Seven Traits of Successful Technical Communicators

Past-Presidents’ Panel 2015
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Hiring
Excellence:
Seven Habits of Highly Successful
Technical Communicators
Past-Presidents’ Panel
May 26, 2015

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Panelists
• Carolyn Watt (1990’s)
– STC Associate Fellow and former STC Board Member
– President of Carolyn Watt & Associates Inc.
• Rob Hanna (2005-2007)
– STC Fellow and former STC Board Member
– President of Precision Content Authoring Solutions Inc
• Bernard Aschwanden (2007-2009)
– Incoming President of the STC
– President of Publishing Smarter
• Anna Parker-Richards (2009-2011)
– STC Associate Fellow
– Co-founder of COMM4RESULTS.COM

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About this Presentation
• Presented to the STC Conference in 2006 in Las Vegas
• Panel co-presenters/co-authors:
– Amber Swope – IBM
– Lisa Swallow – Mentor Graphics
– Rob Frankland – Sock Monkey
– Rob Hanna – ASCan Enterprises
– Visnja Beg – IBM
• Other presentations to local STC chapters

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Presentation Overview
• Introduction
• Seven Traits
• Ethical Conduct
• Technical Skills
• Hiring Trends
• Supporting the Profession
• Q&A

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What is a technical communicator?
Definitions

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• Technical writers put technical information into easily
understandable language. They prepare operating and maintenance
manuals, catalogues, parts lists, assembly instructions, sales
promotion materials, and project proposals. Many technical writers
work with engineers on technical subject matters to prepare written
interpretations of engineering and design specifications and other
information for a general readership. Technical writers also may
serve as part of a team conducting usability studies to help improve
the design of a product that still is in the prototype stage. They plan
and edit technical materials and oversee the preparation of
illustrations, photographs, diagrams, and charts.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Technical Writers

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• Develop and design instructional and informational tools needed to
assure safe, appropriate and effective use of science and
technology, intellectual property, and manufactured products and
services. Combines multi-media knowledge and strong
communication skills with technical expertise to educate across the
entire spectrum of users’ abilities, technical experience, and visual
and auditory capabilities.
Proposed BLS Definition: STC.org

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• A person working in a professional or technical setting, who
– is able to readily adapt to a new subject area
– can select and assess the type and level of communication required to
• meet the needs of the intended audience, and
• support the intended purpose of the information
– has knowledge, skills, and abilities to
• select and effectively apply appropriate tools, and
• plan and execute an information solution within constraints of corporate and regulatory
requirements and appropriate industry standards
– ensures stakeholders and consumers benefit from safe, appropriate, and
effective use of the subject product or service.
STC Certification Commission
A Typical Professional Technical Communicator is

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• Technical Communicators are…
– Technical Writers
– Technical Editors
– Information Developers
– Information Architects
– Documentation Specialists
– Instructional Designers
– Technical Illustrators

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Building the profile of a professional
technical communicator

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What We Bring
to the Table
Behaviours
Traits Skills
Technical
ExpertiseHabits
Ethics

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Traits

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Successful Technical Communicators are
1. confident
2. passionate
3. driven to explore
4. creative problem solvers
5. continuously learning
6. technically apt, and
7. comfortable with chaosSeven Traits

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• To try new things
• To actively seek out needed
resources
• To stand up for what you
believe to be right
• To advocate for the user
Self-confident

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• User champion
• Pride in your work
• Drive for excellence
• Not satisfied with “just a job”
• Works within Communities of
Practice
• Do you see yourself as a
professional?
Passionate about what you do

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• Natural curiosity and desire to
innovate
• Interested in all aspects of the
technical communication business
• Regularly makes time to explore
• Does not wait for others to tell
them what the best solutions are
• Not afraid to try something
different
Driven to explore

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• Able to identify problems and
act independently to solve
them
• Sees the opportunity in
adversity
• Can identify and effectively
explain issues before they
become problems
• Persistent
• Think creatively
Creative problem solver

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• Industry isn’t static
• It’s up to you to keep learning
– New skills
– New technologies
– New tricks
• Develop and revise career goals
to stretch beyond your current
state
• Make your own personal
investment and don’t rely solely
on your employer
Continuously learning new things

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• Quickly learn new technology
• Be able to train others
• Understand the domain about
which you write
• Be able to communicate this
knowledge
Technically apt

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• Sees change as opportunity
• Capable of moving out of their
comfort zone
• Adaptable
• Able to surf through the chaos
Comfortable with chaos

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Behaviours

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Ethical Conduct
• Ethical behaviour supports the theory and practice of technical
communication so that businesses and customers benefit from safe,
appropriate, and effective use of products, information, and services
• John Hedtke describes ethical conduct as:
– Abiding by professional standards, and
– Complying with appropriate laws

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Abide by Professional Standards
• Be honest in communication and about qualifications in
circumstances that might lead to conflicts of interest.
• Strive for excellence in delivered products and processes.
• Acquire and maintain professional expertise.
• Help others understand the value of technical communication.
• Honor professional commitments.

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Comply with Appropriate Laws
• Honor copyrights, patents, and other property rights and
acknowledge the authorship and ownership of intellectual property.
• Avoid harm to others through incomplete or inaccurate
communication.
• Honor confidentiality and respect the privacy of others.
• Obey the laws and policies concerning technical communication and
data privacy and security of my country and my company.

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Skills

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Technical Skills
• Requisite skills are under constant change
• Important to focus on the applicant’s adaptability and willingness to
learn new skills
• Look at categories of skills rather than specific skills with a single
technology or piece of software

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• Project Planning
• Project Analysis
• Solution Design
• Organizational Design
• Written Communication
• Visual Communication
• Content Development
• Content Management
• Final Production
Competencies
• User, Task, Experience Analysis
• Information Design
• Process Management
• Information Development
• Information Production
Practice Areas
Assessing Areas of Practice

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2
8
• Demonstrate your skill in
planning projects for
delivering information
products.
• Factors include developing a
plan for creating and
tracking the implementation
of an information product.
Documentation Planning

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• Demonstrate your skill in
analyzing requirements for
developing information
products.
• Factors include analyzing
audience, task, and data
requirements for
developing an information
product.
Documentation Analysis
Filippo, Elizabeth. “The Road to Personas"
Intercom 56.1 Jan. 2009: 22

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• Demonstrate your ability to
design high‐level solutions
for implementing
information products.
• Factors include research
methodology and synthesis
of research results into an
overall design solution.
Solution Design

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design the organization of
information products.
• Factors include selection and
construction of an
organizational framework
that defines the information
architecture.
Information Architecture

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compose content and
communicate in written
form.
• Factors include writing style,
use of structural elements,
appropriateness of
presentation for the
intended audience, and
consistency.
Written Communication

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• Demonstrate your knowledge
of visual communication
principles that support
written content.
• Factors include templates,
styles, graphics, signal words,
layout, and navigation.
Visual Literacy
Dragga, Sam; Voss, Dan. "Cruel Pies: The
Inhumanity of Technical Illustrations" Technical
Communication 48.3 Aug. 2001: 265-274

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• Demonstrate your
knowledge of content
development principles and
ability to develop content.
• Factors include your ability
to review, edit, and verify
content.
Content Development
Read Don Bush, STC Fellow
“The Friendly Editor” in back
issues of Intercom online

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DITA
XML
METADATA
WIKIS
knowledge of content
management principles and
ability to manage content.
• Factors include
– collaboration and workflow
– topic‐based authoring
– structured authoring
– single‐source authoring and
reuse
– metadata
– version control and archiving
Content Management

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knowledge of final
production principles and
processes.
• Factors include handling for
both electronic and print
outputs.
Production Processes

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Hiring excellence

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Hiring Excellence
• What to look for as a hiring manager
– How do you determine who is likely the best candidate from a resume and
interview?
– Questions and techniques to use to “weed out” and identify excellent
candidates.
– Know what position you are looking to fill but also what skills are lacking on
your team or may be useful.
– Understand the personality traits that will enable the candidate to fit in to
the team, the environment, the company.

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Then and Now
• As evidenced by the pace of change over the past few decades, our
profession is under constant change
• Some believe that we are on the precipice of a major technological
change not just in technical communication but in the way we all
communicate
– Gollner, Joe; Stilo 2008 http://www.slideshare.net/abelsp/workshop-content-engineering

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• Twenty years ago
– Exacting researcher
– Efficient organizer
– Skillful reporter
– Accomplished teacher
– Publisher’s apprentice
– Science and engineering devotee
– Graphic arts patron
Trends in Hiring Practices

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• Today
– Knowledge of online publishing technologies
– Creation of metadata
– Content management
– Localization
– Audience-centric focus
– Write well
– Visualize Information
Trends in Hiring Practices

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Role of technology
• Then
– Technical writers wrote about technology
• Now
– Technology is embedded in what we write about technology
– We write less and manipulate text

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Technological advances
• You must develop with the industry
• Changes in 20 years
– New delivery mediums
– New delivery mechanisms
– New skills
– New expectations
– New tools
– New technologies

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Looking at technical skills
• Review resume and probe the use of the tools they have used.
– How much knowledge in the tools and for what purpose they used them
– Probe use of various writing methodologies
– Knowledge of tools/skills, how much?
– Possible use of standardized technical aptitude test

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Looking at soft skills
• Are they presentable?
• Do they project an aura of confidence but not cockiness?
• Do they answer questions without hesitation and are able to
present examples of what they have done in certain situations?
• Use behavior based interviewing that probes examples of how
candidates have dealt with various situations (BBSI).

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Professional development
• Technical Communicators need to stay connected with changes in
the field
• Look for candidates that identify with the profession outside of 9-5
• Look for candidates that make an ongoing effort to connect, renew,
and develop through professional associations

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Technical Communication
Certification

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Certification Drivers
• Legitimize the contributions of, and respect for, our profession
• Establish uniform worldwide performance standards
• Increase the employability and earning potential for certified
practitioners
• Reduce risk for employers
• Satisfy employers’ expectations

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4
9
• Certification is an objective,
portable, personal credential
that is associated with higher
salaries, job-hunting
advantages, and better job
opportunities
The Value to Practitioners

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Value to Employers
• Employers find that certified
professionals are more often
competent and successful than
uncertified ones
• Employers spend less to hire,
train, and replace certified
employees
• Therefore, employers seek out
and pay more for certified
professionals

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• Certification first discussed in 1964
• First STC-sanctioned Ad Hoc Committee on Certification in 1975
• Membership surveys: 1975, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1995, 1997
• Certification RFP issued in 1985
• Feasibility study commissioned in 1998
• Began work on Body of Knowledge (BOK) in 2007
• Benchmarking report on professions in 2008
• Approved by STC Board on 30 April 2010
• First certifications issued: 2012
• Certification program suspended: 2013
• Program relaunched: 2015
Certification Milestones

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Expanding Certification Beyond Writers
• Areas of practice can be
weighted
• Specialty certifications (future)
• Opportunity for partnerships
with other organizations

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0
50000
100000
150000
200000
250000
300000
350000
400000
450000
PMP Growth, 1984–2010
2010:
412,000
PMPs
2002:
50,000
PMPs1993:
1000
PMPs

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Example of Salary Impact

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Role of the STC in your career

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Badge of a Professional
• Hiring an STC member means hiring a professional with all the tools
in his/her toolbox
• Hire an STC member and get access to a vast network of
professionals and resources

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The STC Supports its Members
• Traditional Channels
– Publications
– Online Resources
– Local and Virtual Communities
– Competitions
– Learning Opportunities
• Emerging Channels
– STC Body of Knowledge
– Professional Certification

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Questions?

Seven Traits of Successful Technical Communicators

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