About Goals

I believe that the best way to design web sites is to bear in mind the goals of the site and its users.

Hunt, Ben. Web Design From Scratch (2005). Design>Web Design>Planning

Always Have a Backup Plan

By anticipating failures, and designing backup plans, you can minimize the impact of unexpected problems on the user.

Anderson, Gretchen. Cooper Interaction Design (2001). Design>Project Management>Planning

Avoid Long-Term Strategies

When it comes to information management or content management strategies, particularly at the enterprise level, there is a strong tendency (and desire) to create long-term plans. This briefing will explore some of the issues encountered when creating and executing long-term plans, and will argue for an approach that delivers benefits on a much more frequent basis.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2007). Articles>Content Management>Planning

Be Able to Say, 'Been There! Done That!': Cultivate your Career Skills through Deliberate Volunteering  

To attain your career goals, you cannot simply go to work and perform the assigned projects, allowing your manager direct your professional path for you. You must treat your working life much like you treat a documentation project and be deliberate. Take charge of your progress by volunteering to complete projects that challenge and advance your capabilities. Plan and prepare for challenging opportunities that provide you with new work experiences; identify and execute tasks that advance your skills, knowledge, and abilities; and evaluate your career development, results, and your accomplishments with each enterprise you complete.

Swindle-Troell, Elizabeth F. STC Proceedings (2003). Careers>TC>Planning

The Business Landscape Analysis: Where We Are Today

STC's best opportunity for growth is to lead its members and the industry into the future by focusing on emerging disciplines and growing opportunities within technical communication. STC must ensure that the needs of its core writer/editor base are met at the same time.

STC Transformation (2004). Articles>TC>Planning

Business Plans Build Good Business  

Developing a business plan—without it, your independent practice will flounder.

Frick, Elizabeth G. 'Bette'. Intercom (2004). Careers>Management>Planning>Business Communication

Career Preservation in a Volatile and Competitive Work Market  

The ideas presented in this paper reflect my 25 years of observations and work experience, and recent period of unemployment in 2002. These ideas apply most appropriately to the software, high tech, and telecom industries, but could easily apply to other industries, academia, government, or non-profit organizations.

Emerson, Nathan F. STC Proceedings (2003). Careers>Unemployment>Planning

Cliffnotes To Keep You From Cliffhanging  

Understanding organizational behavior and using creative problem solving are as much a part of being a technical communicator as is expertly applying the English language. Recognizing this, the authors-two senior technical communicators—have identified several typical, but not predictable, organizational problems that involve technical communicators. Solutions will be provided when the paper is presented at the conference.

Modrey, Laurie and Emily A, Sopensky. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Collaboration>Planning

Commentary on "Planning and Information Foraging Theories and their Value to the Novice Technical Communicator"    

Gattis should be applauded for finding cognitive theories that might be of use to the field, for describing them well with current resources, and for applying them to technical communication with an example. The two theories, however, are too intuitive to provide much value for describing existing behavior or for novices to use as tools.

Eaton, Angela. Journal of Computer Documentation (2002). Articles>Communication>Planning

Content Management: Web Publishing Needs Real Discipline

Too many organizations take an unprofessional approach to the content they publish on the Web. Many web managers still seem to believe that if they get the technology right the publishing will look after itself. Quality publishing requires skill and discipline. Unfortunately, discipline is something many web teams are lacking.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking Newsletter (2003). Articles>Content Management>Planning

Creating an Effective Business Plan  

A business plan describes your business’s future, including your vision for your organization, your competition, your products and services, markets you’ll compete in, how you’ll sell yourself, and your financial prospective. A successful plan conveys an organization’s exciting prospects and growth potential. Its overall purpose is to “sell” the business to management and possible backers.

Hansen, Lauren Y. STC Proceedings (1999). Articles>Business Communication>Planning

Creating an Idea Culture: Six Tips for Managers  

The future of technical communication is about generating and implementing new ideas so that your team can change with the times. Other fields are vying for some of the same jobs in an organization that we are capable of performing. If managers do not take time to stay abreast of these changes nor tap into the minds on their team that are generating ideas about how to morph into different realms, then our profession is at a disadvantage to those in related fields who are drafting proposals for new jobs or innovative projects. This paper presents six tips for managers on creating an idea culture. It also argues why it is essential for managers to start their team's idea culture as soon as possible.

Hansen, Heidi and Jennifer Square. STC Proceedings (2003). Careers>Management>Planning

Design Patterns

A design pattern is a proven design solution to a common design problem documented in a standard format.

. Usability Body of Knowledge (2007). Design>Usability>Planning

Designing Relational Databases  

The phrase database design means the set of steps, techniques, guidelines, and tools for translating a logical data model into a database specification. The database design consists of a structural representation, but may also include an integrity representation for rules enforcement. The structural representation is usually a database design diagram, from which you generate database-specific definitions. The integrity representation can take many forms from database specifications that define rule enforcements in the dbms layer, program specifications that define rule enforcements in object methods or other implementation, as well as specifications that define rule enforcement in a rules layer. Think of relational database design as a process for transforming the Logical Data Model into a relational database where the database design preserves the high quality properties of the Logical Data Model described in the book.

KPIUSA. Design>Information Design>Databases>Planning

Designing Through the Storm

As designers, we all face the inevitable slump. That point where our creativity stagnates and we find ourselves at a dead end. Walter Stevenson offers suggestions on staying productive and creative.

Stevenson, Warren. List Apart, A (2006). Design>Web Design>Planning

Developing an Article from the Ground Up

Whether it's at the request of your company's powers-that-be or out of your own personal desire to spread your wings, you may be thinking about writing an article. It'll be easy enough. You're a writer, after all. You already know how to research topics, develop information, and create a coherent document. You've written tomes on the most arcane topics known to humankind. Surely one little 1000-word feature story is no big deal, right? That all depends. Article writing--for a specialized audience or for the general public--requires knowledge of a new process that many technical writers may not be familiar with. Fortunately, though, any professional writer can learn to transfer his or her existing skills to this new format, and you just might find the different method provides a mini vacation from your day-to-day work projects.

Chroust Ehmann, Lain. TECHWR-L (2001). Articles>Writing>Planning

Developing Mission Statements, Objectives, and Goals  

This workshop will help managers develop a department mission statement, define long-term objectives, and develop a set of goals that define what needs to be done to meet the objectives.

Ruenzel, Charlotte J. STC Proceedings (1993). Articles>Business Communication>Planning

Document Planning Checklist

You need to anticipate the lifecycle of technical publications in advance so that all areas related to the final delivery are covered. These include issues such as costs, production, dissemination and archiving.

Klariti. Articles>Project Management>Planning

Don't Start With Technology

I've seen dozens of companies waste hundreds of thousands of dollars because they chose their management tools before they had a clear understanding of their business needs, information life cycle and content.

Rockley, Ann. Transform (2004). Articles>Content Management>Planning

Don't Wait to be Downsized!

Sure, the economy's booming now, but as the Asian crisis becomes the North American crisis, it pays to remember Newton's famous law of gravity: what goes up must come down again. And, of course, when the economy comes down and pension fund managers start asking those awkward questions about why they should remain invested in your company's stock, managers have a lemming-like tendency to trim staff to make room for short-term profits and long-term plausible deniability. As a technical communicator, you're obviously well up on the hit list, which some might see as a bad thing--but there's a silver lining to every cloud (or, in our case, a copper lining; they don't pay us well enough for silver). In fact, the good news is that it's easy to ensure you're the first one fired, so you can leave before the job becomes mundane without looking like a quitter. Then there are all those perquisites (severance pay, a little downtime)...

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. Geoff-Hart.com (1999). Careers>Unemployment>Planning>Technical Writing

Effective Project Planning  

Our roles as technical communicators are often dictated to us by other people. Clients come to us after their product has already been developed, saying, 'I need a manual,' or 'I've written the necessary procedures--just make them look nice. ' It's easy to fall into the trap of just doing what we're told when we're told to do it.

Hansen, Lauren Y. STC Proceedings (1997). Careers>Project Management>Planning

Eight Steps for Successful Events

In today's competitive environment the event remains one of the most powerful tools available to communicators. Events are powerful because they provide a physical connection between you and the people you need to reach. You can use an event to raise awareness of your services or products, generate support for a cause or introduce employees to work practices.

Crawshaw, Bob. Communication World Bulletin (2006). Articles>Business Communication>Planning

Envisioning the Future of User Experience

Perspectives on the role UX professionals will play in the future and a few forward-looking predictions about the field of user experience.

Sherman, Paul J. UXmatters (2007). Articles>User Experience>Planning

Everything in Moderation: Using Content Units to Manage UX

I’ve found that separating client requests into content units removes uncertainty and offers clearer direction, while helping your client recognize each individual request as a deliverable, requiring assignments and responsibilities. To do this, I follow a four-step process that helps delineate what content units each section of a Web site must cover—as opposed to content that acts as filler, or filler units.

LaFerriere, Keith. UXmatters (2008). Articles>Project Management>Planning>User Experience

Everything is Connected

These are exciting times and we have a great opportunity to finally leverage technical communications into the spotlight. The value of information is finally being properly realised, and we are ideally placed to help any organisation make the most of what information they have and help them understand and create the information they really need.

McLean, Gordon. One Man Writes (2008). Articles>Content Management>Planning