The Effects of Integrating On-Going Training for Technical Documentation Teams

Abstract

The tools and techniques utilized in the technical communications profession are constantly improving and changing. Information Technology (IT) organizations devote the necessary resources to equip and train engineering, marketing, and sales teams, but often fail to do so for technical documentation teams. Many IT organizations tend to view documentation as an afterthought; however, consumers of IT products frequently base their purchasing decisions on the end user documentation's content, layout, and presentation. Documentation teams play a unique role in IT organizations as they help to build and create a public identity through end user manuals and the corporate website, as well as maintain intellectual knowledge through knowledge sharing and management. The technical communicator "makes sense" of complex engineering specifications by creating user-friendly manuals for the layman. The practitioner who compiles and records this complex information is a valuable resource to any IT organization. Therefore, on-going training for technical documentation teams is essential to stay competitive in the fast-paced technical market. Technical communicators in IT organizations who only write end user manuals are becoming a rarity. Research indicates a marked trend toward technical writers in multiple roles and varied responsibilities that include web design and development, and business systems analysis functions. Although these added roles and responsibilities require training on some of the newer software tools and 77 more complex programming tools, technical communicators are experiencing difficulty keeping pace with these tools. This article discusses technical documentation teams in IT organizations and provides an on-going training assessment to help technical documentation managers identify their team's strengths and weaknesses. In addition, measures and results from a study conducted at eight IT organizations, are provided to show the effect of how the integration of on-going training for documentation teams enhances individual competency and improves team performance.

The Roles of Technical Communication Researchers in Design Scholarship

“…Web 2.0 Interfaces (Potts & Jones, 2011;Rawlins & Wilson, 2014;Sherlock, 2009;Zdenek, 2007) . Instructions/Manuals (Catanio & Catanio, 2010;Friess, 2010Friess, , 2011Ganier, 2009;Longo, Weinert, & Fountain, 2007;Tebeaux, 2008;Willerton & Hereford, 2011) . Websites (Albers, 2009;Andrews et al, 2012;Cushman, 2014;O'Hara, 2004;Richards 2009;St.…”

“…This question requires us to take inventory of what types of artifacts show up most commonly in the technical communication literature. In the past 15 years, technical communication researchers have studied design through artifacts such as Posters (Lauer, 2012; Lauer & Sanchez, 2011; Ward, 2010); Databases and Content Management Systems (Bacha, 2012; Clark, 2007; Sapienza, 2002) Spaces (Carliner, 2000; Ramey, 2014; Salvo, Pflugfelder, & Prenosil, 2010; Welch, 2005) Software (Albers, 2011; de Jong & Lentz, 2001; Smart & Whiting, 2002; Wolfe & Neuwirth, 2001) Web 2.0 Interfaces (Potts & Jones, 2011; Rawlins & Wilson, 2014; Sherlock, 2009; Zdenek, 2007) Instructions/Manuals (Catanio & Catanio, 2010; Friess, 2010, 2011; Ganier, 2009; Longo, Weinert, & Fountain, 2007; Tebeaux, 2008; Willerton & Hereford, 2011) Websites (Albers, 2009; Andrews et al., 2012; Cushman, 2014; O’Hara, 2004; Richards 2009; St. Amant, 2005; Walker; 2002; Walters 2010).…”

“…Instructions/Manuals (Catanio & Catanio, 2010; Friess, 2010, 2011; Ganier, 2009; Longo, Weinert, & Fountain, 2007; Tebeaux, 2008; Willerton & Hereford, 2011)…”

“…Yet, even when working with similar artifacts of design, researchers approach design from multiple perspectives. In articles that invoke design in their abstracts and that study the design of instructions and manuals, one can find studies of discourse that lean on user-centered design (Friess, 2010), cognitive approaches to wayfinding (Ganier, 2009), textual analyses of existing documents (Tebeaux, 2008; Willerton & Hereford, 2011; Longo, Weinert, & Fountain, 2007), and workplace interventions (Catanio & Catanio, 2010). In short, technical communication researchers study design through a multitude of avenues, most likely because each of their unique circumstances merits such diverse approaches.…”

Peer-Led Professional Development: How One Technical Communication Team Learns on the Job

“…On the other hand, they often have no established, formal avenue for achieving this learning: Instead, they have a range of training choices with little guarantee of their relevance and little support for their cost. Wilson and Ford (2003) traced how the need to keep up with changes and learn new tools led to employee burnout in TC, and research has demonstrated a lack of industry training that addresses TC employees' needs (Catanio & Catanio, 2010). In general, the profession needs much more insight into the lifelong learning practices that are integral in a technical communication career.…”