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As a manager that has had to make decisions about who goes where and comes
back with information for the entire department, I have to admit that I am
pretty picky about who gets to go somewhere, BUT....
I also understand the basic unfairness of the situation, if one writer
always goes and another stays home. So at my last job (OptImage), we
developed a policy for ongoing education: OptImage would pay for one
college course, seminar, or training course per writer per year. It was up
to the employee to find the right course and make a proposal for going.
Part of the deal was after going, a trip report must be given to the entire
department and an assessment of whether it was worth it. In 5 years, I had
three writers take me up on seminars, and two writers went to grad school.
In addition to the optional trips, I specifically brought in an on-site
trainer for ForeHelp. It was cheaper than sending a writer to a seminar (it
usually is).
Not all companies have the ability to fund continuing education, but in my
experience, a well-thought out proposal to management on continuing
education has a good chance of being accepted (education is tax-deductible I
believe). And a happy, educated staff is worth it.
Currently, I am managing a staff of 6 writers and three are taking C++/Java
courses. Vidiom is paying for their tuition and books. If they do not pass
the course, they are not reimbursed for the class. (if they can't afford the
tuition up front, we pay for it but they would be expected to pay us back if
they fail). I have given talks at nat'l conferences three times in five
years, with all conference fees and travel, etc. paid for by Vidiom. While
we do not have an official policy (yet), we are certainly pro-active towards
education.
If writers really desire to go to (company-funded) conferences, seminars,
college, etc. while working, education policy should be one of their
deciding factors in taking a job.
Complaining rarely helps, but proposals do help change small companies.
Larger companies are a different matter altogether.
That's my .02.
Walden Miller
Director, Engineering Services
Vidiom Systems
