STC Kerfuffle!

I’m a member of a Special Interest Group (SIG) for the Society for Technical Communications. As professional societies go, it’s a good one for technical writers - it provides resources for learning, needed services and their job board attracts higher-end clients.

It’s an active group; daily posts might be from newbies wanting career advice, other posts ask for references about the best tools to use, sometimes we have those trivial “how do I say it?” conversations, dotting i’s and crossing t’s, which can be fun, too. And the members are great – they mentor very well and collaborate to answer any question, solve problems or recommend resources.

And yet…all hell broke loose this week, when the listserv admin suggested that, to improve communications and possibly save money for the funding-challenged STC, we move the listserv to a social networking site, like Ning. The flurry of opposing messages was astounding – the change-averse gnomes spoke out, saying that such a move could not be successful, because:

• It’s not email
• Access is restricted from work
• Social networking is not professional
• Takes too much time and effort
• It’s yet another account to manage, another thing to learn
• Too trendy, no privacy

I'm speechless.

Illusion and Control

As a geek and a fan of sci fi, I often amuse myself by drawing parallels between real life situations and my favorite TV shows...remember the pilot episode of Star Trek (the one with not-James Kirk)?

The situation:

Let's say that you spend a lot of time managing your staff, telling them how to get work done, making them do the work over because it isn't the way you wanted it and getting frustrated at how impossible the situation is...it never gets better, and you're overworked, having to handle the load. It's a shame that they can't benefit from your experience and wisdom - how ungrateful they are!

Sound familiar? The hard truth is that you are a micromanager. Really. The good news is, you can't help it - it's how you're wired, and nobody blames you...(well, I don't, anyway).

A solution:

Eventually, this behavior is brought to your attention (by a friend, Human Resources, whatever), and being such an evolved and emotionally mature person, you accept this feedback and decide to take action.

As a newly self-aware person, you understand that, while it's OK to believe that folks are doing it all wrong, it's not OK to share this insight. You learn that, while you cannot change what you believe, you can change your behavior.

With this new understanding, you back off, and let your folks figure out what works for them. Your new plan of operation:

• set achievable goals and deadlines for staffers
  
• ask for (and listen to) feedback
  
• remove roadblocks to support staff efficiency

Moral of the story:

Whether you are a manager or supervisor, if you have the ability to affect the work life of anyone in your organization, it is important to remember that, like the Talosians in Star Trek: The Cage, it is important to maintain the illusion of control.

Not a Star Trek fan? Here's the non-geek Moral of the story:

Give your staffers control (or the illusion of control) over things that affect how they work. Do they need...better status updates...fewer meetings...blue pens?

Ask them what they need to be effective - gather their requirements. They'll usually tell you things you never expect to hear. Things that cost you little, and reap big benefits.

Change is Good...right?

When we buy something new, we generally know what we're getting: something newer, cooler, faster. Whether it's a breakfast cereal or a car, it's better in some way, and we're excited, because it's all upside. The cereal has bigger, crunchier bits. The car has great lines, goes fast and gets you from place to place, in style. What's not to like? It's the same, but better. 

Folks everywhere become accustomed to doing things a certain way, and so have the expectation that things will improve, but stay the same. New, improved cereal with nuts and berries? I'll take a box! New, improved tofu cereal in a tube? Not so much.

In the business world, and with software in particular, it can take weeks to learn a new system and get back to doing work efficiently. Think about the growing pains organizations endure when they convert from a (home-grown) legacy software system to a new system (like a financial application for purchasing /payroll /reimbursements, or a human resources system to manage personnel records, benefits and training certifications). To a user, it's like buying a new car and finding the accelerator and brake pedals are swapped - yikes!

With new systems, users must get up to speed quickly in order to meet goals and quotas. While users are generally willing to accept the new new thing, they don't expect to have to re-learn everything - it slows them down and they may actually break something during the learning process. No one likes to fail. No one likes to lose control. 

The typical solution is something called "Change Management". When done right, CM introduces someone to the project who is familiar with user needs and the project goals, and has responsibility for building a bridge between the "app that was" and the "system that will be". These folks are communicators, and do the heavy lifting to build the means to transition users to the new system. 

Depending on the nature and complexity of the system, CM can be as easy as a cheat-sheet taped to the monitor, or as complex as a month-long training program for users, managers and administrators. The method varies, but the goal is the same...define how to transition from "X" to "Y", and provide users with the tools they need to become effective in a new applications environment.

It's all about setting goals, planning and communicating:

• check in often to keep everyone in the loop
• a whiteboard mock-up is more reassuring than a multiple-page email
• be comfortable saying, "...I/we don't know yet..."
• listen and accept all forms of feedback (good, bad or otherwise)

Why do we need tech writers?

If you work with a technical writer who's always asking questions and wanting to write stuff down, read this to better understand why we're needed. (Excerpted from Good Morning Silicon Valley blog:

http://blogs.siliconvalley.com/gmsv/2009/03/odds-are-shell-have-a-full-dance-card-at-the-laureates-ball.html

Elsewhere in the wide world of science:
* This is almost as embarrassing as KFC misplacing the specs for its 11 secret herbs and spices. The U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration needs to refurbish the aging warheads on Trident missiles to make sure they remain safe and reliable, but the program has been set back a year, at an additional cost of $69 million, because http://www.sundayherald.com/news/heraldnews/display.var.2494129.0.0.php the agency has lost track of the recipe for a key ingredient, a mysterious but very hazardous material codenamed Fogbank. The secret sauce is thought to be a foamy, explosive solvent cleaning agent (hey, I could use one of those sometimes) that plays a key role between the fission and fusion stages of a thermonuclear bomb. Unfortunately, the last batch was made some 20 years ago, and in the interim, not only was the sole production facility torn down, but, according to a GAO report, “NNSA had lost knowledge of how to manufacture the material because it had kept few records of the process when the material was made in the 1980s, and almost all staff with expertise on production had retired or left the agency.”
Doh! A new production facility has been built but work on recreating the recipe continues.

Meeting expectations and understanding requirements

According to my cat, this is a completely unacceptable situation: an empty bowl!

Empty bow!?!?

No matter that the bowl actually contains food and bits are scattered on the floor.  No - from my customer's point of view, this does not meet expectations.

So, it's a good thing that I am very familiar with the customer's requirements, and can remedy the situation:

Full bowl!

Huh? There's less food than before! What's going on here?

Since I am very familiar with this customer, I know the requirement is that the bottom of the bowl be covered. 

That's all. Simple really, if you understand that "full" means different things to different people (erm...species). Lesson for today: Until the requirement is known, expectations cannot be satisfied.

Perpetual ambiguity and a tourist on the roundabout

Are you comfortable with ambiguity? Some organizations only want to hire flexible workers who can flourish in a state of constant chaos. Granted, the adrenaline high of a chaotic work environment can be exciting and rich with learning opportunities. I just don't believe it is sustainable - folks burn out and the organization suffers.

Don't get me wrong, in my own little world, ambiguity happens - it's part of the creative process, and for me, it serves as a necessary transition between starting a project and choosing a course of action. It's how I evaluate options, put a plan together and get work done.

That's not to say the plan won't change, it's just that, with ambiguity tamed, clarity reigns, and in this period I'm most effective: I analyze, prioritize, design, prototype, test and do it again, until the goal is met. When circumstances change, new goal(s) are defined and we get to start the process again, building on what we've learned and becoming more efficient.

I count on my organization to set achievable goals, to define:

• what we're doing
• why it's needed
• when it's needed
• who's the audience

That's not so much to ask, is it?

When an organization insists that ambiguity is the norm, I get a bad feeling...no good can come from perpetual ambiguity.

Without clear goals, ambiguity in the workplace is the time between decisions...sort of like a roundabout on the way to a completed project. And who wants to be the tourist on the roundabout?

Best Holiday EVER!

This year, I didn’t make my usual trip back East to see the folks. Although I love seeing everyone, I didn’t look forward to the hassles of air travel during the holidays or driving in the ice and snow. We’re a big family, with many cousins and four generations who gather together at this time of year to share food, a warm fire and the usual celebrations.

Because of logistics and our sheer numbers, with a lot of planning and pre-shipping, we do a traditional gift exchange, which makes everyone happy on Christmas Day. But the real fun is the preview event on Christmas Eve: the White Elephant Gift Exchange.

For this event, we setup a videoconference, and I participated via Skype. It was a hoot! My nephew setup a laptop and videocam in my folks’ living room, and another cousin was the designated director, angling the camera to follow the negotiations. My sister acted as proxy for me, stealing gifts and snagging the best one for me. I have a similar setup here, so they all saw and heard me in real time.

By far, this was the best holiday ever – all the fun, none of the drama. Go figure. It seems that when you gather folks in front of a videocamera, everyone’s on their best behavior…and no one shares the snarky comments or sniping gossip that happens there, in person. Wow. Gotta make this a new holiday tradition.