Respond to the following student's email.
"To: Mr. Rodgers, Chairman and CEO of Cypress Semiconductor Corporation
From: Student, Vice President of Investor Relations
Date: March 19, 2017
Subject: The Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia Response Letter
Good evening Mr. Rodgers -
In regards to your response letter to Sister Doris, there will need to be some changes before it leaves your desk to protect the company's image. As you are aware, as soon as the letter leaves your desk with your signature on it, Sister Doris will be able to do as she pleases with it, including, use it against the company and you, when necessary (O'Rourke, 2013)1. The response can respectfully disagree with her request of wanting to see more diversity throughout the board members; however, with fewer company and general facts and make it more direct as to why you cannot accommodate her request at this time. Also, the message tone needs to come across in a more considerate, sincere manner versus an "angry tone" (O'Rourke, 2013)2. By showing her that you are willing to take into consideration her request, when the timing is appropriate, she may be able to vote for the proposed plan you outlined in your letter.
We need to portray that we would have a more diverse team of board members if the demographics were more appealing for that. Emphasize that we select our members based on a specific criteria, "experience as a CEO of an important technology company, direct expertise in the semiconductor business based on education and management experience, and direct experience in the management of a company that buys from the semiconductor industry (O'Rourke, 2013)3. We know that this specific criteria "yields a male at the age of 50+" and there are "currently few minorities and almost no women," in the industry; however, this demographic is steadily changing and should be "dramatically different in 10 years" (O'Rourke, 2013)4. To further persuade Sister Doris that we are open to having a more diverse board, we can inform her that we are open to "embrace[-ing] the opportunity to include any woman or minority person who could help us as a director, because we pursue talent; it does not matter where or whom the talent comes from (O'Rourke, 2013)5. It would be important to highlight a part of the company's mission which states that, "we are committed to the success of our customer, the development of our employees, and the increase of shareholder value" (Cypress Semiconductor Corporation, 2017)6. We pride ourselves on taking care of our employees and pleasing shareholders. The plan proposed covers healthcare, education, profit-shares, personal computers, paid time off, etc. for all of our employees. We need to take care of them first, considering they are the ones creating and putting into the completion of our products that are distributed in the market. You should also highlight that, we need her participation in doing so, to ensure that our employees are taken care of. Also, inform Sister Doris that while getting this proposed plan into motion, we will be actively looking for new openings within the market to ensure we have a more diverse team; however, as mentioned earlier, this may take longer than one to two years, being that we predict the demographics will shift in about 10 years.
In closing, we need to keep this letter brief, but clear and concise. We should be able to present the facts to Sister Doris, to see that it's not that we do not want a diverse board, but that the demographics for diversity is yet to change. By getting her to see that we are open to creating a more diverse team, and are trying to take care of our employees in the process, would show the company is compassionate and understanding to all. For further elaboration, please contact me at 555-555-555, ext. 123.
Thanks,
Student
Vice President of Investor Relations"
References:
1. O'Rourke, IV, James S.. (2013) Documents Take on Lives of Their Own. Management Communication, A Case-Analysis Approach. (5th edition). p. 9
2. O'Rourke, IV, James S.. (2013) Documents Take on Lives of Their Own. Management Communication, A Case-Analysis Approach. (5th edition). p. 122- 123
3. O'Rourke, IV, James S.. (2013) Cypress Semiconductor Corporation. Management Communication, A Case-Analysis Approach. (5th edition). p. 132
4. O'Rourke, IV, James S.. (2013) Cypress Semiconductor Corporation. Management Communication, A Case-Analysis Approach. (5th edition). p. 132 - 133
5. O'Rourke, IV, James S.. (2013) Cypress Semiconductor Corporation. Management Communication, A Case-Analysis Approach. (5th edition). p. 133
6. Cypress Embedded in Tomorrow. Date Retrieved, 2017 March 19. Our Mission. Retrieved from: https://www.cypress.com/about-cypress
Response:
Your feedback and follow-up questions must have substance. Give substantive feedback to this student's initial post. Go beyond simply writing a critical analysis of the student's post. You may, for instance, assess the situation Rodgers is in and assess how the student reacted to it. You may also do a comparison between your and the student's analysis, an analysis of today's situation, and so on. Cite your sources in your feedback too!
Good feedback also addresses the value and usefulness of specific recommendations, the appropriate application of concepts, suggestions, constructive comments, an assessment of the situation, the outcome of specific recommendations, an evaluation of the discussion questions, and how they can be integrated in the email, and so on.
Substantive feedback usually entails the use of external sources to give the discussion a new direction. When you use external sources, cite your sources in APA style (go to https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/06/).
Feedback goes beyond creative response to classmate and shows the relationship between the concepts discussed in the book and the theoretical approach explained in the journal article - constructively evaluates classmate's response in light of the assigned material; response includes external source. In-text citation and references are correctly cited in APA style. Example: "I really like how you explained everything in your forum. You have made very good and valid points, and I couldn't have agreed more! However, I think you should have included the two-year colleges and the career and technical colleges that are in the area as well because they are an important demographic. Here's a link to a Harvard Review article which explains the importance of this group of colleges and points out ... ."
Discussion Response Guidelines:
- "One-liners" and "I agree" statements that aren't supported with an explanation are useless and won't receive any credit.
- Your replies should indicate that you have critically considered the merits of the original post, and offer commentary and critical evaluation of the post in a "substantive" fashion.
- Substantive replies:
- Critically evaluate the original post made by a peer and cite alternate examples and information from sources that may contradict OR support a point made in the original post;
- Relate aspects of that post to text readings or supplemental readings or videos when relevant and not addressed in the original post;
- Add or relate additional information from outside sources to the situation discussed by the peer, and or
- Offer and justify additional recommendations.
- It is important that you demonstrate respect for the diverse opinions of others.
- Minimum 500 words or more in your response.
Please read ALL instructions carefully before constructing your answer. Please note the answer will be extensively checked for any and all forms of plagiarism before accepted.