Re: Re[2]: Techie First or Writer? -Reply

[Joanna Sheldon <cjs10 -at- CORNELL -dot- EDU>]

At 10:00 11/10/96 +0000, David wrote:
>Michael Sechelski said

>>        <snip> The difference is that
>>        engineers/programmers/etc are "producers"
>>        whereas tech comm is an "add-on service"
>>        that doesn't really produce anything, takes
>>        up office space and burns electricity to
>>        produce those d___ manuals that nobody uses
>>        anyway. I think that's the perception in
>>        the eyes of a lot of upper management.

>That is the perception and it will take a while longer to change that
>perception. STC is no help even after trying to figure out what a technical
>writer adds to a product or company, because the best they came up with, as
>far as I've been told, is that we are a cost or profit center. I disagree
>with both, but only in the context of software vendors. Pharmaceutical
>companies doing compliance, or other companies doing ISO will still classify
>us as cost or profit centers.

I find it's good policy to point out from time to time that the company has
*no* product if the customer does not understand how to use the
hardware/software.  In other words:

Product = hardware and/or software + documentation.

Joanna