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.
Subject:Re: any suggestions? From:Matthew Stern <MAStern -at- PLATSOFT -dot- COM> Date:Mon, 24 Mar 1997 09:11:00 -0800
John:
By now, you've probably received megabytes of e-mail messages saying
"NO! NO! NO!" to your "Top 10 Reasons Not to Become a Technical Writer."
speech idea. Here's an idea you can use instead.
A few years ago, I was asked to give a talk about how the documentation
department fits in with the rest of the company. I stressed several main
points:
* Documentation is a company-wide effort. We depend on groups throughout
the company -- especially engineering, marketing, and support -- for
source information and manual reviews.
* Documentation is a crucial part of the product. Users depend on
documentation in order to use our product successfully. Good
documentation can improve customer satisfaction of the product as a
whole.
* Documentation affects the bottom line. Quality documentation increase
revenue because it can be used as a sales tool and encourages repeat
customers. It also reduces support costs and the likelihood of product
returns.
With these points, I stressed the value of our job as technical writers
and the importance of documentation while showing that we are part of
the team. After the speech, audience told me that they had a better
understanding of what we did and (more importantly) more respect for us
as professionals.
The lesson: Whenever we present ourselves to the rest of the company, we
should present ourselves as professionals who are tuned into overall
company goals -- not frustrated artistes nobody likes. We need to
respect ourselves before we can expect others to respect us.
============================================
Matthew Stern
Sr. Technical Writer
Platinum Software Corporation
The opinions here are solely my own.
============================================
TECHWR-L (Technical Communication) List Information: To send a message
to 2500+ readers, e-mail to TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU -dot- Send commands
to LISTSERV -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU (e.g. HELP or SIGNOFF TECHWR-L).
Search the archives at http://www.documentation.com/ or search and
browse the archives at http://listserv.okstate.edu/archives/techwr-l.html
