h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm applying for a job and am saying how amazingly good I'd be at it by listing achievements in bullet points.

Should I say that I

Developed a White Paper and a Strategy Paper on the future of blah-de-blah which I delivered to the main man who etc, etc, etc

Or should I say I

Wrote a White Paper and a Strategy Paper etc

I could of course say "Provided thought-leadership on ...." but I'd rather swallow razors. So long as they were blunt. Not sharp ones. Obviously.

Any advice on the wording much appreciated.

Ben

Cut the fog. Always.

Well, yeah. Especially as this is a comms role.

But did I deliver it or develop it or write it?

Well the most comfortable collocation for me would be develop a stratagy, write a paper, deliver a product, but then collocation doesn't necessarily have anything to do with management speak.

All three.

Developed, wrote and delivered a white paper on...

RF

What does "deliver" mean in this context?

- did you present it with visual aids to an audience of thousands?
- did you talk through it with half a dozen colleagues?
- did you put it in an envelope and push it through a letterbox?
- did you remove its liver?

<<- did you remove its liver?>>

Removed its liver. Daily. With eagles. While it was tied to a rock.

traditional and proper punishment for those who steal enlightening presentations meant for top management

I'm not a native English speaker, but I would write a paper, not develop it ... unless it involves the dark art of photography

I would develop a strategy, which was presented in a .. yah de yah de yah to the yah de yach de yuck

there's a limit to management-speak. most managers are not that clever really, and prefer to see easily recognisable words... like write, eat, drink, gin&tonic..

'developed a white paper', makes it sound like you were responsible for a building development in a place called 'White Paper' (somewhere near the white cliffs of dover perhaps?)
If its a bullet point list make em short and simple (just like the target readership is).
Produced a white paper maybe? wrote might be good... developed... naa don't sound rite...

Developed, wrote or delivered is fine. Sometimes you do need jargon, but as soon as you make it unclear, you will be caught out. You need to be able to describe, in as few words as possible, and as specifically as possible, what the challenge was, what you did and what the effect was. "I wrote a white paper for management on improving the cost of razor blades in the company. The white paper was accepted and I lead the improvement effort". Yes, there is jargon, but not too much, and you are showing them that you did something as well as just proposing something.

Mention the words Thought Leadership and you will be hung from the rafters..

Can you 'back chain' it? So result comes first, then the how? That way it might fall into place and you can either keep the back chain, or rewrite it backwards (forwards, whatever?).

So, did it solve a problem? In which case can't you mention what the company got out of it. I don't know what either of the things are, so am probably not being much use.

When I've added things to my CV I've usually used 'developed' because to me that includes realising there was a problem, thinking, writing, presenting/proposing, fixing.

Dearie me, my CV is old! Anyhoow, I've got on it:

• Devised strategies to make communication more efficient

Which probably means I created an email list ...

>> Mention the words Thought Leadership and you will be hung from the rafters...

Or not given a role in the new operating model, which is what has happened to my boss, who has been "providing thought-leadership" to anyone who didn't see her first for the last 12 months.

Say you've upskilled. They love a bit of upskilling going forward.

You are giving me flashbacks, RF. She had me upskilling my colleagues.

Er, Romondo. Not RF.

How to speak Management-

http://www.stokely.com/lighter.side/mgmt.spk.html