SST 2014; The Reluctant SME
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What happens when a subject matter expert won’t or can’t provide required information to the person whose job it is to write about it? All is not lost! Drawing on their experiences, the presenters will cover identifying and addressing issues technical communicators face with reluctant SMEs.
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SST 2014; The Reluctant SME
- 1. The Reluctant Subject Ma0er Expert or Helping people work effec/vely with you 1 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 2. For many of us, our success as professional communicators depends on how successfully we work with SMEs. 2 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 3. The ideas in this presenta/on are based on wri/ng techniques, however, they are valid for use in other professions. 3 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 4. Always remember: ProducLve relaLonships with SMEs don’t happen by accident. 4 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 5. The acquisiLon of informaLon is managed for some writers. 5 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 6. Situa/on normal in some departments and companies: Providing informaLon to the tech writer is low priority. (But, what’s up with that?) 6 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 7. With shy and elusive SMEs, we find that their bad behaviors oIen fall into two categories: • Avoidance • Antagonism 7 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 8. We resort to hun/ng SMEs. 8 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 9. SME hunLng by tech writers tends to fall into three categories: • Stalking • Using clever lures to draw them into traps • Making offers they can’t refuse 9 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 10. What if you could get SMEs to seek you out in order to give you info? ! I’d die of surprise. ! I wouldn’t know what to do with all the Lme I’d be saving. ! I’d know for certain that I was dreaming. 10 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 11. OK, let’s dream about some reali/es: • Most people like to talk shop. • Most people like to tell their stories. • Good storytellers always have audiences. • Almost everyone wants to be an author. 11 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 12. Here’s a key convenient truth: Almost no one wants to do the hard work of wri/ng, and that’s where we’re the experts. ☺ 12 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 13. SME Hunter vs. Knowledge Partner SME hunter Knowledge partner Short-‐term focus: Concerned with immediate project. Long-‐term focus: Builds knowledge base for later projects and expands your influence. Quick fixes: Driven by necessity, results can be uneven. Able to address problems at their source: results are higher in quality. Seen by others as necessary evil, annoyance, obstacle, or roadblock. Seen by other as a contributor and part of the team. Not integrated into project. Fully integrated into project. Ogen excluded. Ogen invited and included. 13 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 14. The magic elixir: We’ve got story! The art and crag of wriLng gives us an amazingly powerful set of tools… 14 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 15. We writers are astute observers. Within our roles as writers, we make careful observaLons with respect to: • Sekngs • Characters • Dramas 15 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 16. Working as knowledge partners, we: • Set the stage for collaboraLon. • IdenLfy SME “red flag” behavior and deflect their pull into unproducLve dramas. • Realize that we control our own acLons and not those of others. • Respect others: listen carefully to their stories, show appropriate empathy, and stay flexible. • Recognize that communicaLon skills are useful beyond the page and use them to build mutually beneficial relaLonships. 16 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 17. Observe your work sekng. Ques/ons about your company culture to answer and revisit occasionally: • Is the work environment informal or formal? • Is the power structure hierarchical or is power shared, implicitly or explicitly? • What are the spoken/unspoken rules? • Are there hidden agendas? 17 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 18. SME roles (character) within sekng An SME responds as a character within a sePng. Sco0 Myer’s five character archetypes: Protagonist Nemesis A0ractor Mentor Trickster How do you see your SME? How does your SME see you? 18 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 19. An essenLal “how to” for creaLng drama: What a character wants is at odds with what they need. So, how do we reduce office drama? 19 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 20. Dealing with unintenLonal sabotage • Recognize when our SMEs’ well-‐intenLoned efforts cause problems. • Recognize when our own well-‐intenLoned efforts cause problems. You can usually get your project back on track aIer an incident of uninten/onal sabotage. 20 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 21. More on unintenLonal sabotage • Special case: the talented SME with character flaws • Special case: when you as a writer discover that a situaLon is pushing you beyond your limits 21 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 22. While most sabotage is unintenLonal, occasionally it’s not… 22 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney
- 23. Expanding on strengths, both ours and others: We can make everyone look be0er. 23 The Reluctant SME; © 2014 Elisa Sawyer, MS and Ann Marie Queeney