Business Communication (Harvard Business Essentials)

Rating:
Summary: "Essential," Yes, But Also Invaluable
Review: This is one of the volumes in the new Harvard Business School Essentials Series. Each offers authoritative answers to the most important questions concerning its specific subject. The material in this book is drawn from a variety of sources which include the Harvard Business School Press and the Harvard Business Review as well as Harvard ManageMentor®, an online service. Each volume is indeed "a highly practical resource for readers with all levels of experience." And each is by intent and in execution solution-oriented. Although I think those who have only recently embarked on a business career will derive the greatest benefit, the material is well-worth a periodic review from by senior-level executives.

Richard Luecke assembles in this book (and in all of the issues in the series) cutting edge thinking. In this volume, he was assisted by a subject adviser, Professor Mary Munter of the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and they organize the material within nine chapters. Here are their titles:

1. Good Writing (It Begins with Principles)
2. Start-Up Strategies (Your Launch Point)
3. The First Draft (Getting It Down)
4. Getting It Right ((The Editing Craft)
5. Everyday Writing (Memos, Letters, and E-Mails)
6. Presentations (Timeless Principles)
7. Backstage (Preparing Your Presentation8. Show Time (Making an Effective Delivery)
9. Dialogue (The Ultimate Communication)

If you need assistance with mastering essentials in only one of these areas, I urge you to purchase a copy of this book ASAP. Luecke is an uncommonly clear thinker and writer. Thoughtfully, he provides a "Summing Up" section at the end of each chapter to facilitate a review of key points. There are two other books which I also presume to recommend highly: Kevin Ryan's recently published Write Up the Corporate Ladder and William K. Zinnser's On Writing, 25th Anniversary: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction.