User Manuals come in all types,

designs and formats.

This presentation is designed to show a
few basic elements that will serve any
user manual.
Not every manual will include each of
these sections, or will organize them in
this order.

A cover page should accomplish two

things:
1. Name the product being discussed
2. Explain the purpose of the manual.
Consider that the cover page might
include a picture of the product
featured or a company logo.

Stating potential risks, alerts,

and safety guidelines are key
components to a hazard alert
page.
A hazard alert is crucial in order
that employees are protected
against potential danger.

An effective table of contents is

just as important as the content
of the manual.
Consider that your readers may
want to go directly to a specific
section, which requires a precise
table of contents.

The introduction is a customer or

employees first encounter with the
companys writing.
Using pronouns like you, your, and
our, make customers or employees
feel included and add a personal touch.
Remember that using upbeat words
like Welcome, Thank You, and
pleasure aid in establishing a rapport
with the customer or employee early.

Since every company uses different

jargon and abbreviations, it is
imperative to define these terms early
in the manual.
You may want to consider defining not
only abbreviations but also acronyms
and symbols as well.
In addition to a definition list at the
onset of the manual, a glossary at the
end is an option.

This section gives the employee or

customer a detailed description of each
part of a systems components.
These descriptions aid the reader when
later using instructions to assemble or
fix a product.
In addition, this section might contain
the exact specifications of a product
like: size, shape, capacity, capability
and materials of construction.

The warranty not only protects the

customer but the manufacturer as well.
If a product malfunctions, the warranty
will inform the consumer of his or her
rights.
An important part of the warranty
section are company disclaimers or
caveats in addition to the terms of the
warranty.

The accessory section may feature

additional equipment that a
customer may purchase to accompany
the featured product or enhance it.
Theses additional accessories are not
essential to the function of the product.
Included in the accessory section might
be the specifications for the additional
products.

This section, commonly referred to as

FAQs is valuable because it not only
saves the company time answering the
same questions repeatedly, but it saves
customers asking these questions.
The FAQs can address some customer
concerns immediately, rather than
forcing a customer to contact the
company.

The section for Corporate Contact Info

is essential to any user manual.
If customers or employees can not
reach the company, then that company
can not serve their customers well.
By providing contact address, phone
numbers and email, the company gives
consumers multiple outlets in which to
contact the company.

Scenario: You need to write a manual

for new employees in your office. This
manual will inform them about the
basic procedures of your office.
Brainstorm the sections you would
need to include in your manual.
Share your ideas with the participants
in this workshop.

This presentation will outline the basics

of writing reports.
This includes an explanation of the
parts of a report: heading,
introduction, discussion and
conclusion/
recommendations
In addition, it will provide examples of
common types of reports.

The Heading section includes:

the date the report is written
the recipient (s) of the report
the subject of the report, including the topic

and the focus of the report

The Introduction is general overview of

the report including:
The purpose of the report,
the people involved,
and the time period the report represents.

This section of the report is the largest.

In the discussion section, you sum up
the activities and problems you run
into at work.
When developing this section consider:
Whom is involvedbe specific
When did the incident take placeprovide

details
Why are you composing this report?
Where did the incident take place?
What exactly was the process?

This part of the report is the place to

summarize what has been learned from
work or incident or to share any
decisions that have been made.
The recommendation allows you to
share your opinion concerning any
future action regarding the issue.

The style of each report varies, but

consider conciseness, simplicity, and
highlighting techniques
Remember to be concise.
You may choose to use graphics to
illustrate a point.
Be aware that using too much data will
overwhelm your reader.

Trip: job-related travel

Progress: status of an activity
Lab: status of and findings from a laboratory
experiment, procedure, or study
Feasibility/Recommendation: studies the practicality of
a proposed plan and recommends action
Incident: documents an expected problem
Investigative: examines the causes behind an incident
Meeting Minutes: document the results of a meeting
Proposal: proposing a new service or product or selling
the benefits of a new offering (also includes title page,
cover letter, table of contents, list of illustrations,
abstract, glossary, and appendix)

Choose a report you will most likely

write for your job.
Write an introduction for your report.
Ask a peer to review your introduction.
Discuss revision suggestions.

This material was taken from Technical

Writing: Process and Product, 5th
edition. Authored by Sharon J. Gerson
and Steven M. Gerson