Tool 1 · 9.00 to 10.30 am
ChatGPT: Briefing an AI and Asking Questions of Data
You will produce: a value map showing where AI is worth using in your division.
In plain terms
A very well-read new hire who has never worked at Sarawak Skills
It writes fluently and quickly because it predicts likely words from patterns in its training. It knows nothing about your programmes, trainees or board unless you tell it. When it lacks the facts, it may still answer with confidence.
What it does well and where it fails
Does well
- Summarising long reports and minutes
- Drafting letters, memos and papers
- Rewording for a different audience
- Spotting gaps and weak arguments
- Turning rough notes into structure
Does badly
- Knowing your institution's own facts
- Exact figures, unless you check them
- Citing sources it was never given
- Knowing what happened last week
- Judging what is right for your people
Rule of thumb: strong on language, weak on facts it has not been shown.
Prompting is delegation
You would not hand a new officer a 40-page report and say “summarise”. Give the AI the brief you would give them.
- 1
Context
Who you are and the situation you are in.
- 2
Task
The exact output you want back.
- 3
Audience
Who will read it and what they care about.
- 4
Format
Length, structure and tone.
- 5
Checks
What to flag, verify or leave out.
The same request, briefed twice
Summarise this report.
I am the Head of Student Affairs at a TVET institution in Sarawak. Attached is our graduate tracer study. Write a one-page summary for Monday's management meeting. Focus on employability by programme and the two weakest programmes. Use plain English and short paragraphs. Give the page number for every figure and flag any you are unsure of.
The second brief takes one more minute to write. It returns a draft you can use.
What ChatGPT gives a manager
| Feature | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Drafting | First drafts of memos, letters and notices from a short brief. |
| Data analysis | Upload a spreadsheet and ask questions. It can total, compare and draw charts. |
| Custom instructions | Tell it once who you are and how you write. It applies that to every chat. |
| Temporary chat | A chat that is not saved to your history. Useful for one-off tasks. |
Asking questions of data
Ask
- Upload the spreadsheet itself, never a screenshot
- “Show enrolment by campus for the last three intakes”
- “Which programme fell most? Show your working”
- “Draw a chart I can paste into a paper”
Then check
- Total one column yourself and compare
- Ask which rows it excluded and why
- Match one figure against the source system
- Use totals or anonymised data, never named trainees
An AI can misread a merged cell or a hidden row and still give a confident answer.
Turning numbers into visuals
| What you want to say | Ask for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Compare categories | Bar chart | Enrolment by programme |
| Show change over time | Line chart | Intake across five years |
| Show share of a whole | Stacked bar, or a pie with few slices | Trainees by funding source |
| Show progress against a target | One large number beside the target | Graduate employability against target |
Skills: teach ChatGPT a task once
A skill is a saved workflow for one recurring task. You write the method once and ChatGPT follows it every time the task comes up.
What goes in
Your instructions, one good example and the format you expect back.
How to make one
Open Skills, choose Create, then describe the task in chat.
How it runs
ChatGPT picks up the skill by itself when a request matches.
How it spreads
Share it so the whole division works from one method.
Skills need a ChatGPT Business, Enterprise or Edu workspace. On a free account, custom instructions are the nearest substitute.
Your turn
Map your division's tasks
- 1List six tasks your division does every month.
- 2Place each task in one of the four boxes below.
- 3Circle two from the high value, low risk box to try first.
Keep this sheet. It feeds your roadmap in the wrap-up.
| Low risk | High risk | |
|---|---|---|
| High value | Start here. Minutes, first drafts of memos, course brochures. | Use with review. Board papers, replies to sponsors, tracer analysis. |
| Low value | Optional. Rewording a routine email. | Leave alone. Disciplinary decisions, assessment results. |
Custom Instructions
Make ChatGPT write like you, not like a robot
Custom Instructions are standing preferences ChatGPT applies to every chat. Set them once under Settings → Personalization → Custom Instructions and your drafts start sounding human, local and on-brand.
Who you are
Your role, organisation and the audiences you usually write for.
How you write
Tone, sentence length, British spelling, words you always or never use.
What to avoid
Clichés, filler openings, heavy bullet points and over-polished corporate phrasing.
I am a senior manager at a Sarawak public training institution. I write to staff, board members, government agencies and industry partners. Our readers are busy, practical and value clarity over polish. We use British English and Malaysian context (ringgit, ministries, local place names).
Write like a thoughtful human manager, not an AI. - Use plain, warm, direct language. Vary sentence length; mix short and longer sentences. - Prefer paragraphs over bullet points unless I ask for a list. - Never use: "delve", "in today's fast-paced world", "tapestry", "leverage", "robust", "seamless", "I hope this email finds you well", "it's important to note". - No em dashes, no exclamation marks, no emojis. - Start with the point. Skip preambles and closing summaries. - Use contractions naturally (we're, it's, don't). - If you are unsure of a fact, say so instead of guessing. - Keep it concise: cut any sentence that adds no new information.
Rewrite the text below so it sounds like it was written by an experienced manager, not generated by AI. Keep every fact and figure. Remove clichés, filler and over-formal phrasing, vary sentence rhythm, and keep it about 20% shorter. Then list the three biggest changes you made. [paste draft]
Test it: ask for the same memo before and after setting Custom Instructions and compare the tone. Never put personal or restricted data in Custom Instructions.
Prompt library
More ChatGPT prompts for managers
Copy, replace the brackets, and paste. Always remove personal or restricted data first.
From these meeting notes, list every decision, action item, owner and deadline in a table. Flag any action with no owner or no date. [paste notes]
Draft a 150-word email to all staff announcing [change]. Explain why, what changes for them, when it starts and who to contact. Warm, clear tone, no jargon.
Summarise this report in one page for the CEO: the situation, three key findings, the main risk and one recommended decision. Quote page numbers for every figure. [paste report]
Analyse the attached enrolment data. Show the trend by programme over three years, highlight the two biggest changes, and suggest one chart that best tells the story. State any data quality issues you notice.
Rewrite this policy section in plain English for frontline staff. Keep the meaning exact. Add a three-question FAQ at the end. [paste policy]
I need to tell a team leader their unit missed its target for the second quarter. Help me plan the conversation: opening line, key points, likely reactions and how to respond, and an agreed next step.
Quick check
Reflection prompts. Answer them out loud at your table before moving on.
- 01True or false: ChatGPT knows this year's enrolment figures for your campus.
- 02Which part of a brief tells the AI who will read the output?
- 03Where in ChatGPT do you check how your chats are used?
- 04ChatGPT has totalled a column for you. What do you do before using the figure?