What values, traits, and  experiences do you bring to the office?

I have served as chapter treasurer for 2 years. I worked closely with the STC office to process and move forward with the zero-budgeting reports and have worked hard to keep chapter costs at a minimum.

What is the most important challenge or issue you see facing the chapter, and what possible actions or solutions do you see?

Reductions in memberships and lack of renewals have caused concern among the current board. We have worked tirelessly to create programming that appeals to our membership. We plan to continue to offer a variety of program options for our members going forward.

STC Service, awards, and honors:

 Past president, Competitions Manager, Programming Coordinator

Education and other (non-STC) professional affiliations, awards, and honors:

Bachelor Degree in English Composition from Brigham Young University. I teach composition and technical writing classes at Utah Valley University.

Professional Experience

I am a veteran technical communicator with experience as a writer, editor, trainer, course developer, usability specialist, and project manager/team lead. I have worked for Novell, THIINK Subscription, Legato/EMC, and Quest Software.

Additional Comments

I am committed to keeping our Intermountain Chapter going. The upcoming STC year holds great promise. I believe having a viable, active chapter is the goal of every member of our board.

What values, traits, and  experiences do you bring to the office?

I am a diligent and reliable worker. I am also committed to my responsibilities. Although I have not held a similar office, I believe in the value of STC and the Intermountain Chapter. I would like to help the board continue to provide a forum for ideas and networking in the local community of technical communicators.

What is the most important challenge or issue you see facing the chapter, and what possible actions or solutions do you see?

The most important issue facing the chapter is member retention due to the change in member dues. A solution to this issue is to ensure the relevance of the local chapter. The current board has planned meetings and activities with a broad range of subjects and held the meetings in multiple locations. I would like to continue this diversity and accessibility over the next year. When possible, meetings should be summarized and/or recorded to be posted on the chapter website to benefit those who are unable to attend.

My Background

In 30 years as a technical communicator, I’ve done a little bit of everything, including editing, illustrating, and training, but mainly writing and managing. Currently I work as a documentation manager. Outside of work, I’ve led four non-profit organizations (including a stint as secretary) to long-term stability.

I’m an active member of the Boston chapter. For nearly 20 years I’ve served their chapter competitions. In 2001 I was elected to their administrative council, and in 2004–2005 I served as president. I also belong to the Northern New England chapter, the Management SIG, and the Information Design SIG.

At the Society level, I am in the final year of my term on the Board of Directors. I am the chair of the Certification Task Force. I’ve participated in the International Technical Publications Competitions. And I’ve presented at eight annual conferences.

The Secretary’s Role

The Secretary assembles and distributes the agenda and materials before meetings, takes minutes during meetings, and distributes them to members afterwards. A secretary must be highly organized and detail oriented. But a good one also keeps the group on agenda, manages time, and reminds people of previous actions and decisions.

As a member of the Executive Committee, the Secretary is both an officer and a voting board member. You have to know when to take notes and when to speak up. All Board members must focus on strategy, not tactics. You have to set goals and directions for the good of the entire Society, and leave the implementation to others.

Society Issues

Today, STC’s biggest issue is existential: will we be around next year? We’ve taken huge steps to reach 2010, and I think we’ll be around in 2011. But there are still major issues to resolve, such as next year’s chapter business model. We need to rebuild our membership, and to do that we need coordinated membership drives that reach out locally to lapsed members and globally to new demographics and new areas of practice.

I also think a serious communication gap exists between the Society, chapter leaders, and members. Our relationships need repair; good communication helps, and the Secretary plays an important role.

Finally, we need for STC to set the standards in the field for everyone — practitioners, clients, and consumers alike. I support initiatives that would raise our value to employers.

Summary

I have a great deal of relevant experience, not just at the chapter and Society level but also at other non-profits. I am an excellent communicator, well organized, and process and detail oriented — all critical traits in a secretary. And because I’ve observed the exemplary work of our outgoing secretary, I already know what to do.

For more information, go to www.StevenJong.net. In March, please cast a vote for me. Thanks for your consideration!

What values, traits, and  experiences do you bring to the office?

I value hard work and honesty. I value commitment and dependability. I value loyalty. I try to incorporate these values in my life and in my interactions with others.

In terms of my experience, I have two specific past experiences that prepare me to be president of the Intermountain Chapter of the STC. First, for the last year I’ve been serving as Vice President of this chapter. I’ve worked with the chapter board to plan and execute meetings that we believe have helped our chapter. Second, I served for a year as the Vice President for Utah Delta Epsilon Chi, an organization of business management and marketing students. As the vice president in that organization, I helped plan state-wide conferences and competitions and actually competed at a state and national level. This broad experience planning and executing events will help me work with next year’s chapter board to brainstorm, plan, and execute a program that will be beneficial to all the technical writers in our community.

What is the most important challenge or issue you see facing the chapter, and what possible actions or solutions do you see?

I believe in STC and the value that it can provide to our local chapter. However, I also recognize that 2010 is a year where our membership has dropped more than 60% over 2009 membership.

Along with the rest of the chapter board, I attribute this dramatic decline to two decisions made at the national level: (1) raising dues, and (2) making chapter membership an additional, optional fee.

As president, I will work with former members to invite them to and include them in our chapter’s activities. I’ll try to keep all activities either free or at a very low cost for former Chapter members.

I value the community that can be had here in our local chapter, and I hope that as president, I can pull people together during this challenging time, to help us all benefit from the networking and growing opportunities that come from larger (and thus more diverse) chapter meetings.

STC Service, awards, and honors:

• STC Sr. Member
• Intermountain STC Chapter Vice President 2009-2010

Education and other (non-STC) professional affiliations, awards, and honors:

• BA, Brigham Young University in English with emphasis in Technical Writing.
• AA, Salt Lake Community College in general studies.

• I’m a volunteer with Youth for Understanding (YFU), an organization dedicated to high school foreign exchange both in training American students going overseas, and working with host families and exchange students while they are here, in country.
• I was previously a member of Utah Delta Epsilon Chi, where I won several distinguished member awards, recognition awards, and placed at the State level in several competitions.

Professional Experience

• Sr. Technical Writer, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• Technical Writing Consultant, DocGuy Training.
• Certified Trainer in MadCap Flare, DocGuy Training.
• Technical Writer, Attensity Corporation.
• Associate Technical Writer, Sungard Higher Education.
• Technical Writer & Team Leader, Missionary Training Center, BYU.
• Technical Writer & Team Leader, Brigham Young University, Office of Information Technology.

Additional Comments

I appreciate your vote of confidence as we face this difficult time as a chapter. I will work hard to make this year a great year for all technical communicators in our community.

Contact Paul

If you want to contact Paul, you can e-mail him at: paulpehrson@gmail.com, or you can call him at 801-938-8391.