Better business writing. It doesn’t have to be this hard.

Business writing has a bad reputation.

Have you ever asked one of your team to draft a board paper for you, only to then be caught in a weeks-long cycle of rewriting, revising and editing while you deal with an internal conflict of providing feedback until it’s right versus doing it yourself?

Or perhaps sat in bed late at night, going through your pre-reading pack for the next day’s leadership meeting and felt bemused, incredulous or just plain confused about the point of the topic and what you’re being asked to do?

Maybe you’re the employee who has been given the exciting opportunity to draft a paper that will be seen by senior leadership, only to be paralysed by lack of direction, uncertainty about what to include and misunderstanding about purpose.

You’re not alone.

These are the three most common problems clients want help with when it comes to business writing.

And the top three feelings clients express to me about these problems? Angst. Frustration. Fear.

This isn’t good for anyone, or the business.

In my experience there are two things which are at the heart of the issue:

1. people have forgotten or don’t realise that business writing is a form of communication in its truest sense (not just some hard or soft copy document for dissemination), and
2. ability to write well is a learned, practised skill which requires investment in thought, time and resources just like any other skill.

We tackle these ‘elephants in the room’ at our Better Business Writing workshops. Our focus is on improving skills, fast, and delivering immediate results. To do that, we work on real writing problems. From board papers to briefing notes, presentations to reports, brochureware to content.

More than 90 per cent of participants have rated the workshops as outstanding, and the best aspects the presenter’s knowledge and delivery, pro tips, relevant examples and exercises and clarity around structure for written communication.

More people in organisations are increasingly involved in activities which largely have been the domain of the “comms team”. Let’s reduce the angst, frustration and fear, improve business outcomes, and help our people by giving them the skills they need to succeed.

If you would like to know more about the Better Business Writing workshops, please drop us a line via kate@presencecorporateaffairs.com.au or call 0408 899 367.