Communicating in the Workplace

What is Technical Communication

Technical communication is hard to define but it has many qualities:

• interactive and adaptable
• reader oriented (easy to read)
• produced collaboratively
• visual
• bound ethically and politically
• international and cross-cultural

Technical communication puts much more emphasis on managing information and taking action than do most other forms of writing. It is important to think about communication in the shoes of the other person. What would they want to read/hear/see and how would they want it?

Computers, the Internet, and instant forms of communicatino have had an enormous impact on communication in the technical workplace. Technical communication is defined as a process of managing technical information in ways that allow people to take action. It is a blend of action, words, and images. Readers expect technical documents to use writing, visuals, and design to commnuicate effectively.