October/November 2003

Volume 44, Number 2

Who speaks for our profession? We do.

by Ron Arner

I applaud George Hayhoe's editorial Who Speaks for our Profession? (Technical Communication, August 2003). I agree that ours is a highly unnoticed profession in the business world today. Hayhoe suggests that STC is the logical choice to be the voice of technical communicators, and also offers a few "target audiences" we should try to impact (high school guidance counselors, executive managers, and readers of science and technology periodicals). I would like to offer a few more suggestions of ways we can improve our visibility.

It never ceases to amaze me when people ask, "Technical communication, what is that?" I calmly explain, while trying not to smirk at the blank expression on their faces, that technical communication usually involves technical writing or Web design, some combination of the two, or can be a related field such as multimedia, grant writing, etc. They usually respond that tech comm sounds very important, interesting, or difficult, and drop the subject altogether. Like Mr. Hayhoe, I'm a little bit upset and a little bit puzzled as to how and why Technical Communication has earned such obscurity.

I think part of the problem is due to the meteoric rise of the personal computer (PC). Before every home had its own computer, TVs, VCRs, answering machines, electric typewriters, and calculators were probably the most complicated gadgets in any home. Sure you had to skim the instruction manual to set the clock on the VCR or record a program while you weren't home, but once this task was successfully completed, there was never any need to consult the owner's manual again. The manufacturer and the consumer both were spoiled by these predecessors to the PC and the quick reference user guide, and subsequently couldn't understand that the PC required familiarity with the owner's manual before one would be able to use it properly.

With earlier technologies like calculators, once you mastered a skill, it could be performed the same way time and again. Even if you had to manipulate different data, the memory buttons always worked the same way, multiply always multiplied, etc. Not so in the modern computer world. Consider Microsoft Excel as an example. My job often requires the manipulation of data in Microsoft Excel. One vendor I deal with allows me to download information from their Web site, but it cannot be manipulated in Excel just by cutting and pasting. It has to do with the way the data is formatted from the other end. Instead, I must first cut and paste the information into Notepad, save it as a .txt file, and then import it into Excel by setting the delimiters, etc. Try figuring that one out just from skimming an owner's manual.

Modern technologies require advanced forms of communication for people to be able to learn how to use them. Unfortunately, businesses won't admit this fact until they realize that's why their customers are unhappy. We'll be waiting another decade for that to happen, so we have to make it happen ourselves.

I couldn't help but wonder how the Wizard of Oz would have solved our invisibility problem. What would have happened if, in addition to the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, and Toto, Dorothy had a technical communicator accompany her through Oz? What would the Wizard have given him or her at the end of the journey? How about a megaphone with kind words like, "You don't need any better documentation or layout skills—you just need to be heard."

And how can we be heard? It seems to me that the best way would be to improve our negotiating skills. From the very first interview, we need to be aware that our potential employer or client may not realize how important we are unless they look at things from their customers' point of view. We need to somehow guide them into understanding that our contributions may not be seen as easily as those of the marketing or sales departments. One way we might do this is to request that our job review be related to statistics like a decrease in the number of complaints received, or a decrease in the number of calls to customer service for FAQs we've added to the company Web site.

Our negotiating job doesn't stop once we get hired or receive a new contract—in fact, it's just beginning. Anytime our contributions have resulted in increased profits or efficiency, we need to log our successes and bring them to our superiors' attention. By repeatedly pointing out how valuable we are, we are much more likely to retain our positions in a tight economy, and be considered for promotions and raises.

The next best way for our profession to become more popular would be some sort of national PR campaign, perhaps by STC International. Hayhoe points out that STC has been working towards this goal increasingly over the last decade, but that launching an expensive campaign in today's economic climate wouldn't be feasible. The Rocky Mountain Chapter has been doing a wonderful job of increasing our visibility locally thanks to Carla Mead and the Publicity Committee.

The final suggestion I have to increase the popularity of technical communicators is to volunteer, and for just this once, I don't mean with the STC. Volunteering your services as a technical communicator with your favorite charity is a wonderful way to get some exposure in communities that don't require large amounts of technical writing or Web design, but do need small documents created like brochures, newsletters, logos, etc. Volunteering will increase your networking contacts as well; you never know who you might meet, and sometime later, when they need the services of a technical communicator, they will call on you before they consider giving the job to a total stranger.

Hayhoe concludes that if we don't find a way to make our profession more popular in the business world, "We'll continue to be voiceless, invisible, ignored." I think this will hold true even if the economy does get better, and we start to see more tech comm jobs become available. After all, if we can prove our worth in a down economy, we'll be much better off once things do get better, and we'll be no worse off if they don't!

If you have further suggestions of how we can make our profession more well-known, please email them to: news@stcrmc.org, and I'll be happy to compile them or include them in a Letters to the Editor column in the next issue of Technicalities.