Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Mar 2026

“It's Hard to Show ROI When You’re Preventing Things from Happening”: How Impact Storytelling Frames Community Health Initiatives for Executive Audiences

Margaret Hsiao

Abstract

Community health practitioners face a common challenge of communicating the value of their work because it is intentionally designed to prevent health issues from happening. This case study examines how impact storytelling—a four-question framework developed by a community health manager at a nonprofit health system—mediates between technical expertise and executive's understanding. Through interviews with four Community Health practitioners, this research explains how the framework addresses specific technical communication challenges. This research brings together theory with practice by offering both a transferable framework for nonprofit organizations as well as theoretical insights into how workplace communication tools emerge from workplace practices.

Journal
Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Published
2026-03-14
DOI
10.1177/00472816261429918
Topics
qualitative research multimodality technical communication professional writing multilingual writers

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (0)

No articles in this index cite this work.

Cites in this index (10)

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    Technical Communication Quarterly
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    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
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    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Wickman (2014)
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    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Show all 10 →
  1. Asen (2010)
    Reflections on the Role of Rhetoric in Public Policy
    Rhetoric & Public Affairs
  2. Rude (2004)
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    Technical Communication Quarterly
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    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
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Also cites 4 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.1080/00335638409383686
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  2. 10.5617/jmi.v3i2.2432
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  3. 10.1108/JOSM-10-2021-0401
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  4. 10.4324/9780429198748
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CrossRef global citation count: 0 View in citation network →

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