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.
Re: STC chapter question -- what should an employer expect? (take II)
Subject:Re: STC chapter question -- what should an employer expect? (take II) From:"T.W. Smith" <techwordsmith -at- gmail -dot- com> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Sat, 5 Mar 2005 18:02:23 -0500
Geoff and Bill, great discussion.
However, it goes beyond the focus on the local chapters that I was
looking for ... I will concede that Intercom and the other, Academic,
journal can be of value.
In pushing this back to a discussion of local chapters, what can the
local chapter do to reel in the apathetic, motivate the masses, and
energize the general chapter population so that things of real value
happen -- things of measurable or at least noticable value to the pubs
manager's boss?
IOW, if the employer is willing to pay, but the pubs manager is
uncertain that they can justify 6 memberships to the point that he
does not try, what can the local chapter do to turn this around?
WRT STC featuring job-search skills or providing an opportunity to be
headhunted, I have these thoughts:
1) It is difficult for an employee to leave an employer; all things
being equal, the employee will stay.
2) Losing an employee costs an employer money, productivity, and a
bunch of other things.
3) Keeping an employee in a dark closet with a bag over their head so
they are not exposed to edumacation and possible recruitment is one of
those things that most employees will come to dislike about an
employer.
4) An employer should make conditions such that an employee wants to
stay, even in the face of a good job market, active recruitment, and
seminars on how to get jobs.
At the very least, an employer should think of the following as
important for employee retention (I am sure not all of these are
necessary; however I am unsure how many are necessary at a minimum):
a) Pay
b) Professional development of the writer
c) Challenging and stable work environment, in terms of what the
writer gets to do and whether it keeps him interested and in terms of
employee turnover, employer org chart, etc.
d) Coprorate environment, in terms of is it a sweat shop or are
employees allowed to have lives
On Sat, 05 Mar 2005 12:41:42 -0500, Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca> wrote:
======
T.
Remember, this is online. Take everything with a mine of salt and a grin.
WEBWORKS FINALDRAFT - EDIT AND REVIEW, REDEFINED
Accelerate the document lifecycle with full online discussions and unique feedback-management capabilities. Unlimited, efficient reviews for Word
and FrameMaker authors. Live, online demo: http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l
Doc-To-Help 7.5 Professional: New version with new features, improved performance and reliability, plus much more! Download your free trial today at www.componentone.com/techwrlfeb.
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Send administrative questions to lisa -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
