Users writing their own procedures?

[Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca>]

Eileen Neumann reports: <<I maintain an employee intranet... Another 
division has decided that they need their procedures to go online as 
well. As my department doesn't have the resources to start documenting 
these other procedures from scratch, the powers that be have decided to 
have an experienced user document the procedures and have me fix them 
up afterwards. I'm a little miffed at the idea that of course 'anyone' 
can write down procedures if they know them.>>

It's natural to be a bit worried that they think they can replace you, 
or that your workload will increase because the others can't write and 
you'll spend hours rewriting, but I like the fact (see below) that 
you're looking past this and treating it as an opportunity. So many 
writers get all snooty and start complaining.

<<However, I also think this might work and save us some time.>>

It might indeed. One advantage the experienced user may have over you 
is that they actually use the procedures day in and day out. That 
experience provides powerful insights into how people actually use your 
software, and you should take advantage of those insights to improve 
your own documentation. Moreover, you should take the opportunity to 
introduce yourself to the person who will be doing the writing and 
start developing a mutually beneficial working relationship.

The downside of having an experienced user produce the documentation? 
They may not be a very good writer, they may have adopted a 
particularly idiosyncratic and ineffective way of working, and they may 
no longer remember what it's like to be a new user. You can be the user 
advocate if you can help them compensate for these problems.

<<I'm thinking of giving the individual a template and have them write 
in FrontPage.>>

The disadvantage to that approach is that it makes review and revision 
harder than need be. If you're using MS Office, suggest that they work 
in Word, pass the document to you to review, and only subsequently 
publish it. This both encourages the development of a good working 
relationship and creates an environment in which collaboration and 
quality control are seen as important. Well worth striving for imho.

--Geoff Hart   ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)