Between the Lines (BL) recently met up with Theresa Marchwinski (TM) at Spotlight Solutions (acquired by ProfitLogic, Inc.) to get an idea on what it is like to be a Staff Technical Writer.

BL: Thank you, Theresa, for taking this time to speak with us. To begin, could you give us an overview on what your company does?

TM: Spotlight Solutions provides software that helps retailers decide what merchandise to mark down, when to mark it down, and how much to mark it down. When you notice merchandise that is on sale or on the clearance racks, it’s possible that store used software from Spotlight Solutions or ProfitLogic to determine the percent off that you see.

BL: What are some of your responsibilities as a Staff Technical Writer?

TM: In brief, my responsibilities include handling all aspects of internal and external documentation; from determining requirements, submitting project plans, researching and learning the product, and producing the deliverables. Additionally, I test product functionality and write defect and enhancement reports as necessary.

BL: Are you hired directly as a Staff Technical Writer, or do you advance to become one? What is the career path? How did you get to where you are today?

TM: Unless you’ve been in the technical communication field for several years, you typically advance to a staff technical writer position. The career path might start with an entry-level position and then progress to a senior-level and then staff-level position.

I got to where I am today by this traditional path but with a four-year stint as a publications manager. When my former company closed its Cincinnati office, I had the opportunity to return to writing for a start-up company, which is how I came to be a staff technical writer at Spotlight.

BL: What is your favorite aspect about the job?

TM: Without a doubt, mastering the product and then transforming that knowledge into procedures that support how retailers will use the product to make decisions that affect their business.

BL: What is one of the most difficult aspects of your job?

TM: For Spotlight’s product, Permanent Markdown Advisor, the difficulty is in fitting the documentation to the myriad and diverse needs of retailers. For example, although there are a common set of high-level tasks, every retailer has different terms for these tasks, and every retailer has different processes for accomplishing these tasks. Our product is very powerful in the flexibility it provides, but that makes documenting it that much more difficult. Ideally, we would provide custom documentation for each retailer.

BL: How does your job differ from other jobs you have held in the technical communications field?

TM: At Spotlight Solutions, I am the only writer. In my previous position, I was a manager of a department of writers. Being a writer requires intimate product and user knowledge, plus an expert-level proficiency with tools. Being a manager requires product/user and tool knowledge, but at a high-level for several products and tool sets. Both require project management skills, but at varying levels and scopes. Both require interpersonal skills but often with different levels of personnel.

BL: How does your organization function differently than organizations you have worked with before?

TM: My entire career has been with companies that produce software, and I think that most software companies share tight schedules, rapid development cycles, and high expectations of their employees. The most notable differences among the organizations I’ve worked for arise mainly from the size of the organization.