Post on 16-Apr-2017
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This Is the FutureWe Talked about
Larry KunzApril 16, 2014 #techcomm #future
Today’s Tech Comm Trendsand the New Workplace
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
What We’ll Cover Today•Welcome to the future•Trends in the Tech Comm profession•Today’s Tech Comm workplace•Today’s technical writer
“The future is now” (source: ESPN)
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Welcome to the FutureIf this is the future, why does it look so
much like the past?
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Today’s Tech Comm Trends
• Content as a business asset• Technical writing as an emotional
experience• Breaking down barriers (collaboration)• Going mobile• A new definition of quality
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Content as a Business Asset
Content• Is more than just words and pictures• Needs rules for its creation and
governance• Must be aligned to business goals
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
An Emotional ExperienceYour readers want to feel…• Confident: They can do the job• In the know: You’re confiding in them• That they’re part of a community
Source: Randy Conley (leadingwithtrust.com)
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Breaking Down BarriersMany people contribute contentFrom within the organization:• Tech pubs• Marketing• Tech supportFrom outside:• Blogs• Forums• Aftermarket books
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Going MobileFast, easy access to content – from everywhere• Adaptive content: compatible with the
devices on which it’s read• Responsive content: changes format to fit
the screen it’s displayed on• Smart content: based on your location
and/or preferences
By 2015 tablets will outsell laptops and desktops combined. – Gartner
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
A New Definition of Quality
“Good, not perfect”• “Just in Time” development• Flexible, responsive• Short product cycles (sprints)• Frequent updates
57% of software tech writers work in agile. - WritersUA 2014 Tools & Skills survey
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Tomorrow’s Today’s Workplace• Knowing the value of what we do• Content strategy• Collaboration• Structured authoring
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
The Value of What We Do• Strategic, not tactical thinking• Making the business case• Either– Cost avoidance, or– Revenue enhancement
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
The Value of What We DoExamples:• Cost avoidance – Good docs result in
fewer support calls• Revenue enhancement – Good docs
help attract new customers
Making your business case:Content Strategy 101 (O’Keefe & Pringle)
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Content Strategy
…aligning content to business goals, analysis, and modeling
- Rahel Bailie
Recommendations about how to create, deliver, and govern web content
- Kristina Halvorson
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Content StrategyIs your content: Tech Pubs
Marketingand all that other stuff ?
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Content StrategyIs your content: Blown out of the water by
other people’s content?
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Content StrategyYour content:• Truly functions as a business asset• Is managed in a strategic, coordinated way• Delivers a unified, trustworthy message
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Collaboration• Breaking down barriers• Content from many sources• Cultivating trust across the
organization
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
CollaborationNew roles…New opportunities• Content curator• Community builder• Content strategist
Source: Anne Gentle
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Structured Authoring
Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball.
Jacques Barzun
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Structured Authoring
Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of Tech Comm had better learn structured authoring.
Larry Kunz
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Structured Authoring• Not just a new way to organize the
same old content• Employs semantic elements• Separates the task of formatting
from the task of writing• Creates value through– Portability– Efficiency– Consistency
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Tomorrow’s Today’s Technical Writer
• Trained in a variety of skills• Savvy about the ways of business• Flexible
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Your Guiding Principles• Content has business value• Content should be managed
strategically
And one to rule them all:• As a technical communicator,
you’re as qualified as anyone!
April 16, 2014@larry_kunz
Bibliography• Conversation and Community
Anne Gentle• The Language of Content Strategy
Scott Abel & Rahel Bailie• Content Strategy 101
Sarah O'Keefe & Alan Pringle• Content Strategy
Rahel Bailie & Noz Urbina• DITA 101
Ann Rockley, Steve Manning & Charles Cooper• DITA blog articles on Techwhirl [Feb-Apr 2014]
Jacquie Samuels