Lauchman Group · Because Writing Clearly Matters




Home Page Demystifying the Process Our Approach to Training Workshops Consulting Services FAQs About "Plain Style" Plain Language Handbook Reading Room Contact Us	Workshops For a detailed description of a workshop, click its title. Effective Writing for Professionals This is our comprehensive "business writing" workshop. It’s applicable to any profession. Participants should be reasonably familiar with the basics, because the training addresses the more challenging issues of focus, scope, organization of ideas, coherence, formatting, clarity, emphasis, and economy of style. In addition, it introduces participants to a simple method for approaching any writing task, and it shows them how to save time when they plan, pre-write, organize, draft, and revise their documents. Plain Language Writing in Plain Language is, to put it simply, a practical thing to do. It saves time. It saves money. It wins and retains customers. It is, in fact, the way we should have been writing all along. While not every document is a candidate for a full Plain Language "treatment" (we wouldn't suggest using contractions in a regulation), most features of Plain Language can be applied to anything we write. This workshop acquaints writers with dozens and dozens of techniques that foster reader-directed writing – from principles of organization and word choice to aspects of page design. Grammar and Usage This is a refresher course, designed for writers who need to be reminded – or who simply want to bolster their confidence – about grammar, punctuation, word order, and word choice. It focuses on the basic mechanisms of how English means things. Its objective is to help people convey their meaning on the level of the sentence. It emphasizes correct (as opposed to effective) writing. Participants come from all levels of an organization. Technical Writing When organizations ask us for a Tech Writing workshop, we ask them to specify a document. Every Tech Writing workshop focuses on a specific document. Such a focus is essential because every specialized document has, to a great degree, its unique "physics." The Federal Communications Commission's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Freddie Mac's Statement of Significant Accounting Practices are examples of what we call technical writing, but they differ profoundly – not only in terminology, but in organization of ideas, format, and style. This workshop takes into account the conventions of the profession, the traditions of the given document, and the established expectations of readers. In specialized writing, these factors figure prominently in determining clarity of style. Managing Writers In the workplace, good writing doesn’t happen without good guidance from management. Unfortunately, managers often follow practices that guarantee the need for time-consuming rewrites and revisions. Efficiency increases dramatically when a manager gives a clear assignment, sets a realistic deadline, delegates practically, provides a model of acceptable style, schedules feedback sessions, and refrains from nitpicking a writer’s best effort. This 1-day workshop helps streamline an organization's writing by (1) reminding managers what their writers need from them, (2) showing them how best to fulfill their responsibilities, and (3) giving them a chance to practice editing and coaching techniques. It also helps ensure that managers support the practical techniques their writers learn in the other workshops. Writing to Customers Good writing keeps customers. Letters, faxes, and email to customers must be clear, appropriate to the occasion, and creditable to the organization. This workshop shows writers how to respond to the reader's concerns thoroughly and tactfully even when using boilerplate, reviews methods of opening and closing, suggests numerous formatting devices that enhance readability, and gives writers techniques to ensure both simplicity and courtesy. Specialized Workshops Specialized workshops come in two forms. They may be 1-day modules of highly focused instruction pertaining to one or two specific issues, or they may be full workshops that we create from scratch. Lauchman Group 1324 Wild Oak Rockville, MD 20852 Telephone 301-315-6040 Fax 301-838-9044 Mobile 202-258-3582 email richard@lauchmangroup.com © 1996-2022 Lauchman Group All Rights Reserved	Our Clientele AARP ABB Environmental Services American Bankers Association American Chemical Society American Institute of Architects American Red Cross American Security Bank Agency for International Development The Baldwin Group British Aerospace Bureau of the Public Debt CAIS Internet Central Intelligence Agency Chevy Chase Federal Savings Bank Defense Communications Agency Defense Informations Systems Agency Defense Intelligence Agency Defense Logistics Agency Defense Mapping Agency Department of Agriculture Department of Commerce Department of Energy Department of Homeland Security Department of the Interior DoD Office of the Comptroller DoD Office of Health Affairs DoD Office of Family Policy Support and Services Edison Electric Institute EPA Exxon Fannie Mae FBI FCC FDA Federal Aviation Administration Federal Home Loan Bank Board Federal Trade Commission FEMA First American Bankshares Freddie Mac GHT Goddard Space Flight Center HPTi IBM ICF Kaiser Engineers I.M. 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