I was invited by the The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) to conduct a session on “Business English” at The Lords Plaza on Wednesday 30 January 2019. It was a great experience.

I began with a diagnostic test to generate interest in business writing. The activity clicked as expected. I discussed some apparently simple but grossly neglected areas of writing. The participants were curious to know how English is used in international business contexts. They wanted to know if there were some tips they could use right away. I discussed quite a few conventions of writing letters, emails and reports.

The most interesting part of the session was an activity to learn editing. The participants had a hands-on experience of editing a slipshod mail. They realised that apart from grammatical accuracy, one has to aim at style and elegance. Though the focus was on written communication, I did have a few question about pronunciation in different varieties of English. The session ended with a short but sweet speech from a participant.

Thank you ICSI for inviting me. I look forward to more such sessions.