The Importance of Communication Skills over Technical Skills

Friday, February 12th, 2010 | Off-Topic, Team Dynamics, Writing Theory & Practice

This week I read a post by Ivan Walsh of I Heart Tech Docs entitled “Who Makes The Most Money—Technical Writers with Strong Language or Deep Technical Skills?” For some reason, his site won’t let me comment, but since it turned out that my reply was somewhat lengthy, it’s better to respond here in my own space instead of imposing on his.

At first, Ivan seemed to be saying that technical skills are more important than writing skills. But I read the post again, and I think he’s saying that technical skills are worth more in the marketplace because they’re harder to develop.

My take is that the reason a developer who does some tech writing gets paid more than the full-time tech writer is because the first guy is still a developer. Developers get paid more than technical communicators most of the time (or all the time, most likely). I think a programmer with some interest or a bit of practice in technical writing getting a job ahead of experienced technical writers may be a signal that management (or HR) doesn’t know what they’re supposed to be looking for in a technical writer.

Which Skills Are Easier to Develop?

Ivan attempted to draw a conclusion about whether language and writing skills are easier to develop than technical skills. I don’t think you can make a blanket statement. Some people are going to pick up writing and language skills faster, and I think a lot of those people find their way into technical communication; but a lot of them also have some interest and skill in technical areas. Some may be equally adept at writing and technical disciplines. I consider myself pretty good at writing, but while I struggle sometimes with technical concepts, I see myself as a quick learner.

The skill of learning quickly is one that should always be sought in a technical communicator. We constantly need to be learning—the product we’re documenting, some new tool, and so on. If you’re flexible and can learn quickly, I think you’ll go farther than someone heavy on writing skills or heavy on technical skills but not proficient in both.

I have heard many times that employers are more interested in soft skills than tool knowledge because they can send you to a few days’ worth of tool training, and you come back fairly proficient. But it can take a lot longer to learn the many things that effective technical communicators know.

Perpetuating the Myth

To accept the idea that someone with great technical skills and mediocre communication skills makes a great technical writer is to accept that anyone can write, which is a fable that many people tell around the campfire. And while anyone can type, not everyone can write well, or might I say, communicate effectively. There is so much more to technical communication than putting words on a page.

If you want good technical writing, get someone who knows how to communicate well. That takes both talent and training. It’s not something a developer is going to pick up after a couple of classes or an evening of practice unless he also has a talent for it. Even talented writers still have to practice a lot to do it well.

One of the big problems in our field is developers writing documentation when they don’t know what the ingredients of good user assistance are. As a group, they confuse telling the capabilities of the product with explaining how to use the product to get a job done. (Some of us do the same thing, so how can we expect developers to do any differently?)

Communication That Solves Problems

I argue that for effective communication, you need an effective communicator. Someone who can communicate with the developers well enough to understand the product and who can turn around and communicate effectively with the consumer. Depending on who you are, I don’t think those skills are easier to learn than how to code some JavaScript or to understand the difference between a primary key and a foreign key in databases.

But I do agree with comments after Ivan’s post—that if you broaden your view and look at how effective communication solves problems, then you’ll become more important to the team. And that means the project managers and developers will be coming to you to solve problems that the developers can’t solve.

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10 Comments to 'The Importance of Communication Skills over Technical Skills'

Larry Kunz
February 12, 2010

Ben — As is often the case, I think you’ve hit the nail on the head.

Janet Swisher wrote a good comment on Ivan’s blog. To build on what Janet said: learning how to be a competent technical writer is probably no harder than learning how to code some JavaScript. But becoming an effective technical communicator or content strategist takes so much more.

I like how you emphasized the skill of learning quickly. It’s one of the things I’m most proud of in myself, and it’s been indispensable to me in my career.

Ivan Walsh
February 12, 2010

Hi Ben,

Ivan here. The comments section is open. Can you double-check please. We had a few comments so far.

Maybe take a look.

Ivan

Ben Reply:
February 13th, 2010 at 4:22 pm

Strangely enough, I had trouble posting before you went to two blogs, too. I’m not sure what the problem is. I was using IE7; could there be a browser problem?

Ivan Walsh
February 12, 2010

Great point.

<if you… look at how effective communication solves problems, then you’ll become more important to the team

would that be by improving your writing skills or technical knowledge?

….as this was the original question?

Margaret
February 12, 2010

I don’t think one interpretation fits all. In some high-tech areas, such as “Silicon Valley”, technical credentials may count more toward salary than writing credentials. In other environments, that may not apply.

Early in my career, I spent a year at Bell Labs. That gave me an “open sesame” of telecommunications industry experience when I later applied for positions at GTE, AT&T, Lucent, and BellSouth. But it meant little in other industries.

Having been in tech comm for 40 years, I’ve seen that what HR and professional recruiters are looking for in “technical writers” (or any other title) varies with the economy, the area, and what’s been in fashion in HR and recruitment training sessions in the previous couple of years. Tool skills were big, web skills were big, and now industry experience is moving up again.

Salaries and contractor hourly rates tend toward “what the market will bear”. They rise in booming economies when tech writers are in demand, and fall in recessions. I’ve seen several recent ads wanting 5-7 yrs experience, and offering $18-20/hr. Learn what’s up in the market you’re in.
concentrate on what you’re good at, and like to do, and learn how to sell all your skills to employers in your area to solve their problems.

Unlike previous recessions, tech com jobs have not totally disappeared. Jobs are being advertised, and writers are being hired. It’s slow, but it is improving. Good luck to all of you who are job hunting.

Ben Reply:
February 13th, 2010 at 4:29 pm

On your point of technical credentials, I think there are probably more certifications and things of that nature available on technical subjects. I believe there are some tech writing certifications out there, but STC has discussed multiple times the feasibility of having a technical communication certification. But training in technical subjects I think is much more common. Maybe it’s perceived that since our profession doesn’t have much in the way of certification, anyone can do it. And the more technical credentials you can show, the more you’re “worth.”

It can be possible in situations where HR or managers don’t quite know what they need in a tech writer for the tech writer to come in and make the position into what it should be. At first, you have to in large part give people what they’re looking for, or they may wonder why they hired you in the first place. But if the job isn’t quite what it’s supposed to be, gently push boundaries and introduce new concepts. Gradually, in many cases I believe, you can make the job into what you want it to be.

Ivan Walsh
February 13, 2010

<Learn what’s up in the market you’re in.

That's it. If you don't push ahead, you get left behind.

Ivan

Andrea Wenger
February 13, 2010

Does it take more skill to write code that a machine will understand, or to write prose that people will understand? Technical communicators will be paid more when they do a better job of communicating their worth.

Greg Wehmeyer
February 18, 2010

“I have heard many times that employers are more interested in soft skills than tool knowledge.”

I’ve found that interviewers spend more time talking about tools than soft skills. I think this happens because it’s much easier to determine if someone knows FrameMaker than it is to determine if they are effective communicators. This is unfortunate because you can learn a tool in a few days, but writing clearly and concisely is a skill acquired over a lifetime.

Ben Reply:
February 18th, 2010 at 9:58 pm

Your comment points to effective interviewing, which is a whole other discussion. But I agree that showing a portfolio piece or accomplishing some task on the interviewer’s computer shows ability to use a tool, while soft skills are harder to demonstrate. Even if you give a candidate a scenario to talk through, you’re seeing how the person can think on his/her toes more than other skills.

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