TOPIC Our topic for the BAPMF meeting of November 11 was the state of our profession today: the health of the technical publications profession in Silicon Valley at the end of 2004, and the implication for technical publications managers and writers. BAPMF participants discussed the following subjects in a round-table session. HIRING Can managers hire currently? Participant reports were mixed in regard to hiring writers. - The general impression is that more there has been more hiring than last year, including the opening of permanent reqs here in Silicon Valley. - Some participants reported that managers at their company were able to hire writers, but most of the new writers hired were contractors. - Other participants reported that previously open requisitions for writers were being pulled at their company. Are there job opportunities for managers? Most participants have the impression that there has been a modest increase in the number of technical publications management positions being offered. - Most of the increase in management positions offered occurred during the 2004 summer. - However, more recently there are fewer management positions available. (Probably the usual seasonal trend.) - Managerial salaries are still depressed in contrast to previous years. - Several participants felt that more positions will open up early in 2005. OFFSHORING Offshoring Trends - Most participants agreed that talk about offshoring as it applies to technical publications seems to have decreased. - Much of this can be attributed to the mainstreaming of the whole offshoring topic in the U.S. media. It is widely recognized as a concern that goes far beyond our profession. - Some participants know of companies that have moved the jobs of foreign-born employees from the U.S. to the employees' original country. - Other participants know of companies that are offshoring both engineering and technical writing jobs to countries such as India and China. - The consensus was that offshoring will continue but perhaps will impact our profession more slowly than was feared at the end of 2003. Success vs Failure of Offshoring - When the question was asked if participants had success stories concerning offshoring experiences, the general impression was that there have been more failures than successes. - An impression that some participants had is that offshoring is practiced more by less-successful companies than by more-successful companies. - Some participants felt that offshoring successes will increase over time as employees in other countries gain more experience. Problems with Offshoring - Infrastructure problems -- In particular, Bangalore, India was reported as a problematic location for offshoring because its infrastructure (water, transportation, and electricity) is under great stress because of the large population and rapid increase of companies basing operations there. -- If a U.S. company locates positions in Bangalore, they need to ensure their site has a generator or two. -- Commuting has become nearly impossible because of the rapid increase of employment. - Quality problems -- Some participants mentioned quality is problematic with technical documents produced overseas. -- Just as was mentioned last year when this topic was discussed, considerable effort and expense must be applied to editing and reworking the output produced overseas. - Copyright and intellectual property problems -- Participants mentioned that Asian cultures appear to disregard copyrights and do not pay attention to the security needs of U.S. companies. -- One participant said that if you have code developed in Asia, it rapidly becomes "shareware" whether you like it or not. - Time zones Time zone differences can double the time to make decisions. -- The end of a work day in California (5 to 6 pm) coincides with the start of a work day in India (7 to 8 am). -- Unless a U.S. company is willing to pay for constant telephone calls, making a decision with an e-mail exchange can take days instead of hours. - Hidden costs Some participants have direct experience managing offshore efforts, and report that travel is an unavoidable factor in effective management. The expense of this travel substantially changes the cost equation. STARTUPS Venture capital is now being invested in startups not just in Silicon Valley but in other parts of the U.S. and the world as well. Startups in Asia Venture capitalists locate startups in Asia mainly because, in contrast to the U.S., markets there are larger. - For PCs, the U.S. market is nearing saturation and may be as low as approximately 6 million because so many consumers already have PCs. - In contrast, India's 200-million middle class is a large market that has not been completely tapped as an outlet for PCs and consumer electronics. - China's large and growing middle class also outnumbers the U.S. market for PCs and consumer electronics. - India is creating it's own venture capital industry, completely independent of U.S. firms. They hope to create companies whose products will compete directly with ours. Startups in Silicon Valley Venture capitalists locate startups in Silicon Valley because of the concentrated pool of talented engineers. - In Silicon Valley, currently the pool of available talented engineers is larger than previous years -- and for less pay in contrast to previous years. - Other U.S. sites (even in Sacramento, California) have more difficulty recruiting qualified engineers in contrast to Silicon Valley. CONCLUSIONS - By small increments, the hiring situation for technical publication managers and writers is getting better in Silicon Valley, but we are still far from the frantic hiring situation of the late 1990s. - Opportunities do exist for both managers and writers. We just have to work harder to find them. - Offshoring of technical publications jobs is a trend that will continue. However, the pace appears to have slowed as problems with offshoring get more attention. - Venture capitalists still want to locate startups in Silicon Valley because of the high concentration of technical talent.