The Basics of Quality  

With constantly changing deadlines and last minute major revisions, how can technical writers ever hope to create quality documents? Members of the STC Quality Special Interest Group (SIG) will present some basic concepts that will provide insights into ways you can improve the quality of your documentation. They will look at what is meant by 'quality documentation', how documentation quality can be measured, how quality can be implemented in documentation processes, how ISO 9000 requirements can be adapted to help improve the documentation process, and how the relationship between developers and writers can impact documentation quality.

Rupel, Roberta A., Lori H. Fisher, Donald S. Lenk, Ralph E. Robinson and Richard Colvin. STC Proceedings (1999). Articles>Writing>Quality>Technical Writing

Can’t Someone Tell Me How to Measure Quality?  

Technical communication journals and conferences over the past decade have consistently covered the topic of quality, but much of this coverage has focused on defining quality in technical communication and describing models of quality for our field. Few have dared to declare a finite set of definitive metrics that could be used across our profession. This paper takes the bold (and yes, foolhardy) step of declaring a set of metrics that could be used universally to measure quality in technical documentation of commercial products. The author is fully aware that this will stir up controversy and dissent, but considers this her contribution to stimulating discussion of the area of specific quality metrics.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (1998). Presentations>Usability>Assessment

Career Options for Technical Communicators in a Restructured World  

In a booming economy, promotions and advancement 'up the career ladder' seemed like reasonable expectations for capable technical communicators. But in the new downsized business environment a new career pat tern is emerging called the portfolio career. In a portfolio career, a person develops a range of skills and applies them in a series of jobs or assignments or responsibilities. Technical communicators are in a unique position to take advantage of this new trend in the workplace because they often possess a wide range of transferable skills and have a good overview of the company's product line and business processes.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (1995). Careers>TC>Workplace

How In-Process Measures Can Help You Manage Quality  

Some technical communicators see productivity and quality measurements as threatening when these measurements are used as an evaluation of the person, not the process or the product. Communicators can also be frustrated by the time and effort it takes to collect quality measurements with no visible result or improvement of their own work. This paper discusses how managers of technical communicators can develop and implement a system of in-process measurements to help technical communicators manage the process and improve their own final documentation before it is shipped to the customer, without being threatened by the measurement system.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Writing>Assessment>Technical Writing

How Technical Communicators Can Apply User-Centered Design to Their Work

The user-centered design process applies to designing a piece of technical communication as well as designing a product. Placing the user at the center of the design and development process for information ensures that a usable piece of communication will be delivered to the customer. Technical communicators can apply each of the user-centered design (UCD) tasks to their own writing process and information development cycle.

Fisher, Lori H. Usability Interface (2000). Design>User Centered Design>TC

Managing Quality: Systems and Metrics for Ensuring Quality in Products

There is, at present, no common definition of quality in technical communication--no common set of quality measurements for our profession.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Orange County (1998). Presentations>Management>Quality>Assessment

Measuring Quality

We need to know what quality is to develop a metric to measure it.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (1999). Presentations>Quality

The Mentoring Program at Silicon Valley Chapter

The Silicon Valley Chapter STC began its mentoring program in 1999. We developed the program in response to the many requests we were receiving from students, members, and practitioners in the local area for mentors within the local STC chapter. I hope to help other chapters meet their members' needs by describing how the Silicon Valley chapter established its program.

Fisher, Lori H. Tieline (2001). Careers>Mentoring>Community Building

Nine Quality Characteristics and a Process to Check for Them  

We all know what differentiates a great piece of technical communication from an average one...but can you articulate specifically what quality looks like in your work? Can you list the characteristics that all successful pieces of technical communication share? Can you repeatedly produce technical information that is of the highest quality? By using a checklist based on the nine characteristics of quality described in Developing Quality Technical Information, you can develop specific checkpoints for your design and development process to ensure that your end product, your technical information, meets these characteristics.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (2001). Presentations>Tutorials>Assessment

Organizational Implications of the Future Development of Technical Communication: Fostering Communities of Practice in the Workplace    

As the profession of technical communication develops and evolves, practitioners are forming formal and informal organizational structures that support collaborative communities. These organizational structures are emerging within commercial companies and professional societies such as the Society for Technical Communication. This article describes evolving methods and best practices that technical communicators can apply in the workplace to create an environment that supports effective communities of practice. We identify specific techniques and best practices, including methods of assessing the effectiveness and business impact of communities in the workplace, and interventions for improvement. We also reference a specific technical communication organization, Data Management (DM) User Technology at IBM Corporation, as a case study of ways to implement an organizational infrastructure that supports both skill-based communities of practice and multidisciplinary goal-based communities.

Fisher, Lori H. and Lindsay Bennion. Technical Communication Online (2005). Articles>Collaboration>Management

Quality in Action: What Technical Communicators Are Doing to Improve Quality  

Quality continues to be a hot topic among technical communicators, generating vigorous debate and commentary on the STC Quality SIG listserv and in notes to the Quality SIG manager in response to articles in the SIG newsletter or on the SIG website. Some common themes of interest include: how to measure quality, what role technical communicators can play in the ISO 9000 documentation process, how to reduce rework and minimize errors in documentation by developing flexible plans and processes, and how the STC value-added research can help us develop quality metrics for our information.

Colvin, Richard D., Ted Dennison, Lori H. Fisher, Don Lenk and Ralph Robinson. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>TC>Quality>ISO 9000

Quality PIC Progression: What Technical Communicators Want to Know About Quality  

This progression is sponsored by the STC Quality Professional Interest Committee. Each subgroup within the Quality PIC is sponsoring a discussion table, with additional topics of special interest to technical communicators. These topics have been selected based on their timeliness and practical value to practicing technical communicators.

Fisher, Lori H., Connie 'CJ.' Bibus, Laura J. Cinat, William D. Gearhart, Kathleen J. Hansen, Donald S. Lenk, Jr., David Robbins, Karl L. Smart, Thomas A. Vallar Susanne Warren and Diane L. Whitmer. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>TC>Quality

Roles and Skills for Technical Communicators in User-Centered Design  

This paper discusses how technical communicators fit into the over all user-centered design (UCD) process, and how technical communicators can start applying user-centered design principles to their work. UCD principles can help technical communicators add value to the design of information, as well as to the overall design of a product. The paper addresses both the traditional and new skills that technical communicators need to acquire to become effective members of a UCD team.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>User Centered Design>TC

STC Quality PIC Progression  

This progression is sponsored by the STC Quality Professional Interest Committee. Each subgroup within the Quality PIC is sponsoring a discussion table, with additional topics of special interest to technical communicators. These topics have been selected based on their timeliness and practical value to practicing technical communicators.

Fisher, Lori H., Donald S., Lenk, Jr, Ted Dennison, David Robbins, Richard D. Colvin, Connie 'C.J.' Bibus and Ralph E. Robinson. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>TC>Quality>Professionalism

Sustaining Communities of Practice in the Workplace: A Case Study  

The expanding definition of technical communication requires an organization with a multidisciplinary set of skills (ranging from editing to visual design to user interface design to usability testing to programming) to meet the new demands. While the members of such a multidisciplinary organization have common goals, they also have unique and specialized needs for education, communication, and shared practices based on their specific skills. Nurturing, developing, and sustaining these distinct skills requires an infrastructure that supports divergent communities of practice, yet still encourages cross-pollination of ideas and integration of processes toward a common goal.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (2004). Articles>Collaboration>Management>Workplace

Technical Communicators: Designing the User Experience  

Fisher argues that technical communicators should take the lead in developing software that satisfies user demands, and describes how to develop the new skills needed to do so.

Fisher, Lori H. Intercom (2001). Design>User Centered Design>Software

Transforming Our Roles from Writers to Designers: A Manager’s Perspective  

As software documentation becomes increasingly integrated with the software interface, technical communication organizations must apply new skills to create new kinds of deliverables. In addition to the traditional technical communication skills such as task analysis, audience analysis, and written communication, today’s technical communication organizations may also need programming skills, visual design skills, and user interface design skills. Managers must find ways to hire, train, and retain these new skills. They must also actively work to change the perception of technical communication to align with the new roles that technical communication organizations will play in the future of software development.

Fisher, Lori H. STC Proceedings (2000). Presentations>TC

User-Centered Design and the Role of Technical Communicators  

This panel provides an introduction to and overview of the principles of user-centered design, and gives real- world, practical examples of how technical communicators can implement these principles in their work. The panel is intended for any technical communicator or manager designing user documentation, including training materials, or the user interfaces of hardware or software products. It does not assume any prior knowledge of user-centered design principles. It does assume familiarity with a product development process and with basic technical communication and usability principles.

Fisher, Lori H., Candace Soderston, Thyra L. Rauch and Frederick P. Szydlik. STC Proceedings (1996). Design>User Centered Design>TC