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Ann Balaban has <<a presentation on our editing process,
since our established process seems to be falling apart
with the addition of many new contractors and major
deadlines.>>
It sounds like the existing process works just fine, but
wasn't designed to account for a large increase in the
number of contractors and inadequately planned deadlines.
If that's the case, you don't need to tamper with the
editing process, but rather with the contracting process.
You'll need to do a few things:
- come up with productivity estimates for the contractors
so you can indicate how long a job typically takes.
- relate these estimates to the turnaround times you're
being expected to meet.
- use these two points to make a case for incorporating
reasonable guidelines in the contract process (perhaps even
getting yourself on the project teams as an advisory member
to make sure things get on track and stay on track).
If you're having problems with the skills of the temporary
employees, then you need to be far more proactive in
dealing with them. Sit down with each new employee and
explain your style guidelines to them; emphasize the most
common errors or (better still) the errors that take you
longest to correct. Then edit the hell out of their first
page (not their first complete project)... discuss what the
problems are, how to solve them, etc., then turn them loose
on page 2. Repeat the "edit and discuss" routine as
necessary until they get the message... or until you prove
to your satisfaction that they can't learn and need to be
replaced. Spend as much time as each person requires. It
seems like a waste of time initially, but a problem you
solve on page 1 is one you won't have to solve on every
additional page you produce.
--Geoff Hart @8^{)} geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
Disclaimer: Speaking for myself, not FERIC.
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