Prompting for clarity and consistency

Module 1 introduced CRAFT. Producing professional documents repeatedly adds four practices.

Practice 1: Write a voice card A voice card is a short description of how your organisation sounds. You paste it into prompts or save it in a project’s instructions so that every draft starts from the same place. Keep it to about 150 words and include examples, because models imitate examples more reliably than they follow adjectives.

BRIGHTWATER VOICE CARD

We sound like: a helpful, experienced colleague. Clear, warm, practical. We do not sound like: a legal notice, a marketing brochure, or a motivational poster.

Rules: - Short sentences. Everyday words. Active voice. - Speak to the reader as "you". Refer to the company as "we". - Lead with what the reader needs to do or know. - Explain any term a new hire would not know. - No exclamation marks in policy content. One is fine in a welcome message. - Use gender-neutral language. Use "they" for an unspecified person.

Sounds like us: "Your first day starts at 9:00 a.m. at Building B. Priya, your manager, will meet you at reception." Does not sound like us: "We are thrilled to welcome you to the Brightwater family, where your journey to excellence begins!"

Practice 2: Use reusable templates with variables Turn any prompt that works into a template by replacing the specifics with placeholders in square brackets. Templates are what make results consistent from one author to the next.

Context: You are helping the HR team at [COMPANY]. Follow the voice card below. [PASTE VOICE CARD]

Action: Draft a job posting for the role described in the brief below.

Brief: - Title: [TITLE] - Reports to: [MANAGER TITLE] - Why the role exists: [1-2 SENTENCES] - Main responsibilities: [LIST FROM HIRING MANAGER] - Required qualifications: [LIST - ONLY WHAT IS TRULY NECESSARY] - Preferred qualifications: [LIST] - Location and schedule: [DETAILS]

Format: Title; 3-sentence summary; "What you will do" (5-7 bullets); "What you need" (required); "Nice to have" (preferred); "Where and when". Under 400 words.

Constraints: - Use only the information in the brief. Do not add requirements, benefits or pay. - Where information is missing, insert [CONFIRM: what is needed]. - Insert the placeholders [PAY RANGE] and [EEO STATEMENT] where they belong; I will fill them. - Use inclusive, gender-neutral language. Avoid age-coded words and jargon.

Practice 3: Chain the work Do not ask for a finished document in one step. Ask for an outline and agree it; ask for the draft; ask for a critique; then ask for a revision. Each step is short enough to check properly.

Review the draft above as a critical HR editor. Check it against these criteria and list every issue you find, quoting the exact words:

1. Any statement not supported by the brief or source text I gave you.
2. Any wording that could discourage applicants by gender, age, disability or background.
3. Any jargon, sentence over 25 words, or passive construction.
4. Anything that sounds like a promise or guarantee.
5. Anything that departs from the voice card.

Then give me a revised draft that fixes the issues.

Practice 4: Write for plain language

• Ask for a reading level (“about grade 8”) and short sentences.
• Ask for the most important information first.
• Ask for terms to be defined on first use.

• For readers whose first language is not English, ask the model to avoid idioms and cultural references.
• Check with a readability tool in your word processor, and by reading it aloud.