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Subject:Re: What department are you in? From:Christi Carew <christi -at- sageinst -dot- COM> To:Dan Caldwell <writer -at- hscis -dot- net>, TECHWR-L <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Wed, 01 Dec 1999 10:11:28 -0800
Dan Caldwell wrote:
>Is there a particular department that tech writers get attached to when
>they're the only writer in a company? I recently joined a wireless
>telecom startup and found myself faced with the unexpected dilemma of
>"where do I belong?"
I, too, am a lone writer in a telecommunications company. My manager is the
Marketing Manager (managing only himself mind you, as he is the marketing
dept.). In my last company, where there were four writers, we were
originally under marketing and then moved to the Customer Service umbrella,
which encompassed Training and Customer Support. I've never been at a
company where the writers reported to engineering or development. It's
always been service or marketing.
I think the placement depends on how your company views its documentation--
as a form of marketing or customer service. I tend to go with the latter.
Christi
Christi Carew
Technical Writer
christi -at- sageinst -dot- com
p. 831-761-6565
f. 831-761-2452
Sage Instruments
240 Airport Blvd.
Freedom, CA 95019
www.sageinst.com
"If you can't explain it to an 8-year-old, you don't understand it"
-Albert Einstein
