This study is intended to assess the perception of training and the drivers that underlie it. To get at these perceptions and drivers, Carliner’s research team will conduct interviews with users of training in three Information Technology departments in large, medium, and small-sized organizations. The study is funded by Concordia University’s Seed Grant Program.

Interviews will be conducted with front-line workers, and first-line and second-line managers. All responses will remain anonymous, as will the names of the organizations. The results of the study will be published in both academic and trade journals.

Carliner is looking for participation from STC-Montreal members. Your participation in the study can provide insights into how your organization approaches training and might provide insights into whether your organization is realizing the full benefit of its investment in training.

In addition to participating in an interview yourself, Carliner is looking for participants who can provide the researchers with access to three levels of employees in their organization (front-line workers, and first- and second-line management) for a series of interviews. The front-line employees would be interviewed together in one or two focus groups of 2 hours, with 6 to 12 participants. First- and second-line managers would be interviewed individually. Interviews last 45 minutes to 1 hour.

To participate or to learn more, contact Saul Carliner at saulcarliner [at] hotmail [dot] com.

Saul Carliner is an associate professor of educational technology at Concordia University in Montreal, where his teaching and research focus on the management of workplace communication and learning groups, and communication for the workplace and related management and evaluation issues. Also an industry consultant, he provides strategic planning services to organizations like Alltel Wireless, Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, IBM, and several government agencies. Among his publications are the best-selling Training Design Basics, Designing e–Learning, Advanced Web–Based Training (with Margaret Driscoll), and articles which won the Frank R Smith Outstanding Article Competition in 2000 and 2001. He is a board member of the Canadian Society for Training and Development, past Research Fellow of the American Society for Training and Development, and a Fellow and past international president of STC.

Before taking on the role of chapter President last year, I was aware that the Society faced some major financial challenges, and knew that these challenges would also affect our local chapter. As it turns out, the challenges facing the Society were much larger than I anticipated. We used the chapter website to communicate the substance of these issues as they unfolded, but here they are in a nutshell: The Society lost well over a million US dollars last year, put out an appeal to all its geographic chapters and special interest groups (SIGs) to return surplus funds to help cover this budget shortfall, and began cost-cutting activities across all of its program areas.

A major change that affected us in Montreal was the decision by STC’s Board to significantly raise its dues for 2010. Our chapter membership declined by nearly 50%, and members and non-members alike engaged in an ongoing discussion about the role of a geographic STC chapter, the value of membership and the kind of chapter benefits they would like to see. Despite this membership decline, Montreal retained over 60 dues-paying members, and a newly-elected Administrative Council now looks forward to a new year of local professional development programs and social events. Our chapter in Montreal is currently over 20 years old, is financially sound, has a core of activist volunteers, and it continues to provide a professional context for technical communicators in the Montreal area.

I’d like to thank this year’s Administrative Council — VP Charles Roburn, Secretary Ming Sabourin, and Treasurer Rolf Hecken — for their stalwart service during an uncertain time. I’d also like to thank immediate past presidents Poppy Quintal and Andy Gural for their energy, support and encouragement. People of this caliber are what makes the Montreal chapter a viable organization, and it has been a pleasure working with all of you.

Thanks also to everyone in STC Montreal; this is your organization and it will continue to become what you choose to make it. Please join me in welcoming a new Administrative Council – President Charles Roburn, Secretary Lydia Shuster, and Treasurer Rolf Hecken – to a new year of chapter service beginning in September 2010. Keep an eye on the chapter website for news and programming announcements, and I’ll be seeing you at an STC Montreal meeting soon.

Everett Larsen
STC-Montreal President 2009–2010

From left: Rolf Hecken, Everett Larsen, Charles Roburn, Ming Sabourin. Photo: Jim Royal. (Click for larger size)

Eleven votes were cast, representing 18% of eligible STC-Montreal Chapter members at the time of the election.

Here are the results:

The Nominations/Elections Committee thanks all Chapter members who participated in the election.

On behalf of the newly elected Administrative Council, we invite you to become involved in your Chapter, and look forward to seeing you at STC-Montreal Chapter events.

Marta Cepek & Manuel Gordon,
2010 STC-Montreal Nominations/Elections Committee

In addition to the exquisite cuisine and merriment we always associate with our banquets, there will be games, door prizes and an awards ceremony recognizing members who have demonstrated a long-term commitment to promoting technical communication, learning and the STC as a whole.

We are looking forward to a fun-filled evening and hope to see you with us.

Bring your own wine (no other alcohol beverages than wine)

Please RSVP by Monday, June 7, 2010.

When and Where

When: Wednesday, June 9, 2010 / 7:00 pm

Where: Restaurant l’Académie, 2100 Crescent Street, Montreal (Google Maps)

Today’s question to STC-Montreal is how does a person with expertise in other fields get started in technical communication?

Dear STC-Montreal,

Several years ago I graduated with a B.Eng. in Software Engineering, but never worked as a developer. In 2009, I earned a certificate in Print Communication from Concordia’s Continuing Education Department.

To spare you a long story, I want to work as a technical communicator. My problem is that I’m unsure on the best way to get started. I’ve read blog-posts on various sites about this topic, here included. What I’ve read daunts me: I fear that I may have underestimated what it will take to get a junior position as a TC. I assumed that I could start sending out resumes right away, but now it appears that if I want an HR person to even glance at my CV, I need 1) a certificate in technical communication 2) a solid portfolio and 3) a good handle of software packages like Framemaker and Robohelp, and 4) real-world experience. I don’t have any of this stuff.

So, I’m wondering whether I’m right to be nervous about my prospects. Must I have a certificate/portfolio/experience and software skills when I’m just starting out? Is my background any help at all? Are there things that I can learn later, but others I need to have and to know asap? How long does it normally take to get those essentials so I can successfully apply for positions?

I know it might sound like I’m looking for shortcuts. I’m not – I just don’t know anybody in the field so I lack the knowledge that’s truly required to become a technical communicator and to set my expectations accordingly for this vocation.

I’m grateful for any advice on how to start out. Personal stories are welcome too.

— Alex

Join the discussion. Leave your ideas and suggestions for Alex in the comments below.

Read past episodes of “Ask STC-Montreal.”

The candidates are:

President: Charles Roburn
Treasurer: Rolf Hecken
Secretary: Lydia Shuster

Meet the candidates running in the election.

Eligible STC-Montreal members received an email with details about how to vote. If you did not receive this email, and you believe that you are eligible to vote, contact the election committee.

Voting for the STC-Montreal 2010 election ends on Monday, 7 June 2010, and results will be announced on the STC-Montreal website shortly after.

Vote today: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SKM5RXM

Charles has worked as a technical writer in Montréal for the past 16 years, and been an active member of STC Montréal for several years. Most recently he served as Vice-President this past year. During that time he helped to organize the successful Mediaville meeting of October, and coordinated the chapter’s participation in the Concordia Humanities & Social Sciences and Education Career Fairs in February in addition to his regular duties.

Rolf Hecken – Treasurer

Rolf is an Independent Consultant with a focus on linguistic technologies, project management and QA, internationalization, localization, globalization process improvements, production process reviews, technology implementation, training and optimization, resource development strategies, marketing, e-Marketing, and strategic business development. He has nearly 20 years in the translation and localization industry with a vast experience in translation-related technologies. Rolf served as STC-Montreal Treasurer for 2009-2010.

Lydia Shuster – Secretary

Lydia turned to technical writing after working in the banking sector for almost a decade. Now employed by a retail software developer, she creates user guides, online help and quick start installation documents. She has also authored audit procedures, administrative guides and reference manuals.
Lydia received a B.A. Honours in Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at McGill University. She has a certificate in technical communication from Concordia University. Lydia practices yoga regularly and intends to go for a teaching certificate once she retires from tech writing.

An active member of STC Montreal since 2001, Lydia has served in the positions of Programs coordinator and Treasurer for the chapter.

Note: This event is not sponsored by STC-Montreal. Please contact the event organizers for more details.

Helpless Doorknobs & Other Dramatic Considerations

Written by the Playwrights of the QWF Round Table

Atwater Library Auditorium
Thursday, May 20th
7:30 p.m. Admission free.
Doors open at 7:15 p.m.

Quebec Writers Federation
qwf.org

Note: This event is not sponsored by STC-Montreal. Please contact the event organizers for more details.

The American Medical Writer’s Association (AMWA) invites you to Voice of Experience, our next exciting networking meeting on Thursday, May 13th at 7:00 pm.

Members and non-members are both welcome to this roundtable discussion with a panel of experienced freelance medical writers to help new or aspiring writers, or for freelancers who could use a little mentoring to get on track. We will be sharing our tips and best practices to help you reach your goals to become a successful freelance medical writer. Feel free to invite your friends and colleagues who may be interested. Of course employers looking for freelancers or employees are always welcome!

Some of the topics we will discuss:

• Examples of how to structure your freelance business including whether you should set up a formal company (individual, incorporate), collect GST and PST, etc
• Finding clients in Canada or the US by marketing through direct mail or via the internet & social media etc
• How to let clients find you including advertising on AMWA Canada, AMWA.org, other sources.
• Should you set up a website?
• Keeping clients happy and coming back to you
• Any other questions you may have for the panel

Panel composed of: Bruce Wilson, Lara Holmes, Peter MacMillan, and Crystal Kaczkowski

Please RSVP to medicalwriter [at] videotron [dot] ca by 12 pm on Tuesday, May 11th so we know how many chairs to tell the restaurant to set up, but note that you will not necessarily receive a confirmation reply.

We were at this restaurant a few years back and it has its own private room upstairs so will be more conducive for discussion that our last few meetings.

Le Caveau Szechwan
6000, ave. de Monkland
N.D.G.
Montreal, H4A 1G8
Tél. 514.488.2818

(Ask for AMWA reservation)

Crystal Kaczkowski
Freelance Medical Writer/Copywriter
514-585-3077
medicalwriter [at] videotron [dot] ca
www.medwrite.ca

Note: This event is not sponsored by STC-Montreal. Please contact the event organizers for more details.

With the recent launch of Creative Suite 5, Adobe is offering free training to orient users with the new features in CS5.

“Join us for the official launch of Adobe Creative Suit® 5 and see how Adobe is revolutionizing creative workflows to allow publishers, designers and marketers to create, deliver and optimize beautiful high-impact digital experiences across media and devices.

“This half-day seminar will take you on an exciting tour of Creative Suite® 5’s amazing new features, workflow efficiencies and creative enhancements.”

Montréal Seminar
Date: May 12, 2010
Registration: 8:30 AM
Seminar: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Location:
Holiday Inn Montréal Midtown
420 Sherbrooke Ouest
Montréal, Québec H3A 1B4

The seminar will be presented in English. There is no charge to attend this seminar.

Note: This event is not sponsored by STC-Montreal. Please contact the event organizers for more details.

STC-Montreal members can take advantage of discounted rates for workshops at the Editors Association of Canada 2010 national conference: Editing Content and Culture.

The EAC national conference is three days of lectures and workshops from May 28 through May 30, 2010 at the Grande Bibliothèque in downtown Montreal. You can learn valuable stylistic skills and network with other writers, editors, and translators. The EAC is offering discounts on all pre-conference workshops (English and French) held on Friday, May 28, 2010.

Pre-Conference Workshops

The list of pre-conference workshops follows below. See the conference website for full details on the entire conference.

Eight-step Editing (with Elizabeth d’Anjou)

This workshop focuses on one crucial goal: improving readability. It breaks the editorial process down into a series of tasks, each of which makes a text more accessible and appealing to readers. If you’re an editor, whatever your experience level (from novice to expert), this seminar will help you develop a systematic approach and identify functions you may have been performing only intuitively. If you’re a writer, or if you create documents of any kind as part of your work, the eight-step process will give you techniques for improving your own texts. Come and find out why this workshop, created by long-time EAC member Jim Taylor, is a perennial favourite in corporate and government communications departments as well as in EAC branches across the country.

Elizabeth d’Anjou has 18 years’ experience as a freelance editor with a diverse clientele, from trade and educational publishers to government departments to non-profit agencies. She is also an instructor in Ryerson University’s Publishing Certificate program. An expert in plain-language editing and translating jargon into accessible prose, she uses the techniques taught in eight-step editing every day.

Estimating: The Key to Making Money (with Jennifer Latham)

This three-hour workshop for in-house and freelance editors focuses on costing a job, developing a realistic workplan, and preparing fair and accurate estimates. This workshop will help in-house and freelance editors learn the standard practices, tips, and strategies for breaking down a job according to task, costing out each task, tracking your estimating accuracy and including terms and conditions in your contract to avoid “getting burned” by unexpected costs. Bring your calculator and be prepared to do some number crunching.

Jennifer Latham is the past president of the Editors’ Association of Canada. She worked for many years as a full-time freelance editor offering editing, writing, and project management services to government and private sector clients. As for estimating, the bane of every editor’s existence, she almost enjoys writing the estimate more than doing the job. She is happy to report that she has never lost her shirt on an estimate and equally happy to share her tried and true practices for preparing accurate estimates. Jennifer is currently the Director of Editorial Services with the Office of the Auditor General of Canada.

Tour de la question: la révision de A à Z (avec Louise Saint-André)

Ah, la révision : que d’incertitudes, que de questions! Quoi corriger et comment? Où commencer, jusqu’où aller? Combien de temps allouer? Applique-t-on la norme ou suit-on l’usage? Doit-on imposer la nouvelle orthographe? Que penser de la féminisation? Où trouver réponses aux nombreuses questions qui assaillent le réviseur?

Si ces sujets vous intriguent, venez faire le tour de la question. Cet atelier vous renseignera sur les principes de base de la révision, sur les pièges les plus fréquents, sur des ouvrages connus et méconnus. Il vous permettra aussi d’aborder en groupe certains sujets délicats : les rectifications orthographiques, par exemple.

Titulaire d’une maîtrise en éducation, Louise Saint-André exploite une entreprise de révision à Ottawa depuis 1991. Sa clientèle variée, tant publique que privée, lui offre un vaste panorama de la révision. Communicatrice dynamique, elle anime des ateliers de formation en entreprise et au Service de formation professionnelle de l’Université d’Ottawa.

Initiation à la recherche de clients (avec François Gauthier)

En assistant à ce séminaire, vous apprendrez comment vous lancer en affaires, comment dénicher des clients, combien de clients il vous faut, les cinq étapes de l’obtention d’un premier mandat et comment garder vos clients.

Note : M. François Gauthier nous fournira ces informations du point de vue de la profession de traducteur en adaptant quand même sa présentation au contexte de la révision.

François Gauthier a pratiqué comme traducteur, réviseur, réviseur-terminologue et cadre au Bureau de la traduction du gouvernement fédéral où il a notamment participé à la mise en place de Termium en 1977. Il a ensuite été chef de service à l’Office de la langue française, puis a dirigé les services linguistiques de Téléglobe Canada avant de passer au cabinet de traduction Multiscript/La Langagerie comme vice-président marketing et responsable des projets spéciaux. Depuis 1990, il travaille à son compte, servant une diversité de clients pour lesquels il traduit des textes administratifs, techniques et même littéraires. Il est aussi très actif à l’Ordre des traducteurs, terminologues et interprètes agréés du Québec où il est actuellement président du Groupe de travail sur la valorisation des professions et responsable du sondage biennal sur la tarification et les salaires.

Rates

The Quebec/Atlantic-Canada branch of the Editors’ Association of Canada has made its pre-conference seminars on Friday, May 28 available to the STC at its discounted membership rate. The cost for members for full-day seminars including lunch and coffee breaks is $160, instead of $220 for non-members. The cost for half-day seminars including refreshments is $90, instead of $120 for non-members. The pre-conference workshops are fully described on the conference website.

Registration is now open. Register today!

For more information, contact Wendy Gokhool at wendygokhool [at] hotmail [dot] com Note: Those STC members who wish to attend must forward their membership ID numbers with their registration.

STC’s bylaws, adopted by the membership in August 2007, no longer require the officers in STC’s presidential chain of succession – the incoming president and incoming first vice president – to stand for election. Therefore, incoming president Michael A. Hughes and incoming vice president Hillary Hart did not appear on the ballot this year.

Congratulations to the winners, and a special thanks to all candidates for their dedication to STC and willingness to devote their time and energy to improving the Society.

President

Michael A. Hughes

Vice President

Hillary Hart

Secretary

• Rachel Houghton, 374
• Steven Jong, 332

Nominating Committee

Two positions:

• Nathaniel Lim, 393
• Linda Mikkelsen, 317
• Preeti Mathur, 303
• Lory Hawkes, 297

Directors

(Two positions for a 2-year term; one position for a 1-year term to fulfill the remaining year of Lisa Pappas’s term)

• Nicoletta A. Bleiel (2-year term), 457
• W.C. Wiese (2-year term), 411
• Tricia Spayer (1-year term), 306
• Makarand (Mak) Pandit, 278
• C. Alvin (Al) Hood, 232