Looking for something?
By Michael Harvey
These days, I find that to be a more common greeting than “How are you?” or “Good to see you.” We hear reports that the first recession since the early 1990s may be bottoming out, but we wonder whether the effects of the slowdown may persist until the end of 2002. So we nervously ask one another, “How’s business,” hoping to hear something more encouraging that what we have been hearing since last summer. “Budgets are tight.” “We had to let folks go.” “We’re still not hiring.” “I’m still looking.”
When the economy recovers, I believe we will see a changed market for technical communicators. Don’t count on getting a job where you are responsible for “a book” on a relatively long development schedule. I’m convinced that we’re going to have to be just as adept at managing information as we are at developing it in the post-recession job market. Businesses will expect us to be versatile and flexible. We may need to be willing to occasionally test the products we write about. We may have to critique the usability of interfaces as expertly as we develop online help for them. Engineers may want us to help them with specifications and project planning. Our communications and organizational skills will lend themselves to these kinds of tasks, even though they may be outside of our comfort zone. It will be good work if we can get it. But things don’t seem very encouraging at the moment.
So we look for encouragement wherever we can find it. I was encouraged by the turnout at the February monthly meeting, where Ann Roberson gave an excellent presentation about how to use graphic design principles to enhance what we write in a way that will help someone understand and move through material more effectively. But I felt badly for the folks who asked me for job leads. I’ve been out of work before, so I know firsthand what it’s like to watch your bank balance shrink and the unpaid bills grow.
At the beginning of my term as President, I asked us to “take it all in, give it all back,” because I believed there is inherent goodness in giving, and that what we give to others often comes back to us with dividends. Now, more than ever, we need to give to one another. If you’re working and know of a job lead, share it with our employment manager, Viola Suddaby, so that she can post it on our web site. If you’re out of a job or feel vulnerable in your current job, stay active in STC. It is a good way to get support; to get job leads, however scant; to get new skills; and to stay current with the business.
Please give time to the chapter whenever you can afford it. Give some of it to our Programs committee or to our Training committee. Help our Communications Manager in some way. Giving time to STC will help you keep up contact with your peers, give you an outlet for your talent, and maybe give you a chance to learn something new. Your investment will add dividends to your résumé. As a hiring manager, I can attest that a reference such as “Jill put in an extraordinary effort to make our XML seminar a success” grabs a lot more attention than “Jill is an excellent writer.”
There are many ways to stay in contact with the chapter. Let me again invite you to participate in our discussion mailing list. We provide instructions for signing up at http://www.stc-carolina.org/www/lists.shtml Come to our awards banquet this March, even if you didn’t win an award. It’s not often you can enjoy an evening at Prestonwood Country Club for just $10.00. Come to the Triangle Conference on Documentation. You can preview the sessions at http://www.stc-carolina.org/conference/program.shtml It will be an extraordinary opportunity to learn, to network, and to have fun.
Business has been better. But I am convinced that it will get better than it is now. I am encouraged by the talent, enthusiasm, and skills of the members of this chapter. If we stay active in STC, we will be ready for the upturn when it happens.
When the economy recovers, I believe we will see a changed market for technical communicators. Don’t count on getting a job where you are responsible for “a book” on a relatively long development schedule. I’m convinced that we’re going to have to be just as adept at managing information as we are at developing it in the post-recession job market. Businesses will expect us to be versatile and flexible. We may need to be willing to occasionally test the products we write about. We may have to critique the usability of interfaces as expertly as we develop online help for them. Engineers may want us to help them with specifications and project planning. Our communications and organizational skills will lend themselves to these kinds of tasks, even though they may be outside of our comfort zone. It will be good work if we can get it. But things don’t seem very encouraging at the moment.
When the economy recovers, I believe we will see a changed market for technical communicators. I’m convinced that we’re going to have to be just as adept at managing information as we are at developing it in the post-recession job market.
At the beginning of my term as President, I asked us to “take it all in, give it all back,” because I believed there is inherent goodness in giving, and that what we give to others often comes back to us with dividends. Now, more than ever, we need to give to one another. If you’re working and know of a job lead, share it with our employment manager, Viola Suddaby, so that she can post it on our web site. If you’re out of a job or feel vulnerable in your current job, stay active in STC. It is a good way to get support; to get job leads, however scant; to get new skills; and to stay current with the business.
Please give time to the chapter whenever you can afford it. Give some of it to our Programs committee or to our Training committee. Help our Communications Manager in some way. Giving time to STC will help you keep up contact with your peers, give you an outlet for your talent, and maybe give you a chance to learn something new. Your investment will add dividends to your résumé. As a hiring manager, I can attest that a reference such as “Jill put in an extraordinary effort to make our XML seminar a success” grabs a lot more attention than “Jill is an excellent writer.”
There are many ways to stay in contact with the chapter. Let me again invite you to participate in our discussion mailing list. We provide instructions for signing up at http://www.stc-carolina.org/www/lists.shtml Come to our awards banquet this March, even if you didn’t win an award. It’s not often you can enjoy an evening at Prestonwood Country Club for just $10.00. Come to the Triangle Conference on Documentation. You can preview the sessions at http://www.stc-carolina.org/conference/program.shtml It will be an extraordinary opportunity to learn, to network, and to have fun.
Business has been better. But I am convinced that it will get better than it is now. I am encouraged by the talent, enthusiasm, and skills of the members of this chapter. If we stay active in STC, we will be ready for the upturn when it happens.
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