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.
Phillip St. James wonders: <<What advice would you folks suggest for a
senior tech writer/tech pubs manager who has been underemployed and
unemployed for many months?>>
Find a local group such as STC that can help you with networking? Find
a non-STC group in another line of work (e.g., International
Association of Business Communicators)? Offer your considerable
expertise to venture capital firms looking for an expert reviewer of
funding proposals? Look for telecommuting opportunities in other
markets that are less competitive? Contact some of the places overseas
that have received outsourced work and offer to edit their work until
it meets North American standards? (Okay, that last one won't earn me
any love letters. <g>)
You may want to try looking for companies that aren't traditional homes
for techwhirlers; you mentioned that you have 20 years of experience
and that the job market is tough, which means that you're competing for
the same jobs with everyone else. Many managers figure that if it comes
down to a choice between someone with 10 years experience and someone
with 20 years of experience, the younger guy is nearly as good but
costs much less.
<<I would like to work in software development or consumer electronics
once again.>>
Try the smaller companies, and ideally the ones less likely to attract
resumés from everyone you're competing with.
<<Many of the new tech pubs gatekeepers seem to think that my API, chip
design, and Web experience are totally irrelevant now... I'm perplexed
and more than a little frustrated.>>
Change your tack slightly: Emphasize what you can do for the client,
not what skills you have. To do this right, you need to study the
target company: What do they do? What do they do poorly? How can you
improve both for them? Pitch a solution, not a list of skills.
--Geoff Hart ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)
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