TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: Building a documentation knowledgebase From:"Mike O." <obie1121 -at- yahoo -dot- com> To:techwr-l Date:Tue, 17 Feb 2004 19:56:02 -0500
Gene Kim-Eng wrote:
> Most CMS presentations I see die a horrible death when someone highly
> placed in management asks, "how do we get people to...?" The few
> successful ones I have seen all stressed the long term benefit to the
> company and were implemented by executive decree.
I agree, I think... The best way to get a group to use a new CMS is to move
all their documents to the new system in the middle of the night, then send
them an email containing the URL for the CMS and their new username and
password. It's OK if you don't have the structure and the permissions
perfectly worked out on Day One... you can make adjustments later. Just
follow the sound of the screaming.
Management also has to reinforce the new system. When their next deadline
approaches, DON'T ask them to print or email the document to you... just
keep growling in your best Irate Manager voice, "When are you going to check
your document in?"
