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Good luck with that one. I once was in a similar situation where my boss told me the receptionist has time and could create the help files for me.
You can think of all sorts of diplomatic responses to address the issue but for me it came down to a simple fact - my boss had no idea of the value of a technical communicator and the contribution that they bring to a company. It was then that I decided to look for employment where I was more appreciated and therefore had better chances to grow.
Ann Waterhouse
Senior Technical Writer/Redactrice Technique Principale
-----Original Message-----
From: techwr-l-bounces+awaterhouse=apg-neuros -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+awaterhouse=apg-neuros -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf Of INKtopia Admin
Sent: January-06-12 1:25 PM
To: Techwr-l
Subject: ANONYMOUS POST: Staffing with unskilled workers
Moderator Note: The following is being posted on behalf of a Whirler who needs to remain anonymous. Please post all replies to the list and not to me, as replies will not be forwarded to the original poster.
I have been in this job for almost eight years. I started documenting two products. Now, I'm responsible for eleven. Three share similar interface and features, but it is a lot to handle. I've presented data on why an additional resource is necessary each year, and I've been rebuffed. Shortly before the end of 2011, I was told to hand one project to one of the Admin Assistants to do since "she has a lot of downtime until the summer." She isn't stupid, she isn't clueless, but she can't write. She is a novice at using Word. I use Flare as the authoring tool, and it is beyond her. Again, I'm not saying she's stupid, but she doesn't get the concepts or the workflow. She gave me seven topics to review, and they're terrible. While they're spelled correctly and the mechanics such as grammar & punctuation are good, the procedures are poorly written and they're just not acceptable. I can rewrite them, but that's not the point. When I brought up the writing problems and the time involved, my manager said that I need to help her come up to speed and work with her. I've tried to show her how to write a procedure and what goes into a topic, but it just doesn't seem to work. I've suggested local and online courses that might help her, but there's no budget for it. This is taking up more time that I can afford to devote to it.****
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I'm trying to react to this with uh...grace and no emotion.****
Create and publish documentation through multiple channels with Doc-To-Help.
Choose your authoring formats and get any output you may need. Try Doc-To-Help, now with MS SharePoint integration, free for 30-days. http://www.doctohelp.com
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Create and publish documentation through multiple channels with Doc-To-Help.
Choose your authoring formats and get any output you may need. Try
Doc-To-Help, now with MS SharePoint integration, free for 30-days. http://www.doctohelp.com
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