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> I have worked as a technical writer for five years,
> both as a contractor and full time employee. In all of
> my work environments with the exception of one, I have
> encountered an acceptance of mediocre documentation.
I have worked primarily for small and start-up software companies. I
have found them to be more likely to be interested in producing
high-quality and innovative documentation. In fact, at my second job
(9 1/2 years ago), the documentation team was credited as highly as
the sales team for a particular sale. Our VP of R&D said that the
salespeople actually showed our documentation, which was almost
complete, to the sales prospect, and the competetion didn't have *any*
documentation to show, which is why the prospect went with us..
On the flip side, the employer before my current one was the 800-lb
gorilla in its niche, and was an absolutely horrible place to work
for. It was the worst job I've ever had, even when I include my
non-technical writing jobs, such as Taco Bell, in the list. The
company was completely against any kind of change, no matter the
reason. Their rationale for keeping things the same was most often
based on some vague description of that's-what-our-users-want/need,
with rarely any evidence to support the conclusion.
Innovation absolutely had to come from the top, too. This was evident
in most of the departments around there. If you weren't the head of a
department, it was best to keep your mouth shut, your head down, and
your nose to the grindstone. While it's never fun to be fired, I was
*very* glad that I was forced to resign after my 9 months there.
So, my suggestion is that you consider the size of company you work
for in the future. If you've primarily gone for larger companies,
consider working for startups. If your experience is like mine, you'll
find that your opinion carries more weight, your willingness to go the
extra mile will be appreciated more, and you'll have more free reign
to implement ideas.
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