Technical writing in the development process? (take II)

[Beth Agnew]

Another key function of the doc plan is the signoff. State in your doc 
plan that you will interview SMEs for X hours, work with the product for 
user testing, review QA's database of bugs, or list any task involving 
other people, or items they must provide (such as a product prototype or 
build). Then when the managers responsible for those resources sign off 
on the doc plan as approving it, they are committing to providing you 
with those resources. I make it explicit in the doc plan by including a 
paragraph to that effect. I hold a review meeting for the doc plan, and 
make it crystal clear that once they approve my plan, I will stick to it 
and deliver as promised -- as long as I get the resources that I have 
asked for, and that have been agreed to by their approving the plan.

This does two valuable things: It puts management on the alert that 
those resources will have to be allocated to your project, and it shows 
that you cannot be held responsible for their failure to do so. 
Obviously, in execution you would do everything you could to complete 
with or without the requested resources, but having formalized it all in 
a doc plan can really save you when all that dreck starts to roll downhill.
--Beth

Geoff Hart wrote:
> Melissa Nelson: <<I have been adviced by another techwhirler to come 
> up with a doc plan for each new project, which I think will help let 
> everyone involved know when I need to be involved.>>
>
> Good plan. Just don't forget to put in the good word about "design 
> thrice, program once". There's lots of good stuff out there (most 
> recently and most notably by Alan Cooper, a respected programmer) 
> about how and why this works. Check out "The Inmates are Running the 
> Asylum" for details. And spread the message that feature creep is bad 
> for business because it prevents you from selling those features as an 
> upgrade.
>
>  ... You need to have the right to ask questions and receive answers, 
> not just take what is handed to you.
-- 
Beth Agnew
Catch the Buzz: http://bethbuzz.blogspot.com
STC Presentation archived at:
http://www.301url.com/podcasting

Professor, Technical Communication
Seneca College of Applied Arts & Technology
Toronto, ON 416.491.5050 x3133
http://www.tinyurl.com/83u5u