Technical and Specialist Writing That is Easy to Read A 2-day Short Course with Victor Main When and where? Monday 6 September 2010:08:30 AM - 05:00 PM Tuesday 7 September 2010:08:30 AM - 05:00 PM   Location - The Business School, Owen G Glenn Building 12 Grafton Road Auckland City Standard price - $1,895.00 excl GST Overview Don’t you hate having to read stuff over and over again before you finally work out what it means? Most of us read work documents in a hurry. We prefer to pick up a document, read it once, and instantly understand what it is saying. In other words we crave plain language! But if your role involves writing technical documents, how do you get your meaning across in plain language? How do you make it easy-to-read without ‘dumbing’ it down? The answer is much simpler than you might think. This Short Course shows you how to avoid creating word-sludge when conveying complex ideas. You will learn how to avoid death sentences when covering technical issues. And you will see that graphs and charts don’t really need to be mind-numbing. Attend this Short Course and inject new life into your technical and specialist writing. Topics Covered We focus on the principles behind making technical language readable.  Then we look at the structure, format and layout of technical documents.  Here’s a taste of the topics we cover: The nuts and bolts of technical writing Update on international standards and guidelines for technical writing Overcome the challenge of turning technical language into plain language Learn the ‘structured approach’ for covering technical and specialist topics – a series of easy-to-follow steps How to use categories of information to your advantage Choose the right formats and layouts – matching your information with the way your reader needs to receive it How to proof and edit technical documents Who should attend Do you need to write reports, instruction manuals, specifications, proposals, briefs, abstracts or similar documents that contain specialist-type information? Then this Short Course is for you. Also, the Short Course is ideal for those who need to proof and edit technical documents. Outcomes You will come away from this Short Course with: New ideas and ways of looking at technical information An understanding of international standards for technical and specialist writing Simple tools for turning complex technical documents into easy-to-read documents Practical tips that you can apply easily and immediately in your work-place Templates to help you structure technical documents Confidence to tackle that next technical writing task Presenter Victor Main For over 20 years, Victor has been turning highly technical information into plain language. His experience includes writing corporate briefs, instructions manuals, research opinions, web content, newsletters, systems documentation, business reports and much more. He has provided businesses with strategic consulting, QA assessment, documentation processes, convention and trade show development. Victor's core skills are A strong analytical ability An ability to break down the complex Able to use simple, yet effective teaching methods His focus is on identifying and applying the fundamental principles in any situation. Thus his consultation, coaching and teaching are well founded and have lasting impact. He has successfully been teaching the Technical and Specialist Writing and the Business Writing Skills Short Course at The University of Auckland Business School for several years.

Cancellation
Subject to unforeseen circumstances such as student demand and/or resource availability, The University reserves the right to cancel, or change the content, timing or method of presentation of any course.

All notification of withdrawals, transfers, and substitutions must be sent in writing via email to The University of Auckland Business School Executive Development Team at shortcourses@auckland.ac.nz. Full refunds can be obtained up to 30 days before the program start date. Due to the costs incurred for program preparation and administration, any cancellations or requests for transfers or deferrals received 14 days or less from the program start are subject to penalty fees as described below.

• More than 14 days notice: 0% Cancellation
• 7 to 14 days notice: 50% Cancellation
• Less than 7 days notice: 100%

If you do not attend the course and have not advised us in writing or by email before the start date the full fee will apply.

Transfers: Transfer requests must indicate the new dates and/or new program the participant wishes to attend.  If the transfer request is made at more than 7 days from the original course dates - a service fee of $300 is applied, but the 50% cancellation fee is waived. A transfer request made with more than 14 days' notice can be made with no penalty. Transfers are valid only within one year of the original program start date. Your current cancellation policy is intact until you have attended your Short Course or the original penalty will be imposed.

All participant substitutions are subject to the sole discretion of The University of Auckland Business School Executive Development team.  Requests must be submitted in advance and will be reviewed on an individual basis, based on participant qualifications and lead time needed for any program pre-work.

Full enrolment is non refundable under these conditions:

1. The registrant or substitute does not enrol in another program within one year of the original start date, and/or
2. The registrant or substitute defers or transfers more than two times.

* The University of Auckland Business School Executive Development team is not responsible for travel or related costs under any circumstances. Participants may want to consider purchasing trip cancellation insurance in the unlikely event that a program is cancelled or they cannot attend for personal or professional reasons.

** For any program with more than two iterations in an enrolment year, tuition is non-refundable after 2nd transfer.

Course Size
Numbers are limited, and enrolment is on a first-come-first-served basis.

Privacy
To keep you informed we will hold your name and address on file. Please advise us if you do not wish to receive further information.

Institute of Chartered Accountants
Chartered Accountants may care to consider this course for inclusion within their professional development programme for the year.

Sales and Marketing Institute of New Zealand
The University of Auckland Short Courses are an accredited education supplier for the Sales and Marketing Institute of New Zealand.

NZ Computer Society
The University of Auckland Short Courses that are IT related may count towards the professional development requirements of the NZ Computer Society.

Choose a Short Course from The University of Auckland Business School
The University of Auckland offers a range of high-quality leading edge Short Courses tailor made for business practitioners.

Each course is presented by an expert in the field - either a member of the staff of The University of Auckland, a visiting guest lecturer from overseas, or a local practitioner with specific expertise.

These are short, sharp, punchy courses that bring practitioners up to speed with a specific topic, act as a refresher course, and provide valuable networking opportunities.

Need a Short Course Calendar?
Email us at shortcourses@auckland.ac.nz or call 0800 800 875.

ENROLMENT FORM - Technical and Specialist Writing That is Easy to Read

Standard price: $1,895.00 +GST ($2,179.25 incl. GST)

Monday 6 September 2010:08:30 AM - 05:00 PM
Tuesday 7 September 2010:08:30 AM - 05:00 PM