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"sorourke" wondered: <<I am looking for information about outsourcing
technical communication (end-user documentation, system administration
documentation) to technical writers in India. I would particularly like to
talk to a North American
manager who has had experience with this.>>
A very touchy subject indeed, and not easy to expound upon without sounding
at least slightly racist. That being said...
I've met many Indian authors who write every bit as competently as North
American authors, but the same rules apply in any outsourcing exercise,
whatever the nationality of your contractors: you'll still have to exercise
due diligence to ensure that you find competent authors rather than
smooth-talking beginners who don't really understand the business. You'll
also need to invest in skilled editors whose first language is English to
ensure quality control.
I have to ask the obvious question: With all the unemployed techwhirlers in
North America (Europe too?), most of whom lost their jobs through no fault
of their own, why not start your search domestically and expand overseas
only if required? You'll likely have a far easier time managing the project,
even if it ends up costing you a bit more in the end. Shortcuts inevitably
lead to quality compromises, and if your market position is really so shaky
you need to start cutting meat rather than luxuries, you need to be very
alert indeed to be sure you're not creating false economies.
A cautionary tale: Many workers laid off by a company (usually right before
Xmas) never buy that company's products again. I certainly wouldn't. An orgy
of outsourcing may prove to be equally effective at lowering costs and
lowering domestic sales, which probably isn't what you're hoping to achieve.
--Geoff Hart, geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
Forest Engineering Research Institute of Canada
580 boul. St-Jean
Pointe-Claire, Que., H9R 3J9 Canada
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