After reading what we are supposed to be talking about I had no idea what it was that white papers were. After reading through some of the examples I was able to get some what of an idea of what white papers are. What I was able find out was that white papers are used as a medium to explain a certain topic or idea. White papers usually include a lot of different aspects. White papers include facts, statements, and persuasive information or statements that will help sell an idea.
One of the examples that I read through was the paper about identity theft. The writers of this white paper included statistics about where fraud occurs. They also included information about the over all problem about identity theft and its history. This was used to try and grab the readers attention and inform them about the problem. Once this was done, most of the paper stated many of the systems that can be put in place to help prevent this crime from happening and why it should be done.
Trying to find out a difference between government white papers and white papers that used in a business sense was a little difficult. I believe that white papers are a medium to be passed out at meetings or in an advertisement way they have quite similar goals to be accomplished. These papers would be passed out at the beginning of meetings and used to help direct the peoples attention to what is trying to be accomplished. I have found that the use a government white paper is trying to do the same as a business white paper. They both acknowledge a problem and then pitch ideas that can be used to try and fix that problem.
More than just meeting flyer
While I agree that it is hard to tell the difference between a government and a business white paper (mainly because I don't think that there is that much of a difference and the government is basically a business) I disagree with how you think they are disseminated. "passed out at the beginning of meetings and used to help direct the peoples attention to what is trying to be accomplished...", in my experience that sounds like an agenda. I feel that white papers are submitted to technical journals, bound and made available at conferences, put on websites for customers to read, etc. While they could be passed out at meetings, there is usually way more writing than you would want people to read in a meeting. I could see them as reading material that could be read beforehand and then discussed at a meeting.
Andy
Unbiased and Available
I agree with Andy, I think a white paper is best utilized when it is made widely available for interested parties to access, but not pushed to an audience as an agenda item or discussion guide. It seems from reading through the examples given that one of the biggest challenges when producing a white paper is coming off as objective and unbiased. I think this is done by creating a well put-together document; and making it universally available (as Andy said) in technical journals, at conferences, or on websites. To me, this comes off as saying, “we did the research, here are the facts, do with them what you will”, which, in my opinion, is an unbiased platform.
The right audiences
I will have to agree with both of you here. I do think that a white paper could be passed out at a board meeting if it is being used to inform the employees of what the company is offering. The white paper is a way to educate the company's own employees so that the employees can pass on what they have learned to potential customers. However, I do think that the major purpose of a white paper is to be directly placed into the customer's hands so that they can be educated and hopefully persuaded into the company's services. Employees of the particular company should know what their company offers already, so they aren't going to be the main audience of a white paper.
Board meetings
The thing is, if these sorts of white papers are being passed out at a board meeting, then it is likely that the contents of the white paper have to do with something new that the company will be offering. As you have pointed out, employees will have more intimate knowledge of what goods/services they supply, but when the engineer comes along and tries to pitch a new idea to the CEO and bean counters a white paper should help to convince them that the new "whatever" will be the coolest thing on the market. It is also probable that people at board meetings don't really care to have detailed technical knowledge of goods/services and they could be used as reminders as a basis for the meeting.