The problem that defeats most efforts.
WHY IT IS THE HARDEST PART
The thing being documented keeps changing.
WHAT OUT-OF-DATE DOCUMENTATION CAUSES
Errors Support requests Loss of confidence in all documentation
WHY WRONG IS WORSE THAN ABSENT
It is followed.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
That documentation is updated as part of the change.
WHY AS PART OF IT
Updating afterwards does not happen.
WHAT THAT REQUIRES
The change process including a documentation step Someone responsible Time allocated
WHAT TO IDENTIFY
Which documents are affected by which changes.
WHY
Changes affect documents nobody thinks of.
WHAT TO MAINTAIN
A record of what documents exist and what they cover.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ON EVERY DOCUMENT
An owner A last-reviewed date The version it describes
WHY THE VERSION
Readers must know whether it applies to what they have.
WHAT TO REVIEW PERIODICALLY
Documents not updated in a long period.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT THEM
Verify, update, or remove.
WHY REMOVE
An unmaintained document is a liability.
WHAT TO MAKE EASY
Reporting an error.
HOW
A route to flag or correct it immediately.
WHY EASY
Friction means errors are noticed and left.
WHAT TO ENCOURAGE
Anyone correcting anything wrong.
WHAT TO AVOID
Approval processes that prevent updates.
WHY
The document stays wrong while approval is pending.
WHAT TO TRACK
Corrections reported, and how quickly they were made.
