planning and organizing technical reports
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JOSHUA PRENOSILBrought to you in cooperation with the Purdue Online Writing Lab
Planning and Organizing Technical Reports
Adapted from Technical Communication Today by Dr. Richard Johnson-Sheehan, Prof. of English, Purdue University
• Technical documents are often produced by many individuals. • To produce effective documents,
individuals must work together as a team.
• Teams go through four basic stages• Planning technical documents around
these stages helps create more effective deliverables.
The four stages of team formation:• Forming• Storming• Norming• Performing
The Four Stages
In the Forming Stage, the group:• Defines the project mission and
objectives• Identifies project outcomes• Defines responsibilities • Constructs a timeline• Agrees about how conflicts will
be resolved
1) Forming
In the Storming Stage, natural conflicts arise between team members.
To emerge from the period of conflict, team members must:
• Use the previously-agreed-upon conflict resolution models
• Meet with a plan and a purpose• Choose conflict mediators
2) Storming
In the Norming Stage, as the team zeroes in on its goals, it starts behaving according to group-determined norms:
• The team adjusts its objectives and outcomes
• Team members start fulfilling their responsibilities independently and communally
• Communication between team members is regular and productive.
3) Norming
In the Performing Stage, the team is working together to improve their process and product: •Team members wholly adopt their team roles•Individuals acknowledge and work with the strengths and weaknesses of their teammates•Team members review objectives, complete tasks, assess outcomes, and refine processes individually and communally
4) Performing
What does document planning look like when it considers the four stages
of team formation?
Technical Documents in Four Stages
Consider the following…
A group consisting of two graduate assistants, a professor, and an engineer agree to write a report evaluating the current methods for cutting pavement.
The document will need to include a review of current sawing techniques, an examination of pavement cutting research, and a recommendation for the techniques construction workers should use.
The Situation:
First, define the project’s purpose by asking:
1)What are we being asked to do?
2) What are we not being asked to do?
How should the group begin?
The pavement research group answered this way:
1)What are we being asked to do?
Review current research and practice and recommend sawing techniques that are practical and effective.
2) What are we not being asked to do?
Research new techniques & develop new technologies for pavement cutting.
How should the group begin?
Next, the most important question:
3) What is our mission statement and what are our objectives?
This question is the most important because it will determine the scope and sequence of the proceeding activities. The mission statement will provide cohesion for the group’s actions and serve as a guidepost as the group revises its goals later.
Questions to answer:
3) What is our mission statement and what are our objectives?
After considering their task, the pavement research group decided on the following mission statement:
“This research group will recommend a practical and effective pavement sawing technique that will improve the safety and longevity of Indiana roads.”
Mission statement
Composing your Mission Statement:“This research group will recommend a practical and
effective pavement sawing technique that will improve the safety and longevity of Indiana roads.”
• Notice that the main clause of the statement contains one verb.•The research group will do many other things as they work toward their goal, but, ultimately, they will recommend a sawing technique.•Simplicity and unity in the mission statement will help the group stay focused as it works.
Mission statement
Once the group composes a mission statement they can start aligning secondary objectives behind the primary one.The pavement research group set the following as secondary objectives:• Synthesize current research on pavement
sawing;• Survey contractors to find which methods
are most commonly practiced; and• Compare the cost and safety benefits of
different sawing techniques.
Secondary objectives
Once a mission statement and objectives have been determined, the team should ask the following:
4) What should our end products be?
5) Who are our clients? What are their values?
Questions to answer
For the pavement research group, the client was the board that allocates money and determines road policy. The engineer and the professor had worked with board members in the past, so they knew the values and mores of the client.
5) Who are our clients? What are their values?
4) What should our end products be?With the secondary objectives in place, answering the fourth question was easy. The group merely had to assign a deliverable and a deadline to each of the objectives…
Questions to answer
4) What are our end products?
Objective End ProductSynthesize Current Research
Summary of research on sawing techniques (by 5/28)
Conduct Surveys Conflation of survey data (by 6/4)
Compare Costs and Benefits
Cost/benefit matrix (by 6/12)
Draft Proposal Rough Draft (by 6/24)
Deliver Product Final Draft (by 6/30)
After determining the scope and sequence of each task, the team can consider the ancillary parameters of the project:
6) What are the physical, economic, political, and ethical factors that influence this project? How should we adjust to them?
Questions to answer
6) What are the physical, economic, political, and ethical factors that influence this project? How should we adjust to them?
In this case, the project was limited by time and funding, so, due to time constraints, the pavement research group had to narrow the scope of their inquiry.
Instead of synthesizing all of the research on pavement cutting, they could only synthesize the most commonly-read journals and publications. Instead of surveying all the contractors, they could only survey the largest.
Questions to answer
As the research group determined the scope and sequence of their task, they ran into some conflict. They debated how many publications and contractors they should consult as they gathered background information.
They argued about which sawing techniques were practical and feasible given current fiscal constraints. They even argued about internal deadlines. The group used the following methods to resolve their major disagreements…
Conflict!
All of these issues are essential to the successful completion of the project. How did the team decide to resolve each conflict?
Conflict resolution
Issue Method for Resolution
Which contractors to interview?
Majority Opinion
Which research journals to consider?
Majority Opinion
What should the deadlines be?
Consult mediator – INDOT project manager
What’s fiscally possible?
Consult mediator – board member
After the conflicts were resolved, the team began adopting their team roles and accomplishing the tasks necessary to the completion of the document:
Taking action
Objective End Product Who’s Responsible?
Synthesize Current Research
Summary of research on sawing techniques (by 5/28)
Professor, Graduate Student
Conduct Surveys Conflation of survey data (by 6/4)
Engineer
Compare Costs and Benefits
Cost/benefit matrix (by 6/12)
Graduate Student
Draft Proposal Rough Draft (by 6/24)
Group
Deliver Product Final Draft (by 6/30)
Group
Objective End Product Who’s Responsible?
Synthesize Current Research
Summary of research on sawing techniques (by 5/28)
Professor, Graduate Student
Conduct Surveys
Conflation of survey data (by 6/4)
Engineer
Compare Costs and Benefits
Cost/benefit matrix (by 6/12)
Graduate Student
Draft Proposal Rough Draft (by 6/24)
Group
Deliver Product Final Draft (by 6/30)
Group
Taking action
Quickly, the group realized that they would need to develop an ancillary plan to address the writing and revision responsibilities for creating the document.
The team decides to divide the document up by sections. Because they were writing a proposal, they knew their document needed to have five basic sections:
Taking action
Proposal Section Pavement Saw Proposal1. Introduction Explanation of the need for practical and effective
pavement sawing techniques2. Current Situation Current techniques
employed by contractorsResearch on current techniques
3. Recommendation Explanation of why one sawing technique is superior to other techniques, both for practical and fiscal reasons
4. Address to Detractors
Explanation of why this technique is preferable to the most feasible alternatives
5. Call to Action/Conclusion
Summary of the reasons why the technique is the best choice and a call to adopt it permanently as mandatory policy for contractors
The group decides to divide responsibilities along lines of expertise.
Taking action
Proposal Section
Pavement Saw Proposal Who’s Responsible?
Introduction Explanation of the need for practical and effective pavement sawing techniques.
Graduate Student
Current Situation
Current techniques employed by contractors
Research on current techniques
Professor/Graduate Student
Recommendation
Explanation of why one sawing technique is superior to other techniques, both for practical and fiscal reasons
Engineer
Address to Detractors
Explanation of why this technique is preferable to the most feasible alternatives
Engineer/Graduate Student
Call to Action/Conclusion
Summary of the reasons why the technique is the best choice and a call to adopt it permanently as mandatory policy for contractors.
Graduate Student
Taking action
Proposal Section Pavement Saw Proposal Who’s Responsible?
Introduction Explanation of the need for practical and effective pavement sawing techniques.
Graduate Student
Current Situation Current techniques employed by contractors
Research on current techniques
Professor/Graduate Student
Recommendation Explanation of why one sawing technique is superior to other techniques, both for practical and fiscal reasons
Engineer
Address to Detractors
Explanation of why this technique is preferable to the most feasible alternatives
Engineer/Graduate Student
Call to Action/Conclusion
Summary of the reasons why the technique is the best choice and a call to adopt it permanently as mandatory policy for contractors.
Graduate Student
The professor was the research expert, so she wrote the research section.
The engineer would be responsible for their findings, so he wrote the recommen-dation.
Taking action
Proposal Section Pavement Saw Proposal Who’s Responsible?
Introduction Explanation of the need for practical and effective pavement sawing techniques.
Graduate Student
Current Situation Current techniques employed by contractors
Research on current techniques
Professor/Graduate Student
Recommendation Explanation of why one sawing technique is superior to other techniques, both for practical and fiscal reasons
Engineer
Address to Detractors
Explanation of why this technique is preferable to the most feasible alternatives
Engineer/Graduate Student
Call to Action/Conclusion
Summary of the reasons why the technique is the best choice and a call to adopt it permanently as mandatory policy for contractors.
Graduate Student
Taking action
Proposal Section Pavement Saw Proposal Who’s Responsible?
Introduction Explanation of the need for practical and effective pavement sawing techniques.
Graduate Student
Current Situation Current techniques employed by contractors
Research on current techniques
Professor/Graduate Student
Recommendation Explanation of why one sawing technique is superior to other techniques, both for practical and fiscal reasons
Engineer
Address to Detractors
Explanation of why this technique is preferable to the most feasible alternatives
Engineer/Graduate Student
Call to Action/Conclusion
Summary of the reasons why the technique is the best choice and a call to adopt it permanently as mandatory policy for contractors.
Graduate Student
The graduate students helped out where appropriate.
Sometimes the roles of expertise are not as clear-cut as they were in this case. When such situations arise teams should ask these questions in order to determine what’s required for a role and how that matches up with team member strengths…
Taking action
• Does the role require someone who can keep track of objectives, questions, and decisions and communicate that information to team members?
• Should the person in this role be able to network with resources and people outside the team in order to bring in new information and fresh perspectives?
Taking action
Does this role require people-oriented skills?
Does this role require cerebral skills? • Does the role need someone who critiques
decisions and reasoning? • Does the role need an innovative thinker
who provides big solutions? • Does the team or role need a subject-
matter specialist whose expertise currently is not present in the group?
Taking action
After the rough draft of the document was complete, the team decided to revise it by exchanging sections and providing in-team feedback.
Initially, this system improved the document, but, at a team meeting, one of the graduate students said they felt that the document still needed some work. The team brainstormed ways to improve the quality of the document; Frances, the engineer, said she knew a technical writing consultant. She offered to contact the consultant on behalf of the team.
Improving performance
In order to improve the document, the team had begun refining the process by which they produced the recommendation report. Typically, improvement of performance happens in a four stage cycle:
Improving performance
Complete Tasks Assess Outcomes
Review Objectives Refine Process
The team completed the recommendation report, assessed their product, and refined the process by which they produced the report, keeping in mind the objectives and purpose of their activity.
Improving performance
Complete Tasks Assess Outcomes
Review Objectives Refine Process
1. Define your mission statement and objectives
2. Assign deliverables and deadlines 3. Determine your methods for conflict
resolution4. Match personal strengths/expertise
to team roles5. Refine your process by assessing
outcomes, changing procedures, reviewing objectives, and completing tasks
Keys to document success
Purdue University Writing LabHeavilon 226
Web: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/Phone: (765) 494-3723Email: owl@owl.english.purdue.edu
Where to Go to Get More Help
The End
PLANNING AND ORGANIZING TECHNICAL REPORTSAdapted by Joshua Prenosil and Allen Brizee from Technical Communication Today by Dr. Richard Johnson-SheehanBrought to you in cooperation with the Purdue Online Writing Lab
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