Month: March 2018

We know the number of freelancers is on the rise, but more than half (55%) of hiring managers agree that remote work among full-time permanent employees is becoming more common, too. Many of the 1,000 hiring managers surveyed said that they expect up to 38% of their full-time staff will be working remotely in the … Continue reading “Remote work is “the new normal””

Source: Remote work is “the new normal”

It’s interesting to read this, because I’m wondering who these companies are and what kind of positions they have for permanent employees that are remote! In the tech comm field, I’m starting to realize that part of the problem is that there are very few permanent positions anymore–or it seems, from my years of job searching, very rare. The majority of tech comm positions are some sort of temporary or contract position, and while some are remote (it’s improving just a tiny bit), most are on site. There still seems to be an expectation of contract workers going to great lengths to either move to a location or do long commutes just to be able to work.  If remote is the new normal, and remote working is rather conducive for many types of tech comm work, how come we aren’t seeing more of it? It still doesn’t feel like the “new normal” described in this article, although the article is encouraging.

What do you think? Include your comments below.

–TechCommGeekMom

Rahel A. Bailie on the similarities between content strategists and physicians.

Source: Why content strategists are the doctors of the content world » FH JOANNEUM

Let me tell you–when it comes to content strategy, Rahel Bailie knows her stuff! She is someone to listen to. She is someone I’d like to think is a friend of mine, as well as a mentor, too. I’ve gotten to know her not only by attending presentations of hers over the years and hanging out with a lot of the same people at conferences, but also getting to know her on social media too. I’ve learned a lot from her.

In this article, I like her analogy of a doctor to a content strategist. But I think it’s also interesting point she makes about content marketing strategists–they aren’t content strategists in the same vein.  I can verify that from my own job searches.  Job descriptions are always listed as content marketing strategist jobs or even content strategist jobs, but their focus is usually more on marketing than actual content strategy or understanding content management. Or worse, they’ll combine the two with the greater emphasis on the content marketing, and that’s just not what content strategists are. I don’t know how many recruiters have contacted me or how many job listings I’ve seen that confuse me with a content marketing person.  Now, I even earned a certificate in digital marketing to potentially bridge that gap, but in the end, it really wasn’t my thing. It helps to have an understanding, but I’m still a generalist in that respect. I try to look at the big picture, and figure out the symptoms to help determine what the best treatment is.

Do you agree with Rahel’s assessment of what content strategy is…or isn’t? Include your comments below.

–TechCommGeekMom

Veteran tech comm hiring manager Richard Rabil offers some tips on how to stand out from it the competition when applying for a technical communications role.

Source: How to Be an Amazing Tech Comm Job Applicant: Tips from a Tech Comm Hiring Manager | TechWhirl

This is an interesting article. I’m posting it so that I can not only share this with all of you, my techcomm colleagues, but also for myself. At some point, I need to renovate my e-portfolio, and I need to figure out how to raise my game in a smart way.  So, this is for my own reference, too.

What do you think of the recommendations in here? Include your comments below.

–TechCommGeekMom

Remote teams might seem isolated and lonely, but our teams are closely knit and anything but alone. Here’s how we create company culture at our remote software company.

Source: How to Build Work Culture for Remote Teams

I found this article interesting, because in so many ways, I think it exemplifies the kind of remote work environment most of us wish we had–and should have.  The oft-heard criticism about remote working is that if you aren’t there, people forget about you. Sometimes, that’s a good thing, and sometimes, it isn’t.  It’s a good thing when you want to have no disruptions, work head-down, and get the work done.  It’s not so great when you need some of the social aspects, such as sharing frustrations openly about a project with another person, or having a brainstorming session.  As a remote worker, you often feel forgotten about if you aren’t part of an already remote situation, like what’s described in this article. The article describes how it SHOULD be–and I read it like it was a fantasy, even if it’s the reality of the Skillcrush workers.  That’s the kind of environment that I want to work in as a remote worker. I want to be able to work from home and still feel connected with my co-workers when I do have to collaborate with them. I don’t want to be left out of either events or even just department decisions, especially if they affect me directly. And this applies even if you are the remote worker, and everyone else is at “the office”.  Remote workers often get the short end of the stick in this regard. Yes, we like the flexibility and privacy of working from home, but we aren’t hermits (or at least most of us aren’t).

Skillcrush–if you can use a technical communicator, contact me. I would love to be part of your corporate culture.

What do you think of this article? Is this a good benchmark for remote work culture, or is there something better? Include your comments below.

–TechCommGeekMom

Do you have a hidden Hugh Grant or Highland Scot inside? Take our quiz and we’ll pinpoint which part of the UK you most sound like you’re from – even if you’re not British.

Source: BBC – Future – Do you have a secret British accent?

Related to my last post, a fun quiz to see if your dialect matches up with a region of the UK.  For me, I got the East Midlands, which is cool since I got to visit that region during TCUK last year, and liked the area very much. 🙂

What kind of results did you get? Post your results and comments below.

–TechCommGeekMom