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From: Andrew Warren [mailto:awarren -at- synaptics -dot- com]
>> I've got a stubborn project manager
>
> Stubbornness is apparently the least of her deficiencies.
I actually like her a lot. She's friendly and she gives thorough reviews
of our content. She often makes good suggestions about our departments
formatting and styles. She's just a little control-freaky here, probably
because this product is being piloted on Tuesday and they are still
making interface changes.
>> So. Should I let her have her way?
>
> You're kidding, right?
Not at all. If I'm not willing to re-evaluate my beliefs on what
constitutes good writing when someone makes a suggestion, then my own
writing will suffer and I'll turn into one of those domineering senior
tech writers whose skills get more and more out of date and who get
mocked by younger writers. That's why I turn to others like you folks
who may be more familiar with current trends and empirical studies and
all that. I want to go back to this project manager with more than
"because I said so." I'd like to enjoy peaceful relationships with my
project teams :)
>> are there studies or anything I can show her besides my
>> insistence?
>
> You could give her other examples of numbering
> hierarchies, like chapter and verse in the Bible,
> apartment-building addresses and apartment numbers,
> etc. You could also point out that hierarchical
> numbering will allow you to revise the instructions
> at some point in the future -- adding or deleting
> sub-steps, or replacing a list of sub-steps with
> "Perform Procedure xyz (see page nn for details)" --
> without having to renumber every major step and
> sub-step following the change.
Oh, good point. Put the onus on her to explain why apartment building
numbers are confusing.
> I assume that she believes readers will be confused
> if they're asked to perform steps that aren't labeled
> strictly sequentially. If that's so, you might want
> to ask what you should do for the procedures that don't
> have sub-steps -- the ones you've called "Some step" --
> or for tables that have multiple procedures with sub-
> steps. Should they all be numbered sequentially?
> Point out that when readers choose one of the actions
> in the table, they'll still find gaps in the step
> numbers they follow.
That's true. She hasn't insisted on numbering for anything but cells
with multiple steps. Maybe when we have our inevitable confrontation
about this on Monday, that will sway her.
One thing I forgot to mention -- I'm not actually the person writing
this book. I'm primarily in charge of the small group that handles out
editing, maintains our standards, tests new tools, and so on. Sort of
front-line tech writing support. The one who is writing this book is
about six months out of college and, while very talented, is not so
confident in herself that she can stand in the face of Project Manager
Wrath yet. :) So the info I'm gathering from you guys is all in
preparation for when she comes storming into my cube at 9:01am on
Monday.
> If all else fails, suggest labeling the sub-steps
> "a, b, c" instead of "1, 2, 3"...
This is actually what I suggested to the writer (they are having a
review meeting this morning). I can't tell if it's going to fly or not.
I'm preparing counter-arguments just in case. (Also, I don't want to set
a precedent of compromising every time someone has a problem with our
standards. I would rather overwhelm them with data and studies and
whatever else until they realize that their random preferences don't
carry any weight.)
> Maybe she can live
> with that compromise while you look for a better job.
Heh. I'm not going anywhere. The day I get chased off because of one
stubborn PM is the day I move back in with my mom so she can change my
diapers regularly :)
Thanks, Andrew!
Christian
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