Developing Potential Australia

Writing clear procedures

Full day

This hands-on workshop teaches technically expert people how to write logical procedures in plain English. The aim is to make procedures informative and easy to use for all staff.

Note: Procedures vary considerably between organisations. We would tailor the material below to match your policy and procedure templates and terminology.  There may be some modules you wish to omit and additional points you would like to add. We can easily do this for you.

Overview

• What is the difference between a policy, procedure and task outline?
• Who is the audience and what do they need to know?
• How to choose an appropriate style and level of formality

What is the process?

• How to identify the scope and responsibilities of tasks
• How to draw a diagram to see the logic of the steps in the process
• What must be included in every procedure?

Making the procedure easy to read

• Breaking the procedure into digestible chunks
• Using flow charts to give people an overview of the process
• Editing and grouping steps
• What is a procedure table?
• Using examples and comments to help inexperienced readers
• How to make a procedure useful to both trainees and experts alike

Writing in plain English

• What is plain English?
• When should technical terms be used and when should they be rephrased?
• Structuring statements from the reader’s perspective
• Turning bureaucratic guidelines into ‘active’ instructions
• Incorporating diagrams to save a thousand words
• Choosing descriptive headings for each stage

Making it look readable

• Easy to read formats
• How to choose the right fonts
• The layout - making the most of white space and tables
• Articulation and numbering systems
• Tips for writing instructions for software programs

Definitions and attachments (oprional)

• How to write simple definitions
• What form of version control system do you need?
• How to make the most of appendices and hyperlinks

Case studies

Throughout the course participants work on a case study, making improvements and applying the techniques presented. We also allow time for people to work on actual case studies from their work.

Tailoring an in-house course

We can modify the content of the course to reflect your organisation’s existing structures or style manuals. Please contact us to discuss your needs.

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