Notes from 49th International STC Conference
Nashville, Tennessee, May 5-8, 2002

Thirteen New Ideas from the 49th Annual STC Conference

W.C. Wiese
Lockheed Martin Corporation
Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, FL
Immediate Past President, Orlando Chapter

Description: W.C. Wiese developed a clever and effective format for sharing professional enrichment gained at the international STC conference with his colleagues at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control -- a "waterfall" of juicy tidbits distributed by e-mail every day or two in the weeks following the conference. Here, with W.C.'s kind permission, are those tidbits.

STC

The Society for Technical Communication is the largest professional organization devoted to the practice of user-oriented communication in print and electronic media.

Here are 10 good reasons to join STC.

With 20,000 members, STC has more than 150 local chapters around the world, as well as 18 special interest groups serving the STC membership.

Membership is down and conference attendance is down for the 3rd year in a row – expect belt tightening. Only 1575 attended the Nashville Conference.

Martha Collins, former STC Treasurer, is the incoming president of Suncoast.

Philadelphia Metro Chapter received the Distinguished Award for their newsletter. We received a chapter award of merit!!

STC strategic plan (not yet posted) has new objectives: strong support for education (high schoolers don’t know what we do); get quoted as information experts; preserve our history; attract management-level membership; enhance chapter operational models.

Local Impact – Alicia Fellure managed the International Online Communication Competition (is a former DCSA winner in Jacksonville); Karen Lane was stem manager for Theory and Research.

Thirteen Tidbits from Leading the Technical Communication Revolution in Nashville

1. The Leadership Problem – People don't want to be led, they now want to be part of the process. Effective leaders communicate the where instead of the how. What will it be like when we get there? Leaders need to communicate the vision.
   
   Time Poverty remains a challenge. People have life pressures and there is more to do than they have time to give. Achievement depends on building shared power.
2. Got Books? – Libraries are changing their service models. Up until recently, library budgets were based on checkouts as a measure of use. But people don't check things out anymore. Some libraries now see themselves as "places." Others as "portals." They are redefining themselves. Those that act as community centers are adding meeting rooms and programming. Those that act as portals are adding information kiosks at malls and have highly developed websites.
3. Our Role, Briefly Stated – Keynote speaker and 2002 Honorary Fellow David Macaulay (How Things Work) said, "I am an explainer." "I try to learn as much as I can about my subject so I know what I can leave out."
4. Life and Times – The visible technical communicator works with expanded vision, including mimickry of proven engineering processes. Publish a plan that they recognize through parallelism. Draft documentation when they prototype; user test when they test.
   
   Computer Science Corporation communicators agree. Keys to success are:
    
• Have technical management recognize their methodology in ours.
• Professionally establish product information requirements.
• Have management acknowledge that documentation is a necessary part of the product.
• Become a valued partner.
• Ensure that the customer loves you.
5. A Design Shot in the Arm – Want to spiff up your next document? Take a look at the Society for News Design website at http://www.snd.org. Winning newspaper and magazine designs are displayed.
6. Cyberlaw and You – Ask for pro bono help when you need it, especially if you are an independent contractor. This area is changing faster than the law can keep up. It takes $30 and 8 months to process a copyright request. But, it may be worth it if your client is ignoring your bills. Copyright can be used to enforce payment.
   
   The web is a real challenge because there is an implied license to use graphics if they are available for download. Fair use is allowed for parodies, educational use, or excerpts. 1999 law – The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act – establishes that electronic rights go to the holder of print rights, and this owner is responsible for "fitness for purpose" in terms of product liability and usability.
   
   Thanks to Disney and the Gershwins, corporate work is now copyright protected for 95 years. Trade dress (the Tide package) is protected under the trademark act. Domain names are now treated in accordance with trademark law. The law holds that you may not interfere with another's ability to enter into a contract.
7. Just Your Type – Personality typing is becoming important in the workplace. Only 20 percent of workers told a Gallup Poll that they were actually working at what they're best at. But when this match occurs, their companies are more productive, have 50 percent lower turnover, and have higher customer satisfaction. Fit matters.
   
   Something scary. Technical writers and engineers tend to have the same Meyers Briggs personality type. We're alike! Aptitudes change little over time.
   
   Extroverts like to chat, while introverts like to send email and need time to compose it. Extroverts tend to ramble because they do their thinking out loud.
   
   STC members scored in 1994 had low scores in 3D visualization – we're just not that mechanical.
8. Career Trends – There are 150 technical communicators in New Zealand. They no longer consider themselves "wordsmiths" because they are now actively involved in interactive processes of product development and doing user-focused documentation. They call themselves document enhancers, website managers, and information specialists. Business management and knowledge management are growing roles.
   
   They are finding a greater role in product testing, with more say and power in their work teams. There are not enough graduating technical communicators to meet growing needs in Christchurch alone (300,000). Needed skills? Empathy with product users, ability to communicate, ability to solve problems, and a thick skin. You have to be assertive with a gracious smile.
   
   Illinois Institute of Technology is building a technical communication database that will be available on the web in June (http://www.iit.edu/~techcomm) that will track trends in characteristics asked of communicators in job postings. Some early trends based on 1000 entries: most jobs require some marketing skill or contact, 435 require a degree (but only 25 want a masters degree), and all want experience.
   
   The real contribution of this database may be resume vocabulary. Based on evolving skill requirements, the shrewd resume writer would want to cover as many bases as possible.
9. Information Design is Growing – There are now 3000 STC members in the Information Design Special Interest Group. The field of information design applies traditional and evolving design principles to the process of translating complex, unorganized, or unstructured data into valuable, meaningful information. (The same things we do everyday…)
   
   The practice of information design requires an interdisciplinary approach that combines skills in graphic design, writing and editing, instructional design, human performance technology, and human factors. This discipline focuses on public information products such as maps, signs, and airport information in keeping with the 5 Es: the product information must be efficient, effective, engaging, error-tolerant, and easy to use. The information must be rich, but simple.
   
   Much of an information designer's success depends on understanding the user's needs, cognitive load, and cultural heritage. At the Opryland Hotel, for example, Canadians didn't readily understand that the Jackson Room was near the Presidential Ballroom – they apparently don't dwell on American presidents in Canadian history. On the other hand, a plumber may not have finished high school, but he really does understand plumbing technology.
   
   Usability standards appear on the National Institutes of Standards and Technology website at http://www.nist.gov and web usability metrics appear at http://zing.ncsl.nist.gov/WebTools/tech.html.
   
   Content and Complexity: The Role of Content in Information Design, by Michael J. Albers (Editor), Beth Mazur (Editor) will be published in June.
10. Oops! – Imagine AARP's chagrin that the top information search word in its website is "insurance." But for reasons of organizational acceptability, insurance is listed under "member services," and their search engine only uses a 600-word vocabulary. It's not there!
11. Miracle Crew – The Columbus Chapter grew from less than 100 members to 250. Had only 2 officers, no election interest, and only 10-12 at member meetings.
    
    It saw several leadership roles – the explorer, the navigator, the mentor, and the cheerleader. They implemented and maintained a 5-year strategic plan. They built a succession plan – who had skills they wanted to add to their board. They implemented "Software Saturdays," half-day $10 sessions with power users. Another program used Meyers-Briggs and discussed personal effectiveness. Also arranged job shadowing for high school students. Recognition is an important part of the process.
    
    They had a pre-meeting coffee for new members and paid guest's meeting dues.
12. Recognize the Recognizers so They See – Amy Perry, Hoosier Chapter, developed the Insight Award, featured in July 2001 Intercom. Cost about $2000 in the form of a society grant, drew 8 nominations. Used STC curmudgeons as unassailable impartial judges. Award to Thompson Electronics.
13. History Buffs – The STC@50 effort is picking up speed. Elizabeth Babcock is recording oral histories; all recognize the opportunity for publicity and celebration. The official recognition ceremony will occur at Dallas during next year's conference, and chapters are encouraged to celebrate their own history in the year that follows. The STC office has acquired a part-time archivist; they may have some historical items we lack.
     
• Consider: a mentor award. Who was your mentor?
• 20 chapters already have historians.
• What were hot topics 20 years ago?
• Do a time capsule.
• How did people find their way into technical communication?
• Post your competition winners.
• Call for photos!