In an academic essay, you’ve got 3,000 words to make your point.
In a business email? You’ve got 10 seconds. At best.
Many early-career professionals enter the workforce armed with habits that served them well at university. Academic writing rewarded depth and complexity. Think: meticulous references, complex analysis and sophisticated turns of phrase.
But at work? Business writing demands clarity, simplicity, brevity – and action.
So don’t let formal academic writing habits hold your new grads back. Here are five critical shifts they need to make when they enter the professional world – and why business writing needs to be part of your graduate program.
Shift 1: Writing for busy professionals – not paid professors
At university, students write for a captive audience: lecturers who are paid to read deeply.
But in the workplace, busy professionals won’t plough through pages of dense analysis or walls of text in an email. Instead, they glance, skim and scan – expecting to find the ‘must-know’ – in a matter of seconds.
So, if the message isn’t immediately clear and scannable? It’s ignored. And that costs your business. Time, money and reputation.
Graduates may think they’re showing expertise with lengthy explanations – but they’re creating communication barriers. Helping them understand the mindset of time-poor business readers is critical for their success.
Three behaviours to encourage in your grads:
- Assume your reader is distracted: They’re not sitting down with a cup of tea to savour your every word. They’re scanning on the run between back-to-back meetings.
- Consider what your audience values: Clients care about their bottom line. Managers need to know risks and timelines. Shift your focus from what you find interesting to what they find useful.
- Anticipate questions before they’re asked: Think about what your reader is worried about or what they’ll need clarified. Then address those points upfront.
Shift 2: Driving decisions (instead of demonstrating knowledge)
Academic writing is built on content mastery. You gather evidence, craft arguments and demonstrate your deep understanding of a topic.
In business writing? An email is only useful when it moves a project forward. And a report is only valuable when it helps someone take action. Writing at work succeeds when it drives business outcomes. Graduates often miss this subtle (but strategic) difference.
They think their job is to deliver information. In reality, their job is to guide the reader toward the next step – not dazzle colleagues and clients with everything they know.
Three behaviours to encourage in your grads:
- Stop writing to impress – start writing to serve: Write to give your reader what they need. Quickly.
- State your recommendations clearly: What decision or action will your piece enable? Don’t leave readers guessing.
- Edit ruthlessly for relevance: Respect your reader’s time. Review your draft and cut unnecessary detail and background.
Shift 3: Harnessing the power of plain English
Academic writing is often bloated with puffy, formal language. Think: third-person voice, complex sentences and technical vocabulary.
But effective business writing is grounded in plain English. Simple. Concise. Approachable.
Busy professionals don’t have time to translate unfamiliar jargon or follow complicated sentence structures. They expect clarity, not cleverness.
Plain English also builds trust. When communication is easy to follow, readers are more likely to believe it’s accurate and credible. If new grads can master plain English early, they’ll quickly establish a reputation for reliability – and grow their influence.
- Choose simple words: Say ‘use’ instead of ‘utilise’. And replace technical terms that are unfamiliar to your reader with everyday language.
- Keep sentences short: Aim for 10-15 words per sentence – and try not to exceed 25.
- Use the active voice: ‘We delivered the report’ (active) is sharper and more confident than ‘The report was delivered by us’ (passive).
Shift 4: Structuring for action
In class, students often follow a rigid writing formula: introduction, body, conclusion, references.
But in fast-paced workplaces? Structure needs to serve speed and action.
Enter strategies like scannable bulleted lists. And the Inverted Pyramid Principle – one of the most powerful concepts your new grads can put into practice.
Start with what matters most, then slowly add context for those who want it. This way, the reader gets value even if they stop reading after the first paragraph.
Many new grads resist this flow because it feels ‘backwards’. But it shows respect for the reader’s time. And boosts the chances of readers taking action.
Three behaviours to encourage in your grads:
- Lead with the conclusion: Start with your recommendation, not the background. Don’t bury requests under pleasantries.
- Structure with bullets and headings: Make scanning effortless with clear signposts to keep readers on track.
- Use visuals to illustrate your point: Tables, charts and icons often communicate faster than text. Use them strategically.
Shift 5: Collaborating as a team
At university, writing is largely a solo pursuit. It’s a linear process and follows a familiar flow each time.
In business, it’s often collaborative. It’s shaped by team feedback and shifts as business needs change.
This two-way process isn’t just about correcting errors. It’s about sharpening impact – and presenting a unified story that supports the whole organisation.
Grads need to embrace this dynamic, not resist it.
Three behaviours to encourage in your grads:
- Seek input – early: Share drafts to check alignment and incorporate changes at the beginning. Not the end. Team feedback will reveal gaps you can’t see alone.
- Embrace shared ownership: Treat every draft as a team project – not an individual product. Your name may be on the file, but the outcome belongs to the group.
- Give and receive feedback constructively: Don’t take edits personally. Focus on the shared goal. Expect priorities or data to change mid-draft. Adapt quickly instead of clinging to your original plan.
Imagine your entire graduate intake writing with confidence and clarity – from week one. Emails answered. Reports read. Proposals driving decisions.
Enrol your new grads in Business Writing Essentials. They’ll gain the skills to structure for impact, scrub away jargon – and craft messages that get results.