TECHNICAL

COMMUNICATION
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO STUDY TECHNICAL
AND PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION?

1. In many different types of work, writing

constitutes important part of the everyday
workload.
 2. They facilitate communication with co-
workers, clients and supervisors, that is, inside
and outside the workplace.
3. They are necessary for a successful career
4. Writing skills contribute to saving time and
money.
TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION : AN INTRODUCTION
TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION
❖ an oral and written communication for and about business and
industry
The focus : writing that conveys how products and services are:
❖ Manufactured
❖ Marketed
❖ Managed
❖ Delivered
❖ Used
The audience : supervisors, colleagues, subordinates, vendors,
and customers
Today, writing is a more important skill for professionals than ever before. The
National Commission on Writing for Americas Families, Schools, and Colleges (2004) declares that
writing today is not a frill for the few, but an essential skill for the many, and goes on to state that much of
what is important in American public and economic life depends on strong written and oral
communication skills.

 Technical communication is the process of making and

sharing ideas and information in the workplace as well as
the set of applications such as letters, emails, instructions,
reports, proposals, websites, and blogs that comprise the
documents you write.
 Technical communication is a broad field that includes
any form of communication that is about technical
 or specialized topics, that uses
technology such as web pages or help files, or that
provides instruction about how to do something.
(The Society of Technical Communications (STC))
MORE CHARACTERISTICS OF TECHNICAL
COMMUNICATION (From Markel)
 Addresses particular readers
 Helps readers solve problems
 Reflectsan organizations goals and culture
(supports the organizations mission)
 Is produced collaboratively
  Uses design to increase readability
 Consists of words or graphics or both
 Is produced using high-tech tools
PURPOSES OF TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION
Technical Communication is intended for the ff:
❖ Speaking to customers
❖ Writing a letter
❖ Making a PowerPoint presentation
❖ Writing reports
❖ Marketing services or products
❖ Seeking employment
❖ Texting and
❖ Blogging
EXAMPLES OF TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION
(from Gerson and Gerson)

❖ Memos and electronic mail (e-mail) to set meeting agenda

and to ask and answer questions
❖ Letters to sell, complain, hire, fire, ask and answer questions,
and explain the contents of attachments
❖ Reports to report on job-related travel or incidents, to study
options and recommend action, to report on the progress of
 ongoing projects, and to document meeting
minutes
❖ Proposals to highlight problems, to suggest solutions, and to
recommend action
❖ Brochures to sell and inform, using six-to eight-panel (back
and front) foldouts
❖ Newsletters to report on corporate activities to both
employees and stakeholders
❖ Fliers to sell and inform, using brief,single-sided documents
❖ Resumes to help you find a job
❖ Web sites to sell and inform, using multi-screened,
Internetbased, hypertext-linked-communication
❖ User manuals to explain the steps in a
procedure
❖ Technical descriptions to explain the parts of a mechanism,
tool, piece of equipment, or product
IMPORTANCE OF TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION

❖ It is needed in order to write and speak effectively to others

constantly in the job.
❖ It is a major component of operating a business.
❖ It helps you find a job and meet the needs of customers.
 ❖ It helps manage organization time
effectively and save money as well.
What is the biggest difference between technical
communication and other kinds of writing?

❑ Technical communication has a different focus on audience

and purpose.
❑ Technical writing is an audience-centeredmeans of
communication that provides a reader with clear and easy
access to information.
❑ The purpose for a piece of writing identifies the reason you
write a particular document.
Why technical writing is
audiencecentered
 Your document's goal typically determines its
audience.
 Thisis important because the scope of your
audience determines the way you write your
document.
 The general rule is - the less the audience knows,
the less technical your document will be.
What are three main purposes of
technical documents?

 INFORMATIONAL DOCUMENTS
- anticipate and answer questions
 INSTRUCTIONAL DOCUMENTS
- help people perform a task
 PERSUASIVE DOCUMENTS
- encourage people
What is the difference between technical
communication and technical writing?

 Technical communication and technical writing are

basically the. same thing

 Technical communication is a newer term that

describes a field that is growing to include additional
skills such as information design, user experience
design and instructional design.
 TECHNICAL
WRITING
TECHNICAL WRITING

❖ It is a specialized form of writing. Its goal is to help

readers use a technology or to understand a
process, product or concept. Often these
processes, products or concepts are complex, but
need to be expressed in a much simpler,
readerfriendly form.
 So within the technical writing genre, you
will find: technical reports, installation and maintenance
manuals, proposals, process standards, work
instructions and procedures.
TECHNICAL WRITING

❖ It is the presentation of information that helps the

reader solve a particular problem. Technical
communicators write, design, and/or edit proposals,
manuals, web pages, lab reports, newsletters, and
many other kinds of professional documents.
  The most important thing a technical
writer must consider is the audience.
What do they need to know? What expectations do they
deserve to get?
How Technical Writing Differs from Academic
Writing

❖ Technical writing achieves job goals

❖ It addresses a variety of readers
❖ Writing at work, you have to make more effort to persuade your
reader to read the document
❖ Workplace writing creates legal liability for the writer
and the organization
Gerson, Sharon J. and Steven M. Gerson.
Technical Writing Process and Product. 5th
ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ Pearson, 2006.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE B/W GENERAL COMMUNICATION
AND TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION?
GENERAL COMMUNICATION ❖ It is mostly oral.
❖ It consists of general messages. TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION
❖ It is informal in style & approach. ❖ It consists of technical messages.
❖ There is no set pattern in it ❖ It is formal in style & approach. ❖ It
❖ This type of communication is NOT follows a set pattern.
always for a specific audience. ❖ This type of communication is always for
❖ There is no use of technical forms of a specific audience.
graphics.
❖ It frequently involves jargons, ❖ It is both oral and written
graphics, etc

END OF LECTURE
Thank you for listening.