AGM 2013: Progress to Success

Everyone has their own definition of success; however, there is one common element--obtaining knowledge from people who have already achieved success. Why learn from your mistakes if you don't have to make mistakes in the first place? Chances are that someone has tried to do the things that you would like to do. Why not learn from them? It only makes sense to be efficient and effective as you try to find a job, change fields, or improve the work that you currently do.

Part of progressing in your career may be to learn more about the Society for Technical Communication, and specifically the Southwestern Ontario Chapter. Attend the business portion of our Annual General Meeting (AGM) and find out what took place this past year, and what some initiatives might be for the upcoming one. If you are a member of our chapter, you can also take part in any voting that occurs at the AGM, for example, for any contested positions on council. | More

Resume Critiquing Service

As a technical communicator, you know that it is not easy to edit your own work. The end result is better when you have had a fresh set of eyes look at what you have written. A resume is no different. Fresh eyes mean a fresh perspective and can be the difference between getting an interview or not. Have someone look at your resume the way a potential employer might look at it. | More

Some Highlights from Last Year

The 2011-2012 STC year was full of activity. There was lots to see and do. Here are just a few highlights:

• A variety of topics and formats for our education evenings (for example, webinars, presentations, and panels).
• Social events at The Firkin and the Bookshelf's eBar
• Two-part Career Path education evenings. Part 1: Panel presentation by five people in roles that use skills transferrable from technical writing -- Product Marketing Specialist, Graphic Designer, Information Architect, User Experience (UX) Designer, and Business Analyst. Part 2: An education evening about writing resumes and cover letters to transition into a new role.
• Increased social media presence (over 80 members of our LinkedIn group, STC Southwestern Ontario Chapter; over 70 followers @stc_soc on Twitter; over 100 members of STC Soutwestern Ontario Google Group, use of EventBrite for promoting and registering for our events, presence on Facebook)
• Four half-day education workshops that included Hannah Morgan (social media), Rich Maggiani (presentation skills), Chris Greaves (automated indexing), and Michael Priestly (DITA)
• Three exceptional winners of the Heidi Thiessen Memorial Award in a year when we had over double the entries that we had the previous year.
• A Distinguished Chapter Service Award for Carol Lawless and The Summit Award for Rob Cundari.
• An AGM that included award-winning author, Eric Walters.
• Some changes to our website (updated logo and scrolling pictures of some of our events over the years).