Strategies for Writing Effective Technical Documents

Would you like your staff to shorten the time they spend on writing complex technical documentation? Do you want them to write more confidently, powerfully, and succinctly? Strategies for Writing Effective Technical Documents will enhance your staff’s professional credibility by writing short or lengthy reports, proposals, instructions, abstracts, articles, and presentations that are clear, concise, and professional. In this interactive workshop, your staff will learn how to:

1. Develop a technical profile to ensure a roadmap for success.
2. Commit to a production timeline to stay on schedule and meet business deadlines.
3. Write with the reader’s needs in mind to minimize misunderstandings and miscommunication.
4. Overcome writer’s block using the Document Mapping™ tool to jump-start documents and eliminate the need for multiple rewrites.
5. Research the topic to ensure accuracy.
6. Write a draft to capture ideas.
7. Bottom-line the document’s purpose and organize thoughts to conduct business more quickly.
8. Establish a professional tone to maintain reader confidence.
9. Enhance document readability—via the Readability Mapping™ technique—to help readers quickly find pertinent information.
10. Revise, edit, and proofread documents carefully to maintain your company’s image.

Pre-work: Have your staff bring a technical document to class for review and discussion in breakout groups.