#21235
Managing Technology Transfer: Issues for Scientific Communicators 
Technology transfer is arguably one of the greatest communication opportunities of our day. In this panel presentation, we will define technology transfer terms and issues, identify technology transfer issues in private industry as well as in government R & D labs, and discus how today’s technical communicators can play a key role in technology transfer.
Cuba, Laurence L., Rich McGillick, Suzanne S. Roberts, Donna G. Roper and David Schuelke. STC Proceedings (1995). Articles>Scientific Communication>Technology>Technology Transfer
#31292
Marketing Experiences: The New Event Frontier
Today's audiences are jaded about marketing and savvy about messaging, making it harder than ever for marketers to earn an audience's undivided attention and create a meaningful bond between brand and individual. Whether you're talking about a 10,000-person corporate sales meeting or a multi-city mobile marketing program for consumers, you are more likely to hear words like integration, engagement and participation as criteria for marketing success than terms like impressions and eyeballs.
Domine, Tom. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#18910
Marketing Science Through the Media
Marketing communications can involve more than just selling a product. Simply being mentioned in the general media and in trade publications can build a name for a company or institution and position it as a leader. When the University of Tennessee announced its entrance into the exclusive community of public institutions with a successful farm animal cloning program, a combination of science and news writing, web page creation, and media savvy was used to ensure that the announcement reflected well on the university and its research program.
Clark McDaniels, Patricia, Margot Pantalone, Charles Denney, Misty Anderson and Doug Edlund. STC Proceedings (2002). Articles>Scientific Communication>Marketing
#31243
Marketing to Different Generations: Choose Your Message Wisely
There has been a lot of buzz lately about the dynamic created by having four generations in the workforce at once. Dozens of experts, myself included, have spent hours with businesses worldwide to help management better understand how to connect with employees by learning how a generational perspective can color the world and affect business relationships.
Marston, Cam. Communication World Bulletin (2007). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#20106
Marketing Writer’s Survival Guide
Marketing writers face project demands and challenges that are different from those in other forms of technical communication. This session will be a highly interactive discussion between the presenters and the participants, sharing tips and techniques for surviving as a marketing writer in all aspects of a marketing communication project.
King, Janice M. and Lawrence D. Kunz. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#30522
Marketing Writing for Technical Products
This workshop will examine the types of marketing materials that can give you creative experience. You'll learn how to adapt your skills and subject matter knowledge to these projects, how to plan and develop different types of materials, and how to identify opportunities for new types of communication.
King, Janice M. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing>Technical Writing
#31523
The productivity of information workers is jeopardized by too much e–mail. A proposed solution to e–mail overload is the creation of an economy that uses a scarce synthetic currency that senders can use to signal the importance of information and receivers can use to prioritize messages. A test of the virtual economy with corporate information workers showed that people in a large company used different amounts of the currency when sending e–mail messages, and that the amount of currency attached to messages produced statistically significant differences in how quickly receivers opened the messages. An analysis of the network of virtual currency trades between workers showed the different roles that participants played in the communication network, and showed that relationships defined by currency exchanges uncovered social networks that are not apparent in analyses that only examine the frequency, as opposed to the value of interactions.
Reeves, Byron, Simon Roy, Brian Gorman and Teresa Morley. First Monday (2008). Articles>Communication>Correspondence>Email
#27288
Materials Data on the Internet 
The availability of the Internet has provided unprecedented opportunities for both data compilers and users. With respect to materials data, this paper explores: how do we know what is available? how can data be accessed, interpreted, exchanged? what novel modes of presentation are now available? what organizations are active in this field and what are their programs? what improvements are needed? where do we go from here and how? Examples will be illustrated of specific materials databases available on the Internet from a variety of materials data fields, e.g. fundamental data, engineering design properties, environmental data, and materials safety data. While there is no question that large and widely varied bodies of data are accessible on the Internet, significant improvements are needed promptly. The paper concludes by summarizing these problems and possible means for their alleviation.
Westbrook, J.H. Data Science Journal (2003). Articles>Scientific Communication>Online>Engineering
#28868
A Mathematical Theory of Communication
The article entitled 'A Mathematical Theory of Communication', published in 1948 by mathematician Claude E. Shannon, was one of the founding works of the field of information theory. Shannon's paper laid out the basic elements of any digital communication.
Shannon, Claude E. Bell System Technical Journal (1948). Articles>Communication>Theory>Minimalism
#23312
Issues of technical writing and the effective presentation of mathematics and computer science. Preparation of theses, papers, books, and 'literate' computer programs.
Knuth, Donald E., Tracy Larrabee and Paul M. Roberts. Stanford University (1987). Articles>Writing>Scientific Communication>Mathematics
#31683
Meaning in Organizational Communication 
The authors propose an alternative to the postmodern way of viewing metaphor primarily as an instrumental and functional rhetorical tool designed to influence members of an organization through ideological appeals, a view that depicts rhetoric as merely subjective and manipulable. Our alternative draws from the "aesthetic side of organizational life" and argues that communication exceeds the theoretical reach of the postmodern perspective, which requires a new conceptualization of metaphor as epistemic and capable of signaling meaning that is inseparable from its unique and discrete form.
Hogler, Raymond, Michael A. Gross, Jackie L. Hartman and Ann L. Cunliffe. Management Communication Quarterly (2008). Articles>Rhetoric>Organizational Communication>Tropes
#31411
Measure Your Reputation Effectively
A good reputation, particularly in an increasingly competitive world, is a must for all companies and organizations. Reputation is a company asset and should always be taken seriously—lose your reputation and you often lose a lot more besides. A good reputation is essential in crisis situations and can help to reduce the impact of negative events and press.
Grant, Nicholas. Communication World Bulletin (2005). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#31558
Measuring Integrated Marketing Communication from Start to Finish
Many companies have taken a limited view of the impact that marketing communication can have on overall corporate objectives, reducing their understanding of the value of marketing communication. One reason for this resistance is that the value of IMC can be complex to measure in a world where marketing usually moves at a dynamic pace and is driven by a changing competitive landscape and seemingly unpredictable shifts in customer attitudes. The potential revenue and customer satisfaction benefits of implementing an IMC program can be so dramatic that companies shouldn't ignore the movement any longer.
Woods, Julie. Communication World Bulletin (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing>Assessment
#14127
Measuring the Quality of Editorial Peer Review
The quality of a process can only be tested against its agreed objectives. Editorial peer-review is widely used, yet there appears to be little agreement about how to measure its effects or processes. Ten studies used a variety of instruments to assess the quality of articles that had undergone peer review. Only 1, nonrandomized study compared the quality of articles published in peer-reviewed and non–peer-reviewed journals. The others measured the effects of variations in the peer-review process or used a before-and-after design to measure the effects of standard peer review on accepted articles. Eighteen studies measured the quality of reviewers' reports under different conditions such as blinding or after training. One study compared the time and cost of different review processes.
Jefferson, Tom, Elizabeth Wager and Frank Davidoff. JAMA (2002). Articles>Scientific Communication>Editing
#27164
Media, Symbolic Power and the Limits of Bourdieu's Field Theory
Social theory (even when most concerned with media: ideological analysis, postmodern theory, systems theory) has failed to clarify how media affect its key concepts. The best starting-point is a modified version of Pierre Bourdieu's field theory. While analysing media production as a particular field (or sub-fields) is not new, field theory as normally practised is less comfortable with the idea that media representations impact on all social space simultaneously - precisely the issue in understanding media power. The solution is to draw on Bourdieu's less well known work on symbolic power and the state's prescriptive authority, drawing an analogy between contemporary media's social centrality and Bourdieu's account of the French state's 'meta-capital' across and between all fields. The resulting empirical research agenda is outlined and (in conclusion) a related theoretical issue (how do media affect Bourdieu's notion of habitus?) is anticipated, which the author intends to treat in a separate article.
Couldry, Nick. London School of Economics (2003). Articles>Communication
#29333
Many people make an unfortunate and invalid separation between heart and mind, or feeling and intellect. In some contemporary traditions, abetted by attitudes stereotypically centered on Southern California, feelings are exalted as more "real" and the only proper basis for action -- if it feels good, do it -- while intellect gets short shrift as a hang-up of outmoded elitism.
Gould, Stephen Jay. Edward Tufte. Articles>Scientific Communication>Statistics>Biomedical
#18416
In order to promote the results of their medical research to other healthcare professionals, researchers must publish their work. This is usually done by publishing manuscripts in medical journals and by presenting papers and posters at conferences. Medical writers may write these documents on behalf of the researchers that carried out the studies. This is termed ghostwriting. This is most common when studies are sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, but academic researchers sometimes also use the services of medical writers. The medical writer and researchers collaborate to determine what should be written and the researchers gain from the expert writing skills of the medical writer.
#19639
In a multibillion-dollar-per-yearcindustry, medical technical writers are well situated between companies that manufacture drugs and medical equipment and the federal government, which regulates the manufacture of drugs and medical equipment. The government requires that these companies produce specific types of documents, which must be of a very high standard. This situation creates lucrative opportunities for technical writers.
English, Wayne A. Intercom (2003). Articles>Scientific Communication>Biomedical>Technical Writing
#26592
This case study documents how a small business school, as part of a strategic planning initiative to improve career services, added a career planning lab to an existing managerial communication course. The lab guides students through a series of self-directed activities such as reading assignments, worksheets, Internet site visits, and completion of instruments. The process results in a summary document and a targeted resume that are reviewed during a one-on-one meeting with the school’s academic advisor and graded for course credit. The study includes a summary of student evaluations along with reflections on lessons learned.
May, Gary L. Association for Business Communication (2005). Articles>Education>Business Communication
#29365
Members' Tips for Writing a Compelling White Paper
It takes time and a strong focus to create a solid white paper, according to TechRepublic members who shared tips and insight about white paper creation. Find out what should be your first step and your last for a successful effort.
Mottl, Judith N. TechRepublic (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Writing>White Papers
#23535
A memo is a concise document that conveys essential information about your accomplishment(s). All memos at Ohio University should be written in third person.
Young, V.L. and K.J. Sampson. Ohio University (2004). Articles>Writing>Business Communication>Technical Writing
#24514
Mentally Correct Product Promo Priorities
Use reponsivity to command or coax customers into acting on your offer.
Streight, Steven. Blogger.com (2004). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing
#23870
Message Severity Levels: How Much Is Enough?
This article describes how we investigated software message severity levels using surveys in a series of usability tests and how the results helped us create a standard set of severity levels. These findings can also be applied to other messages.
Schwirzke, Martin and Mayuresh Ektare. Usability Interface (2003). Articles>Usability>Risk Communication
#32013
Messy Problems and Lay Audiences: Teaching Critical Thinking Within the Finance Curriculum
This article investigates the critical thinking difficulties of finance majors when asked to address ill-structured finance problems. The authors build on previous research in which they asked students to analyze an ill-structured investment problem and recommend a course of action. The results revealed numerous critical thinking weaknesses, including a failure to address the client's problem, use analytical tools systematically, construct rhetorically useful graphics, or translate finance concepts and methodologies into lay language. The present research aims to understand more deeply why students struggle with ill-structured problems. Using think-aloud protocols, audiotaped interviews, and other strategies, the authors explore causes of finance students' difficulties and suggest strategies for addressing them. The results suggest that the homework tasks typically given them, such as quantitative problem sets using algorithmic procedures, do not prepare them to confront ill-structured problems requiring disciplinary arguments aimed at specified audiences. Research further suggests that teaching audience adaptation--especially for nonexpert audiences--is helpful in promoting critical thinking.
Carrithers, David, Teresa Ling and John C. Bean. Business Communication Quarterly (2008). Articles>Education>Financial>Business Communication
#31290
A few months ago, I read with interest an article that indicated that executives are influenced more by the court of public opinion as a catalyst for making positive behavior changes than they are by even a court of law. So what contribution do we make to this discussion, as public relations and media relations practitioners? Do we shove our heads in the sand and say, "It's not up to us to influence the ethical behavior of our internal and external clients"?
Bergman, Eric. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Business Communication>Public Relations>Ethics
