There can be a range of topics for white papers however the main purpose of all of them are more or less the same- to advocate or propose a solution or a product to a solve a common problem to affect customer's decision or perception of the product. As the instructor has pointed out, major components of a white paper document should include an executive summary, introduction, problems, and solutions. Pros, cons and the feasibility should be included in all sections to balance the content of the document.
Though purpose and structure of all white paper documents are more or less the same, there are still some key differences that one have to consider when writing a white paper. First, users of the document must be taken into consideration, one should ask himself that who is his intended reader of this document then tailor the tone, substance, and information accordingly. For example, when producing a marketing white paper that is intended for future customers of the service, the tone of the document can be less formal, complicated concepts should be accompanied by visualization presentations as many of the prospective customers may not have the time to read the whole document and assumptions can be made in the decision-making process. On the contrary, if one is writing for a government agency in regards to a public policy, the tone of the document should be very formal as the document represents the government, data listed has to be from respectable sources (Such as FED) and complicated concepts should be thoroughly explained in text to facilitate easy citation by others.
Another thing to take into consideration when drafting a white paper is feasibility. When writing a white paper document, once must the take the successful probability into consideration as solutions are often goal driven, writing a white paper with solutions that are unfeasible will not only bring no value but also hurt the writer and his or her institution's reputation.
Thoughts on this post, explain if agree or disagree