STC Competitions

Talk It Up — Even if the Economy is Down...

By Sharon Hopkins and Carol Hobday

These are hard economic times for high tech—no question about it. Companies respond by not committing to anything not directly related to the bottom line. But how do the STC competitions relate to your personal bottom line and that of your employer? Well, if you get involved, you will:

• Spiff up your resume. Being an entrant or judge looks good on your resume. Winning an award looks even better.
• Raise the corporate consciousness. Recognition for entering the competitions reminds the company of the value of your contribution.
• Get a breath of fresh air. In a world of smaller departments and low or non-existent training budgets, find the peer review and brainstorming that you've been missing.
• Be known among your own. Whether you are looking or working, consultant or permanent, show the technical communications world what you can do.
• Enhance the bottom line. Award-winning documentation is a great product feature!
• Build a better product. Your company may be able to use the input to improve its product.
• Do more with less. Feedback from the competition lets you work smarter and make better use of your existing resources. You and your company both win!

Are you convinced? This is your year to enter or judge! Help yourself to these arguments as you make your case to your company. And let us know how. We would love to follow up on this article by sharing members' experiences with the rest of the organization. You can reach us at: www.stc-nne.org (Northern New England Chapter) or www.stc-boston.org (Boston Chapter).

Sharon Hopkins is a member of the Online competition committee and is a technical writer at Light Bridge in Burlington. Carol Hobday is Co-Chair of the Online competition committee and is a technical writer at Polycom in North Andover.