Curriculum Vitae
PhD in Science
Technical writer for 3 years (Docaret)
Technology companies
Documentation for engineers and technicians
Instructions manuals
Training material
Research scientist for 5 years
Fabrizia Poli
Fabrizia Poli
Paris Diderot - 5ème Colloque International Communication technique de plein champ
February 3, 2017
Intra-organizational communication
without barriers:
a case study of a technical communications team
within a large organization
Outline
Introduction of the company and the TechComm team
Description of the collaborations between the TechComm
and other partners
Methods to break down/prevent barriers
Conclusions
Corporate Profile
Technology company in energy
Over 100 engineering and technology centers
Over 100,000 people
Over 100 nationalities
80 countries
Communcation Functions
Technical
Technology
Review
Corporate Marketing
Communication
Media relations
Social media
Corporate website
& communication
(press releases,
advertising …)
Articles on tech
innovation and history
Semi-annually
Open access
Marketing campaigns
Online marketing
Trade shows
Advertising animations
Public website
Brochures, posters etc.
Operations support &
Technical documentation
User’s manuals
Knowledge and information
management
Information technology
Corporate Profile
100 TechComm specialists
3
4
4
TechComm Team
Doc Manager
Lead specialist Lead specialist Lead specialist
Technical writers
• Client-specific projects
• Existing products
• Content re-use
• Tight deadlines
• Engineering project
s
• Long development
phases
• Sustaining projects
• Existing products
• Content re-use
Client/
Product
support
Client/
End User
Manufacturing
Inform.
Technology
Marketing
Product
developers
TechComm
TechComm Partners
TechComm Collaborations
Client/
product
support
Client/
End User
Manufac
turing
Informa-
tion
Techno-
logy
Marke
ting
Product
developers
TechWriter
TechComm & Product Development
Content creation
Information collected
Content review
Content editing Publication
Collaboration Communication
Two-ways
Direct Computer-aided
Collaborative efforts
Main information source
Face-to-face
TechComm & Client Support
Develop Review Approval Publication Amendment
Matter expert
reviewer Manuals on client
support page
Informed about serious
problems/risks
Collaboration Communication
One-/Two-ways
Direct /indirect Computer-aided
Intermittent Face-to-face
TechComm & Client
Develop Review Approval Publication Amendment
Field test Feedbacks
Collaboration Communication
One-/Two-ways
Direct /indirect
Computer-aided Intermittent
TechComm & End user
Client/User TechComm Client
support Alert
Feedback Feedback
Per year: ~70,000 users, ~ 10 Million views, 120,000 tickets
TechComm Client/User
Feedback
Field test review
Collaboration Communication
One-/Two-ways
Direct /indirect
Computer-aided Intermittent
TechComm & Barriers
How do we break these barriers?
Can we prevent these barriers?
Barriers
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
(spoken, technical glossary)
Distance
(geographical, time zone, cultural,
scopes)
Engineer
collaborative
and involved
Adap
tab
ility
Curi
osity
Project plan
Interpersonal skills
Breaking down Barriers – Writer skills
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Breaking down Barriers – interpersonal skill
Adapta
bility
Project plan
Interpersonal skills
Curiosity
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Breaking down Barriers - Adaptability
Curiosity
Adap
tab
ility
Project plan
Interpersonal skills
Engineer
collaborative
and involved
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Breaking down Barriers - Planning
A
dapta
bili
ty
Curio
sity
Planning
Interpersonal skills
Engineer
collaborative
and involved
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Curi
osity C
urio
sity
Project plan
Interpersonal skills
Breaking down Barriers -Curiosity
Engineer
collaborative
and involved
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Engineer
willing to
share/work
Curi
osity
Adap
tab
ility
Project plan
Interpersonal skills
Is it enough?
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Breaking down Barriers – Databases shearing
Project Plan
Topic Map
Review record
Drawings
Specifications
Manufacturer manual
Testing procedures, etc
Client
support
Engineer TechComm
End user’s best practice,
Share knowledge, Alerts
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Breaking down Barriers – Communication channels
@
Video
Conferencing
Telephone calls
Software
calendar
Instant messages
Emails
Is it enough?
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Breaking down Barriers – Information Management
Documentation life cycle Development, fields, review… .
Responsibilities Author, reviewer, approver
.
Formal review Feedbacks of all reviewer are recorded
Timeline Controlled timeline
Building an effective
collaboration at all levels
TechComm processes
known to all parties
Time
Knowledge background
Communication skills
Language
Distance
Summarizing
Knowledge sharing
Team work
Openness
Company values Work to prevent barriers
(well-established process,
upward communication)
Managerial
philosophy
Personal / technical
skills
ThechWriter
Communication
framework
Communication channels
(e-mails, messaging, etc.)
Knowledge sharing
(Database access,
community of knowledge)
All of you for the attention
My team leads
Docaret
&
TechComm - Authoring and publishing tools
Arbotext
Illustrator, Photoshop
Custom Content Management System
• DITA map and topics
• Content re-use
• Single-Source
• Multi-channel publishing (Web help, multi-pdf, pdf)
Product/Client support online page