. “Information acquisition and export entry decisions in small firms” is a business journal written by Stan Reid which is 17 pages long. With no subheadings this study could become confusing even for the audiences in which this journal is intended for. APA format helps these journals in the fact that it makes it easier to read for many audiences.

            In text citations are crucial for any study considering you can’t do a proper study without looking at other proper sources. Writers use these sources throughout their journals to give them the information their looking for and comparing that with the information that they found. It also makes the journal more reliable. Business writers that use a high number of sources in their study shows that they have put a lot of time and effort into their research and want to publish the most accurate information possible.

Non-Academic Writing

            Non-Academic writing in the Business field is mostly seen through common blogs and newspaper articles found on the internet. This is the writing that most of the public will see and may come up through social media cites such as Twitter or Facebook. Writing is a key aspect in business and is a crucial aspect considering how much is done through communication in different states and countries. I was told this information during my interview in which I was told, “I spend much of my day writing, usually 4-6 hours each day are dedicated to writing documents, writing emails and taking notes during meetings.” (Earnest) Even though these are written to appease a different audience, these sources also have various levels of structure, language and reference.

Structure

            Since non-academic business writing has such a large variety, there’s not just one specific way to write one. The format mostly consists of shorter sentences and paragraphs. The structure of the writing should be done in a way that is best understood for the people. Some ways that I witnessed this was through different articles I found throughout my research. In Neil Amato’s article, “A new playing field for business”, he creates a new paragraph whenever he brings in a new topic rather than using subheadings. Where as in SAP Success Factors article, “Using Technology to Increase Your Business Productivity”, titles each paragraph and bolds the main idea of them. These are defiantly different ways to format articles, but both make it easy for the audience to follow.

            You most likely won’t find many charts and graphs in these articles, however you’ll see various facts and tidbits used. If these don’t come up through the article, don’t worry! Many times, articles as such simply summarize multiple topics and use their own opinion rather than searching for specific sources.

Conclusions in these articles are brief and often don’t have subheadings stating when it begins. They are short and concise simply summarizing the article in a few sentences. Academic business journals have much longer conclusions since they usually are coming to an end of a study, which makes these articles that much friendlier to read. Most of the time audiences will prefer to look at the simpler article rather than the hefty journals.

Language

            The voice in the business articles are much more passive than they would be active. They take away the most important factors and place their best foot fourth in how they should be applied. SAP Success Factors article, “Using Technology to Increase Your Business Productivity” showed this while on the topic of motivating employees that are using technology, “If there are impediments to better performance, the company should review why it is happening and try to eliminate these through better allocation of resources or additional training.” (SAP Success Factors, 2018, pa. 6) Business articles can be much more lenient while business journals provide only the findings throughout their studies.

            The word choice in business articles is seen as casual and much easier to read than business journals. Terms used in academic business journals are rarely used in articles since there isn’t a need for them. The information is much more generalized making the language used denser and more concise. Having articles as such helps the everyday audience have a better understanding in the business world rather than just having business journals.

            Business articles are prominently written in a non-formal tone. Like the word choice, these articles are written over bigger named issues and are simplified for the public audiences to get a clear understanding of what the journal is implying. In an article written by America’s SBDC. Oklahoma, “The role of technology in Business”, they explain how crucial communication plays apart in business and how much technology has improved stating, “Globalization has been realized because of the wonders of technology. Anyone can now do business anywhere within being constricted to the four corners of his room.” (America’s SBDC. Oklahoma, 2015, pa. 7) Rather than seeing a complete study on the process on how the internet has evolved, they simplify it in a no-formal tone allowing anyone to understand.

Reference

            Business articles will commonly not use many references throughout, however if they do use a quote or fact they will properly use an in-text citation. The business article however will not have a reference/citation page while a business journal will have one to two full pages of cited sources. This yet again shows how the information found in articles is far more intellectual rather than information found in non-academic business articles.

            Most of the times sources won’t be placed on a reference page, so it can be harder to see how accurate the information truly is. Business articles can also be seen as much more opinionated while academic business journals are facts found in studies. These articles will give the base information and then possibly add their own while journals will be the facts and the steps to how they got there.

Conclusion

           

            While academic business journals and non-academic business articles have different views when it comes to structure, language and reference, they both have an end goal of helping the reader become more advanced the business field. However, just because they have the same goal doesn’t mean they both have the same purpose. Academic business journals are meant for writers to show off their studies that they have conducted which takes a long period of time. These are meant for audiences high up in the business field and are not necessarily intended for the public. They use formal language and terms that we may not understand as well as an active voice. However, business articles are simplified journals and sometimes just average business news. These are for the public audience and are meant to help keep everyone informed to the latest business news. Knowing the similarities and differences are very important as well as knowing when/how to use them, especially if you’re considering entering this field.

References

Amato. N, 2018, A new playing field for business, retrieved from https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news/2018/jun/sales-tax-collection-small-business-201819210.html

America’s SBDC. Oklahoma, 2015, The role of technology in business, Retrieved from https://www.oksbdc.org/the-role-of-technology-in-business/

Cavusgil.T,S., Kirpalani.V.H., 1993, Introducing products into export markets: success factors, ScienceDirect, 27(1), 1-15, https://doi.org/10.1016/0148-2963(93)90012-E

McDougall, P.P., Shane, S., Oviatt, M.B., 1994, Explaining the formation of international new ventures: the limits of theories from international business research, ScienceDirect, 9(6), 469-487, https://doi.org/10.1016/0883-9026(94)90017-5

Reid.S., 1984, Information acquisition and export entry decisions in small firms, ScienceDirect, 12(2), 141-157, https://doi.org/10.1016/0148-2963(84)90002-X

SAP Success Factors, 2018, Using technology to increase your business productivity, Retrieved from https://www.successfactors.com/en_us/lp/articles/using-technology-to-increase-your-business-productivity.html