San Francisco Bay Chapter of the Society for Technical Communication

About the program

Experts advise technical communication professionals to develop business acumen, that is, awareness of the financial and political forces underlying the work of their groups and those of the internal or external clients they serve, so training professionals can work effectively and propose options that clients are likely to accept. This session introduces the basics of business acumen for technical communication professionals.

You’ll learn:

• Why technical communication is a client service profession (even if you work internally)
• How organizational contexts affect your work
• How to use project management and processes to manage customer expectations
• How your group charges its clients
• The results internal and external clients really care about
• Competition for your work—internally and externally

About the speaker

Saul Carliner is a Professor of Educational Technology at Concordia University in Montreal, where his research and teaching focus on the design of instructional and informational materials for the workplace, the management of groups that produce them, and related issues of policy and professionalism. In industry, he advises learning and communication leaders on strategic business decisions, conducts complex program evaluations, and offers skill-building workshops. An award winning teacher, researcher, and author, his books include the best-selling Training Design Basics, award-winning Informal Learning Basics, and the timely, Career Anxiety: Guidance for Tough Times (with Margaret Driscoll and Yvonne Thayer) and special issue of Intercom about perceptions of technical communicators. He is a Fellow of the Institute for Performance and Learning, and a Fellow and past international president of the Society for Technical Communication.

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Zoom

Program:
6:30 to 7:00: Networking
7:00 to 7:25: Announcements
7:30 to 8:30: Presentation
8:30 to 8:45: More networking
~ 8:45: End the Zoom meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86388481798

Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,86388481798# US (San Jose)
+14086380968,,86388481798# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 646 931 3860 US
+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbgkbQ7Fph

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.

About the program

An infographic is a great way to cover a topic using both words and visuals, whether online or in printed material. Many people think they don’t have the tools, or the skills to make an infographic, but you might just need a little knowledge to bridge that gap! In this session, we will briefly discuss some of the tools out there, but then we will dive into the one tool that all of you probably already have on your desktop: PowerPoint! We will discuss what makes an infographic an infographic, what types of tools are available, and how we can leverage PowerPoint to showcase information in an infographic.

YouTube Recording: Creating Infographics Using PowerPoint

About the speaker

Kelly Schrank, MA, ELS, has been in technical communication for almost 30 years, and she has been a medical editor in the pharmaceutical industry for the last 14 years. She brings consistency, structure, and clarity to her clients’ content whether she is writing content like blog posts, style guides, and standard operating procedures or editing formulary dossiers, manuscripts, proposals, slide decks, and training materials. She has created infographics and infographic elements for her own business and her clients, covering topics from the light-hearted to pharmaceutical!

Kelly is an Associate Fellow of STC and a BELS-certified Editor in the Life Sciences who has presented on infographics, Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, checklists, editing, and networking.

.

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Zoom

Program:
6:30 to 7:00: Networking
7:00 to 7:25: Announcements
7:30 to 8:30: Presentation
8:30 to 8:45: More networking
~ 8:45: End the Zoom meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86388481798

Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,86388481798# US (San Jose)
+14086380968,,86388481798# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 646 931 3860 US
+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbgkbQ7Fph

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.

About the program

Over the years, the phenomenal changes in our profession have raised questions about the value our work can and will provide. In this presentation, Lori will look at the impact of three critical areas on our roles and our profession, how they are perceived across multiple generations, and how a greater understanding of these concepts will enhance the perception of our enduring value.

1) User advocacy. We’re often described as the user advocates….but our contributions go beyond being seen as the user advocate on a team or in an organization. User advocacy needs to be everyone’s job — and we, as technical communicators, can serve as the “first believers” to help teams and organizations learn how everyone can be champions for users.

2) Quality, innovation, design, and where they intersect. Technical communicators have heard these terms for many years, but both concepts have been defined from many perspectives. The relationship between them is not always well understood. Lori will talk about why.

3) Generational identities. Generational differences in the workplace have been analyzed extensively in recent years, more than at any other time in modern history. Not all of that analysis is helpful or relevant for us, though. Focusing on the differences that matter while recognizing what unites a diverse generational landscape will help us preserve and learn from our profession’s rich history while building a vibrant future for those entering the profession.

YouTube Recording: Through the Generations — The Enduring Value of Technical Communication

About the speaker

Lori Meyer is a technical communicator with more than 35 years of experience designing, writing, and editing software documentation and online user assistance. She started her career as a technical editor and is currently a technical writer at a cybersecurity firm in northern California. She has an MS degree in instructional technology.

Lori has been a member and volunteer for several STC communities in multiple roles, including chapter president, chapter secretary, program manager, and committee manager. She is serving the second of two terms as a director on the STC Board of Directors, and last year served as chair of the SEC Community Affairs committee. In 2015, Lori was named an STC Fellow.

.

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, February 14, 2024, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Zoom

Program:
6:30 to 7:00: Networking
7:00 to 7:25: Announcements
7:30 to 8:30: Presentation
8:30 to 8:45: More networking
~ 8:45: End the Zoom meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86388481798

Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,86388481798# US (San Jose)
+14086380968,,86388481798# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 646 931 3860 US
+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbgkbQ7Fph

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.

Speaker: John Hedtke

About the program

Even in the best of times, it can be a challenge to find work. Technical communicators are occasionally at an added disadvantage of having to sell the value of our profession as well as ourselves as candidates, so anything we can do to give ourselves an edge is helpful.

This presentation by international award-winning author John Hedtke is of great value both to people who are currently seeking jobs as well as those who are secure in their current positions. It will show you two dozen ways to find work you probably haven’t even considered. There will be tips on common ideas such as updating your resume and creating a portfolio, but the presentation will rapidly expand to discuss ways in which you might create work for yourself and open up new work venues.

(Note: Most of the techniques discussed can be adapted by other professionals, so even if you’re moving away from technical communication or you have a spouse/friend who’s at a professional level but not a technical communicator, this is still an excellent seminar for info on finding work.)

YouTube Recording: Seeding the Clouds: How to Make It Rain on Yourself Even during a Dry Spell

About the speaker

John Hedtke is the award-winning author of 27 books. He has over 30 years in the software business and technical writing, and over a decade in technical publications management. John has developed and written documentation and books for many leading software products, and has received 26 writing awards to date. A complete list of books, articles, projects, and awards can be found online at his website, www.hedtke.com.

John owns Double Tall Consulting, a company that offers writing and business consulting services for a variety of private, public, and governmental clients. He also does numerous radio and magazine interviews and makes frequent appearances for lectures, conferences, and science-fiction conventions. John was a Director on the STC’s Board and is a Fellow of the Society. When not otherwise occupied, John writes scurrilous songs and sleeps late as much as possible. He lives in Steilacoom, WA, with his wife Marilyn and two old cats.

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, January 10, 2024, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Zoom

Program:
6:30 to 7:00: Networking
7:00 to 7:25: Announcements
7:30 to 8:30: Presentation
8:30 to 8:45: More networking
~ 8:45: End the Zoom meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86388481798

Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,86388481798# US (San Jose)
+14086380968,,86388481798# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 646 931 3860 US
+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbgkbQ7Fph

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.