Administrative Assistant's Update

7 Administrative Assistant's UPDATE Adviser or advisor? What's your style? By George Pearson AAU Editor Does your department or organization have a style guide? The kind of loose usage that char- acterizes informal communications (random capitalization, commas or dashes inconsistently sprinkled about) is not appropriate in business. Lapses in grammar, spelling and word choice can be a distraction. So it's just good practice to be singing from the same song book when pre- paring formal communications inside and outside the organization. Consis- tency is critical. Some common references A common reference for business writers is the Canadian Oxford Dictionary. Another really handy reference is the pocket-sized Oxford Canadian A to Z of Grammar, Spelling & Punctuation. It's quite user friendly. Another you might consider is the Canadian Press Stylebook, along with its Caps and Spelling partner, both available in online formats. One or more of these references will answer most of your questions, but not all. Some questions of word choice and capitalization, for example, are not about what is correct or incorrect but rather what your preference is. That's where a style guide customized to your particular use is essential. Advisor or adviser? For example, which word is correct: advisor or adviser? Neither is incor - rect. What is incorrect is to use both forms within the same document or group of documents. (The Canadian Press Caps and Spelling specifies adviser for its users.) Whichever your organization prefers, be consistent. Put it in your style guide. Capitalization can vary depend- ing upon an organization's style. For example, titles of reports may have all words capitalized (Diversity In Manu- facturing And Office Support Groups At ABC Corporation) or use the more common modified down-style (Diver- sity in Manufacturing and Office Sup- port Groups at ABC Corporation). Caps can be tricky In modified down-style, conjunctions and prepositions of specified length (usually four or fewer letters) are not capitalized. All other words, includ- ing the first and last words of a title, are capitalized: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. (Note that Is is capitalized. It is a verb, not a conjunction or prepo- sition. Don't let the short length fool you. It's a common error.) So your style guide will deal with usage for which there is no right an- swer but for which your organization has a preference. It will also deal with the correct presentation of your organization's name(s), divisions, subsidiaries and so on. What is or is not abbreviated? It will also cover the exact wording and capitalization of the organization's executive and other positions. Title or job description? Job descriptions (senior accountant, assistant manager) are generally not capitalized, whereas formal titles pre- ceding names (Senior Vice-President Jane Doe) often are. Your style guide will specify how titles in your organi- zation are to be handled. In short, use one or more existing writing reference resources for most style questions. Use your own style guide for issues unique to your orga- nization. Some style questions • % or per cent? • April, 2018 or April 2018? • 12 noon or 12:00 p.m.? • 11:00 a.m. or 11 a.m.? • first or 1st? • e-mail or email? • and or & (ampersand)? • (416) 222-2222 or 416-222-2222? Developing your style guide • Keep it as brief as possible. • It's for writing style only. Document-formatting guidelines generally belong in a separate document. • It's a reference guide, not a textbook. Leave grammar questions for a grammar reference. • Don't harangue people into using it. It should be de- signed to be helpful and encourage consistency across your group or organization. If it's concise, useful and accessible, your colleagues will appreciate it and want to use it – and even contribute to it! • Designate a person or team to receive and process comments and suggested revisions to keep your style guide up to date and responsive to current practices and needs.

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