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Re: Seeking advice on leading an interview for a technical writer position in English
Subject:Re: Seeking advice on leading an interview for a technical writer position in English From:Jen Jobart <jenjobart -at- gmail -dot- com> To:Lynne Wright <Lynne -dot- Wright -at- tiburoninc -dot- com> Date:Tue, 6 Mar 2012 07:35:54 -0800
On Tue, Mar 6, 2012 at 7:25 AM, Lynne Wright <Lynne -dot- Wright -at- tiburoninc -dot- com>wrote:
> You need to know:
>
> - if they have the basic skills/aptitude for tech writing
> - if they are willing to accept editorial feedback
> - if they have the interpersonal skills to be able to work with SMEs and
> within the writing team
>
> First off, you can tell a lot about how well they can communicate
> effectively, organize information, and their thoroughness from their c.v.
> Funny how it was always those who claimed to have "exceptional attention to
> detail" whose cvs contained typos or glaring formatting errors -- they got
> tossed on the reject pile immediately, no matter what their other
> credentials were.
>
> To assess basic tech writing aptitude, I'd give applicants two tests:
>
> - I'd give them a list of facts about a product, and ask them to write a
> one-paragraph section intro. The challenge was to see whether they could
> determine what information to use and what to leave out; how to organize
> the information; and whether they could write in plain English. They were
> also asked to include any questions they would ask a subject matter expert
> to be able to understand/complete the task. This tested basic analytical
> and problem-solving aptitudes.
>
> - An editing test that consisted of a short procedure, with built-in
> errors (ie. syntax/capitalization errors; illustrations that weren't quite
> right; tricky typos (ie. use of "affect" rather than "effect"; left out a
> step so the sequence of actions didn't make sense; use of passive voice).
>
> In the interview, you could also ask them to elaborate on a few basic
> principles of tech writing (ie. explain active vs. passive voice; the
> principles of Plain English).
>
> As for the other two points:
>
> Ask them whether they've had experience following a style guide, or
> whether they had sought out mentors in developing their tech writing
> skills. Try to feel out how open they are to accepting editorial feedback
> and getting past their egos so they can learn.
>
> Their ability to work in a team and having the determination to (politely)
> get information out of people and bang away at difficult and sometimes
> tedious tasks to get the job done is a bit trickier to discern without
> actually working with them; you just have to go on your instincts and
> whatever you can gleam from their references.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: techwr-l-bounces+lynne -dot- wright=tiburoninc -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com[mailto:
> techwr-l-bounces+lynne -dot- wright=tiburoninc -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On
> Behalf Of Claudine Chausson
> Sent: Tuesday, March 06, 2012 3:06 AM
> To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> Subject: Seeking advice on leading an interview for a technical writer
> position in English
>
> Hi everyone,
>
> The company I work for is growing and we are currently hiring a junior
> technical writer. We've received a few interesting résumés so far. My
> manager is leading the first round of interviews and I might have to lead
> the 2nd round. Yippeee. Not really actually. I've proposed to lead the
> interviews in English because, though we're located in Paris, France, the
> common language is English (many developers and SMEs do not speak French).
>
> I've lead interviews in French in the past but I don't want to be just
> translating questions into English. I know that in English-speaking
> countries interviews are lead in a very different way and I would really
> appreciate if you could direct me to websites that give sample questions.
>
> Also, I would really much appreciate a sample of your own questions you
> would ask to a junior technical writer if you were in my position.
>
> Thanks for the help.
>
> Claudine Chausson
>
>
> Claudine Chausson
> Senior Technical Writer
> dir +33 1 53 44 13 33
> e cchausson -at- fircosoft -dot- com
>
>
>
>
>
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