INSTRUCTIONS: You are part of a team at a new company where you will need to create a few general, or very specific, guidelines or policies for how your employees should communicate with the public and/or other businesses. For example, this could be for customer service employees in a retail establishment or a sales force at a technology company. Although you may have a clear understanding of what you expect, remember that you will be working in a team. The team will decide what goes into this document. Also, while it may be clear to you and others in your discussion, will the intended meaning be the received the same way by your intended audience when they read it?
Form groups of three to five students. Pick at least two people you do not know. Scan through the key sections and explanations of the Heinz Ethics and Compliance document. You do NOT need to read the entire document closely; however, you should pay close attention to Guidelines 1.0 and 2.0. This is an example of how one company treats its communication guidelines. After your group finishes, you will need to do the following:
1. Choose a company (real or fictitious) in a specific industry that your group will work for.
2. Discuss and agree on a handful of expectations for two sections: 1.0 General Policies and 2.0 Brand and Product Guidelines. (If your company provides a service, substitute that for "product.")
3. Create a document that includes the name of your company, what it does, the names of your team members, the intended audience and your company's two guidelines.