Tag: Society of Technical Communication

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Rest in Power, STC

Posted on by TechCommGeekMom

I know it’s been about a minute (ha!) since I’ve written here, but it seemed appropriate under the circumstances to write this.

Last week, I thought I was having a heart attack–a REAL heart attack. My chest hurt, my heart was racing at a million miles an hour, I was having some difficulty breathing, and when I had a head-rush for no reason, I knew something was wrong. With a family history of heart disease, I didn’t want to take any chances. I had my husband take me to the doctor, and she determined that I was experiencing a panic attack. Well, I guess I’m glad it was a panic attack and not an actual heart attack!

But why?

Today, the world figured out a big part of what has been contributing to my stress for a while now. The STC announced that it had shut its doors and is filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. I was one of those people who had to make that decision. While it was not my decision alone, I know that those on the STC Executive Council and Board are also feeling this stress and sadness as well. While it sounds cliché, believe me when I say that this decision was not made lightly and was very difficult. It was a build-up of years of issues coming to a head despite many best efforts to reverse those issues, and rather than depending on unpredictable “hope” that it would get better, it was the right decision to stop everything. Otherwise, an already bad situation was only going to get worse, and that would not be fair to anyone–the members, or those on the future Board trying to keep things afloat.

While I could go into deeper details of the last seven months as I experienced them as Board Vice-President and what led to this, I won’t. It’s not worth it at this point. Maybe if I ever meet you in person over a drink or lunch, I could tell you the story, but not here.

Rather, I want to use this to express how I’m mourning this loss. I’ve been reading comments from all over the world about the announcement, and trying to help others through this as best as I can.

As someone who started a new career in her forties, STC was introduced to me when I decided to go back to school. I joined as a graduate student, and haven’t left since that time. While I haven’t been a member as long as many people that I know, I can honestly say that STC has been my chosen family. I’ve made a lot of professional connections with people I consider my mentors. The knowledge I’ve gained with my association with STC has been tremendous. It took my knowledge and experience in tech comm to the next level to make my career what it is today. Heck, I don’t know that I would have the job I have now without my STC connection, as that was a “preferred” qualification when I applied.

I’ve also formed many friendships with my colleagues over the years. There’s a large group of technical communicators who I met through STC that are my “touch base” people–they are the ones I don’t have to mask my autism for and can totally be myself. That says a lot. These are friendships I hope to sustain for many years to come through social media and other means, because these people do mean a lot to me, and I might not see them as often now since we won’t have STC to connect us the same way.

So, for me to be one of the main people to push for this closing because it was the right thing to do? This was like taking a loved one off of life support to let them pass on. No one really wants that beloved person to go, but you don’t want to prolong any suffering either. That’s what this feels like for me, and I know it’s felt that way for a lot of longtime STC members and associates.

I’ve been grateful that most of the messages I’ve read or received were of support for the decision. Most people are sad, but they understand that this was not an easy thing to do, and that it’s for the best. It does comfort me that other people can attest to the knowledge and energy that the organization had, which brought some of the best of the best in technical communication out there, and that STC helped with their careers, too.

For myself, it’s disappointing that I’ll never have the chance to apply to be an Associate Fellow or Fellow. But I’m not alone–several people applied for those honors this year, and that’s not even going to be fulfilled now for them either. If things were in a better state, I could have been in line to be the Board President. Well, I got pretty close with being Vice-President, so there’s that. I am grateful that I’m one of the few people who has received the STC President’s Award–that’s nothing to sneeze at. So many people contributed to the long-term success of the organization but will not be able to reap the benefits anymore, which is a hard pill to swallow. But it is what it is.

A lot of us are mourning for this big loss. And it is a loss. I wrote about the benefits of belonging to STC plenty of times over the course of the years on this blog. Sure, there are other organizations that we can explore and join, and other avenues for gaining knowledge, education, and certifications. But STC was truly a different kind of organization. I’ve never felt more supported by any other organization like this in my life. Everyone wanted you to do well. Everyone encouraged you to learn, discuss, and innovate. The genuine kindness and support were unmatched. The STC alumni are incomparable in these respects, and I hope that this will continue as we connect in other ways and carry this legacy forward.

I do want to give an extra special shoutout to two people in this whole thing.

First, to Tim Esposito, the Immediate Past President of STC. Tim and I go way back from trenches of the STC Philadelphia Metro Chapter. While he’s been in STC longer than me, he always encouraged me to step up, has been an incredible mentor, one of my biggest cheerleaders, and a great friend and confidant. I can’t thank him enough, and so glad that we’ve moved up the ranks together (usually with me on your coat tails). Sir, I salute you.

The other person is Liz Herman, the current STC President. So much of this entire process has been on her shoulders, and I couldn’t let her bear this whole thing alone. She did so much of the heavy lifting, and we owe her a debt of gratitude for her grace and leadership under pressure. (This is an understatement.) I’m glad we were able to work together and support each other through this process, and we’re going down like Thelma and Louise–together!

There are so many other people to name, but I don’t know that I could remember or fit them all in. You know who you are. Thank you all for supporting my journey as I’ve become a better technical communicator, teaching me how to fight against imposter syndrome at my weakest moments, and helping me learn how to be a leader. You have my eternal gratitude.

The Society for Technical Communication had a 72-year run. We all contributed to making it a good run while we could. The organization will be sorely missed by many, and definitely by me.

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How does that jagged little pill of content strategy go down?

Posted on by TechCommGeekMom

Jagged+Little+PillTo continue with the tech comm rock star theme set forth by Adobe for Adobe Day, I thought carefully about who might represent Rahel Anne Bailie, whose talk was titled, “Content Strategy in a Content Economy– Is Your Content Prepared?”  It took me a little while, but it finally came to me. Rahel is the Alanis Morrisette of tech comm.  Both ladies are Canadian, and they both have a no-nonsense approach to their craft. Alanis Morrisette became famous with her breakout album, “Jagged Little Pill” not only because the music was good, but she broke her ideas down simply and didn’t mince words. Morrisette looked at the good, the bad, and the ugly, and worked on making sense of what was going on around her.

RahelBailie
Rahel Anne Bailie
The Alanis Morrisette of Tech Comm

Rahel does the same thing for content strategy. She breaks it down to a level to ensure that anyone who even begins to think about content understands what content is, and how it should be utilized at the most basic level. She tells it like it is, and why we need to employ it.

Rahel began her Adobe Day talk by talking about economic evolution. She started by pointing out that our economies have progressed from an agricultural economy, to an industrial economy, which in turn progressed to a service economy, then evolved to a knowledge-based economy, to an information economy, then to an attention economy, which has resulted in what we have today–a content economy.

Content includes the sub-sets of content that are location-based content and verified content. Location-based content includes geo-locational and geo-fenced information like Yelp, or information that is blocked from outside countries. Verified content deals with endorsed and social relevance; it has the user questioning, “How do I know that the content is true?” Facebook or TripAdvisor “likes” are an example of this. Cultural relevance applies to this as well. Topics such as Canadian versus American, demographics, and interests act as  filters.

Rahel stressed that content has value! It’s recognized as a business asset and it deserves to be managed with as much care as other assets. The problem is that we don’t inventory content in most cases–it’s not like managing our finances or physical inventory at a plant. This means that this is a big necessity! In order for this to happen, content has to work well. Like design, it’s only noticed when there’s a problem with it.

Rahel shifted the conversation to explaining how sub-sets relate to content. She explained that new user experiences these days include smaller screens as the first entry point to content, such as m-commerce and m-banking. Tablets are also being used as entertainment devices. We also have to content with multi-screen and multi-dimensional content, which are viewed as

  • ancillary, such as television plus social media,
  • sequential, where users use a desktop and mobile device interchangeably, or
  • simultaneous, in which there is a collaboration requiring instant synchronization between devices.

One also has to think about market maturity, and must look at market differences, social network penetration, the mobile market and growth opportunities. Cross market content involves a single language for many markets. By offering native languages in other markets, cross-border commerce incurs content needs as well.

Using language to meet adaptive needs makes a difference! How do we meet this head-on? Rahel suggests a repeatable system that governs the management of content throughout the entire life cycle creates content strategy. The life cycle consists of continually analyzing content, collecting content, publishing content, and managing content. Rahel reminded us that a tactic is not a strategy, but rather a strategy is the analysis and the prescription. Content touch points occur throughout a customer’s journey, and can include multiple variables and outputs, but also need to include localization.

In a content economy, we need ALL the right factors at the right time using right media. We need to work towards an integrated content strategy.

As this is a topic that can go even deeper, Rahel recommended her book, http://TheContentStrategyBook.com , which talks more at length about content strategy.

As most of my own current work revolves around content strategy these days, I was really happy to listen to Rahel talk about the benefits and necessity of content strategy. It’s something that I try to explain and promote at my own job, because so much of it really involves analyzing and pre-planning the usefulness and necessity of content. Rahel’s talk brought that concept home to me even more, and helped me validate what I’ve been telling others. She reminded me that it doesn’t matter what the medium is–print, web, or some other digital means–but content needs to be clear, concise, and cogent, as my favorite professor used to tell me (who was also, coincidentally, Canadian).  Rahel’s talk definitely set a positive tone on content strategy and its place in technical communications. I was glad that Adobe made sure to include her in Adobe Day, because content strategy isn’t going anywhere right now–it’s more important than ever! 

Rahel, if I’ve misquoted you, or something that I wrote needs further clarification, or if you’d like to add anything to these notes, please feel free to let me (and the readers) know in the comments below!

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Is English an International Language? – Part 2

Posted on by TechCommGeekMom

UK vs US peepsEarlier this year, I was asked by the STC-PMC to write a two-part article about the differences and similarities between American and British English.  Part 1 was published in February.  Today, I happily saw that the second part was published in the STC-PMC bi-monthly newsletter.

To find the original article, see the March/April 2013 edition of the STC-PMC Newsletter here.

The article itself is below.

Is English an International Language?
Part 2

David Crystal, author of English as a Global Language, has said that in the pursuit of a World Standard Spoken English (WSSE), American English seems to be the most influential in its development, as American grammar is now starting to influence contemporary British usage.  He also discusses at length how different dialects will allow national and international intelligibility to start developing. He said, “If WSSE emerges as the neutral global variety in due course, it will be make redundant the British/American distinction. British and American English will still exist, of course, but as varieties expressing national identity in the UK and the USA.

Edmund H. Weiss, the author of The Elements of International English Style, also points out that there is clash when trying to come up with a standard version of English, namely between “…globalization, producing a one-size-fits-all solution for a diverse world of English speakers, versus localization, adapting and modifying this universal model for particular readers in particular locales.”  Where English is a second language, Weiss demonstrates, the idioms and figures of speech end up resembling the language structure of the native language. Because of there are about 400 million native English speakers, and about a billion people who speak it as a second language or as a foreign language (for business or a profession), the importance of clear, unambiguous communication is undeniable.

There are many great resources available about this conundrum that can help put everything in perspective, especially in a world in which the Internet is starting to spread the use of English more and more all the time. Some good ones include:

Recent Articles:
“Internet + English= Netglish”
“Learning English online: How the Internet is changing language”
“Tongue and Tech: the Many Emotions from Which English Has No Words”

Books:
·         Do’s and Taboos of Using English Around the World by Roger E. Axtell
·         Divided by a Common Language: A Guide to British and American English by Christopher Davies
·         The Elements of International English Style: A Guide to Writing Correspondence, Reports, Technical Documents, and Internet Pages for a Global Audience by Edmond H. Weiss
·         English as a Global Language by David Crystal
·         Brit-Think, Ameri-Think by Jane Walmsley

Podcast:
·         International English by Danielle M. Villegas at https://soundcloud.com/techcommgeekmom/international-english

So, what’s a technical writer supposed to do? The best thing to do is to be exceedingly careful of using slang or idioms that relate to one’s native English, and be aware of local usage used on a global scale. This isn’t an easy task at all, yet it’s an important consideration when translating English into another language, let alone trying to write for English speakers globally.

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A First-Timer’s Summit: Packing Heat—Where’s Rick Steves When You Need Him?

Posted on by TechCommGeekMom

See on Scoop.it – M-learning, E-Learning, and Technical Communications

Here’s my fourth entry in the series of “A First Timer’s Summit: Packing Heat–Where’s Rick Steves When You Need Him?” I discuss my thoughts about what to pack for my trip to the 2013 STC Summit–just a little more than a month away now!

See on notebook.stc.org