Effective Document Reviews
Before reviewing a document, make sure you first understand three things:
- the intended audience of the document,
- what kind of feedback the author wants, and
- what role you’ll play as a reviewer.
If you’re reviewing a document for technical accuracy, for example, don’t get bogged down with issues of style or grammar. Good review processes always include enough reviewers to allow people to focus on their strengths—so technical experts should focus on technical details, designers should focus on design, writers should focus on structure and semantics, and so on.
Approach your review systematically.
- Before you begin, browse the table of contents to make sure the document follows a logical sequence.
- Make sure that main headings are easy to find and organized clearly.
- Underline any sentences that seem difficult to understand or unnecessarily complicated. (I always emphasize simplicity when advising writers: if a coffee table is small and square, call it small and square. There’s no need to say it has “a diminutive appearance with four straight, uniform sides.” Some people argue that this kind of simplicity equates to a sort of “dumbing down.” Not true. Readers are looking for information—and they want it as quickly and easily as possible. Help them get it.)
Finally, always review the document as if you are its end-user.
- Is each point clearly stated, well supported, and adequately developed?
- Is the document easy to read and understand? Helpful? Concise?
- Is information easy to find?
- Can you follow its instructions?
