Guide to Writing Argumentative Essays in Management: Tips from Experts

What Is an Argumentative Essay in Management?

An argumentative essay is an essay that discusses both sides of a specific issue. Various ideas may be presented equally, or one side may be shown more forcefully in comparison with another side, depending on the writer’s position regarding the particular topic. The main goal of an argumentative essay is to approach the problem from various angels and provide a different perspective on the issue. This type of essay requires one to conduct thorough research and gather and evaluate a considerable amount of data. The argumentative essays in management aim to cover different concepts about organizing, coordinating, and planning that are the basis of management studies. As management studies and theories greatly expanded over the last decades, numerous debatable and even controversial approaches appeared. Argumentative essays in management analyze strong and weak sides of various aspects of these approaches and provide the audience with a full understanding of the topic.

Choosing a Topic for an Argumentative Essay

As a usual rule, choosing a topic for an argumentative essay in management comes without difficulties as there is a wide range of issues and problems that may be discussed in the management studies. However, it is crucial to pay attention and choose a topic that was not widely discussed and explained before or approach this issue from a new perspective otherwise.

Some of the examples of argumentative essays in management include:

Cultural Differences in Various Approaches to Managing People;
Is an Effective Manager an Effective Leader?
The Significance of Stress Reduction Strategies;
Successful Management of Human Resources;
Different Approaches to Team Building;
Manager’s Response to Crisis;
Challenges of Supply Chain Management;
The Evolving Nature of Team Work;
Understanding the Difference between Leadership and Management;
Management of Diversity in the Changing Era of Globalization and Modernization.

Pre-Writing Tips

In case the topic was not provided by the professor, the student should choose one on his/her own. Selecting a topic is the first and most crucial part of the pre-writing process. One of the essential aspects that one needs to realize is that the process of developing a topic for an argumentative essay in management is specific in several ways. Firstly, one who is considering different issues for an argumentative essay in management should avoid selecting those topics they feel passionate about because of the possibility of bias. The student should remain focused on providing the audience with information supported by facts and data but without any indications of partiality. Another important aspect is the need to focus on a narrow and specific topic, without deepening into unnecessary or irrelevant details.

The next step is making a thorough research on the topic. The author should gather enough relevant material in order to write a successful argumentative essay. The students should not overestimate their knowledge on the issue. Even if they have prior knowledge about the topic, that is crucial to broaden that knowledge by conducting research and gathering additional information. One may start by reviewing reading materials from the class on the subject, lecture notes, or presentation slides. After gaining the necessary information, it is time to create the paper’s structure and a thesis statement. One may write down all the aspects they aim to cover in the essay and organize it properly. One may consider using secondary sources to gain more information for analysis after the structure of the essay is formed. One may use numerous management journals that contain a wide variety of relevant articles to find evidence to support their points. There should be created a considerable base of sources that one should use to support their claims and points. The successful argumentative essay is based on the facts and data that come from reliable and credible sources.

While working on the development of the essay structure, the student should focus on covering the most important details and leaving out the irrelevant information for the particular issue. There are several strategies that may help conduct productive research. Firstly, one may write down on paper any thoughts regarding the topic that come to their mind, without considering their relevance. Such a strategy is called free writing, and it allows creating the general image of the paper. After all the ideas were written down, the student may analyze them and highlight the most crucial. Another way to make the paper meaningful and deep is called questions asking. While forming an essay structure, one may ask themselves such questions:

Why should anyone be interested in this particular topic?
Why is it significant to discuss this issue?
What value does the presented information contain?
Why is it important to include this point?
Is there anything else I have to say about this topic?

While preparing for writing the essay, it is essential to consider the target audience. The class assignment that will be read only by the instructor and the paper for the conference should be written in different ways. One should focus on writing in such a way that is expected from his/her and focus on the necessary details.

Structure of an Informative Essay

The structure of an argumentative essay is not any different from a typical structure of an academic essay. The paper starts with an introduction that explains why the audience should be interested in the presented topic. A well-constructed thesis statement is the most critical part of the introductory paragraph that usually is the last sentence of the introduction. The next part is the body paragraphs. They should include background information, supporting evidence, and counterargument to address all the aspects of the topic. Usually, the argumentative essay contains three body paragraphs, but if the discussed topic is complicated, it is reasonable to write more body paragraphs. The last part of the paper is the conclusion where one should sum up all the presented information and restate the thesis statement.

Outline

An argumentative essay in management starts with an introduction that contains one or two paragraphs. The purpose of the introduction is to set up and state the main argument. The introductory paragraph should be interesting and drawing the readers’ attention. Additionally, background information should be provided as it will allow understanding the author’s central claim. While writing the argumentative essay in management, it is essential to give a brief explanation of the concepts or theories that will be discussed in the paper. The thesis statement is a vital part of the introduction that should be written at the end of the introductory paragraph. It presents one’s main argument in a clear and understandable way.

The next part is the background part. Background is an optional paragraph and may be omitted in some papers. In such cases, this information is included in the introduction part. The purpose of the background paragraph is to provide the basis for proving one’s claim. The necessary elements are a summary of the discussed sources, the definition of the key terms, or explanation of the related management theories or concepts.

The next paragraph is the first supporting evidence paragraph. The purpose of this part is to prove the argument. One presents the specific item or detail that will allow the audience to gain a better understanding of the issue. The evidence should be introduced either in a few words or in a full sentence that will prove the claimed fact. The supporting evidence should contain either direct quotes or in-text citations from reliable sources to provide a credible background for the claims. After that, one should explain the evidence and provide their interpretation of it. The explanation of the evidence should show how this evidence proves the point that one wants to make in this paragraph. There should be at least two supporting evidence paragraphs, but there can be more in case the topic is complicated and requires in-depth discussion.

The last paragraph of the main body part should be the counterargument paragraph. The main goal of this part is to provide the audience with the opposite perspective of the issue and make the essay more objective in this way. While writing the counterargument, the student should anticipate the objections that the readers can rise while reading the essay. One should carefully consider all of the possible arguments that may be posed against some aspects of their claims. After that, they should insert one or more of those arguments in the essay and refute them.

The conclusion paragraph should consist of two parts. Firstly, one may consider reminding the audience of the argument and all the supporting evidence that was used. This includes restating essay’s overall claim and supporting evidence. The conclusion should not include any new information or evidence that was not discussed before. Secondly, the conclusion should illustrate the significance of the issue and why one dedicated their time to research this particular topic instead of some other topics. The conclusion should not include the simply restated thesis statement, but illustrate that the author gained a more complex understanding of the topic. What is more important, by the end of the paper, the reader has to understand what was argued in the paper and be ready to hear the larger point.

Post-Writing Tips

After the draft of the essay is finished, there are a few essential steps that would help complete a successful argumentative essay in management. For instance, it is essential to proofread the paper and check it for vocabulary and grammar mistakes, coherence, and consistency. One may re-read the story out loud as it would help to hear whether all of the sentences make sense, and the essay goes smoothly. Additionally, it would allow seeing unnecessary or redundant details that should be eliminated.

In order to make the essay more elaborated, one may ask their peers to give it a look and provide them with an unbiased opinion. Another person may see some crucial mistakes or weak points that were omitted by the author. There is no difference whether the asked person has or has no prior knowledge on the topic as in both cases, their insights may be extremely useful. The peer who is not an expert in the topic will tell whether the paper is written in a clear and understandable way and whether all of the management theories and concepts are well-explained. The peer who has knowledge on the issue may confirm the quality of the written material.

One may create a list of self-check questions that will help understand if the paper is written properly.

Does the thesis of the essay reflect the issues that I wanted to discuss?
Is the main body paragraphs relevant and address the stated argument?
Are the used sources credible?
Is the theoretical background of management concepts and theories wide enough?

The list of questions may vary, depending on the specific topic of the essay. There are some wide-spread mistakes that should be taken into consideration while proofreading the paper. Firstly, it is writing two identical or very similar claims differently by paraphrasing them. Secondly, adding a lot of information that is irrelevant or not necessary for this specific topic. One more common mistake that is intrinsic to the essays in management is making a statement without referring to a particular concept or theory. There are a lot of concepts and methods in management that may be controversial as they provide a different perspective on the points, and it is crucial to refer to a particular idea.

Finally, the draft should be edited according to all the notes that were made in the process of revising and transformed into a final version. It would be useful to take one more look at the essay to check if any minor mistakes were left and correct them. Once the author is confident in their work and does not have any more questions left, the paper may be submitted.

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References
Argumentative Essays. Owl Purdue. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/argumentative_essays.html
How to Write My Management Essay? A Concise Guide. ManagerWise. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.managerwise.com/do-my-management-essay-for-college/
Steps for Writing an Argumentation Essay. (n.d.) Lycoming College. Retrieved from https://www.lycoming.edu/academicresourcecenter/argumentation.aspx
Tucker, K. (2018). What Are the Five Parts of an Argumentative Essay?. Retrieved from https://www.theclassroom.com/five-parts-argumentative-essay-12064227.html

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