Targeted and verifiable reading

How can you obtain the essential information from a document without losing its nuances or adding facts?

1250 € per session, excl. VAT

In short

This half-day session of 3 hours offers a guided introduction to extracting information with generative AI. Working from a fictional briefing note, participants select useful information, request a structured presentation and check each point against the source. They leave with a concise information sheet and a checking grid.

Why this training?

A long briefing note often combines facts, proposals and decisions. An overly brief presentation can omit an important condition or present an option as an approved choice. The challenge is to select the elements relevant to a specific question without misrepresenting their status. Generative AI can suggest an initial selection, but its response does not constitute evidence. Linking each piece of information to the original passage makes it possible to check for omissions, excessive rewording and claims that are absent from the document. Running case study: The fictional organisation Avelune Équipements is preparing to replace its materials handling equipment. A six-page briefing note brings together needs, constraints, options, reservations and trade-offs that remain unresolved. Participants must use it to produce an information sheet for the manager preparing the decision-making meeting. Application at work: The next time you read a document for work, reuse the instruction on an authorised document, then check the selected points against the source. Keep the completed grid to identify omissions and refine your next request.

Objectives of this training

  • Define the intended recipient and the question the extraction must address.
  • Identify facts, decisions, reservations and missing information.
  • Formulate a structured extraction request for a generative AI tool.
  • Verify each selected point against an identifiable passage.
  • Assess the faithfulness and coverage of a concise information sheet.

Who is it for and what are the prerequisites?

Roles and tasks concerned

  • Assistants and coordinators who prepare meetings using internal briefing notes.
  • Staff who need to read reports or minutes to pass on the essentials.

Prior skills

  • No prior AI knowledge required.
  • Ability to consult a digital document and copy a text excerpt.

What you will work on

  1. Define what is worth retaining

    Objective: Distinguish essential information from secondary details. Difference between a general summary and targeted extraction; the recipient’s role; introduction to AI limitations and confidentiality rules.

  2. Request a structured extraction

    Objective: Obtain an organised response without requesting external information. Instruction specifying the question, scope, categories, length and expected references; direction to flag missing information rather than fill it in.

  3. Return to the evidence in the document

    Objective: Correct distortions and identify omissions. Checking figures, negations, conditions and responsibilities; distinguishing quotations from rewording; handling contradictions and references that cannot be found.

  4. Present the essentials for the meeting

    Objective: Produce a short, faithful and usable information sheet. Prioritising points; separating established matters from open questions; retaining essential reservations.

What you take away

  • Scoping sheet: recipient, question and categories sought.
  • Reusable extraction instruction with a response format.
  • Key points sheet with references to the source passages.
  • Completed checking grid and corrections made.

Method and assessment

  • Short explanations followed by immediate practice using the running case study.
  • Individual work followed by work in pairs, with peer review of the outputs.
  • Guided group discussion: what works, what needs correcting and what remains a human decision.
  • Preparation: Arrange access to a generative AI assistant authorised by the organisation. Make the paginated fictional briefing note and its reference answer available; use only fictional or anonymised content for the exercises.

Observable criteria: Each selected point includes a reference that allows the source passage to be located. ; No final claim lacks support in the document. ; Decisions, proposals and reservations are explicitly distinguished. ; The number of essential elements identified is compared with the reference answer, and omissions are named. ; The information sheet fits on one page and answers the recipient’s question..

Frequently asked questions

Do you already need to know how to use AI?

No. The first request is built step by step from the document provided.

Can you use a confidential document?

Not during these exercises. The content is fictional or anonymised and is used within tools authorised by the organisation.

What should you do if the tool cannot read the document?

Use a verified text version or paginated excerpts, without assuming the tool can read the document automatically.

Is a fluent response necessarily faithful to the source?

No. Only comparison with the source passages can validate the information and its nuances.

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