The peer review stage involves having the draft reviewed by colleagues or subject matter experts (SMEs) to ensure accuracy, clarity, and completeness. Peer reviews provide a fresh perspective and help identify areas for improvement that the original writer may have missed.
Selecting Reviewers:
- Choose appropriate reviewers: Select reviewers who have relevant expertise and knowledge of the subject matter. Ideally, include both technical experts and those less familiar with the content to ensure it is understandable to all target audiences.
- Limit the number of reviewers: To avoid conflicting feedback and streamline the process, limit the number of reviewers to a manageable group. Typically, 2-4 reviewers are sufficient, depending on the document’s complexity.
Guidelines for Reviewers:
- Provide constructive feedback: Feedback should be clear, specific, and actionable. Highlight both strengths and areas for improvement. Avoid vague comments like “this is unclear” without suggesting specific changes or providing context. Example: “Consider rephrasing this sentence to clarify the steps for setting up the configuration.”
- Focus on key areas: Reviewers should focus on the document’s accuracy, clarity, consistency, and completeness. This includes verifying technical details, checking for logical flow, and ensuring that the content adheres to the style guide.
- Use commenting tools effectively: Encourage reviewers to use track changes, comments, or other collaborative tools to provide feedback directly within the document. This keeps all feedback centralised and easy to manage.
Conducting the Peer Review:
- Set a clear deadline: Provide reviewers with a specific deadline to ensure timely feedback. Communicate the deadline clearly and follow up if necessary.
- Organise a review meeting if needed: For complex documents or when multiple reviewers are involved, consider organising a review meeting to discuss key feedback points, resolve any conflicts, and reach a consensus on significant changes.
Incorporating Feedback:
- Review all feedback critically: Evaluate each piece of feedback critically, considering its relevance and applicability. Prioritise feedback that directly impacts the document’s accuracy, clarity, or completeness.
- Implement necessary changes: Make revisions based on the feedback received. If certain feedback is not incorporated, document the reasons for not doing so to maintain transparency.
Dos:
- Choose reviewers with relevant expertise: Example: “Include a senior developer for technical accuracy.”
- Provide specific and actionable feedback: Example: “Rephrase this paragraph to simplify the explanation.”
Don’ts:
- Don’t ignore feedback without justification: Always consider reviewer input and document reasons for not implementing certain changes.
- Avoid ambiguous or general feedback: Example: “Make this clearer” without providing details.