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Category Archives: Commentary
What STC can learn about certification from the FAA
As the STC develops its certification program for technical communicators, there are lessons that can be learned from the way the FAA certifies pilots. Continue reading
Great idea, but…
Users will change their habits when the pain of their current situation is greater than their perceived pain of adopting a possible solution. –Pip Coburn The Change Function Good ideas alter the power balance in relationships, that is why good … Continue reading
Thoughts on taking a new documentation management job
On LinkedIn, there has been an ongoing conversation about transitioning to a new job as a documentation manager. The conversation has yielded some excellent suggestions, but I’ve noticed that they were all focused inward, on the team. They include suggestions … Continue reading
A CMS is like a Chain Saw
A chain saw will not tell you which trees to cut or what protective gear to wear. To use one safely, you must plan your cuts, use protective gear, and take appropriate safety precautions. Anyone who has seen a chain … Continue reading
Give them the objective, not the means
In a recent blog entry, ‘The relentless search for “tell me what to do,”‘ Seth Godin identifies a crucial tension in the manager/employee relationship. The tension is simple to explain, but hard to manage. Employees want to be told what … Continue reading
Update on Reference Checking
After berating companies for being lax at checking references, I received my second call in under a week, after a long dry spell, which led to some further thoughts…. Continue reading
Checking References
I just got a call asking for a reference for someone who worked in my group a few years ago. I was glad to give a reference, and happy that I could give this person a good one. Surprisingly, this … Continue reading
Does DITA Make You Dumb?
I had a twitter exchange a while back that got me thinking about DITA, structured writing, and the impact of tools on the perception of technical communicators. The basic question was whether structured writing in general and DITA specifically are … Continue reading
Article: Reuse Considered Harmful
The Content Wrangler published another of my articles, which can be read at the following URL: Content Reuse: Is It Harmful? I originally titled the article, Reuse Considered Harmful in honor of the famous letter by Edsger Dijkstra published in … Continue reading
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Does a manager need to be an SOB to survive?
In a recent article on BNET, The Real Reason for Bad Bosses, Jeffrey Pfeffer highlights a common, but little noted, paradox. To be a good manager, you need to be positive, supportive, and warm, but to be perceived as strong, … Continue reading →