There are many ways to organize information within a manual. For example, policy and procedure manuals can be organized by department, by business function, or by topic. Software end-user manuals can be organized by task or by following the software’s menu structure. Each method has different pros and cons. Some of the most common ways of organizing manuals are described below.
The method you choose must be appropriate to the type of manual and must allow readers to find information quickly. If you can, try to organize the manual so that it’s easy to revise as well, although this is a second priority.
Whichever method you choose, make sure the readers know how the manual is organized. You can do this by describing the method of organization in the introduction.
Use this approach for indexes, glossaries, directories and other reference information. Look at the WordPerfect manual—it’s organized alphabetically by keyword. The advantages of this method are it’s usually easy to find information (if you know the keyword), and you can combine all kinds of unrelated information together. The disadvantages are the reader must know the keyword first (or they’re stuck), so it’s not appropriate for novices, and there’s no continuity throughout the manual—related information is not together—so there’s no logical flow.
Use this method when you want to convince the reader of something based on logical or scientific argument. High school science reports are usually organized bottom up. Start with your findings, or the results ofyour analysis, then draw your conclusion. Business reports are often organized bottom up.
Use this method when the sequence of events is the most important aspect of the information. Parts of administrative procedure manuals, computer user manuals, and equipment operations manuals are often chronological. This type of information is usually presented using step-by-step procedures, such as playscript.
Policy and procedure manuals are sometimes organized by department—each chapter in the manual corresponds to a specific department. Use this method when you’re describing your organization’s structure, or when information relates only to a specific department or group. The advantage is that it can be easy to use, since procedures used by the Finance Department are all in the Finance chapter. It also corresponds closely to the organization’s delegation of authority and responsibility. The disadvantages, however, are that if there’s a re-organization, the manual will have to be re-organized too.
Use this method when organizing policy and procedure manuals. Instead of organizing information by department (such as "Human Resources Department"), divide it by function (such as "Hiring and Firing," "Employee Training and Development," and "Employee Classification and Remuneration.") Corporate re-organizations will not force you to re-organize the chapters in your manual.
Use this method when the sequence of the text is determined by something else, such as a form or computer screen illustration. Look at your tax form—the explanatory guide that comes with it is keyed to the T1 form. If you have a question about any box on the form, just look it up in the guide using the line number on the form. It’s easy to find the information you’re looking for.
This method is often used in software manuals where the chapters of the manual are sequenced in the same order as the software’s main menu. While this approach lets the reader go quickly back and forth between the software and the manual, since it’s not task oriented, it won’t necessarily conform to how the reader will use the software. A task orientation is often better.
Use this method when preparing information for a single person or position. The advantage is that staff members get only the information they need, so you can provide each person with a small amount of documentation. The disadvantage is this method does not show how each person’s role fits into the overall scheme. There may also be a lot of duplicate information when many people have to follow the same basic procedures.
Use this method for trouble-shooting guides or tables. It allows the reader to rapidly isolate and correct problems (unless the problem is not listed, in which case, it’s of no help). This method is commonly seen in computer hardware and equipment operations manuals.
Use this approach to list items with no logical order, such as grocery lists. In manuals, bullet lists are in random order. Using bullets implies to the reader that there is no logic to the order—if the order is important, use numbers or letters. Since the reader must scan the entire list to find an item, keep random lists short or group items under topical sub-headings.
Use this approach when guiding the reader through specific work tasks, such as approving an invoice, or installing software. By organizing information by task, the reader can usually find theinformation quickly, and all the information needed is in one place. Procedure manuals, instruction manuals, how-to books, software user manuals, and equipment operating manuals are often task-oriented. One disadvantage of this method is that by simply following step-by-step instructions, the reader may not learn anything. And it can sometimes be repetitious when tasks involve similar sub-sequences, if the same information has to be repeated more than once.
Use this method when you want to introduce a subject or persuade the reader about something. Our high school essays were usually organized top down. Start with the general introduction (your thesis), then move into the details (your arguments).
Introductions at all levels in manuals are usually organized top down—they start by introducing the subject, then work into the details. These are sometimes referred to as advance organizers since they help readers organize information before they receive it, and have been shown to help readers remember information.
This is often described as the cookbook method, since it’s the way most cookbooks are organized. Simply group related information together under headings that best describe the information. For example, under Payments you might find Issuing Receipts. Policy and procedure manuals, and descriptions of computer systems are often organized topically.
Because this method lets you group related information together, it’s good for explaining how things work. But it can be difficult to find information since there are often many possible ways of organizing the same information. Manuals organized in this way must always have an alphabetical index.
Use this approach when describing the workings of entire systems, such as the internal system for acquiring office furniture and equipment. Because organizing procedural information by entiresystems often involves a long series of steps, it’s difficult to use as a quick reference. However, managers and auditors usually like this systems approach because it allows them to review and evaluate administrative systems easily.
You’ll most likely need to use several of these organizational methods in your manual. Policy and procedure manuals, for example, may include chapters which are organized by function, sections which are organized by task, and sub-sections (such as step-by-step procedures) organized chronologically. And you will probably want an alphabetically organized index as well.
