Looking Back at a Remarkable Chapter Year

By Susan Alexander

The first column I wrote this year mentioned how STC India Chapter had — in its first five years of existence — been establishing a strong foundation for growth, and was raring to move to a different plane by early 2004. Events during 2004 certainly proved this to be true. The India chapter gained recognition the world over when it won STC’s highest awards for its newsletter and the chapter as a whole. We are on the verge of moving into a different category too in terms of chapter size, as we now have over 100 members.

Despite these achievements, we constantly face the following questions:

Does being an STC member benefit my career?
Why is the STC membership fee so high?
What has STC India Chapter achieved in six years?

These are valid questions. In response, I’d like to state that STC India Chapter has provided the professional framework that is so necessary for individual growth. This has had a positive impact on the entire technical communication community. Our chapter has helped showcase the talents of many technical communicators, and encourage professional interaction and exchange within the community. The India chapter may not be ideal, but no one can deny that it is vibrant and teeming with opportunities for those who want to shape the future of our profession in this country.

Many of our early volunteers have gone on to manage large technical communication teams and become centers of influence in their companies. Has working with the India chapter helped them advance in their careers? I cannot be sure. But I could venture to say that being a part of a varied and dispersed community has helped them figure out how to get things done effectively, collaborate with others, and establish relationships with people they could count on to provide them with answers in specific areas of their work.

The future of our profession depends on how astute we are about understanding the environment in which we function. With globalization on the rise, jobs move swiftly to markets that are the most cost effective and are also perceived to have the potential to handle the communication requirements of the day.

We have seen the wholesale migration of technical communication jobs to India and the burgeoning of the technical communication industry. However, this does not guarantee that these jobs are here to stay, unless we retain a cutting edge in terms of cost, skills, and quality. We constantly need to assess how the Indian technical communication industry can retain its competitive advantage; and do everything we can to ensure it stays that way. STC India Chapter volunteers directly, or indirectly, contribute to this initiative.

To everyone who has contributed to make our chapter and the Indian technical communication profession better in 2004, I’d like to express my appreciation and hope that you continue to achieve more and better things. Many of you have fought against personal and professional pressures to be able to achieve the goals you had set for yourself in your specific areas. It was a privilege to work with you!!

(You can contact Susan at susan@stc-india.org).

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