1. Structured Writing Using MS-Word
luc.bouquet@teka-infopilots.com

2. Parts of this Workshop
 Communication vs. documentation
 Structured writing
 Exercise
 Evaluation and wrap up

3. Communication
1 2 3

4. Documentation
1 2 3

5. Combined Action of
Communication and Documentation
1 2 3

6. Example: Different use of e-mail and
Attachment
1 2 3

7. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent

8. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent
 Once-only  Repetitive

9. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent
 Once-only  Repetitive
 Push  Pull

10. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent
 Once-only  Repetitive
 Push  Pull
 Linear - sequential  Random access

11. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent
 Once-only  Repetitive
 Push  Pull
 Linear - sequential  Random access
 Consumed immediately  Stored and used later on

12. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent
 Once-only  Repetitive
 Push  Pull
 Linear - sequential  Random access
 Consumed immediately  Stored and used later on
 Consumed as a whole  Consumed only partly

13. Comparison – Communication and
documentation
Communication Documentation
 Volatile  Permanent
 Once-only  Repetitive
 Push  Pull
 Linear - sequential  Random access
 Consumed immediately  Stored and used later on
 Consumed as a whole  Consumed only partly
 Comes about intuitively  Comes about through a process

14. Media for Communication and
Documentation
Communication Documentation
 Face-to-face  Document (Word, PDF, print…)
 Telephone  Intranet
 SMS  SharePoint
 E-mail  Blog
 Twitter  Wiki
 Facebook  YouTube
 Yammer  LinkedIn profile
 Chat  CMS or LCMS

15. STRUCTURED WRITING

16. What is it?
 Structured writing is a method where:
– writers use a limited set of structure- and format elements
in an agreed order
– several writers share a limited set of structure- and format
elements
 Structured writing is often supported by an IT-
application that confines the writers’ freedom in
using format elements
Non example

17. 4 Principles of Structured Writing
 Mind the limitations of the receiver of the
information
– Break down, group and label
 Separate structure from format
– First, define a limited set of structure elements
– Then, connect format elements to each structure element
 Connect structure elements to information types
 Arrange by information type

18. 4 Principles of Structured Writing
 Mind the limitations of the receiver of the
information
– Break down, group and label
 Separate structure from format
– First, define a limited set of structure elements
– Then, connect format elements to each structure element
 Connect structure elements to information types
 Arrange by information type

19. Break down, group and label
 Feed information in ‘digestible’ units
 Mind the limits of short term memory 7 ± 2
 Put together what belongs together
 Give the topics an appropriate title
Voorbeeld

20. saw milk train hammer
water cab screwdriver tea
car pliers coffee bike
spanner beer airplane
cissors wine tram chissel
lemonade bus

21. water tea airplane
saw car cissors
milk pliers wine
train coffee tram
hammer bike chisel
cab spanner lemonade
screwdriver beer bus

22. water saw airplane
tea cissors car
milk pliers train
wine hammer tram
coffee bike chisel
beer spanner bus
lemonade screwdriver cab

23. Drinks Tools Transportation
water saw airplane
tea cissors car
milk pliers train
wine hammer tram
coffee bike chisel
beer spanner bus
lemonade screwdriver cab

24. Animals Furniture Professions
tiger chair nurse
horse cupboard painter
rabbit table carpenter
cat sofa artist
sheep bed hair dresser
cow arm chair cook
dog wardrobe writer

25. 4 Principles of Structured Writing
 Mind the limitations of the receiver of the
information
– Break down, group and label
 Separate structure from format
– First, define a limited set of structure elements
– Then, connect format elements to each structure element
 Connect structure elements to information types
 Arrange by information type

26. Separate Structure from Format
 Define a number of structure elements
 Give the structure elements a name
 Example – You might use the following elements:
– Titles on level 1, 2 and 3
– Plain text
– Unordered list (the order does not matter)
– Ordered list (the order is important)
– Figure caption
– Table

27. Levels
‘Chapters’ on level 1
1
Per chapter, 5 topics on 111
level 2
1 2 3 4 5
Per topic een aantal
1 2 3 4 5 ‘Ideeën’ op niveau 3 1 2 3 4 5

28. Format Elements
 Use ‘Styles’ in your word processor (or use an
existing template)
 Connect the following format elements to each
structure element:
– Typeface, color, size and style
– Indentation and shape of the bullet or the number
– Space above and below
– Possible lines above and below
Voorbeeld

29. 4 Principles of Structured Writing
 Mind the limitations of the receiver of the
information
– Break down, group and label
 Separate structure from format
– First, define a limited set of structure elements
– Then, connect format elements to each structure element
 Connect structure elements to information types
 Arrange by information type

30. Information Types
 Concepts and principles
 Composition
 Process
 Instruction
 Data

31. Connecting Format to Information Type
Information Type Format
Principles and concepts  Plain text
Statements, intentions, definitions  Unordered list
Composition  Figure
How it looks like, how it is put together  Unordered list or table
Process  Ordered list
How does it work?  Figure (Process diagram)
What happens?
Instruction  Ordered list
How you do something  Figure (Flowchart)
Data  Unordered list or table
Figures, concrete information  Graph

32. 4 Principles of Structured Writing
 Mind the limitations of the receiver of the
information
– Break down, group and label
 Separate structure from format
– First, define a limited set of structure elements
– Then, connect format elements to each structure element
 Connect structure elements to information types
 Arrange by information type

33. Arrange by Information Type
1. Principles and concepts
Why is this information important?
Who should read it?
Possible new terms
2. Compositions
What are the parts, how does it look like?
3. Processes
How does it work? What happens?
4. Instructions
How do you have to proceed?
5. Data Example