ESSENCE2 — Remove Passive Voice

Justification

Avoiding passive voice in specifications is generally recommended for several reasons, each contributing to clearer, more effective communication. Here’s why it’s important:

• Clarity and Precision: Passive voice can sometimes obscure who is responsible for acting. Specifications must clarify which party or component performs each action to avoid ambiguity. Using active voice clarifies the subject's acting, making the document easier to understand and implement.
• Directness and Authority: An active voice is more direct and forceful, which helps with authoritative and decisive expression. This is particularly important in specifications where direct instructions, clear guidelines, and unambiguous directives are crucial.
• Conciseness: The active voice often requires fewer words than the passive voice, making statements more concise. In technical writing, especially specifications, conciseness helps keep documents succinct and focused, avoiding overly complex constructions that confuse the reader.
• Readability: Texts written in active voice are generally easier to read and more engaging. In specifications, where the accuracy of the implementation is critical, ensuring that the document is easy to read reduces the risk of errors in interpretation.
• Efficiency in Communication: Active voice contributes to faster and more efficient communication, which is essential in specifications. Stakeholders and team members can more quickly grasp the essential points and what is expected of them.

Examples

For example, instead of writing "The system is to be restarted by the operator," which uses passive voice, it’s clearer and more direct to say, "The operator must restart the system." This immediately clarifies who is responsible for the action and what action they must take.

Summary

In summary, using active voice in specifications ensures clarity, directness, conciseness, readability, and effective communication, all of which are vital for precisely executing tasks described in such documents.