More Info: Re: [SV-Web] Contract Tech Writer Position at Cisco
sb...@ix.netcom.com
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It's amazing what companies and recruiters are still trying to get away with these days in terms of contract technical writing rates.
Ms. Derr, the recruiter for this Cisco position is young, sharp, (a bit too "hip" for my taste) and also a bit "spineless." When we first spoke about the $45/hour rate being under market, she replied, "This manager wanted to originally pay $35/hour for the position, and I had to talk him up $10. And if you are unhappy $45/hour, then I don't want you to go on the interview. I have developed a relationship with this client and I don't want to ruin it."
Siva (the manager) is Indian and runs a team of TMEs that are 95% Indian. I think that he wants to get his documentation talent on the cheap.
Bruce's posting of the job caused me to rethink how I could have approached the project differently, but, basically, it wasn't a fit. The job is beyond my level of expertise. Siva wants someone who is an Engineer (or very technical Tech. Writer) who is intimately familiar with servers, server architecture, and server solutions. He wants that individual to meet with the SMEs, get an idea of the topics that they want to cover,(and get the data or lab testing results) and write! That was not expressly stated in the interview, or I had my filters on and he had his, and our ideas of what would be entailed in producing the White Papers (internal documents for consumption by SEs, etc.) were out-of-sync with each other.
When I was to work with one of the Engineers to help write his document, Siva, Ven, and I met to develop a list of topics. Then, over the course of several weeks, Ven handed me a bunch of small White Papers to read to "get up to speed" on the topics. And then he disappeared into the lab. The decision was made to have Ven write the White Paper but no one told me about it. I learned much later that Ven had decided to write the document himself because there were "too many pieces." So I was left to sit at my desk, not knowing what to do, and just wait. I was steamed! And, at that point, I didn't have VPN access. (By the way, Siva attends TONS of meetings and is hardly available.) In the early days of the contract, when I asked him why I had to be onsite, he said that I needed to be available whenever the TMEs needed me, and they were so busy that they couldn't really schedule time in advance, because they were working around-the-clock.
What Siva would love to have would be the expertise of this guy Steve at Lone Eagle Systems: http://www.loneagle.com/staff/index.html
I was briefly introduced to Steve and saw him with various members of the business unit from time-to-time. He lives in Colorado and jets in when needed, I'm sure. However, you have to pay for his kind of expertise, and I feel quite certain that $80/hour wouldn't even begin to cover his rate!
If you apply for this contract, make certain that you truly get an understanding of what Siva wants and expects. Good questions to ask would be: what do you see as the role of the writer of these papers? How much knowledge would really be required for this task?
When I told Siva that I would need to meet with the Engineers in detailed sessions to get the info, his reply was that he might as well have the TMEs write the documents! Why would he need a writer?
Susan
-----Original Message-----
>From: sb...@ix.netcom.com
>Sent: Jan 7, 2010 11:40 PM
>To: bru...@wwwriters.com, SV-...@googlegroups.com
>Subject: Re: [SV-Web] Contract Tech Writer Position at Cisco
>
>Bruce et. al,
>
>This was my contract last quarter at Cisco, so I know the players. Global Insight approached me for the position, and they only wanted to pay $45/hour, which I told them was sub-market, but then ended up accepting the project because nothing else came through.
>
>The manager of this group was not clear about what his true expectations were, and those are that the Technical Writer must have an inherent and extensive knowledge of servers and server solutions in being able to write about Cisco's Unified Data Center solution. It was as if he expected the writer to obtain an idea of the topics and then go off to the desk and write about them, without having to disturb or thoroughly interview the SMEs (the Technical Marketing Engineers). For the life of me, I didn't understand how this was to be done (and I have 22 years of tech. writing experience). What I personally think he wants is an Engineer-turned-Technical Writer. I was his "guinea pig" in discovering this out.
>
>Now the Deployment Guide angle is a bit new, so maybe they've discovered during the course of last quarter that this is a new requirement and they've "upped the ante" on the qualifications.
>
>The good thing is, they now should be paying for that kind of expertise.
>
>Susan
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Bruce Hartford <bru...@wwwriters.com>
>>Sent: Jan 7, 2010 10:01 PM
>>To: SV-...@googlegroups.com
>>Subject: [SV-Web] Contract Tech Writer Position at Cisco
>>
>>I'm passing along the following info about a Sr. Tech Writer contract
>>position at Cisco. It's an on-site gig, and I only work remotely, so
>>wasn't a fit for me. In the course of our discussion I told her I was
>>getting $85/hr at my most recent position and she said she thought
>>that $80 was as high as they would go. She was very firm about
>>wanting previous experience documenting servers, and that this is job
>>is writing manuals and technical docs, not marketing materials.
>>Contact her directly, I don't know anything more about this than
>>what's in this message.
>>
>>FWIW, I posted my resume on Monster yesterday and have gotten 2 calls today.
>>
>>Bruce
>>
>>
>>>5 + years of exp....
>>>
>>>1) Hands on writing experience about SERVERS (and/or networking and
>>>storage). *Must have server/networking/storage document samples.
>>>
>>>2) Writing Deployment guides.
>>>
>>>3) Expert writing white papers from Scratch and should have led a
>>>team in the past.
>>>
>>>4) Visio, specifically server/networking/storage pictures.
>>>
>>>Pluses: hands on experience as a storage, server, or network
>>>engineer and then converted over to Tech writing.
>>>
>>>D2D Working in a fast paced environment and is adaptable to change;
>>>they will be meeting with high level architects; will be writing
>>>down the requirements and then converting them into a technical
>>>document i(White Paper) it will take 2-4 weeks to complete 1
>>>document and they will be writing 2-3 at a time; the documents will
>>>range from 30-125 pages.
>>>
>>>Thank you,
>>>
>>>Jennifer Derr
>>>Insight Global, Inc.
>>>101 Metro Drive
>>>Suite 655
>>>San Jose, CA 95110
>>>408-441-8300 Main
>>>408-882-7839 Cell
>>>408-441-7300 Fax
>>><mailto:jd...@insightglobal.net>jd...@insightglobal.net
>>>
>>
>>