Staying Competitive Through Continuous Improvement: The Business Information Service at ABN AMRO    

Case study describing the realignment of the Business Information Service (BIS) in ABN AMRO. Explains the reasons for change and the plans to incorporate the concept of continuous improvement, helping to ensure the service constantly evolves to meet demands of the organization. Includes a description of the bank and its operations and explains the role of the BIS within it. Explains how the service will be realigned to embrace the principles of continuous improvement, covering changes in both the Research and Support Services sections, and outlines how these changes will be achieved. Concludes that to make a difference, such change must be a constant.

Beattie, Jacqueline. Business Information Review (2007). Articles>Knowledge Management>Databases>Case Studies

Review: The STC 54th Annual Conference

What I saw was a society of professionals emerging from a process of reflection and redefinition with a vitality and momentum that said, "There's a new sheriff in town, and she's brought the posse with her." The sheriff is Susan Burton, the new STC Director.

Hughes, Michael A. UXmatters (2007). Articles>Reviews>Knowledge Management

Storage and Enterprise Content Management  

Almost one-third of the users reported that more than 40 percent of the storage spending is for unstructured documents and information--I think that percentage will continue to grow annually. Further, AIIM President John Mancini, who prepared the report, found that larger organizations especially are aggressively pursuing consolidation and rationalization of their storage and archiving strategies--but that cost is not the prime motivation behind those activities.

McKellar, Hugh. KMworld (2006). Articles>Content Management>Information Design>Content Strategy

Story Scrapbooks: Tools for Engagement

Thank heavens for big sisters—especially mine. I was over at Franca's house sipping hot chocolate and catching up on life. While we spoke, she was assembling another one of her family scrapbook masterpieces. We started talking about her work—she is an international marketing and publication relations consultant. As we discussed the internal communication challenges one of her clients was facing, I had a flash of brilliance. What if we helped the client put together a story scrapbook and then used it to facilitate conversations around the organization?

Gargiulo, Terrence. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Content Management>Knowledge Management>Business Communication

Strategic Planning at a Government Laboratory: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Technical Information Department's Experience with Planning     

While acknowledging all the ways in which LLNL has failed to make optimal use of strategic planning tools, the authors believe that this planning process has helped their organization to disengage from the everyday 'work harder' perspective and to refocus on the 'work smarter' or 'putting the ladder against the right wall' goal, insofar as they have been able to do. The authors maintain that however imperfect one's strategic planning process is, it is nevertheless the best way to focus management attention. When a plan is flawed, its existence enables others (whether employees, upper management, or interested reviewers) to criticize and thereby improve it. Each year's plan further serves as the foundation for a better plan the next time around, defined in whatever way makes sense to the management team.

Peterson, Steve and Mara Niels. Technical Communication Online (1997). Articles>Management>Project Management>Government

Strategic Planning in a Government Organization: The Experience of the Technical Information Division at NRaD    

This article describes the development of a technical information organization's strategic objectives and its plan to achieve these objectives. The responsibilities of the organization span the continuum of information, that is, from its development to its retrieval and use. Professional technical communication skills include writing, graphic design, photography, multimedia, videography, and library science.

Cathcart, Margaret E. Technical Communication Online (1997). Articles>Management

Strategic Planning in a Nonprofit Organization: STC's Rochester Chapter Thinks Strategically    

Strategic plans are at the heart of successful organizations. This is also true for such organizations as STC chapters. In this article the authors discuss the processes used by members of the Rochester Chapter and the results achieved, when the chapter developed its first strategic plan in 1994.

Boyd, Mary C., Lori A. Marra and Sandra J. Swanson. Technical Communication Online (1997). Articles>Management>Planning>STC

Strategic Planning: An Introduction to This Special Issue    

We must do strategic planning to ensure our survival as publications professionals in our organizations. A strategic plan looks ahead at least five years and encompasses all of the organization's activities. Most importantly, strategic planning requires a commitment to change. The articles in this special issue provide examples of strategic planning techniques and their implementation.

Breuninger, Charles L. and JoAnn T. Hackos. Technical Communication Online (1997). Articles>Management

Strategic Planning: How 'Bifocal Vision' and a Living Document Create Success    

Technical communication managers may not be practicing strategic planning because they receive mixed messages about the need to plan and the need to be flexible and receptive to change. Yet today's manager must have ?bifocal vision: the ability to both commit to a plan that creates operational efficiency and to anticipate (and participate in) its change. A strategic plan must be understood as a living document--created to be updated. This article integrates current management theory on strategic planning with the author's experiences in strategic planning as an information systems manager. Written and oral communication have significant roles in creating, disseminating, and implementing strategic plans. Vision and mission statements, workplans and project management, steering committees and status reports are the means to 'live out the plan.' Finally, the article provides recommendations for technical communication professionals.

Kryder, Leeanne G. Technical Communication Online (1997). Articles>Management>Project Management

Strategies for Sizing UCD Projects

When discussing strategies for sizing UCD projects with consultants, it quickly becomes evident that there seem to be as many strategies as there are consultants. This document will define and describe commonly used strategies, identify each strategy’s scope (i.e., whether it applies to design, research, or evaluation), suggest situations in which each strategy would be best suited, and identify pros, cons, and caveats to its use.

Usability Body of Knowledge. Articles>User Centered Design>Project Management

Strategies for Student Chapter Success  

Students from the Cedarville College chapter of STC present seven factors that make their chapter successful. The Cedarville College chapter of STC received a Chapter Achievement Award at the 46th Annual Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Overturf, Jason and Sarah Flenar. STC Proceedings (2000). Articles>Collaboration>Management>STC

Streamlining Content Creation and Publishing with XMetaL and DITA  

To streamline the product documentation process, many technical publication teams are moving to Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA). Learn best practices for applying this information model, and hands-on techniques for improved content creation and publishing with JustSystems XMetaL.

Silver, Jerry. Intercom (2007). Articles>Content Management>XML>DITA

Streamlining the Decision Cycle Through Collaborative Decision Management  

Over the last 20 years, management philosophy has shifted from 'command and control' to a more distributed and enabled management philosophy.

Frid, Randy and Randall Eckel. KMworld (2001). Articles>Management>Collaboration

Streamlining the Phases of Disaster Recovery

All too often, companies either rely upon personal knowledge and skill to recover from emergency situations, or they write a multi-volume encyclopedia of recovery procedures. When disaster strikes, neither approach lends itself to rapid response.

D'Amico, Vin. Writing Assistance (2006). Articles>Management>Planning>Risk Communication

Striving for Success in DITA Conversion - A Quick Reference

Planning your conversion is always helpful, and should be part of your overall content strategy review.

Urbina, Noz. Data Conversion Laboratory (2008). Articles>Content Management>XML>DITA

A Structured Approach to Selling

High-value goods and services are not impulse purchases. Both the purchaser and vendor may need to invest significant time in the purchasing process. When I first started working for myself, I wasted much time. Now I make the process as efficient as possible, both for myself, and for enquirers.

Unwalla, Mike. IEEE PCS (2008). Articles>Project Management>Collaboration

Structured Content Management in the Enterprise  

As other areas within organizations begin to consider structured content for the same reasons as technical communication departments, technical communicators have a golden opportunity to assist others in their move toward structured CM.

Rockley, Ann. Intercom (2007). Articles>Content Management>Information Design>Content Strategy

Structured Content: What's in it for Writers?

Everyone has heard (or experienced) stories of CMS or knowledge management initiatives that did not work because content contributors refused to use the tools deployed or were unwilling or unable to supply content in the format required. The conclusion often reached is that writers cannot give up their WYSIWYG tools and that any attempt to make them do so is doomed to failure. On the other hand there are always those who will reply with stories of systems where writers have successfully adapted to the use of XML or SGML, and the CMS is working well. All that is required to duplicate this success, they maintain, is that writers must be forced and/or trained to use the new tools.

Baker, Mark. CMSwatch (2002). Articles>Content Management>Single Sourcing>Writing

Structured Document Processors: Customizing Software to Control Document Development Processes  

Structured document processors (SDPS) enable companies to make document production more efficient and accurate, while improving reliability of documents that must be updated frequently or written to very strict format standards. Achieving these goals requires elaborate and highly technical customization of the SDP. This paper emphasizes the importance of collaboration in customizing SDPS to particular document development processes. Three case histories illustrate the spectrum of ways industry is using SDPS for writing, showing three different approaches to customizing SDPS.

Norman, Rose L. and Daryl A. Grider. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Content Management>Documentation

Structuring Employee Communication

In the 21st-century workplace, efficiency and speed are demanded, change is the norm, time is at a premium, and stress levels are high. Management has big expectations for what employee communication can accomplish in support of its goals, believing it can play a significant role in solving problems, achieving employee engagement, and building momentum for change and growth. Building an effective employee communication department that can rise to meet expectations and deliver results is no easy task.

Hess, Ron. Communication World Bulletin (2008). Articles>Business Communication>Management

Structuring Your Documents for Maximum Reuse  

A major topic among information development managers these days is single sourcing--writing information once and using it many times. Structured documents are critical for single sourcing. So, let's explore: what we mean by structuring documents; why structuring is useful; some of the concerns that writers have about structuring documents.

Redish, Janice C. 'Ginny'. Center for Information-Development Management (2005). Articles>Content Management>Information Design>XML

Successfully Managing Agile Projects in the Waterfall Enterprise  

Agile and waterfall methods are utterly different—from the way projects start to the expected deliverables and release schedules. In a waterfall world, what's an IT enterprise to do? Can agile and waterfall methodologies successfully coexist? The answer is yes, for both the short-term and the long-term. In this presentation, Michele Sliger outlines how to: factor your company's business needs into existing agile processes, streamline requirements and activities and identify specific points where agile and waterfall teams must plan, coordinate, and review progress. Learn how you can make agile processes work in the real-world.

Sliger, Michele. Rally Software Development (2007). Articles>Project Management>Agile

Surviving a Busy Year: The Marathon of Chapter Presidency  

Every year, the annual conference offers potential chapter leaders a session entitled 'The Marathon of Chapter Presidency'. They're not kidding. My year as president of STC Montreal was a long, steady, exhausting haul--but a very pleasant one now that I can look back on our achievements. In this paper, I'll pass along tips learned from other presidents and tips I learned while coping with my own duties. Try out as many tips as your time, energy, and volunteers permit!

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Management>Community Building>STC

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