Page 1 Page 103-Dec-04 Technical Writing in India: Tips for Succeeding in a Global Economy December...

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Technical Writing in India: Tips for Succeeding in a Global

Economy

December 3, 2004

Francisco Abedrabbo Pavi Sandhu

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Agenda

Introduction Overview Our Experience Challenges Tips Summary Q&A

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Introduction

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Introduction - The Trend… The trend of moving documentation

projects offshore continues at a rapid pace.

Here are a few trivia questions…

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Introduction - Growth Trivia #1 How fast are IT-related jobs growing in India?

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Introduction - The Growth

• According to the UNCTADA, the estimated investment in offshore "business processing" would expand from 1.3 billion dollars in 2002 to 24 billion dollars by 2007, although it would not necessarily all flow to developing

countries.

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Introduction - The Growth

Growth of Off-shoring

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5

10

15

20

25

2003 2007

Year

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Introduction - Growth Trivia #2 Approximately, how many technical writers are there in India?

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Introduction - Growth Trivia #2 The number of technical writers in India is

currently estimated at less than 5,000, according to a 2003 report from the Indian Express Group.

While the numbers of technical writers is growing rapidly, the lack of any formal technical writing courses in India institutions has prevented the field from growing as quickly as the software industry.

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Introduction - What Will We Discuss? Provide an overview of the off-shoring trend and

its impact on the technical writing profession in India.

Share our views on the state of the technical writing community in India

– Strengths– Weaknesses– Areas of improvement

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Introduction - What Will We Discuss? Discuss specific ways you can develop your

skills to grow professionally.– Provide greater value to their employers– Enhance the reputation and prestige of the

technical writing community as a whole.

Share anecdotes and insights derived from our experience:

– Hiring– Training– Managing doc teams in India

.

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Overview

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Overview – Reasons for Off-shoring

Some of the reasons for companies to offshore documentation projects:

– Gain access to a skilled talent pool– Reduce costs– Enable round-the-clock development for

faster time to market– Co-locate documentation and development

teams

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Overview – Off-shoring Driving Factors What happened in other industries in the 1960s

and 1970s in the U.S., is now happening in software development too.

The key driving factor was a lower cost of production.

– Companies are finding they can: Get the same quality or better Get results faster by having some work done offshore

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Overview– Controversial

Moving work offshore is a controversial topic

– generating widespread attention in the media

– fanning concerns about its adverse impact on employment in the U.S.

The long-term implications of this trend are still unclear.

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Overview – India is the Place! Initially, work went to countries like

Ireland.– Today, India is the most important location.– In the future, other countries like China

might start to compete with India. Indian companies such as Infosys are setting

up development centers in China.

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Overview – India is the Place! India is an attractive location.

– It has a large workforce of educated

professionals – Good knowledge of English

– Excellent writing and technical skills

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Overview – Opportunity for Writers This trend presents definite

opportunities for technical communicators in India by:

– Broadening their options for employment and professional growth.

– Expanding their skills and proving that they can provide value to their employers, in all phases of the documentation development process.

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Our Experience

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Our Experience – From Scratch to 20! Our involvement with India started one year ago

– Setting up a new documentation team from scratch – We attended last year's STC conference in Pune– We are fully committed to India– Dec’03 visited 5 cities and hired 6 writers and 1 manager– Our doc team has 100+ writers in the U.S and Canada ; India has

now grown to over 20 members Includes writers, editors, graphic artists, documentation

programmers, and production people

We have an extensive training program– Educate new hires in our products, tools, technologies, and

processes – Each new hire is assigned a mentor – Each writer spends the first 1-2 months in training

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Our Experience – Not Maintenance The work done by the team is not routine

"maintenance" work– Write new manuals from scratch and work on a wide variety

of projects: writing user guides, installation guides, reference manuals, and online help.

– Work directly with development contacts in Bangalore, Canada, and California:

Have biweekly phone meetings Have extensive contact with a U.S. manager who serves as the liaison with contacts at HQ getting information, driving the review process, and so on.

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Our Experience – A Positive Experience Initial results from the team are very

positive. Doc team has top-notch skills

– Very hardworking– Motivated– Enthusiastic and eager to learn – Embrace new challenges and deliver

results quickly– We continue to hire every day

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Challenges

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Challenges – Where are the Good Writers?

Finding qualified employees– It is difficult and time consuming.– Talent pool is large but shallow, with many

companies competing for the same set of skills.

– We don’t limit our search to a specific city or region.

– Recruit in multiple cities and through multiple channels.

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Challenges – What do they Know? Understanding the actual skill set of the

writer– Supplement interviews with objective

measures of ability such as writing and editing tests.

– Ask writers to submit work samples and write essays

– Look at the quality of their communication (email and cover letter).

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Challenges - Training

Spending a lot of time training – Hard to find people who already have the skills and

experience. – Hire for talent and train people on the job.

Educate new hires in products, processes, tools, and technologies.

Invest a lot of time and effort in setting up a good training program.

Be more proactive and result-oriented - Candidates tend to be too respectful; they are reluctant to ask questions, which can be interpreted as a lack of initiative by U.S. managers. On the job, you need

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Challenges – Show me the Negotiating salaries

– It can be confusing for U.S. managers.– Salary structures in India are very different

from those in the U.S. For example, compensation in India is divided into basic pay and allowances.

– Salaries are increasing rapidly as more and more companies enter the market and candidates have a tendency to job-hop.

– Eventually, the rate of increase will slow as the cost advantages between India and the U.S. narrow.

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Challenges – Show me the

Negotiating an offer– In evaluating a job offer, you should

review:Quality of the projectsExposure to new technologies and

opportunities for learning Future growth, instead of just going

for the highest paycheck.

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Challenges – Cultural Differences? Being more pro-active and result- oriented

– Candidates tend to be too respectful– They are reluctant to ask questions during

interviews Can be interpreted as a lack of initiative by

U.S. managers. – On the job, take charge of a project, figure

out the project goals and deliverables, and be resourceful in meeting them.

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Tips for Writers

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Tips for Writers – Develop your Technical Skills

We prefer candidates with an engineering or science degree proven analytical background.

Candidates with a solid knowledge of:– Programming languages– Databases– Networking– Unix

You will be more valuable than writers who can just document point-and-click GUI applications.

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Tips for Writers - Develop your Writing and Editing Skills Learn to write simple, clear, direct prose.

Many candidates tend to use elaborate and formal language, but this is inappropriate.

Read some books on style and grammar to educate yourself on basic usage principles.

Learn to organize and structure information for maximum clarity

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Tips for Writers - Develop Your Communication Skills

Candidates who are highly articulate and can communicate clearly and crisply are very valuable.

Communication skills are especially important in a globally distributed team

– Interaction happens by email and phone.

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Tips for Writers – Develop Your Resume

Make sure you are easy to contact. Keep your resume concise. Do not include personal

information. Write a great cover letter. Tailor your resume to the job

requirements.

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Tips for Writers – Develop Your Interviewing Skills

Don’t claim technical knowledge you do not have.

Research the company before the interview.

Speak clearly and confidently. Practice your pitch. Why you?

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Summary

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Summary We are committed to India…and to

making it succeed. The future of technical writing in India is

very bright. We expect there will be a strong

demand for all type of technical communication professionals - writers, editors, and managers, for many years to come.

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Summary To benefit from this trend, you need to enhance your

skills and experience. Continuous learning and self-improvement are the key to success in a global economy.

The best jobs will go to the writers who have a solid technical background, excellent writing and communication skills, a sound knowledge of tools and processes, a strong work ethic, and a result-oriented can-do attitude.

Candidates who have all of these skills can expect to have challenging, satisfying careers with ample opportunities for learning and professional growth.

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Summary

“The future of the profession is in your hands…”

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Q&A

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