This section of my portfolio contains a sample of procedures that I worked on for Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS), a leading health insurance provider, as well as a sample manual from my internship at The Good Grid (TGG), a local nonprofit.

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I enjoy writing written procedures and also document desk procedures and accounting software procedures at Blue Cross Blue Shield. I wanted to build my skills by taking a Writing Software Documentation class. This class taught me a few techniques to improve my procedure writing skills to make my work easier to read and understand.  

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There are some slight differences in how I prepare documentation for Blue Cross versus how I prepare documentation in class. At Blue Cross, we try to get as much information on one page as possible. However, for shorter documents, I like the idea of having more whitespace in between steps. At Blue Cross, we have also been debating on whether we should have a caption for each screenshot, especially if we previously mention the screen in the procedures. I can see that there are some benefits to naming each screen with a caption, and it can be helpful to have each screen listed in the table of contents (TOC).  

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When creating procedural manuals, I try to incorporate what I read about headings from Ginny Redish. Headings are a very important part of documentation. They can help the reader go to the exact part of the process they are looking for. Also, readers can skim the TOC to locate the header they want. So it is important that you name headers based on what issues or topics your readers will be looking for.  

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I also try to incorporate Ehren Pflugfelder’s minimalist approach. I appreciate simplistic design as well as steps that are short and to the point. I try to keep my procedures concise and only include necessary information. Blue is a neutral color (as well as the company color) and is not distracting to readers. The only pictures/images I use are screenshots to enhance the procedures. This makes for more usable and successful documentation.