Past Programs

Susan Becker, San Francisco STC, online communication, hardware documentation

Susan has countless years of experience as a contract technical communicator, writing manuals and developing online user assistance (Codewords). She is currently involved in a phone-based usability study, ongoing editing of Swedish financial reports (no, not in Swedish), and a user assistance project for a start up company that is creating a new type of electronic metering device with supporting software.

She is a former Touchstone director and a past winner in the competition. This year she won an award in the Berkeley Chapter's competition for a hardware test procedure she developed at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC). Susan is a past president of the San Francisco STC and the current web team leader.

Dana E. Chisnell, San Francisco STC, usability, user interface design

Dana is an independent user researcher and usability consultant operating UsabilityWorks in San Francisco, CA. She has been doing usability, user interface design, and technical communications consulting and development since 1982. Some of her work is covered in the February 2006 issue of Technical Communication, entitled "New Heuristics for Understanding Older Adults as Web Users" written with Ginny Redish and Amy Lee.

Dana's a senior member of the Usability Professional's Association, a member of ACM SIGCHI, a Fellow of STC, and a member of STC communities for Usability and User Experience, Information Design and Information Architecture, AccessAbility, and San Francisco. She received the STC President's Award for her service as the assistant to the president for virtual communities in 2005-06.

Andrew Davis, Silicon Valley and San Francisco STC, recruiting, job market

Andrew runs Synergistech Communications, a recruiting firm for SF Bay Area technical communicators. He was a Technical Writer of software system admin and developer documents for eight years before starting the firm in 1995, and also President of the San Francisco chapter of STC from 1993 to 94 (and the chapter's Vice President for six years before that).

After an extended "hibernation," Synergistech has re-emerged and is once again fully committed to advancing the careers of local technical communicators. Andrew looks forward to sharing his insights with the chapter, and promises not to leave us wondering what he really thinks.

Joe Devney, Berkeley STC, science and technology

Joe has been a technical writer in the Bay Area for over ten years, primarily writing about software. His industry experience includes wireless telecommunications, data storage, and health care. He keeps up with both science and technology in order to take advantage of new opportunities. See his website, Devney Writing & Editing.

Joe's STC involvement includes serving as president of the Berkeley chapter for three years, and twice acting as judge for the International Technical Art Competition.

Marie Highby, Silicon Valley STC, strategy, education

Marie is a life coach and co-founder of 2MULES, a political coaching and consulting firm that focuses on issues tied to strategy and messaging. Well-known in Silicon Valley for her work as a San Jose State University technical writing and communications instructor and program manager, Marie began her professional career as a marketing writer in the investment management industry in Boston and as a forecasting analyst in the banking industry in San Francisco. Marie's work in finance has also included serving as an Assistant Vice President and Senior Product Manager in Trade Finance with Bank of America and teaching Business Finance at San Jose State University.

Marie presented at the 2005 STC International Conference in Seattle where she also spoke at a progression on the role of managers as they "facilitate the emerging future." In addition, Marie is a popular speaker on the subject of the future of technical communications, having made presentations on that subject in San Diego, the East Bay, and Silicon Valley as well as at the 2003 International STC Conference in Dallas.

A senior member of the STC, Marie is a past president of the Silicon Valley Chapter and Treasurer of the STC Management Community. An MBA from the Colgate Darden School of the University of Virginia, Marie also holds an MA from Duke University in English and an advanced certificate in coaching from the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology.

Andrea Ames M.S., Silicon Valley STC, information architecture, information experience strategy

Andrea is a Senior Technical Staff Member and Information Experience Strategist and Architect in the Information Management division of the IBM Software Group where she is responsible for driving broad initiatives to improve the total information experience. She has nearly 25 years of experience in technical communication, an M.S. degree in Science and Technical Communication from Drexel University, and a B.A. degree in English from Temple University.

She is an Associate Fellow and past President of STC, a senior member of IEEE, and a member of SWE, ACM, ASIS&T, IAI, UPA, and ATTW. She designed, coordinates, and teaches in the University of CA Extension/Santa Cruz certificate program in Technical Writing and Communication. She has published two award-winning technical books and more than 50 papers and articles, and she speaks regularly at conferences and professional organization meetings around the world.

Gwaltney Mountford, East Bay STC, is an independent consultant with over 25 years of experience solving the communication needs of end-users. She and her husband, Carl, own Mountford Group Inc., a consulting company specializing in developing custom Web-based business and data warehouse applications.

An STC Associate Fellow, she is a past president of the East Bay chapter, a former director of Touchstone and the Region 8 Conference, and was on the Society's Nominating Committee. She has been panelist and moderator on similar panels at Writer in the Workplace.