April 02 | Thursdays @ STC Chicago

April 11 | Introduction to Adobe® RoboHelp® 7

April 17 | Personal Power Tools: Listening, Managing Conflict, and Negotiating Skills

April 23 | STC Chicago Monthly Meeting: Manage Your Documents with Web-based Tools

Special Announcements about the 2009 Summit

Free Webcasts from STC

Call for Speakers: Chicago eLearning & Technology Showcase

Social Networking Sites

Alliance Group Meetings & Workshops

April 2009 Photo Contest

Other News 

 

STC Chicago members are meeting at variety of popular venues across the Chicago metropolitan area this month. Meetup with friends and colleagues in Chicago, Lincolnshire, Downers Grove, Schaumburg, Westmont, and a new location in Highland, Indiana. See Thursdays for details.

 

Want to start a group of your own? Contact thursdays@stc-chicago.org to learn how.

 

Join us on April 11 for an important look at Adobe RoboHelp 7. Attendees will learn how to develop a basic Help project in Microsoft HTML Help format. Robohelp X5 users will learn processes and tips for updating to Version 7. 

 

While this workshop introduces the basics of developing a good help file (regardless of the tool used), the focus will be on techniques for using the Adobe RoboHelp 7 HTML authoring tool. The workshop will also include a preview of the recent release of Adobe RoboHelp 8 with Technical Communication Suite 2.

 

Date: Saturday, April 11, 2009

Time: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm

Location: National-Louis University, Lisle Campus, 850-950 Warrenville Road, Lisle, IL (Map)

Cost: $89 for advanced registration; $99 at the door

 

 

About the Instructor: Russell Friend is a Senior Technical Writer at Siemens Building Technologies, as well as an STC Associate Fellow and STC Chicago Past President.

 

Mary Ryba Knepper returns to Chicago with her one-day workshop aimed at helping you work more effectively with your colleagues and clients. Even if you are great at getting the software and widgets to work, you may still get frustrated at times with communication malfunctions with colleagues and clients. Whether a seasoned corporate player or a newbie, you will learn how to respond with improved skills in listening, managing conflict, and negotiating.

• Listening: Become more adept at hearing what people are saying and not saying through words and body language; responding appropriately as a listener; and identifying where and how we fail as listeners and unintentionally discourage interaction.
• Managing Conflict: Use CORE techniques to prevent conflict and follow a five-step process for resolving conflict.
• Negotiating: Identify your personal style and evaluate its best use in various situations; employ collaboration to achieve a higher level of professionalism.

Become the hub of your work team, the one others go to when the project needs guidance and direction. Be the person everyone wants on their team.

 

Date: Friday, April 17, 2009

Time: 8:30 am - 4:15 pm

Location: The Carleton Hotel of Oak Park, 1110 Pleasant Street, Oak Park, IL (Map)

Online Registration Rates Available through April 10: $75 for members; $100 for Alliance members; $125 for non-members

 

 

About the Instructor: Mary Ryba Knepper, Ph.D., is president and owner of Ryba Associates Inc. Her professional activities include executive coaching in communication, consulting on corporate communication, training professionals in oral and written communication, training trainers, and writing manuals, brochures, and other documentation. She specializes in writing operations manuals and in training personnel on the operations.

 

A Document Management System (DMS) can benefit local to global teams that have a stake in a project with faster input, approvals and history of actions taken.

 

Attend our next meeting, "Manage Your Documents with Web-Based Tools," to hear Ken Cook and his team from Ken Cook Co. describe a web-based DMS that has evolved from national to global applications. The team will present the history of various applications and benefits to all DMS participants and will give a live web demonstration to show how the tool works.

 

Date: Thursday, April 23, 2009

Time: 6:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Location: The Carleton Hotel of Oak Park, 1110 Pleasant Street, Oak Park, IL (Map)

Online Registration Rates Available through April 17: $30 for members; $40 non-members; $15 for students (with Student I.D.); $120 for a table of six

 

 

Ken Cook is president and CEO of Ken Cook Co., a leading technical communication business with 90 employees based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The company produces technical manuals and training programs for major manufacturers including Volvo, Caterpillar, CNH, Deere, Ingersoll-Rand, Altec and Raytheon Aircraft. Ken Cook Co. is a member of the STC Corporate Value Program (CVP).

 

Adam Retzlaff has been an account executive at Ken Cook Co. for more than five years and served as a project coordinator before that. His customers include Yanmar Co. and Altec Industries, for whom he manages multiple projects and develops technical documentation and training.

 

Are you attending this year's Technical Communication Summit in Atlanta? Be sure to register before April 21 in order to receive the Early Bird Rate of $795. Register here.

 

Recognizing the impact of the current economic downturn on technical communicators, STC will grant 250 scholarships to members who have been laid off, let go, downsized, or forced to take a pay cut of 10% or more.

 

Scholarships of $400 will be awarded to members wishing to attend the STC Technical Communication Summit on May 3 to 6 in Atlanta. The scholarships are open to STC members in good standing who are any of the following:

• unemployed
• employed but forced to take at least a 10% cut in salary
• consultants or business owners who have experienced a downturn in business revenue of at least 10%

Applicants must also stay at the official conference hotel (Hyatt Regency Atlanta) in order to take advantage of this benefit. Eligible members can download the scholarship application form here.

 

Also in response to the economic downturn, STC is offering split payment (half in advance and half on site) for conference registration and phased payment for member dues. For more information, visit www.stc.org.

 

For information about other help available to STC members, see Resources for Members During Tough Times.

 

 

Expand your professional network by interacting with STC Chicago members at a variety of social media sites. Recommend your colleagues, find new contacts, and receive the latest industry news at STC Chicago's LinkedIn Group. If you are a member of STC Chicago, go to the Groups Directory, search for STC Chicago, and click Join this Group.

 

STC Chicago is on Twitter. Get news, special offers, and other announcements at www.twitter.com/stcchicago.

 

Our community blog has been in place since 2006, the same year we began using Flickr.com to display our members' photos. Recently, STC Chicago created its own YouTube Channel and FaceBook Fan Page. Find us online and share your comments, links, photos, and more. Our online network is expanding every day! Don't miss this opportunity to build your personal brand and connect with other technical communication professionals.

 

Join IABC/Chicago on April 22 for Lynn Hazan's presentation on the importance of narrative in corporate communications. Learn how to harness the power of storytelling when crafting messages for corporate audiences. Attendees will have access to a follow-up complimentary webinar to extend and reinforce lessons learned. For details, visit IABC/Chicago.

 

The Illinois Technology Association is holding an Emerging Technologies Roundtable on April 21. For more information about ITA, see the ITA website.

 

Participate in the election process this year. STC Chicago encourages you to visit the Candidates' FAQ at the STC website, review the candidates' biographies and qualifications, read the questions and answers, and even ask questions of your own. Then, be sure to cast your ballot during the voting period. Thank you for your support!