Collaborating With Technical Experts

Writing a technical document involves a team of specialized professionals including authors, editors, multimedia professionals and technical experts. Every professional in the team has a specific role in the writing process. Author: Scripts the technical document. He/she also collaborates with the technical experts to gather information about the topic. The author also works with the multimedia professionals to discuss and develop graphical illustrations or animations to elaborate an idea. Editors: Check all aspects of the document such as ambiguity, language, grammar, presentation of technical content and correct any errors found in the document. In addition, editors also provide suggestions to present ideas better, Multimedia Professionals: Work with authors to illustrate complex ideas using graphical tools. Technical Experts: Work with authors and provide them with technical information necessary to write the document. After the document is complete from the author’s end, they also ensure that the information provided in the document is clear and technically accurate.

More About Technical Experts Technical experts have a thorough knowledge in the subject. They are also referred to as Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). The expertise of the SME might be in any stream, such as management, programming, production, quality control, or marketing.

Role of an SME In technical writing, the author is often not an expert in the subject of the document. In such cases, the SME helps the author understand the subject of the document. Therefore, the author is critically dependent on the SME to develop the document. The author receives the information from the SME and reproduces the information in the document in a simplified and organized manner. The process of gathering information from an SME is time efficient, because it reduces the time taken by the author to gather information from various physical sources. An SME may help the author while writing the document and a SME also reviews the final document for technical accuracy. The SME should have practical knowledge in the subject. They should have good communication skill so that they can explain the concepts relating to the document to the author in a simplified manner. The SME should be enthusiastic and ready to help the author at any time. If the scope of the technical document is large, the author may enlist the assistance of multiple SMEs.

Gathering information from a SME The author may gather information by interacting with the SME. Before contacting the SME, the author should do the necessary groundwork to gain basic knowledge about the subject and prepare an exhaustive query list based on his/her understanding of the scope of the technical document. When the author presents knowledgeable queries to the SME, it is easier for the SME to work on this query list and provide accurate information to the author. This enables the author to gather fruitful information from the SME within a short span of time. Therefore, the collaborative work of an author and the SME facilitate the process of developing the document efficiently and effectively.