Re: Project Management Skills and Tech Writing (long)

Subject: Re: Project Management Skills and Tech Writing (long)
From: Marcia Coulter <notjust -at- IX -dot- NETCOM -dot- COM>
Date: Thu, 31 Aug 1995 10:07:04 -0700

Mark Crane <psu01055 -at- ODIN -dot- CC -dot- PDX -dot- EDU> wrote:

>I'm curious about the phrase "Project Management Skills" seen in so
>many position descriptions. Is it fairly common for TWs to juggle
>three or four projects simultaneously?

It is much *more* than common. However, even if you handled only one
project at a time, project management skills can come in handy. Why?
Here's an example.

Recently I contracted to do *one* manual with a well-known computer
manufacturer. For this one manual I had to coordinate with and get
information from: the on-site technical illustrator, the out-of-state
illustrators, the product manager, the industrial designer, the
printer, the translators, the engineers (BIOS and hardware), the
quality control people, the manufacturers, etc., etc., etc. The
departments to which these people belonged were in a couple of U.S.
sites, Europe, and Asia. In addition, the people themselves were
constantly traveling.

So what are project management skills? One of my first bosses defined
it as "responsibility without authority." In most cases, I am
responsible for getting information from and coordinating with people
who I do not report to, who do not report to me, and who do not report
to my boss.

So project management skills involve at *least* the following:

* The ability to nag without unduly irritating. ("I'm still looking
for the information you promised me.)

* Keeping *everyone* informed *all* the time of the consequences of
events and non-events. ("If I don't get a prototype by Friday, I
will not be able to deliver a draft on the following Wednesday.")

* (For each project) Knowing what the limits of your authority are.
Do you have --

-- final authority

-- total decision-making authority, but keep the boss (or whoever)
informed

-- authority to make some types of decisions, but others must be
referred to (whoever)

-- no authority; boss makes all decisions

* Track the progress of all parts of the project(s) and report as
necessary

* (I could go on and on)

>And, if this is true, were you born with this ability or did you
>acquire it out of necessity?

A combination of the two. I got early training as the oldest sister,
responsible for my younger siblings. Later, on the training staff at
the Social Security Administration, I had excellent bosses. Ones who
understood project management themselves and were able to pass the
lessons on.

>Finally, does anyone use project management software to control their
>writing projects?

Sometimes. More often I use some spreadsheets that I've developed for
my own use.

------------------
Marcia Coulter
notjust -at- ix -dot- netcom -dot- com


Previous by Author: Re: Automatic Indexing
Next by Author: What is a Topic?
Previous by Thread: How does Word 7 look for TW?
Next by Thread: Contract jobs in Boston & Albany


What this post helpful? Share it with friends and colleagues:


Sponsored Ads