In most professional settings, writers use letterhead stationery for memos.

Proposals can be presented as memos or as reports. Memos are more popular for brief documents (fewer than five pages), whereas reports are more popular for longer documents.

The writers include their titles and that of their primary reader. This way, future readers will be able to readily identify the reader and writers.

The subject heading indicates the subject of the memo (the tablet study at Rawlings Regional Medical Center) and the purpose of the memo (proposal).

As discussed in Ch. 9, memos of more than one page should begin with a clear statement of purpose. Here, the writers communicate the primary purpose of the document in one sentence.

Memos of more than one page should contain a summary to serve as an advance organizer or to help readers who want only an overview of the document.

Although the writers are writing to Dr. Bremerton, they refer to her in the third person to suggest the formality of their relationship.

The background of the problem. Don’t assume that your reader knows what you are discussing, even if it was the reader who suggested the project in the first place.

The problem at the heart of the project.