Memo is short for memorandum, a Latin word meaning ‘something to
bring to mind’. In other words, it is a reminder or note for future reference.
That means it doesn’t have to be too formal, but it should be
to the point. That way, the people who receive a memo only have to
read what is important.
Memos are a form of internal communication. An internal communication
is a way of sharing information inside an organisation. For example,
a team leader may send team members a memo about a forthcoming
meeting. Managers may send memos to their staff to announce
organisation news.
A memo is generally used to share brief information. It might give
team members new instructions or directions. A human resources department
might send a memo about a new organisation policy or procedure.
Employees use memos to provide short reports about projects
and to update information.
If there is a lot of information to give to people, this may be written as
a report or set of guidelines which is then circulated to staff with a
covering memo. A covering memo will explain what the longer document
is about, who should read it or where it should be kept.
Memos are useful because they provide written records of conversations,
meetings, or decisions. If a report or minutes of a meeting
would be too formal to use, a memo can be used in their place.
A memo puts information into an easy-to-read format. The format uses
four short headings at the top of the first page.
TO: (The person who is to receive the memo)
FROM: (The person who is sending the memo)
DATE: (The day on which the memo is sent)
SUBJECT: (What the memo is about)
The body of a memo can include the following:
A summary of the information
Details about the information
A request for some kind of action