Formal language is expected in corporate documents. Yet formality sits on a scale, and that scale varies from language to language; when the weight of the source language is carried over exactly into the target language, it may not produce the expected effect.
The formality scale varies by language
A long and indirect construction that counts as customary in one language may look excessively distant or old-fashioned in another. The same level is built with different means.
Heavy language hides the meaning
Nested sentences make it harder for the reader to find the obligation or the request. As formality rises, clarity may fall.
Ambiguity may be mistaken for seriousness
Expressions that are not definite look like a careful style. The counterparty, however, may read this as indecision or timidity.
A legal text and correspondence are distinguished
In a contract, precision and set language are necessary. In correspondence the same weight slows communication down.
The question of who the reader is remains decisive
A text written to a regulatory body and a text written to a business partner cannot be at the same level. When the reader is not defined, the heaviest level is chosen.
Set expressions are preserved
In formal correspondence the forms of address and the closing formulas are part of the procedure. They are not translated freely; the equivalent formula in the target language is used.
Too much politeness may be misunderstood
In some languages dense expressions of politeness may be found insincere or indirect. The measure is set according to the habit of the target language.
Counter-view: simplification reduces seriousness
It may be thought that simpler language will make the organisation look less serious. In practice seriousness is read not from the length of the sentences but from the clarity and consistency of the information.
The passive construction hides responsibility
Sentences in which it stays unclear who will do what are a serious shortcoming in a text of obligations. The active construction makes the responsible party visible.
A long sentence raises translation cost as well
Nested constructions are both open to misunderstanding and lower the match rate. Here simplification produces two gains.
The corporate tone is defined in the guide
Showing the desired level with concrete examples is more effective than giving abstract descriptions.
The same organisation may use different levels
A guide divided up by type of document is more realistic than imposing a single tone on all texts.
The view of the local team is valuable
A contact person who works in the target market is the person who assesses most accurately how the tone is read.
Tone is a preference too, not an error
Findings on style are recorded not as errors but as preferences and are entered in the guide. When this distinction is not drawn, the same argument is repeated on every job.
Takeaway
Formality is not a virtue but a level that needs to be adjusted. Defining the reader, using set expressions with their equivalent in the target language, avoiding the passive construction and writing the level into the guide by type of document; these four do not leave the balance between seriousness and intelligibility to chance.