By Bethany Aguad
Join the Florida Chapter on February 22 at 6:30 pm on Zoom to bring up your toughest problem and hear our panelists’ advice!
Panelists: Lori Corbett, Michael Ryff, and Bethany Aguad
Location: Zoom
Date: Thursday, February 22
Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm ET
Let’s face it, being a professional technical communicator in 2024 comes with its own unique set of challenges. Do any of these sound familiar to you?
- Keeping up with rapidly evolving software tools and platforms, as well as emerging communication technologies.
- Working with limited resources, including budget constraints, can impact the quality and effectiveness of communication deliverables.
- Struggling to collaborate effectively with other departments, such as engineering or marketing, due to differences in priorities, communication styles, or understanding of technical content.
- While you are communicating complex technical information in a clear and accessible manner, especially when dealing with intricate or specialized subject matter.
No, it’s not easy being us. And it can be even harder if you’re just starting out. Let our panelists help solve your problems on Thursday!
Agenda
We are planning the following agenda for the event:
- 6:30 pm – Networking
- 7:00 pm – Welcome, announcements, and introduction of panelist
- 7:15pm – Open Q&A with the panelists (not recorded for privacy)
- 8:30pm – Closing
Meeting Payments
We are charging the following rates for this educational program:
- Free for student members
- $5 for STC Florida Chapter Members
- $15 for all other attendees
Please RSVP and send your meeting payment through PayPal to receive the Zoom details for this meeting. Students can attend for free by RSVPing on this page.
Meet the Presenters:
Lori Corbett
While at college, Lori learned typesetting, working on the Columbia Spectator, a daily newspaper. With a degree in Economics, Lori and her husband moved to Charlotte, NC, where she worked at various companies as a typesetter. Then, in the mid-80s, when she was porting documentation others had written to the typesetting system, she would find errors, get them fixed, and was eventually moved over to the editor’s desk. In 1988, she joined STC for the networking and educational experiences it offers.
Another step in her working journey put her in a position where she developed training materials for all audience levels, including shipping and receiving personnel. And then to write documentation for financial companies like banks and investment firms.
Although she started her working experience as a direct employee, after a few years, she found very interesting opportunities doing contract work. One of her memorable contracts was developing the training material at Disney World on a new financial reporting application (Business Objects). After developing the training, they asked her to continue as a trainer.
Lori continued as a contractor for about 15 years, but early in this century, she decided that as she was getting older, it might be a good idea to work in a position that included benefits such as health insurance. She was going to have to give up the tax incentives where monies spent on the “business” were tax deductible. One of the great things about contracting for so many years is that it gave Lori the opportunity to learn how many systems work.
In 2002, Lori started a “permanent” position at PFPC, a subsidiary of PNC, later sold to Bank of New York Mellon. At this company, she worked on technical documentation for dividend processing and computer configurations. It was this offer, which brought her to live in PA. And then, believe it or not, due to downsizing, that position was terminated just before Christmas in 2014.
It just so happens that the local STC chapter (Philadelphia Metro) had its holiday party that week. When asked what was new, she let them know that she had just been laid off and was getting ready to go to Disney, her annual January destination. Oh no! One of the members realized that he couldn’t let Lori go on her trip until she had completed her application to work at Vertex, where he worked, and where they just happened to have an opening. They fast-tracked the interview and background checks so that she knew she had that position before leaving on her trip. Lori started at Vertex on February 16, 2015, and life goes on…
Michael Ryff
Senior Technical Writer
Michael Ryff is a senior technical writer with over 20 years of experience in technical communications. In that time, he’s worked for start-ups and global brands in technology, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals. He has led and collaborated on many types of communications projects; from individual job aids to organization-wide Lean Six Sigma implementations.
Every project comes with its own challenges that require applying a robust set of problem-solving skills to ensure successful completion. Michael has developed and honed these skills while working in a variety of regulatory environments (such as highly-regulated pharmaceuticals) and industries while collaborating across communication styles and cultures with colleagues in the United States and globally.
He has worked on-site and remotely within organizations and, more recently, as an independent contractor while traveling. Michael holds an A.S. in Engineering Science and a B.A. in Literature. He is also a Certified Professional Technical Communicator (CPTC).
Bethany Aguad
Bethany Aguad is the Director of Product Documentation at Bullhorn, the global leader in staffing industry software, managing the technical writing team as part of product enablement and education. With a career spanning academia, hospitality, and financial services, Bethany applies her communication skills and process improvement expertise to address complex information challenges.
Within STC, Bethany has demonstrated her commitment through various roles and achievements, including co-chairing the Education Committee, earning the Sigma Tau Chi honoree distinction, receiving the Distinguished Service Award for Students, co-managing STC’s student outreach initiative, and representing the student perspective on the Community Affairs Committee.
Bethany currently serves as President of the Florida chapter, having previously been a member of the STC Board of Directors. She has shown dedication to the STC Florida chapter by taking on roles like Treasurer, Webmaster, and President. Additionally, she nurtures the next generation of technical communication professionals by co-managing the mentoring program and fostering connections between students at the University of Central Florida (UCF) and industry experts.
A UCF alumna, Bethany Aguad holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English-Technical Communication, receiving accolades like the Melissa Pellegrin Memorial Scholarship and the Stuart Omans Award for Excellence in Technical Communication.