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Revival of the Position Paper:Aligning Curricula and ProfessionalCompetenciesVonda PowellPublished online: 31 Jan 2012.

To cite this article: Vonda Powell (2012) Revival of the Position Paper: AligningCurricula and Professional Competencies, Communication Teacher, 26:2, 96-103, DOI:10.1080/17404622.2011.643805

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Revival of the Position Paper: AligningCurricula and ProfessionalCompetenciesVonda Powell

Those of us who teach technical and professional writing may read [findings on

typical pedagogical effectiveness] and end up feeling that our efforts to simulate

workplace writing and to teach workplace genres in our classrooms are at best

unreliable and at worst futile. Blakeslee (2001), p. 170.

Courses: Writing for Public Relations, Business Communications; Marketing

Objective: Students will be able to identify audience issues, marshal evidence, garner

support, and motivate adoption of a position via visual imagery and persuasive writing

Rationale

It has been called a perfect storm. The ‘‘complete toppling of old communication

hierarchies and the unprecedented rise of new communication technologies,’’ have

galvanized industry and academia alike to retool established paradigms (Paine, 2009,

p. 21). With so much in flux, synergies can go unnoticed. As public relations

professions advance toward new media platforms, one traditional tool*the back-

grounder/position paper (more technically termed white paper) remains a compel-

ling vehicle to impart enduring professional competencies (Newsom & Haynes,

2008). Moreover, the skills requisite to produce a white paper can be deployed in a

variety of new and traditional media platforms. In a media landscape where the

message is increasingly being shaped by external voices, the ability to persuasively

articulate and visualize your position is paramount.

Concurrently, the need to bridge classroom activities and workplace skills is a

critical objective of professional writing courses. Research on popular pedagogical

tools for aligning academic and workplace writing skills, such as case studies and

client projects, suggests these methods may fail to enhance student consideration of

Vonda Powell, Simmons College, Communications, 300 The Fenway Boston, 02115, USA. Email:

vonda.powell@simmons.edu

ISSN 1740-4622 (print)/ISSN 1740-4630 (online) # 2012 National Communication Association

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17404622.2011.643805

Communication Teacher

Vol. 26, No. 2, April 2012, pp. 96�103

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their writing audiences or facilitate student writing beyond merely ‘‘displaying their

knowledge to the instructor’’ (Blakeslee, 2001, p. 170). White paper assignments offer

a pedagogical tool to address shortcomings such as these.

Originating as a government vehicle for policy stance dissemination, white papers

are well-reasoned, visually appealing documents that resemble research papers but

are actually strategically crafted to marshal support for an idea (Stelzner, 2005).

When an embattled financial firm faced public outrage over its compensation

packages, the firm contextualized its practices by issuing a white paper (American

International Group, Inc., 2009). When a group of Boston-based genYers launched

their award-winning alternative marketing agency, they did so by essentially

launching an online white paper (Street Attack, 2007). When a mobile communica-

tions company wanted to shape public opinion on their foray into a new product

market, they did so by issuing a white paper (Nokia, 2009).

While there is no shortage of white paper utilization in practice, as a discipline

public relations writing texts appear to have ceded the genre. In a survey of public

relations writing textbooks, King (2001) reported that of the eight leading texts,

backgrounders received the most attention, with half offering discussions, examples,

and assignments on the topic; however, the more thorough position paper technique

was subsumed under op-ed writing, receiving no coverage or more likely relegated to

discussion only. Notable exceptions to this lapse include: The publicity handbook by

Yale and Carothers (2001); On deadline by Howard and Mathews (2006), and The

public relations writer’s handbook by Aronson, Spetner, and Ames (2007). Relatively

limited textbook coverage is unfortunate, as comprehending the rudiments of white

paper production imparts professional communication competencies that can be

deployed in a variety of settings. Shoring the divide between academic and

professional, the skills that go into crafting a white paper empower students with

tangible evidence of their professional marketability.

Further, from a theoretical stance, position papers offer an excellent means of

illustrating the application of Grunig’s situational theory of publics (Grunig, 1997).

Grunig’s work provides a theoretical context for appealing to different audiences in

that humans are posited to be motivated to ‘‘invest cognitive and communicative

resources’’ when they perceive a match between information and their own subjective

concerns (Kim & Grunig, 2011). In learning the professional genre of position papers

in tandem with discussion of situational theory of publics, public relation students in

particular should appreciate the application of socio-psychological and demographic

variables in order to segment and appeal to various publics.

Procedure

Over the course of three weeks students complete a series of activity based learning

assignments designed to guide them through each stage of white paper production,

while honing specific skill objectives. To facilitate instruction of novice and advanced

students alike, the project includes distinct phases from generating unique positions

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through visual design. For instance, more advanced students could begin at Stage 3:

Research and Postion Paper Development (see Table 1).

Week 1 � Overview & In-class Practice Analysis

To familiarize students with white papers, an overview handout on the topic is

presented in the visual style of a white paper. The handout provides rationale for

undertaking each phase of the assignment, and is accompanied by stock photos and

clipart that visually communicate the same points made textually. While acknowl-

edging that not all white papers include images, students are recommended to

employ imagery that evokes text to facilitate their appreciation of the ease with which

white paper content can be translated to multimedia platforms.

At the initial stage, the essential point to be communicated to students is the

professional saliency of decision making and the need to coalesce support for ideas.

White papers are then introduced as a formulaic mechanism for convincing others to

support your perspective. Students are asked to appreciate that, rather than sell or

push an idea, the strong suit of white papers is the utilization of audience issues and

concerns to motivate adoption of your perspective.

In order to have a defendable position one must start with research. Easing novice

students into independent research for their firms, a collection of the same four trade

press articles on a sample company are distributed to student pairs. Students are

reminded of the basic definition of analysis, (i.e. to take information apart) and to

think of the information in the articles as a collection of puzzle pieces. Their job is to

sift through the articles/puzzle pieces and separate indisputable facts from opinions

and to rank the significance of the information given the publication source

Table 1 White Paper Project Outline.

Stage Assignment Handouts Skill Objectives

Week 1 1. Overview Textbook and handoutreadings

Project overviewpresented in a white papervisual style

�

2. Practiceanalysis

In class group practiceanalysis

Analysis and synthesisexercise for samplecompany

Analytical & criticalthinking

Week 2 3. Research andpositiondevelopment

Analysis and synthesisof trade press andcompany materials

Assignment instructionspresented in a white papervisual style

Deductivereasoning &decision making

Week 3 4. Formulaictextdevelopment

Draft text andbibliography

Stelzner (2005) Calibrating writingvoice

5. Visualdesign andlayout

Select color schemeand images. Formatvisually compellingdocument

Provide excerpts ofsections from past studentexamples and/or as a classcraft first paragraph andheading for each sectionand identify appropriatevisuals

Persuasive visualcommunication

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(e.g. Crane’s New York Business content may be viewed less salient than Women’s Wear

Daily for a fashion company). After circulating among the teams to ensure they are

on task, the instructor should capture team findings on the board, noting any

overlapping points and/or themes. The instructor should then review the basic

meaning of synthesis (i.e. create new ideas from components), and guide the class

through a collective synthesis of the analysis on the board, arriving at a problem/

opportunity facing the firm and a position/perspective they want to advocate that

will address this problem.

Week 2 � Coming Up with a Position: Research, Analysis, and Synthesis

Building on the class practice, students perform an analysis and synthesis on a

minimum of four relevant trade press articles plus their chosen organization’s

website. Deliverables for this assignment can be annotated articles, hand-written

notes, or any substantiation of the impetus for the position they will advocate in their

white paper and the company problem/opportunity that their idea will address. The

practice exercise along with this independent assignment cultivate: (1) analytical and

critical thinking capabilities as students comb through resources seeking relevant

information; and (2) deductive reasoning and decision making skills as students

translate their research into strategically viable propositions.

Week 3 � Textual Content Development

Next, students move on to gaining experience in calibrating writing voice as they build

credibility by affecting an insider voice and tone infused with a sense of affinity with

the reader. One caveat that should be reiterated to students, particularly those with

little nonacademic writing experience, is that white papers target knowledgeable

professional audiences and need to showcase the author’s insight and interpretive

abilities. Therefore, reciting blanket statements of fact that executive-level readers will

likely already be aware of, without framing the content can backfire. In order to ‘‘not

waste the reader’s time,’’ students need to be encouraged to articulate their rationale

and the relevancy of their information for a professional audience. Asking students,

‘‘will your audience already know this fact?’’ and ‘‘why are you telling your reader

this?’’ can be enough to help them realize that it is appropriate, and indeed necessary,

to express their thinking on a topic. However, in keeping with the goal of affinity

building, rationale should never use pronouns like ‘‘I’’ or ‘‘you,’’ rather white paper

authors should choose phrases such as ‘‘the company,’’ ‘‘the firm,’’ or ‘‘we.’’

Systematically, using a professional white paper consultancy template, students are

guided through ten sections of content development:

1. Problem/opportunity identification.

2. History of what led to the problem/opportunity.

3. Non-evaluative presentation of straw men positions and your position.

4. Position benchmarks/criteria for selection of best position.

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5. Example of good and bad outcomes.

6. Merits of your position.

7. Call to action.

8. Works cited.

9. Executive summary.

10. Visually intriguing cover sheet.

As a class we digest the consultancy’s How to write a white paper: A white paper on

white papers (Stelzner, 2005). Students are then directed to draft content for each

section in a crisp authoritative tone equal to the professional stature of their

audience. To enable busy executive readers to cut to the chase, each content section is

to be labeled with an interpretive heading that summarizes the main conclusion of

the section. Perhaps the single most important caveat to white paper textual content

is the need for the author to refrain from directly advocating for their position/

perspective until section 6. In section 3 the author’s idea is presented among a range

of possible options with no evaluative statements. In section 4 a set of criteria or

benchmarks is provided that are strategically selected by the author to result in the

reader making the conclusion that the author’s position is likely the best option. Only

after section 4, when the reader should have already concluded that the author’s idea

is best suited to address their problem/opportunity, should the author engage in

explicit advocacy. Obviously, at an undergraduate level this objective will be achieved

with varying degrees of transparency but the important thing is that students

appreciate the formula and gain experience in strategically crafting text.

Visual design & layout

Finally, students hone visual communication skills as they structure their document to

symbolically interpret the text with editorial imagery, color, and white space. This can

be achieved by instructing students to: (1) select images from free stock photography

websites that visually reiterate what they have expressed textually; (2) add image

captions that frame content in a complimentary manner; (3) choose color schemes

that evoke relevant meanings (e.g. green for environmental issues, red for crises,

colors that match the firm’s logo, etc.); and (4) dramatically limit the amount of text

and imagery per page to allow readers to quickly focus on interpretive headings and

avoid skipping textually dense pages. While students are generally adept at

electronically gathering images, designing a polished layout with embedded text

typically takes considerably longer than anticipated, perhaps in part because writing

students tend not to give enough academic attention to visual design, which is

becoming increasingly requisite in the workplace.

Debriefing

White papers strip away two common aspects of student writing: a captive audience

and a higher degree of certainty that they are delivering what the reader wants.

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Students find this to be very challenging but the end result is a toolkit of persuasive

professional communication competencies. Much like workplace assignments, white

paper coursework forces students to gather the facts they have, make logical

decisions, and formulate them in a manner that motivates audiences to actually take

the time to read their contributions. Further, white paper content structure is highly

audience and delivery vehicle adaptive, with the most consistent across-media

mechanisms being a company insider analytical voice and the avoidance of directly

telling audiences what to do or think, (i.e. your position).

Appraisal

Adapted from Newsom and Hayes (2008), a standard PR Writing grading rubric is

employed to assess the final completed white paper. My students frequently use the

outcomes of this project to secure internships and employment. Many simply present a

final copy along with a cover letter and resume to the organization that is the subject of

their work. Former students have also successfully utilized white paper methodology in

advanced courses to construct winning client-based case presentations. Perhaps most

rewarding is sharing in the delight of students when their capabilities are affirmed by

discovering that organizations may have already been toying with the position they

deduced and advocated, and/or perceive that their ideas were taken seriously by the

organization. To better gauge the impact of the white paper assignment on professional

skill development, provided below is a cross-section of student feedback:

Presently, I am a member of a foundling management team that strives totransform urban education. My approach to the challenges we face has been largelyshaped by methods learned upon completing a position paper. This assignmentrefined my ability to address large-scale obstructions in the corporate atmosphere.It highlights the importance of consumer consciousness, critical analyses, andpersuasive efforts to yield a desired outcome from a complex situation . . . I haveconceived strategies necessary to plant our organization at the forefront ofeducation reform. The position paper takes a practical look at problem resolutionwhile inadvertently persuading the client to adopt a desired strategy. In completingthis assignment, I learned the power of persuasion and its ability to perpetuateaction when tailored to a specific audience. (Student A, 2011)

Although writing a white paper was challenging at first, it drastically improved mywriting skills. During my most recent internship I wrote two white papers and someof the ideas are in the works to be implemented this summer! My managers at myinternship invited me back to come work for them again, as well. (Student B, 2011)

I took my white paper to an interview for a prestigious intern position at a PR agency,not only was the company impressed by the quality of work done but they found it tobe something that made me a better candidate for the position. (Student C, 2011)

Creating a white paper was one of the most challenging yet rewarding assignments Ihave completed. Not only did this assignment have real-world applications, but italso required critical and strategic thinking. I walked away with a portfolio piece(and) a set of new skills I can bring to the workplace. (Student D, 2011)

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The (white paper assignment) turned out to be my strongest portfolio piece. Itchallenged me to not only write my position clearly and persuasively using straw-men to present my idea as the best fit, but also how to show it using images to backmy thoughts. I mastered the right amount of white space, learned how to use font andcolor to reflect the tone of my position, and write in a way that makes the readerdecide my position is the best option. (Student E, 2011)

Socializing students into professional writing genres and bridging the divide

between the academy and profession are imperatives. In tandem, the cohesive

processes involved in constructing a well-crafted white paper are highly reflective of

authentic workplace assignments. The cognitive and behavioral competencies

requisite for contemporary strategic communications functions mandates that

writing students possess ‘‘broader analytical and critical thinking skills’’ (Watson,

2010). Indeed, having a finger on the pulse of trends affecting one’s firm and

industry is merely the starting point to ‘‘actively participating in the discourse’’ and

developing the capacity to eventually ‘‘act as advisors with equal standing’’ with

cross-functional peers (Watson, 2010). Drafting a white paper challenges students

to achieve just these things. Once attained, the professional competencies that go

into white paper production can be tailored to nearly any vehicle in which the

author needs to achieve affinity with an audience, build credibility, impart rationale

without inciting defensiveness*and of course, actually have their ideas heard above

the din.1

References and Suggested Readings

American International Group, Inc. (2009). AIGFP employee retention plan. New York, NY.

Aronson, M., Spetner, D., & Ames, C. (2007). The public relations writer’s handbook: The digital age

(2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Blakeslee, A.M. (2001). Bridging the workplace and the academy: Teaching professional genres

through classroom�workplace collaborations. Technical Communication Quarterly, 10(2),

169�192.

Grunig, J.E. (1997). A situational theory of publics: Conceptual history, recent challenges and new

research. In D. Moss, T. MacManus, & D. Vercic (Eds.), Public relations research: An

international perspective (pp. 3�46). London: International Thomson Business Press.

Howard, C., & Mathews, W. (2006). On deadline: Managing media relations (4th ed.). Long Grove,

IL: Waveland.

Kim, J., & Grunig, J.E. (2011). Problem solving and communicative action: A situational theory of

problem solving. Journal of Communication, 61(1), 120�149.

King, C.M. (2001). The write stuff: Teaching the introductory public relations writing course. Public

Relations Review, 27(1), 27.

Newsom, D., & Haynes, J. (Eds.).. (2008). Public relations writing: Form & style (8th ed.). Belmont,

CA: Thomson Wadsworth.

Nokia. (2009). Nokia world 09. Helsinki, Finland: Nokia Corporation.

Paine, K.D. (2009). Goodbye, eyeballs. hello, engagement. Communication World, 26(3), 21�24.

1Supplemental materials including a sample white paper project outline and grading rubric are available upon

request from the author.

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Stelzner, M.A. (2005). How to write a white paper: A white paper on white papers. Poway, CA:

Stelzner Consulting.

Street Attack. (2007). Choice observations, thoughts, and reflections. Boston, MA: Street Attack.

Watson, T. (2010). 2015’s top communicators*new skills and expertise required. Unpublished

manuscript. Research to be presented at the Institute for Public Relations European

Professional Colloquium.

Yale, D.R., & Carothers, A.J. (2001). The publicity handbook: The inside scoop from more than 100

journalists and PR pros on how to get great publicity coverage: In print, online, and on the air

(New ed.). Chicago, IL: NTC Business Books.

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