Writing Skills

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The workshop will provide participants with a clear understanding of the fundamentals of good writing in the workplace and the tools to write clearly and concisely.  You will gain a new confidence and a sound understanding of what is expected when writing different business communications.

At the conclusion of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Ensure your writing addresses the purpose and audience accurately
• Choose the right structure for the writing task
• Write clear, concise and jargon-free communications
• Choose the appropriate level of formality to fit the context and the audience

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This writing workshop is aimed at mid-career or senior professionals who need to write balanced and thorough business cases – to persuade, inform and/or request an outcome.

The workshop assumes good skills in written English, with an understanding of linguistic terms and business processes. This workshop has a stronger emphasis on persuasion and evidence compared to the Effective Writing in the University Context, which focuses on everyday communications and correspondence.

At the conclusion of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Organise thinking into a clear, logical structure before beginning to write
• Write the business case body in line with their stated objectives
• Review for logical style and flow, plain English usage and correct style
• Demonstrate greater confidence and knowledge when it comes to writing business documents that have to persuade a demanding reader
• Demonstrate an ability to critique texts and draw conclusions based on evidence
• Propose and defend a persuasive argument in writing
• Review written work following a four-step process

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Presented as a 3-hour workshop, this training module explains best practice for minute-taking across three stages from planning to drafting and review. Upon completion of the workshop participants will have learnt skills such as listening, drafting and editing while minute taking. The training uses various example drawn from the university setting.

During the workshop you will learn how to:

• Learn how minutes reflect corporate policy and decision-making style.
• Mindset and tone – being clear on the purpose of the meeting; focusing on minutes to record actions and decisions; understanding that minutes are not a full transcript of the meeting. Will include examples of ANU best practice here.
• Participating while keeping minutes – assigning a colleague to take the minutes briefly if you need to present a segment
• Correct ANU style – Understanding the correct way to use numerals, symbols and abbreviations in workplace writing.
• Managing digressions and disagreements – working with the meeting chair to keep discussions on track; asking permission to repeat facts if discussion is fast