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Good question, as I'm the first (and lone) tech writer
brought into a company that had no documenatation
standards whatsoever. This is my first experience in a
situation like this, I've received little guidance,
and I've made some mistakes. Here are a few random
thoughts.
Spend the first 2-3 weeks getting the "lay of the
land." Talk to department heads and key players to
understand the product and workflow. Use the product
if possible. Review existing documentation. Keep notes
of what you see.
Talk to senior management to discuss what they
perceive to be your priorities. Use this time to
discuss what you've learned thus far, to present your
preliminary assessment of the state of documentation.
You're not at a point yet when you can say, "Acme
needs these four documents...," but you can figure out
that online help, for example, is very important to
management and needs improvement.
Clearly define the scope of your responsibilities, and
then obtain formal buy-in or approval from senior
management, preferably in writing. (A collegue,
brought in to manage an API project, required all
interested parties to physically SIGN his project plan
to approve it -- a great idea!) Use this opportunity
to communicate the impact on your responsibilities
should you be assigned additional responsibilities or
tasks.
Only at this point can you begin writing an
information plan, project plan, content specification,
etc. The mistake that I made was trying to assume
responsibility for too much. I've had to limit myself
for the time being, focusing almost exclusively on
online help and an API guide. The customer service and
technical docs will have to wait.
Steven Brown
Senior Technical Writer
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