Argument essay/ APA Format

Genre format: an argumentative report (with Title Page). This report assignment requires the same content elements as Doc Three’s—with one change (to the APA format) and one addition (confronting opponents’ points). Since reports are the most formal genres, avoid personal pronouns; for instance, use “management,” not “I,” “we,” etc. A report’s author usually is not visible at all.

Audience:The company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO)—your boss. You can make up a name and a company (or even use your own job: summer or part-time one) to add more details and realism to this report.

Purpose: To argue—you are the manager of one department (you can make up details), and the CEO has asked you to choose one of the options below in order to solve the explained problem. To persuade the CEO to accept your choice, you will need to offer research and to confront opposing choices (i.e., explain why the other choices will not succeed). (Note: Assume that your reader [your boss] will understand what you mean by “Option One,” “Option Two,” etc. since he or she gave you this assignment. Do not give the CEO unnecessary information.)

The Problem: Six months ago, your boss hired an assistant manager for your department, Deborah Douglas, the company’s first female manager, a fact that was promoted and publicized in the industry. The company had hired Douglas straight out of college (Roger Williams University) as an analyst, and from that job, she steadily moved up over a ten-year period. Throughout the years, Douglas did have occasional mental health issues, but she sought treatment (rumored for bipolar disorder). In fact, her bipolar disorder never affected her job, and she was praised (an article was even written about her) for overcoming her obstacles. For the first three months as Assistant Manager, Douglas did well in your department, but only by following the ideas that had already been started by her predecessor. Since then, her performance has fallen off badly, and she has begun to behave erratically, showing more bipolar disorder symptoms. You have not yet discussed these problems with her. Douglas seems reluctant to take command and to give orders; thus, she is not taking risks or initiatives. In fact, you have noticed that she seems increasingly disengaged with co-workers and clients. The CEO has laid out four possible options and wants you to recommend which to take (your report should cover why your choice, not the others, is the right one).

1. Option One: Crossed Fingers. Allow Douglas to solve this problem alone; after all, her past experience (at RWU and in the company) shows her competence. Go out of the way to converse with her, though, but do not be critical or judgmental. In an informal way (perhaps in the break room when just you and she are present), ask her how she’s doing and how she likes his job. Ask if she would like any help. Then offer her a new project that is not too challenging and that involves a departmental presentation (in two weeks), thus improving her chance for success and recognition. However, do not hover over her or even monitor her; give her three months overall to make improvements herself and then analyze the situation.

2. Option Two: Smiles. Take Douglas to lunch. Rather than tell her why you think she is failing lately, build her morale and confidence by being totally positive about her six-month job performance (offer positive, mostly true details about the performance, esp the first three months). Invite her to a viewing of an upbeat “Communication Skills” video by suggesting that she would find it interesting; show it during a box-lunch in your office. Then collaborate on some reasonable and relevant objectives for success during the next quarter (three months). Also, plan a departmental outing (to a game, a movie, etc.) with the goal of integrating her into the department.

3. Option Three: Smiles and Frowns. Recognize that although Douglas knows the theory of the job, she cannot turn that theory into practice. Thus, call her into your office and explain the facts: both the pluses and minuses of her job performance. Highlight all the good work she has done at the company over the past ten years. Balance that information with the recent problems. Mention that peers are also having some problems (bit of a lie). Schedule some training sessions in-house for both Douglas and another newer team member or two. In these sessions, brainstorm ideas concerning the application of the job’s theory, role play situations, and then assess her job performance (in a one-on-one meeting in your office) in three months.

4. Option Four: Frowns. Take a direct and hands-on approach by setting up a one-on-one appointment with Douglas in your office at the end of the day. Be “brutally” honest: explain the facts and your concerns. Make a chart showing outcomes and due dates, and clearly communicate the effects of failing to meet the outcomes: termination. Be pro-active. Require individual training sessions (run by a successful colleague) and a weekly action plan. With the colleague and Douglas, go over the plan and the performance every week (after hours on Fridays). Be direct and clear about the performance results—and possible repercussions.

   Note that no right or wrong answer exists, that “firing” is not an option (at this time), and that you must choose one of the four above, not a combination of two or more (choosing one is more rhetorically challenging than picking ideas from each).

   To see how to create Doc 4’s different content elements, check my Doc Four Report Model: “Integrating Pets.” As this model shows, the Title Page is easy (hardest part is wording the title). My model’s References list and in-text APA use show that this new format has both similarities and differences compared to the MLA. For your own References list, offer at least three quality sources (that’s a bare minimum, and I would find more sources), and by “quality,” I mean this: Instead of using statistics from a newspaper article, find the study that the article’s writer used. You might want to research motivational tactics, managerial techniques, business trends, information about bipolar disorder—anything that relates to and supports your ideas. A personal interview with a qualified relevant source also provides effective research, but you would never want all interviews as your research. Offer a variety of sources and don’t use the same source more than twice in a row (good general advice).

   Note that my Doc 4 model report (“Integrating Pets” one) shows you the classic way to confront your opposition—early in your argument: I do so in my first heading section. For your report, you must consider the arguments against your purpose statement (your option choice) and deal with them somewhere in your report: in one or more body paragraphs. Remember to concede if you have to, but to refute if you can. Also, remember that Doc 4’s purpose is to argue, unlike Doc 3’s, which was just to explain. Thus, in this last report, you do not want to explain pros and cons for each option; instead, you want to argue for one option over the others: that purpose cannot be expressed too often!

   This final paper reflects all of the course outcomes from the syllabus:

• employ a variety of effective genres in response to recurring academic, public, and/or professional situations (Genre Knowledge)—the switch to an argumentative report represents the most challenging paper possible, as well as the need to confront opposing points. A Title Page and the use of a different citation format (APA this time) also shows slight genre shifts.

• apply rhetorical concepts (context, audience, and purpose, exigence, epistemology, kairos) to academic, public, and/or professional situations (Rhetorical Knowledge)—motivation and timing play an important part in the situation above because the employee needs fairly immediate help. Know your audience by not simply repeating the options, but instead by arguing for one.

• engage complex subject matter (Subject-Matter Knowledge)—the four options reveal dozens of potential topics, and you will need to consider all of them when making your option choice.

• analyze, engage with, and document sources in accordance with discourse community expectations and standards (Discourse Community Knowledge)—as with the last report, this one requires scholarly research: the library databases again. No matter your field, you will use these databases when you write papers in future courses.

• engage in thoughtful, reflective practices (Meta-cognitive Knowledge)—with an argumentative paper, you have multiple ideas to juggle, and you need to be objective when analyzing the content and delivery skills shown by your report.

• apply sophisticated revisions strategies to achieve paper or project goals (Process Knowledge )—you will need to apply everything you learned in Critical Writing to this last paper.

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