TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
-----Original Message-----
From: Melissa Lowery-Smith
Sent: Friday, March 20, 2009 10:36 AM
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: Sample document creation for contract position
>I was recently asked to create a 10-15 page document (they referred to
it as a technical test) >based on a brief interview with an SME as part
of the interview process for a 3-6 month technical >writer contract.
A request for electronic samples isn't too out there. A lot of times,
they just want to distribute them to the people you will interview with
ahead of time. As an interviewer, you can come up with a more specific
list of questions than you can get when quickly flipping through
someone's paper portfolio.
But a "technical test" on that level is asking for a bit much. At my
last workplace, we did use a small test when we were trying to find a
new writer ("make a procedure out of this") but it a quick web search
would have revealed that it was for a product that was already released
with complete documentation - there was no way any of it would be used
for anything other than judging how the potential writer went about
putting together the procedure. And it was the same test for every
potential new writer.
My first stint at contacting was a paid 20 hours that produced a 15-page
document and resulted in a "we can take it from here" from the company,
so yeah, I'd take it that they were trying to get a free document.
I definitely would have gone back to the company and explained that they
were looking for too specific of a writing sample to be provided for
free. I'd give them the benefit of the doubt that they may not have
known how out of line their request was, and a chance to correct their
action. If they still didn't think they were out of line, then I'd have
your reaction.
- V
**This transmission may contain information that is privileged, confidential and/or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution, or use of the information contained herein (including any reliance thereon) is STRICTLY PROHIBITED. If you received this transmission in error, please immediately contact the sender and destroy the material in its entirety, whether in electronic or hard copy format. Thank you.**
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
ComponentOne Doc-To-Help 2009 is your all-in-one authoring and publishing
solution. Author in Doc-To-Help's XML-based editor, Microsoft Word or
HTML and publish to the Web, Help systems or printed manuals. http://www.doctohelp.com
Help & Manual 5: The complete help authoring tool for individual
authors and teams. Professional power, intuitive interface. Write
once, publish to 8 formats. Multi-user authoring and version control! http://www.helpandmanual.com/
---
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- web -dot- techwr-l -dot- com -dot-
