Quality Is Job One

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You proofread the document many times. You edited it, ran the spell checker and renamed each version to avoid confusion. But still the final draft was full of mistakes. What happened?

Perhaps your quality control procedures are the culprit.

The advent of desktop publishing has blurred the functions previously used to control the quality of publications. The traditional publishing process included a designer, layout artist, typographer, editor, copy editor, and proofreader. Each person in the cycle added value to the document and "owned" its quality at that stage.

Today, the author outlines, designs, composes, formats, and edits the document. Gone is the feedback that occurs when a document passes from one expert to another.

Companies that expect technical writers to do their own editing may not realize that writing and editing are two different skills and mind sets. A technical writer creates, designs, and organizes information to help people use technology. An editor applies standards according to a prescribed style guide, eliminates grammatical errors and inconsistencies, and suggests revisions to clarify meaning.

You may not be able to convince your clients to hire all of the traditional publishing experts, but you should at least persuade them to hire a copy editor, if not qualified editors at each stage of the project. The editor could proofread your final draft before it goes to the client. But if you have to do it yourself, add a buffer of at least a day before your final proofreading so you can bring a fresh mind to the task.

Chris Hallgren is a project manager with Hailey Griffin Corporation in Markham, Ontario, Canada.