I've just been offered the Technical Publications Manager position at a company I've been contracting at for the last six months. The position is offered two ways-on a renewable contractual basis, or as a direct hire. The manager who presented it to me indicated they preferred direct hire, but he needs a solid proposal to convince the VP of Operations that this is a better way to go. The VP of Operations was the one that gave the go ahead to retain my services and we have a good personal and professional relationship. I've been asked to come up with pros/cons for both ways, including costs. I've already done the "salary.com" review and they already know my contract rates. What I am having a hard time with is a convincing argument for hiring me direct versus contract. (I've been pitching contracts for so long that my brain is having a hard time shifting to this new approach.)
A bit of background. --This company has used a part-time technical writer (six hours a week) for nearly 15 years. I was brought aboard in a contractual basis because this PT writer was both overwhelmed and ready to retire. Prior to my arrival, the engineering staff carrying most of the heavy writing load, but they are overwhelmed themselves. My heavy hardware/software background was instrumental in me getting the contracts. The documents when I arrived vaguely reflected the products and did not follow the corporate style for layout nor industry standards for terminology. Upper manager understands the need to change and is open to my ideas and respectful of my extensive background (over 30 years in writing-technical, consumer, video, web..). They also want to move from Word-based PDFs as their only form of online documentation to a new process that will satisfy Marketing's need for conforming to the corporate print style guide, Trainings desired for more interactive documentation and Field/Customer Service's need for accurate procedures with links to schematics/drawings. The company's corporate headquarters are in Germany, but they've had a research and manufacturing facility in the U.S. for over 27 years. While I like the contracting life, I feel this task will require me to be a full-fledged member of the management staff. It's also an exciting opportunity, and I would still be able to work out of my home office on a regular basis. (Sipping mai tai's on the deck on a hot summer day may be out though...) Anybody been through the same thing and if you have, I'm open to ideas to use in my proposal. Thanks, Al Geist Technical Writing, Help, Marketing Collateral, Web Design and Award Winning Videos Voice/Msg: 802-658-3140 Cell: 802-578-3964 E-mail: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] URL: http://www.geistassociates.com (Online portfolio and resume) See also: URL: http://www.geistimages.com (Fine art photographic prints for home or office and beautiful note cards for all occasions.) ______________________________________________ Author Help files and create printed documentation with Doc-To-Help. New release adds Team Authoring Support, enhanced Web-based help technology and PDF output. Learn more at www.doctohelp.com/tcp. DOCUMENTATION & TRAINING WEST 07: THE USER EXPERIENCE April 18-21, 2007 ~ Vancouver BC ~ Marriott Pinnacle ~ free city tour 40+ sessions * free workshops * free iPod offer * www.doctrain.com _______________________________________________ Technical Communication Professionals Post a message to the list: email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com Subscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Need help? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com
