The Resourceful Reporter, Part 6: Procedural Reports

Procedural reporting can fall into two non-mutually exclusive categories: how something happens (process) and how to do something (procedure).

The first category—how something happens—describes processes purely for informational purposes. Readers may not necessarily need to complete the process themselves. Examples include how an information technology department conducts disaster recovery operations, or how a firefighting team deploys to combat a forest fire, or how a district attorney’s office determines a criminal investigation has obtained sufficient evidence to warrant an indictment. In each of these cases, you do not need to be a chief information officer or a firefighter or a prosecuting lawyer to read such a document. In fact, you might be a CEO interested in comparing your disaster recovery operations to those of another company. Or you might be a safety investigator who wants to ensure that all protocols were followed during a fire resulting in several firefighter fatalities. Or you might be a judge who wants to see whether the evidence of a criminal trial was collected within the limits of the law.

The second category—how to do something—is of interest primarily to technicians or end users who need to complete a task. Let’s say a building contractor may need step-by-step instructions for how to apply for a building permit in a town unfamiliar to her, or a junior scientist may need a troubleshooting sheet to learn how to report aberrant test results, or a business associate may need instructions for syncing information from an office desktop to a company phone.

In some situations, these categories may blend. For instance, while an author may read about how an earthquake occurs to realistically depict such a scenario in a novel (process), a rescue team may read the same scenario for its sequence to choose the most effective step-by-step deployment during its occurrence in a high-risk area (procedure). On the other hand, only someone interested in changing the oil of their 2022 Honda Accord would likely read about how to do so efficiently (procedure). An investigator of a fatality follows a process of her own when examining whether the medical response team followed proper procedure in aiding a victim during the moments before his death.

It always comes down to the reader’s concerns. For this reason, procedures are more useful when they provide background information, such as:

• purpose of the procedure
• law or policy requiring the procedure
• required qualifications of the user
• time and place for performing the procedure
• consequences of not following the procedure
• acceptable equipment and materials for performing the procedure
• sources for reference about the procedure

Focused procedure writers remain true to these five principles when detailing sequential tasks for users:

1. Use action verbs instead of being verbs. Rather than Be aware of the safety protocol, write the more precise Use the safety protocol.

2. Use tactile verbs instead of checking verbs. Avoid the ambiguous Ensure that all toxic chemicals are properly stored in favor of the more specific Store all toxic chemicals properly.

3. Use Actor/Action approach for multiple performers. When more than one person or job title has to perform a step on an action list, start with the actor. Example:

1. System Administrator sends e-request for data to Team Leader.

2. Team Leader submits requested data to Risk Management.

3. Risk Management confirms receipt to Team Leader, System Administrator, and Legal.

4. Risk Management reviews case for accuracy and completeness.

5. Risk Management confirms accuracy and completeness of case with Legal.

6. Legal reviews case for compliance.

7. Legal approves e-request in System Administrator.

8. System Administrator notifies Team Leander and Risk Management of completed case.

4. Use Do/See tables to show outcomes. This practice separates results from required actions for greater clarity and conciseness. Example:

  

Action	Result
1. Go to www.helpmenow.com	The landing page appears.
2. Enter your username and password.	The request screen appears.
3. Check the appropriate box for your request.	The live Help Desk greets you.
4. Write your request or question in the field How Can I help you?	Await a response.

 In place of a results column, you can use precise screenshots as illustrations.

5. Use If/Then charts to show contingencies. This technique will simplify instructions. Example: