 |
Happy spring, fellow East Bay members. As the rest of the world
joins us for Daylight Saving Time, maybe the extra sunshine can
make us feel a bit more hopeful that we can overcome the struggling
economy. So, the latest news:
|
|
Chapter Stats
|
- At the close of the current membership drive, our official count
for the year is 71 members. This is down from 93 last year. We
attribute the drop to the effects of the economy on our members.
I believe that we will be able to build those numbers by continuing
to offer opportunities for people to network their way to their
next employment opportunity.
- Writing that check can be a tough decision, especially when
you are worried about what the next few months will bring.
STC is trying to help by offering a new option to split your annual
dues payment into four installments. Details are on the Web site
at
http://www.stc.org/2009/03/19/STC-Offers-Split-payment-Option-for-Members-Dues.asp
- Why be a member? In the word of Jeanie Egbert, our VP
of Arrangements, "my current job is the fourth or fifth I've gotten
through our chapter, along with all kinds of information about
what kinds of work other writers do, classes, etc."
- We remain solid financially. Our overall cash on hand and savings
have held steady over the last 3 years at around $12,000. We will
make investments in our members and in training opportunities,
while remaining conservative in our spending. This philosophy
provides us a cushion to ride out what may turn out to be a difficult
future.
|
New VP of Programs
|
- Although she is certainly not "new" to the Chapter by any means,
Gwaltney Mountford has volunteered
to serve in a new capacity. She will be our VP of Programs for
the remainder of the year. This is great news, as this will allow
us to continue to offer a monthly roster of speakers and programs.
- Many thanks to our members who assisted by identifying and bringing
speakers to the meetings. Although they were not officially Programs
VP, Gina Gotsill, Jeanie
Egbert and Joe Humbert all stepped in to fill the
gap. Thanks to them, we had a full roster of programs while the
office was empty. And, even before she became official, Gwaltney
has been hard at work organizing a panel of speakers for our annual
Trends in Technical Communication program in June.
|
Volunteering
|
- We now hope to replace Gwaltney
as Manager of Hospitality. We also are looking for someone to
help publicize the meetings and programs. If you are interested
in filling one of these positions, please contact me and we can
discuss how you might help.
- Many thanks to Joe Humbert for updating our Chapter's
brochure. It has been refreshed with the new STC logo, some new
faces and updated information. It is available on the EBSTC Web
site at
http://www.ebstc.org/ChapterResources/ebstc_brochure_2009.pdf
|
Upcoming Programs
|
- On June 4, we will have our annual “Trends in Technical
Communication” panel. Gwaltney Mountford
will moderate a panel featuring Dana Chisnell, DJ Cline, Jeff
Gardiner, Joan Lasselle, and Linda Urban. Plan to be there.
- After our summer break, our September meeting will be delayed
one week. On Sept. 10, Scott Abel,
the Content Wrangler, will be our featured speaker. If you have
not heard Scott speak, you are in for a mind-bending experience.
Scott is redefining the roles that technical communicators can
assume. Among his titles are conference blogger, FLOSS manuals
editor, top tweeter with over 2400 followers, tilt-er at AT&T
windmills, and probably another 4 or 5 by the time we see him
in September. Don't miss this opportunity to hear what is capturing
Scott's attention these days.
|
Food for Thought
|
- Susan Granzella, Senior
Business Leader of Technical Communications Services at Visa,
was our speaker at the April meeting. She gave a terrific talk
filled with insights into working across cultures. She has led
her department's embrace of globalization and made a success of
working with a staff separated by distance and by cultural expectations.
She shared stories and examples of how to lead a techcomm
group through a huge transition to support a global organization.
She also guaranteed that I will never again take my credit card
transactions for granted.
|
Final Words
|
Our next newsletter will include my impressions of the Rochester
Chapter's spectrum2009 conference. This is the 50th year
for spectrum and I am looking forward to attending the two day event
and reporting back to you.
-
If you have any articles that you would like to contribute
to our next newsletter, contact our managing editor, Alliene
Turner (hairston.turner@gmail.com).
Deadline is Aug.2, 2009.
- The Yahoo! Groups discussion board is available to our members.
This is a forum for you to share your ideas and concerns. To sign
up, click the East
Bay STC Network link in the upper rithe website.
- We are always looking for volunteers. Check out the openings
by clicking on the Volunteers
link in the left sidebar of the website's home page.
Hope to see you at the meetings,
Ann
|
|
