HELP! Software Jockeys vs. Real Tech Writers

[rossa <rossa -at- FLASH -dot- NET>]

Hi,
HELP!!! Forgive me if this has recently been discussed but I haven't been
on the list for a long time. I live and work in Dallas and my company
hires people who know technology and don't have any skill at all when it
comes to  writing. I work in IS for a medium size company. Our company's
IS department is expanding and it is just beginning to hire technical
writers. I've been with this company 4 months and am new to Dallas. I am
the second technical writer the company has ever hired and the first one
got there 2 months before I did. A third was hired shortly after I was
and she was just fired two days ago. We have problems. It seems that the
managers in IS don't understand what technical writers do but they seem
to think they need them. They think technical writing is word processing
and consequently end up hiring people who know a lot about software
packages and cool PC tools and toys but don't know how to do research and
writing. I seem to be the only one who is serious about producing good
documentation. Does anyone out there have suggestions for educating these
people? We don't have a chance of establishing a professional department
if the IS managers don't know how to hire professional writers.

Thanks in advance,

Debbie Rossa
rossa -at- flash -dot- net

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