Keith Johnson, Senior Technical Writer at InfoPros joins us in this episode of Knowledgebase Ninjas to discuss his experience on training documentation specialists.
Connect with Keith and InfoPros here:
Key Takeaways:
From training documentation specialist to technical writing
Keith started out his career training people how to use IT equipment, then an opportunity came up to switch into technical writing. As Keith was a senior editor at his college newspaper, he had experience here and the took the chance to switch careers and utilize his training skills but with the written word.
Keith’s documentation process:
Three steps:
- Define the deliverable
- Complete due diligence through research and speaking with subject matter experts
- Sit down and write
Keith mentions that the key step here is number two: we must align all stakeholders with the document size and scope before committing pen to paper.
Documentation for testing and training documentation specialists…
Keith shared that documentation can be used to train users or internal stakeholders on how to use a feature. But at the same time, if a piece of documentation is created before a feature has been released, that document can be used as a guide for people testing the feature.
How does Keith write books whilst working full time?
Keith writes books on the side to strengthen the skills that he may not be using in his working role at the time. Just like a rock musician that has a job in a rock music band would go home in the evenings to play jazz music at home to develop his jazz music skills.
Keith has shared a free copy of one of his books to share with the Knowledgebase Ninjas audience, it’s called Power Writing Tips For 2020 and you can download it for free here.
Keith’s favourite documentation related resources:
- Developing Quality Technical Information – IBM
- Microsoft Style Guide – Microsoft
Incorporating two books per year…
Keith thoroughly reads two books per year, which may not sound like a lot but after reading Keith takes notes and then attempts to incorporate everything about them into his life.
Keith believes the written word is getting more and more important
In a world dominated by the internet, Keith states that there is nothing more important than the written word as it is the best method you can use to get someone to stop and then read your article, listen to your podcast or watch your video.
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