Opening Initiative Correspondence

As we have seen, you write an initiative document when the reader has not requested it from you. The reader is likely not even expecting to hear from you. This is what distinguishes the opening for initiative correspondence from the opening for responsive correspondence. While responsive correspondence must begin with a responsive reminder, initiative correspondence often begins with a brief statement of the context.

Like the responsive opening, an initiative document still must answer the reader’s first question: “What is this document about?”

Whether the purpose is explicitly stated or not, the reader needs to understand it readily when reading the opening of the document.

Here are some examples of initiative openings:

• The fire department will be conducting tests in several of our buildings this week. This e-mail is to inform you of procedures to follow if you are affected by any of these tests. …
• Given the department’s requirements for data published on the web, I would like to recommend that our data publishing date be changed from the beginning to the end of every month. …
• I am writing to request leave for the period July 1 to July 31 of this year. …