Interesting comment from a process wonk

[Dick Margulis <margulisd -at- comcast -dot- net>]

So we have a user conference coming up, and one of the things I do is 
whip everyone's PowerPoint presentations into some sort of shape so they 
can be printed for the conference binders. (I know this is a stupid way 
to convey information, and I don't want to get into that argument here. 
It's not my idea, and I lose the fight over it every year.)

Anyway, some of the presenters are not our employees but are our 
customers or our business partners. So I have to be a little more polite 
when I edit their slides, like asking them what they mean and if it's 
okay to change certain things, lest I inadvertently alter their meaning. 
On Friday one of these presentations came in, and I sent back an email 
maybe half an hour later querying a bunch of stuff. This morning, the 
author, a guy who runs his own consulting shop specializing in training 
engineers in a capability maturity approach to the product development 
process, sent me an email that said, "You have a great eye for detail!" 
and asked me to call him.

During the course of the conversation (in which he gladly accepted my 
suggested changes), he said he had never really thought about the need 
for a writer or editor before, but he could see that the face he 
presents to his prospects and clients is mediated by the quality of the 
documents he gives them. His business is growing and he wants to do the 
right thing. I think a lightbulb turned on, and now he's ready to go 
looking for a freelance editor he can retain for these quick turnaround 
projects. (I sent him some links, because he acknowledged he wouldn't 
know where to begin looking for someone. I'm not offering the job here 
or even offering to forward contacts to him. That would be 
inappropriate, as I didn't give Eric fifty bucks.)

I thought this was an unusual experience for a couple of reasons. First, 
it's rare enough that anyone thanks me for editing their work; and I've 
never run across a consultant who was humble enough to acknowledge the 
need for editing help. Second, I think I indirectly created a job for 
someone (Yay me!). Third, this guy talks to others about process. Once 
he realizes the value of paying someone to help him communicate better, 
he can persuade his clients that they ought to be paying writers and 
editors to do the same for them. That's a good thing, right?

Okay, I did my mitzvah for today. Can I go home now?

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