There’s a lot more to technical communication than ‘creating documents’. The two main objects in this profession model are: information and people. Very simply, we change lives. We do that by demystifying data; by turning information into knowledge; by making life easier; and by making successful implementation more possible, much sooner.

Information and people, in this context, are inextricably and intimately interlinked. We encounter one in the pursuit of the other. Our quest for information may include identifying resources; understanding policies; vetting, culling and applying data; and triage, re-use, configuration and shelf-life concerns. It, however, also includes anticipating needs, building credibility, creating rapport, generating interest, selling ideas, and usually, functioning in synergy with a team or organisation - all people-oriented activities.

Our understanding of people, in turn, is facilitated by data about who they are, what they do, what they know, what they want to achieve with the information you present, their preferred mode of education, their attention span, retention capacity, and other cultural and demographic idiosyncrasies. We all enter a new profession with uncertainties and reservations. We start off with a full bag of luck and talent, and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill up the bag of experience before the other one gets empty. Some of us fill these bags with priceless nuggets of experience. Some save space in the bag for some special, unknown, future windfall. Still others, in their haste, pad their bag with redundancies and sham. Each success strategy springs from who we are as individuals.

Respect comes from proving our worth and delivering value. Respect comes from leading by example, from stepping beyond known frontiers and pro-actively meeting tomorrow’s challenges. Respect is a free bird that can never be caged. And it could be lost in a careless moment. In a tough business environment, every role faces equal pressure. Everybody is unsafe. It is important to understand that roles will survive people. In our context, the foreseeable future promises immense growth for our role, beyond our current capabilities. 

The role of technical communication has been acknowledged by the highest political office in India. The Office of the Prime Minister of India, in a letter to the STC India Chapter, acknowledges the importance of our profession. The second salary survey conducted by the STC India Chapter suggests that ours is also a well-remunerated profession. Ours is a refined skill and this is acknowledged in the bacon we bring home. What we do today has already changed so much from what and how we used to work just ten years ago. Yes, our profession is important. This should not be news to you.

As technical communicators, our greatest task at hand is not about how to show our worth, but how to justify and grow this investment. To our advantage, our core competencies deal with the very factors that matter - information and people. Whether we exploit this edge or waste it will decide our future.

For today, we've come a long way baby!

Edwin Skau & Pawan Nayar

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