#32174
Why Technical Publishing Shouldn't Be Art
The work may start with the author, but to get it from the author to the end reader means it also has to go through an editor, copy editor, book designer, typesetter, printer, sales and marketing team, distributor, book buyer, and, eventually, a retail store.
Porter, Alan J. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>TC>Publishing>Project Management
#32175
#32176
Topic-Based Writing to the Rescue: Project Considerations for Managers
The purpose of this case study is neither to simply rehash the project nor to provide a pressure-cooker story that others can use as a comparative benchmark. This article looks at the decision points within the project and provides an analysis from a real-life, practical approach that other technical communication managers can use when called upon to engage in a rescue project of their own.
Bailie, Rahel Anne. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>Documentation>Project Management>Case Studies
#32178
Turning Web 2.0 Into Business As Usual
Web 2.0 is hip, trendy, and reminiscent of catch-phrases from the Dot-com boom when just about anything related to binary was so “Now.” Experts are frantically pushing non-digital natives to get on board with Web 2.0 absolutely yesterday, if not sooner. The good news is if you’re reading this article online, there’s a good chance you have already been onboard with Web 2.0 principals for quite some time. The question is, have you been using them effectively?
Harris, Kerri. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>Web Design>Business Communication>Social Networking
#32179
Paradigm Shifts are Never Pretty: Advice on Making the Move to XML Authoring
The move toward XML-based authoring in technical publications is a classic paradigm shift. It requires content creators to change their writing process and learn new concepts.
O'Keefe, Sarah S. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>Writing>XML>Technical Writing
#32180
Authoring in XML -- Why Start?
As techcom professionals, we have been talking about authoring in XML for a very long time. At first, it was a lot of hype about a format that required major programming skills and had zero tools’ support, but that is now changing. Today, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of tools that support XML and a standard called DITA that is in constant development to support content publishing for different industries. As a result, more and more companies seem to be embracing this content format.If you are a writer or techcom manager who is encouraging your company to make this change, then what do you need to know to prepare?
Stuhlemmer, Barbara. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>Writing>XML>DITA
#32182
The Why and How of Content Convergence and Integration
Content producers are about to live through interesting times, to adapt the popular saying, with the dawning of The Age of Content. Industry is discovering content as a commodity; the rules are changing, and fast.
Bailie, Rahel Anne. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>Content Management
#32183
Calculating the Financial Impact of DITA for Translation
Success in a global marketplace requires translating content into multiple languages. Moving to a topic-based XML architecture, such as the Darwin Information Typing Architecture (DITA), can help you control the translation process and save money.
Swope, Amber. TechCom Manager (2008). Articles>Management>Translation>DITA
#32184
The average person engages in some form of negotiation on a daily basis. From time-management struggles to managing employees, work/life balances issues and even parenthood, opportunities to hone negotiation skills are everywhere. Improving your negotiation skills can mean greater peace of mind, increased harmony among the team, and the chance to advance personal and business relationships toward future success.
Harris, Kerri. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Collaboration
#32185
XML Authoring: Coming to a Desktop Near You
Organizations are moving business documents to structured XML authoring -- a technology that was once reserved for only the bravest of technical publications departments. They are using new tools that make the transition much easier, even for completely non-technical authors, and they are reaping benefits that will drive structured authoring in XML across the entire organization.
Abel, Scott. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Writing>XML
#32186
Who Says You Can't Use Microsoft Word To Do XML?
MS Word is not an XML authoring tool, no matter what your IT team believes. While Word may indeed understand and use some XML, it doesn't use XML in the way technical communicators need it to. Instead, it uses XML to transfer information back and forth between MS Office products. Useful? Yes. XML authoring? Not even close.
Abel, Scott. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Writing>XML>Microsoft Word
#32188
Potential Position Descriptions for Information Engineering Professionals
This article defines the tasks and responsibilities for up to seven levels of information engineers, plus two levels of management.
Capri, Steve. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Management>Information Design>Technical Writing
#32189
Eliminating the 'End Game' from Electronic Deliverables
Once you start looking at your publishing process separately from your content and style considerations, you will have identified how your “End Game” impacts your production process. Then, you can take the necessary steps to eliminate it.
Porter, Alan J. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Publishing>Online>Workflow
#32190
Managing SMEs - Part 2: Selling the Concept to Management
Focusing on your professionalism could be the key to successfully managing your working relationships with SMEs.
Rastocny, Philip. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Management>Collaboration>SMEs
#32191
Understanding the Need for Content Quality Management
An interview between Diane Wieland, a technology writer in Indianapolis, and Scott Abel, publisher, The Content Wrangler.
Wieland, Diane. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Interviews>Content Management
#32192
If the documentation is not being used and used effectively, it will never help the bottom line. The trick to increasing value with internal and external users is to identify areas where documentation can save time and money, to create agreement that the documentation can save time and money, and to ensure that the documentation does save time and money.
Kirk, Hannah. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Management>Documentation>Assessment
#32193
Managing SMEs - Part 1: A Primer for Success
Just the thought of dealing with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) can create stress in the life of any documentation manager. Some SMEs can be self consumed, preoccupied, distant, and even rude. But why do these behaviors exist? This article briefly describes how to interact with people who might be difficult to motivate and how to work with people who have priorities different from yours.
Rastocny, Philip. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Management>Collaboration>SMEs
#32194
How To Justify Conference Attendance
Conference expenses are affected by a number of factors. Before you can even begin to justify conference expenses, you need to calculate what those expenses are. To do so, use the following Expenses Worksheet to develop a cost estimate for attending your selected conference.
Doyle, Michael J. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Management>Financial
#32195
Spend enough time among the ranks of corporate culture and you are likely to hear many common catch-phrases like 'branding' and 'market differentiation.' These conceptual ideas can seem like mere marketing dogma reserved for abstract thinkers alone. Yet the savvy career-minded professional should turn a keen eye on these notions with a plan to incorporate a few basic principals into their annual objectives. Employing a few strategies for personal branding can help managers foster greater enthusiasm from their teams and provide the basic framework to help promote a positive self-image within an organization.
Harris, Kerri. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Collaboration>Branding>Marketing
#32196
Training Technical Communicators for Management
When you think of the best manager you have ever worked for, you probably remember his/her ability to motivate you and your colleagues, his/her professional but personable demeanor, and the way his/her organizational skills matched the right person with the right responsibilities. In your management role, you strive to do all these things. However, to make the greatest impact, you must not only excel as a manager yourself, but also help the next generation of leaders develop their managerial skills.
Erber-Stark, Jessica. TechCom Manager (2007). Articles>Management>TC>Education
#32197
This year was an active one for the field of technical communication. New tools and technologies made their mark on our profession, while new pressures and business goals began to impact the way we see ourselves, our role in the organization, and our place in the communication spectrum. In this end-of-the-year report, Scott Abel, president of TheContentWrangler.com, takes a look at some of the year's most important developments in the field of technical communication and makes a few predictions of importance to documentation managers for 2007.
Abel, Scott. TechCom Manager (2006). Articles>TC>History
#32198
As a retired teacher with many years of experience, I’m new to the world of technical writing. However, from what I’ve observed so far, all the world is not only a stage; all the world is also a classroom.
Grabill, Pat. TechCom Manager (2006). Articles>TC>Education
#32199
Managing the Change Most Forget
Unless your organization is large enough to support dedicated organizational development and/or performance specialists, you will need to bring in a consultant to help you manage the real change. The change most people forget about, until it’s too late.
Hamer, Emma C. TechCom Manager (2006). Articles>Management>Project Management
#32200
Feedback is important to business, but no one needed to tell us that. As Technical Communications managers, we regularly see feedback in many forms: user feedback, customer feedback, internal feedback, external feedback, feedback from testing, and feedback in performance appraisals. As beacons of information communication in our organizations, we are responsible to communicate well and, by extension, possess a solid appreciation of and ability to respond to feedback.
Kirk, Hannah. TechCom Manager (2006). Articles>Collaboration>Assessment
#32201
Content Management -- A Career Path for Tech Comm Managers
If you are a technical communications manager, chances are you are working for an organization that has existed for far too many years to be considered a start-up. And if your organization is relatively mature, then at this stage, the organization is also swimming, if not already drowning, in information.
Bailie, Rahel Anne. TechCom Manager (2006). Articles>Content Management>Management
