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Designing an e-learning course on writing
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Category Archives: Experience
Writing a short, funny film to reach employees
A drinks company wanted its people to know the firm’s position on the difficult questions about alcohol. They had lots of policy documents, but they wanted something that employees would actually absorb.
I suggested a short film in which the hapless hero, a junior manager for the company, comes late to a big family gathering – and has to deal with all the difficult questions one by one. Each family member represented a different issue – from health to drink-driving – and could be used on posters to reinforce the messages. By hearing an ordinary person explain things in a real situation, employees are more likely to remember the points – especially since they all come up in funny family conversations.
The film wasn’t made in the end, because of department and budget changes, but my clients loved the scripts and other material I produced.
Writing and interviewing for a big thought-leadership report
I was the main writer, editor and interviewer for HSBC’s Future of Retirement report in 2006 and 2007.
Writing an advertorial in the Financial Times
I’ve worked with Hill & Knowlton’s clients on a few large projects, including an advertorial in the FT to publicise the Skills Summit.
Writing an article for the Financial Times
In a rare foray into journalism, I wrote a 1000-word feature article about the innovative management style at Geopost. This appeared in the FT’s management section. It was the first and only time I’ve pitched an article to the FT.
This is the article. The title, thank God, is theirs.
Writing a speech for the chairman of EVCA
I wrote the inaugural speech for the new chairman of the European Venture Capital Association. It was given at a conference in front of an audience of 800 people, and the feedback was very good.
Designing a giant outdoor boardgame
One of my favourite projects was to come up with a board game that the Department for International Development could use at festivals. They wanted it to work for kids of all ages, to be simple, to be educational and to be engaging and fun. The result was the Race Against Poverty, in which up to eight kids competed to win a voucher for their favourite charity. If they answered a multiple-choice question correctly, they spun a wheel to see how many spaces their piece moved around the track – but some of the squares were booby-trapped.
I came up with the rules and wrote the questions and the instructions for the volunteers running it. It went down very well.
Here’s a sample question:
Coaching an economist to write better reports
I worked with an economist who has to write reports on long-term economic forecasting using computer modelling. These two subjects – economics and computing – are not easy to make simple and readable, but the economist’s corporate clients needed him to do just that. Luckily this economist, whose first language was not English, quickly made big improvements.
Rewriting reports on technology
I rewrote reports on new technology for Accenture’s research and development arm at Sophia Antipolis, in France.
Writing the ABI’s style guide
I wote a corporate style-guide for the Association of British Insurers, designed to be used online and as a booklet.