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The Experience Comes First InterChange April 1, 2016

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A few hats I wear…

• Technical writer• Information architect• Information designer• Consultant• Employee• Trainer• College professor• Mentor

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Credit: smiley-talentmgtcom

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Team

• A group of people who compete in a sport, game, etc., against another group• A group of people who work together

- Merriam Webster Dictionary

6Credit: http://www.birthday-presence.org/

7Credit: http://millennialsd.com

8Credit: teamwork-bookboon.com

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Credit: unicorns_cottoncandyfabrics

11Credit: Afro Ninja Productions

12Credit: http://www.cruxdigital.nl/tag/silos/

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It’s not just content

• Resources• Infrastructure• Tools

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So, let’s fix it…but wait

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Reaction

• Impact efficiency• No time• Too busy• Too new

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Change is hard

1717SonosCredit: Magnus Lindkvist

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So, what to do?

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First…

2020Sonos Credit: http://www.theatlantic.com

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They both are.

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“John and Paul were so obviously more creative as a pair than as individuals, even if at times they appeared to work in opposition to each other.”

Joshua Wolf Shenk“The Power of Two”The Atlantic

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• Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak• William and Dorothy Wordsworth• Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph Abernathy

The essence of their achievements, it turns out, was relational. Joshua Wolf Shenk

“The Power of Two”The Atlantic

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So what does this mean for us?

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Get out of the box!

Credit: sharepointmaven.com

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First…

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Help others get out of the box…

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Figure out who needs to be on the team

Who creates content?

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Figure out who needs to be on the team

• Product documentation• Customer Care• Marketing• Brand• Sales• Web• UI Designers• Developers• Across departments• Across Regions

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Identify your allies

• Who works on content similar to yours?• What are their needs?• Is there anything that you can help them with?• Build relationships!• Communicate!

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Three Pillars

Communicate!Communicate!Communicate!

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Be a new best friend…• Insert yourself• Set up a monthly meeting, even if it’s just a check in…what are you

guys working on?• Does your company use Skype or Slack? Message them once in a

while…keep them updated on what’s in a release…hey, did you know…maybe they already heard, but maybe not!

• Sit with them at lunch• Listen in on the Customer Care phone calls• Ask what’s new in their world

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Communicate Constantly

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The best outcome…

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They all think it was their idea!

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Where to begin?

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Wireframes

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Error Messages

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41Credit: Digitalbloggers.com

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Be careful what you wish for…

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Remember the prime directive

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Experience Comes First

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Not really…this is a GOOD problem!

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We’re adding value!

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Traction!

Credit: Amazon.com

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What’s next?

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Tone of voice is critical

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Voice• Tied to the values of the company • Reflects the definition of the customer

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Brand

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Initial Project• Summary• Relevance• Success Criteria• Team• Risks• Scope of Work

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State of the work today

5656Sonoshttp://www.openmarket.com/blog/silo-smashing-join-movement/

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It’s work in progress…

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With the emphasis on

PROGRESS!

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Thank you!