13 Memos
The Memo(randum)
Memos are one of the most common and most useful professional documents. They’re used almost as frequently as email for “in house” (internal) communications, but they serve a slightly different purpose. While email is often used to communicate on an individual (one-on-one) basis or within a small group/team, memos are typically targeted at a much wider audience, possibly even an entire department or organization.
In many cases, emails are part of a conversation – someone sends one to you, you reply back to them, they reply to you, and so on – but memos are a more directed communication; they’re most often used to inform, though they can be used for persuasive purposes as well. Typically, memos are used to pass along information about policies, procedures – or changes to either or both – or to address larger issues that the wider audience needs to know about.
Let’s turn to GenAI for a little help demonstrating the uses of a memo. I asked Google Gemini to generate a short profile of a medium-sized technology company that we can use as a basis for some sample memos:
Profile: Lumina Systems Group (LSG)
Lumina Systems Group is a premier Managed IT Services and Cybersecurity firm that specializes in scaling digital infrastructure for mid-to-large enterprises. Founded on the principle of “Reliability at Scale,” LSG bridges the gap between boutique tech consultancies and global outsourcing giants.
Company Overview
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Industry: Information Technology & Services
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Total Headcount: ~2,400 employees
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Headquarters: Austin, Texas
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Core Focus: Cloud Migration, Zero-Trust Cybersecurity, and AI-driven Data Analytics.
Different companies would have different specific internal communication needs, but one common issue would be a need to inform their workforce of a change in policy or procedure, often caused by external factors like the economy, demographic shifts, or changes in the state/federal government.
(Relax, I’m not going to quiz anyone later on what sorts of things might cause a company to need a memo. It’s just specifics for the example.)
I asked Gemini to give me a short list of five possible policies or procedures Lumina might need to change based on the economic impacts of the federal government’s 2025 tariff policies:
In light of the significant 2025 federal tariff shifts—which saw average effective rates on IT hardware and components jump from roughly 2.5% to 14%—Lumina Systems Group (LSG) would likely need to overhaul several internal policies to protect its margins and operational stability.
The following five policy changes address the direct and indirect impacts of these economic pressures:
1. Hardware Procurement & “Cloud-First” Infrastructure Policy
With tariffs on laptops, servers, and networking gear driving up physical equipment costs by 5% to 20%, LSG may need to shift its internal and client-facing infrastructure standards.
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The Change: Implement a “Cloud-Native Mandatory” policy for new internal projects to minimize the purchase of physical on-premises servers subject to high tariffs.
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Impact: Reduces the capital expenditure (CapEx) burden of imported hardware by shifting costs to software-as-a-service (SaaS) and domestic cloud providers.
2. Dynamic “Tariff-Adjusted” Pricing & Contracting
Fixed-rate, long-term service contracts are risky in a volatile trade environment where hardware costs (like Cisco switches or HPE servers) can spike with little notice.
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The Change: Update Master Service Agreements (MSAs) to include Tariff Surcharge Clauses. These allow LSG to pass through documented, government-imposed tariff increases on hardware directly to the client rather than absorbing the cost.
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Impact: Protects LSG’s 20-30% service margins from being eroded by unpredictable hardware price hikes.
3. Supplier Diversification & Compliance Policy
The 2025 “reciprocal tariffs” specifically targeted manufacturing hubs like China and India. LSG’s procurement team would need to move away from a “single-source” model.
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The Change: Mandate a Dual-Sourcing Requirement for all critical hardware, requiring at least one primary or secondary vendor to be located in a USMCA-compliant country (Canada/Mexico) or a tariff-exempt region.
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Impact: Ensures continuity of supply and provides a “safety valve” if tariffs on one specific country increase further.
4. Inventory Stockpiling & Cash Flow Management
Traditionally, tech firms operate on “Just-in-Time” (JIT) inventory to save costs. However, the 2025 environment rewards “Just-in-Case” (JIC) strategies to beat upcoming tariff deadlines.
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The Change: Establish a Strategic Reserve Policy that authorizes the purchase and storage of 6–12 months of high-turnover hardware (laptops, routers) in advance of announced tariff implementation dates.
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Impact: Uses LSG’s cash reserves to hedge against future price increases, ensuring they can fulfill client needs at lower historical costs.
5. Accelerated AI Deployment for Operational Efficiency
To offset the increased cost of doing business, mid-sized firms in 2025 are aggressively using technology to reduce internal labor and administrative overhead.
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The Change: Introduce an Internal AI-First Productivity Initiative, requiring all non-technical departments (Accounting, HR, Sales) to automate at least 15% of manual reporting or data-entry tasks using GenAI.
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Impact: Offsets the “Tariff Tax” by lowering the overall cost of operations, allowing the company to remain competitive despite rising material costs.
We don’t need to understand what those specific policies or procedures mean to understand the point: if Lumina made any of those changes, they would impact the entire company and change the way its workforce goes about doing their jobs. And that would be something Lumina would need to inform its employees about.
I asked Gemini to do exactly that: draft a memo to outline policy change #5: Accelerated AI Deployment for Operational Efficiency:
To: All Staff
From: Executive Leadership Team
Date: January 22, 2026
Subject: Launching the “Lumina Catalyst” Initiative: Empowering Our Workforce Through AI
[This is the Header Block. Notice how similar it is to the header on an email. The ‘To” and “From” sections are especially important as they let the audience know how wide ranging this message is.]
Team,
As we navigate the shifting economic landscape of 2026—marked by new federal trade policies and rising hardware costs—Lumina Systems Group (LSG) is committed to staying agile. While external factors like tariffs impact our industry’s “physical” costs, we have a unique opportunity to lead by optimizing our “digital” operations.
Today, we are excited to announce the Lumina Catalyst Initiative. Our goal is to integrate AI-driven productivity tools across all non-technical departments (Accounting, HR, Sales, and Operations) to automate 15% of routine administrative tasks by the end of Q3.
[This is the introduction or the “summary” section. It’s there to let the audience know the purpose of the memo. One thing to be aware of – in some cases, this section is used almost like a TL;DR (too long, didn’t read) for an audience that doesn’t read the entire memo. Don’t include anything here that isn’t elaborated on later in the memo.]
Why Now?
The 2025 tariff updates have increased the cost of the hardware we rely on. To remain competitive and protect our growth without passing every cost to our clients, we must work smarter. By reducing “the grind”—those repetitive, manual data-entry and reporting tasks—we can offset rising external costs with internal efficiency.
[The “discussion” section of the memo starts here. This particular sample memo uses headings to divide the discussion into smaller sub-sections. Different companies have different ways of doing that – many have internal templates for how to put together a memo – but this is always the longest section of the memo. It is, as the name suggests, the place where you discuss the issue at hand.]
What This Means for You
This is not about replacing the talent that makes LSG great; it is about upskilling our team.
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Focus on High-Value Work: We want our Accountants to spend more time on financial strategy, not manual reconciliations. We want our HR team focused on culture and talent, not processing forms.
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Professional Growth: Mastering AI tools is becoming a core competency in the tech industry. This initiative includes dedicated training to ensure every employee is “AI-literate,” making you more effective in your current role and more marketable for the future.
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The 15% Goal: We are asking each department to identify the “soul-crushing” tasks that consume your time and work with our internal IT task force to automate them.
Next Steps
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Town Hall: Join us next Tuesday at 10:00 AM CST for a virtual session where we will demo the new “Catalyst Toolkit.”
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Department Audits: Over the next two weeks, Department Heads will host brainstorming sessions to identify the specific workflows most ripe for automation.
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Training: Look for an invite to our “AI Foundations” workshop series starting in February.
We believe that by automating the routine, we liberate the remarkable. Your expertise and creativity are our most valuable assets, and we are committed to giving you the tools to let them shine.
[This last section of the memo is often referred to as the “recommendation”, though it might also be called the “call to action”, “next steps”, or “follow up.” It’s used to lay out a path forward and present the audience with concrete steps or procedures they will need to follow OR information about what further steps the company itself will be taking.]
Onward,
The Executive Leadership Team Lumina Systems Group
[The closing is important – it lets the audience know who to contact or who has made the decisions that led to the memo in the first place.]
The sample memo shows the distinct parts and highlights the specific conventions that need to be followed when writing a memo. It’s worth noting that GenAI can (obviously) write a passable memo, but in most cases the human touch is still needed. Chatbots can miss certain things or make errors just as human writers can and they’re also not an actual part of the company/business and can’t account for particulars or peculiarities that are unique to a given company.
Tips for Effective Memos
- Tone: Like most business-based communications, a memo should be written in a professional or formal tone. In our sample memo, the message was coming from the “Executive Leadership Team” which means that the writer was representing the boss. Whenever you’re representing the company’s leadership or the company as a whole, it’s best to be as professional as possible.
- Consider it Legal: Memos can often be binding legal documents and, as such, they need to be precise, accurate, and error free.
- Audience-Focused: In our sample memo, the document established things that the audience was going to need to do. That’s common for memos and means that they need to be focused on making sure they’re centered on the audience. Be concise, clear, and unambiguous. Leaving any room for the audience to be confused is leaving room for major problems down the line.
- Organize: Think about the times you’ve gotten some kind of professional communication – like an email or letter from your college or a notification from the DMV – what do you do when you read it? If your answer was anything but ‘skim it, looking for the important parts’, you’re a liar. It’s how most people read official documents. Memos are no different. Consider putting the most important information at the beginning of the document, so as to ensure someone can find it and read it quickly.
