"Socialization of the New Hire in the Workplace"

Linda Lambert

Linda Lambert graduated with a BS in Technical Communication (with High Honors) from New Mexico Tech in 2008. Her advisor for this thesis was Dr. Julie Ford. Linda currently works as a technical writer for research and development laboratory.

Contents

Abstract and Introduction

Purpose and Approach

What is "Socialization"?

Review of Literature 

Necessity vs. Sufficiency

The Path to Success

Conclusion

References

The Path to Success 

The work of Hart and Conklin (2006) describes an ultimate role of the effective technical communicator, that of the boundary spanner, who facilitates the flow of communication rather than that of a wordsmith responsible for a final written product.  This role implies that the technical communicator is involved in virtually every phase of a project, from its birth as a concept to final production.  Hart and Conklin, however, do not offer specific guidance on how one assumes the role they have described.  Katz (1998b) defines for us the beginning of the pathway, while Hart and Conklin define for us the end.  What is missing is a guidebook to all the intervening territory.

What then needs to be the would-be newcomer’s mindset in pursuing the pathway?

This mindset needs to begin to grow at the earliest stages of professional development in school. Such a long-range view of one’s individual desired final state can be difficult for young people having minimal work experience. However, I have found in my own experience (both in an internship and in other jobs) the following premises: assume leadership, broaden one’s curriculum, practice entrepreneurship, and focus on the employer’s bottom line. I offer some specific and non-specific (given their proprietary nature) examples from my own experience in various career and internship experiences.

Determine to be a Leader

I found gaps in the coverage of tasks that needed to be performed to enhance and advance the business. In discreetly pointing out these gaps to management, without importing obnoxious tone or sense of panic, I offered ideas, perceptions, and skills (some TC-related, some not) for improved coverage. However, given a degree of corporate inertia, this was oftentimes a hard-sell to convince others that what I offered would truly gain some efficiancies.

Think Outside the Catalogue

Although the TC course curriculum requirements are explicit and necessary to get one's degree, learn from the weaknesses or failures of your colleagues that employers want more. Set yourself apart in competition for jobs. For example, do not be content with knowledge of editing, styles, rhetoric.  Acquire skills in dealing with people and business.  For example, some of these skills are acquired, practiced, and nurtured through a pursuit of certification as a Project Management Professional.

I found numerous opportunities for continuing education, especially specialized training in advanced technologies, and a knowledge of which technologies were evolving as essential to the growth of the business. When someone needed to become certified in fiber optics, I volunteered. Not only did I become the subject matter expert, but the new skills I gained enabled me to not only perform the technical tasks not previously attempted in-house, but gave me detailed understanding of the effort so that I could effectively communicate its complexities to the program sponsors.

Because of a demonstrated interest, competence, and conversance in the subject, I was chosen to travel to a training course to learn the finer points of high-speed photography. Not only did I gain detailed insight into the capabilities and limitations of such, but I equipped myself to better contribute to interdisciplinary project teams that required this technology and the documentation of its use in project work.

Aim for Entrepreneurship

Immerse yourself in the organizational vision and mission statements. What’s that? The organization does not have these? Ahhhhh opportunity. I have yet to gain a chair at the table (at least with this company) where higher-level corporate rhetoric is generated for organizational goals. However, by continuing to demonstrate technical breadth and communication excellence, I hope to be recognized as a resource knowledgeable about current organizational capabilities, resources, and strengths that can be grown into new lines of business. Already organizational management has developed a new appreciation of the value of documentation (i.e. assessments, analyses, and instrumentation reports) – a position echoed by our program sponsor. As a result, more resources for documentation have been allotted and documentation is now considered an essential item in our product line.

Keep Sight of the Bottom Line

If your employer is for-profit, this will be monetary. If not, the bottom line might be reputation, prestige, competence, credibility, etc. However, it is still a bottom line – have a sense of business and contribute to bottom line.

Our organizational bottom line is measured by the delight our principal customer and program sponsor takes in our successes. My contributions as a technical communicator on relating these successes place our organization in the spotlight. I can only use the achievements of others and myself; the content, style, and manner of the presentation of our achievements is largely my responsibility. It can be a weighty one.