The future of TechComm will involve writing for humans and machines. Mark Baker began talking about ‘Every Page is Page One’ in 2011. His tenet was transformative and remains relevant. But now TechComm strategy needs to evolve even further to support content extensibility across increasingly dynamic touchpoints. Every Snippet is Snippet One Gartner’s recommendations for the future…
Opposite Day
I try to stay open to noticing new patterns or opportunities to change my thinking. Lately, I’ve observed a trend of realizing the value in sometimes trying the opposite of original instincts. When considering pros or cons of particular choices, or reacting because I disagree with a decision, I’m trying to consider if an *opposite*…
You’re Welcome for Asking
One year back in high school, my math teacher called my parents to discuss my disruptive behavior. According to Joe-Math-Teacher, I asked too many questions when trying to understand new lessons. Fortunately, my Mom defended my inquisitive nature; rather than discourage me from asking questions in class, she signed me up for a summer journalism course…
Evolution of Tech Docs via Increment Magazine
Documentation is evolving in significant ways, including that it becomes relevant far sooner in the customer journey. I enjoyed sharing my perspective, along with fellow TechComm professionals Toni Ressaire and Ben Woelk, for a piece in the Increment Magazine Documentation issue. Chris Stokel-Walker successfully captured the forward-looking and customer-focused perspective that effective content depends on. My latest for…
STC Summit 2018
The #STC18 Technical Communication Summit is the annual conference organized by the Society for Technical Communication, which took place this year in Orlando on May 20-23, 2018. Incredibly, it was the 65th anniversary. This milestone illustrates the longevity of the STC organization. This year’s theme, Communicate the Future, exemplifies the forward-looking focus that we will all benefit from. I…
Communicate the future at #STC18 and beyond
The #STC18 Technical Communication Summit is the annual conference organized by the Society for Technical Communication, which took place this year (65th anniversary!) in Orlando. The theme, Communicate the Future, was all about looking forward—strategically.