Getting This "Global Thing" Right…

CEOs overwhelmingly believe that revenue growth is their number one priority: four out of five CEOs (83%) now believe that revenue growth is the most important path to boosting financial performance over the next three years. And what do they see as the two key drivers for this growth? New and differentiated products and services (nearly two-thirds) and new markets (55%). Responsiveness is the new key competence, i.e., CEOs acknowledge that they need the ability to recognize, analyze and respond more effectively to continuously changing market conditions and risks. Reinstituting customer responsive organizations is high on their growth agenda.

Ray, Rebecca. LISA (2004). Careers>Management>International

Go Home! An Introduction to Virtual Officing  

The information and technology wave of the 1990s has brought with it a new way of working: virtual officing. A May 1991 survey from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 21.8 million nonagricultural home workers, including 20 million who worked at home for their primary job. When considering a virtual arrangement, you need to decide if you and your work are right for virtual officing. Once you decide to work virtually, you need to know how to present your idea to your employer or customer and how to arrange your work environment and schedule for optimum performance.

Wolfe Sharp, Flo. STC Proceedings (1999). Careers>Telecommuting

Going Beyond $1 a Word: Syndication

With the recent downturn in the economy, newsrooms, newspapers, magazine and Web outlets are letting staff writers go, and are looking for cheaper content alternatives. Buying content from syndicates is becoming more popular for these publishers. Watch for this trend to continue.

Price, Lisa. Communication Circle, The (2001). Careers>Freelance>Writing

Going Beyond $1 Per Word: Getting Paid on the Internet

Paying by the word comes from the print publishing world. Web editors have continued this model.

Price, Lisa. Communication Circle, The (2001). Careers>Freelance>Writing

Going Hollywood: Trends in the World of Work  

The 'Hollywood Model' is one of several work trends that have emerged to satisfy the needs of the changing U.S. workplace in the last couple of decades. This paper will: examine some of the forces that have precipitated change in the U.S. workplace; explore emerging work trends especially relevant to technical communicators; and recommend a small set of key skills that technical communicators will need to develop in order to thrive in the changing workplace.

Cheirrett, Peg A. STC Proceedings (1997). Careers>Workplace>Collaboration

Going Out On Your Own: It's Not All or Nothing

For some, going freelance seems like an all-or-nothing proposition: you either have to jump in with both feet or not try at all. This blog post argues another way: gradually transition to full-time freelancing.

DMN Communications (2008). Careers>Freelance>TC

Going Solo  

These workshop notes list many of the things that you will need to consider if you intend to become a freelance technical communicator in the UK. The main topics are: your motivation; getting help with your business; legal and administrative issues; business infrastructure; working practices; advertising and publicity; office environment. The workshop was presented at the ISTC Conference, Bosworth, 2002.

Unwalla, Mike. TechScribe (2002). Careers>Freelance>Regional>United Kingdom

Good Communication Is More than Just Good Writing

Writers can be good at writing, but lousy at communicating verbally. These tips will help you communicate better with your clients—and instill clients with confidence in your real strengths.

Holland, Anton. Writer's Block (1996). Careers>Consulting>Communication

Good Opportunity for Technical Communication Service Providers

When I tried to look at the salary survey from the point of view of a Technical Communication Service Provider (TCSP), I noticed quite a few interesting points.

Pandit, Makarand M. Indus (2005). Careers>Consulting>Regional>India

The Grading System of the Real World

At the beginning of each semester, the instructor hands out a syllabus packet which often contains a course outline or schedule and an explanation of the grading policy. The work world has grading systems too, and you need to know about them in advance so you can prepare for Performance Reviews.

Perry, Lynellen D.S. ACM Crossroads (2001). Careers>Workplace>Assessment

Graphical Design in TCO: Video and Animation  

This report is intended to give an overview of graphical design in the technical communication field as it pertains to the areas of video and animation. The purpose of this report is to a) establish core knowledge areas, b) provide information to both students and professionals in TCO, c) demonstrate excellence in TCO at Mercer University, and d) help students decide on what internships and jobs they wish to pursue. This report includes a summary and background of the video and animation field, the methods by which the information was obtained, an organized presentation of the collected information, and a series of recommendations for those going into this field.

Davis, Marjorie T. and William H. Harris II. Mercer University (2002). Careers>Multimedia>Graphic Design

Great Consulting Starts with Skills That Matter

Many organizations are looking to communicators for a different set of services than those traditionally delivered. “Teach our managers to communicate better,” leaders say. “Help us make smarter decisions and be more efficient,” they plead. “Help me deliver messages better in front of our audiences,” they implore. At the same time, communicators work tirelessly to get to the leadership table, stay there and have real influence. We’re all working toward the same end: strategic thinking and implementation that truly impacts the business. For some, operating more like a consultant, even while continuing to work inside the organization, makes more sense. But how do you transition to such a model?

Wilson, Stacy. Communication World Bulletin (2005). Careers>Consulting>Business Communication

Ground Floor Perspective on the Usability Job Hunt

This is a guest written article by Berna Tural, a recent college graduate from Carleton University in Ottawa. She is looking for a job in the usability field. I asked her to tell me more about her experiences so that WebWord readers would understand what it is like to be on the ground floor in usability. Similarly, I wanted people to see the other side of the hunt. 

Tural, Burna. WebWord (2001). Careers>Usability>Regional>Canada

Group Project Peer Evaluation Form  

Use this form to evaluate the other members of the group. Write the name of each group member in one of the columns, then assign a score of 0 to 10 (0 being the lowest grade, 10 the highest) to each group member for each criterion. Then total the scores for each member. Because each group member has different strengths and weaknesses, the scores you assign will differ. On the back of this sheet, write down any comments you wish to make.

Markel, Mike. Bedford-St. Martin's (2001). Careers>Workplace>Workflow

Growing Your Job as a Technical Communicator: Guidelines for Getting In, Moving Up, and Staying Put  

Two seasoned technical communicators discuss the elements of 'growing their jobs,' using successes and lessons learned to offer practical suggestions for getting in, moving up, and staying put if the company downsizes.

Liebetrau, Suzanne F. and Sallie J. Ortiz. STC Proceedings (1995). Careers>TC>Planning

Growing Your Practice by Managing Business Relationships  

Independent contractors and consultants know the value of working cooperatively with other professionals to complete complex projects. 'Other professionals' includes subcontractors, other independent contractors and consultants, and business partners. The formation of these kinds of strategic relationships can help meet the demands of today’s diverse markets and clients. This paper outlines some of the basic issues that surround business relationships, including planning (estimating and bidding), formalizing project-based contractual relationships, and exploring more permanent partnership arrangements.

Barker, Thomas, Ryan Bernard, Melanie G. Flanders, Rob Moschak and Nicole Wycislo. STC Proceedings (2003). Careers>Freelance>Consulting>Collaboration

Growth Prospects for a Technical Writer

Are there practical chances of growth and scope for learning/improving oneself while working as a technical writer?

Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2004). Careers>Writing>Technical Writing>India

Guerilla WriteFare™: Nice Work If You Can Get it -- Here's How

My experience in the corporate environment has been that larger companies don't go out of their way to hire home-based freelancers. That's not to say that they never do -- it simply hasn't been my experience with them. I run into this problem all the time. Finding off-site work is a challenge. I scour the top 20 or so job search engines and other places for work and, while there really are quite a few contract positions out there, nearly all of them require on-site work. That's the bad news. Here's the good news: I have figured this thing out, believe it or not. In fact, I'm working on a book and a seminar about it. To locate good work that allows you to work out of the home office, you must know three things: How to look. Where to look. Hw to build trusting relationships with your customers.

Knowles, Michael. AIPMM (2003). Careers>Freelance>TC>Case Studies

A Guide to Careers in Technical Writing

Contrary to what many assume, working as a technical writer involves much more than sitting alone at your PC. The job requires plenty of contact with technical professionals, from programmers and project managers to machine operators and medical technicians. Solitary? Not quite. Collaborative? Most definitely.

Hoffman, Allan. Monster.com (2007). Careers>TC>Writing>Technical Writing

Guidelines for Mentoring Programs  

A successful mentoring relationship benefits those involved through increased confidence and a sense of direction. The relationship provides a risk-free learning environment in which to offer career guidance. Mentoring relationships can develop between individuals within an organization, between individuals in two different organizations, or between students and STC professionals.

STC. Careers>Mentoring>Management