Technical Writing Skills Are Invaluable

If  you need to Document:

• An off the shelf package
• Machine functionality
• Custom written applications

The skills of a Technical Writer are invaluable. A Technical Writer is a person who can create documents throughout the software development life including the following:

1. User Requirement Specifications
2. Process Maps
3. User Manuals
4. SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures)
5. Test Scripts
6. Protocols
7. Risk Assesments

Technical Writing is a skill that is underestimated by some companies and ends up costing them more money in the long run. During projects there are a number of challenges that can occur. Most of the project team are assigned tasks that involve some level of documentation. Giving documentation tasks to team members who have not got the skills of a Technical Writer to create documents, can lead to delays and substandard documents.  Developers can get too technical when writing manuals and can lose the reader after the first few pages. Getting it right first time saves money. Whether it is to write a user manual or an SOP it requires a particular type of person with particular skills.

Key Skills

Some of the key skills of a Technical Writer are:

• Ability to gather information before a word is written.
• A systematic approach.
• Researching the subject prior to meeting the people involved.
• Ability to absorb information.
• The capacity to listen and ask the right questions from technical people, subject matter experts or users of the system.
• They need to be able to read people in order to use the appropriate method to obtain information.
• They also need to be aware of any regulatory and GMP requirements that must be taken into consideration when creating any documentation.

Once the Technical Writer has the information, they then need the skills to document the information.  They have to have the correct level of writing skills in order to create good documentation and good documentation structure. They need to be able to gauge the audience and write for that audience in a clear and concise manner. The skill of taking a complicated description and simplifying it is important. They also need to know when adding graphs or pictures are a useful aid and not just being added for the sake of it.

Testing

Another part of the Technical Writer’s portfolio is that they can get involved in testing to ensure that the documentation accurately reflects the system.

Contact Us

Having worked extensively in pharmaceutical, medical device and medical supply environments for many years, our engineers can help you with all your documentation needs across a project. This can include project documentation, risk assessments, user and technical specifications, validation protocols and test scripts, and any operational SOP’s and or training manuals.

We can work closely with your team to deliver your documentation requirements that comply with your own policies and best industry practices. We offer a flexible engagement model where we can provide a turnkey solution or simply provide you with additional resources to work as part of your project team.

If you would like to find out more Contact Us today or call us on 051 878 555.

DATAWORKS – Driving Digital Transformation in the worlds’ Leading Life Science Companies
for over 25 Years