1. Communication Technology

2. What is Technical Communication?
Producing technical communication involves creating, designing and transmitting technical information so that people understand it easily and use it safely, effectively and efficiently.

3. What is Technical Communication?
Much of what you read everyday is technical communication.
Textbooks
Phone Books
Procedures Manuals
Websites

4. What is Technical Communication?
The words and the graphics in these documents are meant to be practical.
They communication information to help an audience understand a subject or carry out a task.
Example:
A biology text helps students understand the fundamentals of plant and animal biology.
A software program describes how to use the program effectively.

5. Who Produces Technical Communication?
Most technical communication is produced by one of two different categories:
Technical Professionals – engineers, scientists, business people and other technically trained individuals.
Technical Communicators – a person who creates documents including manuals, proposals, reports, sales literature, websites, letters, journal articles and speeches.

6. Technical Communicators
Employees within organizations
Employees of companies that offer communication services to other organizations
Freelancers

7. Freelance
Although most technical communicators are employees within organizations, many work as independent contractors – sometimes called freelancers.
Freelancers focus on individual projects that can last a few weeks, months or years.
These independent contractors can work at home, at the clients facility or both.

8. Technical Communication and Your Career
Your first step in obtaining a position is to write two technical documents.
Application Letter
Resume
These documents will help an organization decide whether to interview you.
At the interview your oral communication skills will be evaluated along with your other qualifications.

9. Working World Values Good Communication Skills
Job ads in newspapers and professional journals suggest that the working world values good communication skills.
The steady growth in continuing-education courses in technical and business communication also reflects the demand for effective communicators.

10. Working World Values Good Communication Skills
Organizations are paying to send their professionals back to the classroom to improve their technical communication skills.
The facts of corporate life today are simple: If you can communicate well, you are valuable. If you cannot, you are must less so.