TABLE 7.1 Organizational Patterns and the Kinds of Information You Want To Present

TABLE 7.1 Organizational Patterns and the Kinds of Information You Want To Present
IF YOU WANT TO . . .	CONSIDER USING THIS ORGANIZATIONAL PATTERN	FOR EXAMPLE . . .
Explain events that occurred or might occur or tasks that the reader is to carry out	Chronological. Most of the time, you present information in chronological order. Sometimes, however, you use reverse chronology.	You describe the process used to diagnose the problem with the accounting software. Or, in a résumé, you describe your more-recent jobs before your earlier ones.
Describe a physical object or scene, such as a device or a location	Spatial. You choose an organizing principle such as top-to-bottom, east-to-west, or inside-to-outside.	You describe the three main buildings that will make up the new production facility.
Explain a complex situation, such as the factors that led to a problem or the theory that underlies a process	General to specific. You present general information first, then specific information. Understanding the big picture helps readers understand the details.	You explain the major changes and the details of a law mandating the use of a new refrigerant in cooling systems.
Present a set of factors	More important to less important. You discuss the most-important issue first, then the next-most-important issue, and so forth. In technical communication, you don’t want to create suspense. You want to present the most-important information first.	When you launch a new product, you discuss market niche, competition, and then pricing.
Present similarities and differences between two or more items	Comparison and contrast. You choose from one of two patterns: (1) discuss all the factors related to one item, then all the factors related to the next item, and so forth; (2) discuss one factor as it relates to all the items, then another factor as it relates to all the items, and so forth.	You discuss the strengths and weaknesses of three companies bidding on a contract your company is offering. You discuss everything about Company 1, then everything about Company 2, and then everything about Company 3. Or you discuss the management structure of Company 1, of Company 2, and of Company 3; then you address the engineering expertise of Company 1, of Company 2, and of Company 3; and so forth.
Assign items to logical categories or discuss the elements that make up a single item	Classification or partition. Classification involves placing items into categories according to some criterion. Partition involves breaking a single item or a group of items into major elements.	For classification, you group the motors your company manufactures according to the fuel they burn: gasoline or diesel. For partition, you explain the operation of each major component of one of your motors.
Discuss a problem you encountered, the steps you took to address the problem, and the outcome or solution	Problem-methods-solution. You can use this pattern in discussing the past, the present, or the future. Readers understand this organizational pattern because they use it in their everyday lives.	In describing how your company is responding to a new competitor, you discuss the problem (the recent loss in sales), the methods (how you plan to examine your product line and business practices), and the solution (which changes will help your company prosper).
Discuss the factors that led to (or will lead to) a given situation, or the effects that a situation led to or will lead to	Cause and effect. You can start from causes and speculate about effects, or you can start with the effect and try to determine which factors were the causes of that effect.	You discuss factors that you think contributed to a recent sales dip for one of your products. Or you explain how you think changes to an existing product will affect its future sales.