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Delivering Knowledge for Top Performance
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| 5W1H Basic Approach to Collecting Key Information |
One of the most universally used tools for information
organization and analysis is the 5W1H framework.
This approach answers six basic questions to gather information
about nearly any subject: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and
How. Sometimes a second "H" is used: How Much.
This method is used across a range of professions, from process
analysts to quality engineers to journalists, to understand
virtually any problem or issue.
Even better, the same method can be used to organize the
writing of reports, articles, white papers, and even whole books.
Often first introduced to high schools students, the 5W1H
framework can be applied at any level of granularity to gather
and analyze information from the simplest to the most complex.
Attributed to a Rudyard Kipling poem, 5W1H is the place to start
and may be enough to take you to the finish.
© 2009-2010 David A. Baldwin, Dave Baldwin Consulting. All rights reserved.