I led an initiative to improve our internal release notes template. This story highlights my leadership and expertise in content strategy.
Problem Addressed
Product managers were responsible for providing internal release notes to operations teams to allow them to prepare for upcoming releases. However, some teams expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of detail. Some even admitted they stopped reading the release notes because of this.
The PMs themselves were also frustrated because they used the release notes to communicate important information. But they still received questions on details addressed in the release notes.
Solution Implemented
I investigated the issue. In my analysis, I concluded that the existing template for each release item was too vague. In addition, certain release items didn’t seem to fit the template, making for uninformative release notes. The level of detail and writing quality varied widely. The inconsistency discouraged users from reading the release notes on a regular basis.
I crafted a new template calling for more specific information. Because PMs were the main authors, I used terms familiar to them. The new template called for these fields:
- Problem Addressed
- Solution Implemented
- Why It Matters
Results
Average views on release notes increased after updating the template. Two months after the change, average views had increased by over 40%.
About This Sample
The sample below shows two release notes for the same item, using the previous template and a modified version of the updated template. This is a fictional release item based on a real release I documented, though many details have been changed for this sample.
| Criteria | Description |
|---|---|
| Tools | Sharepoint, MS Word |
| SMEs | product manager |
| Others | none |
The sample begins below the line.
Previous Template
(LLCJ-4321) Event Tags for Video Retrieval
- Clients Affected: All Video Retrieval clients
- Previous Behavior: Event tags were not displayed on the Video Retrieval page.
- Updated Behavior: Event tags are now displayed on the Video Retrieval page. The events indicated below are captured.
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| Ign ON | Ignition was turned on. |
| Ign OFF | Ignition was turned off. |
| Door | A door was opened. Includes any door of the vehicle. |
| Ramp | A ramp or lift was activated. |
Updated Template
Enhancement: Event Tags for Video Retrieval
- Clients Affected: All Video Retrieval clients
- Problem Addressed: Users needed more help searching through DVR footage. Each camera can hold up to 200 hours of footage using the default SD card. Sifting through footage is the most time-consuming aspect of video retrieval.
- Solution Implemented: Event tags are now displayed on the Video Retrieval page. The events indicated below are captured.
- Why It Matters: Event tags give users more context into vehicle trips to aid their search.
- Jira ID: LLCJ-4321
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| Ign ON | Ignition was turned on. |
| Ign OFF | Ignition was turned off. |
| Door | A door was opened. Includes any door of the vehicle. |
| Ramp | A ramp or lift was activated. |