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President's Message
Alas, Alack, and Woe is Me!
By Hans Fenstermacher
Many of us have been feeling like this lately (including yours truly, I am a little ashamed to admit). The economy is in the doldrums, and most companies are reacting by cutting. They are cutting staff, cutting budgets, and cutting resources. That may seem sensible as a (very) temporary survival strategy, but you cannot get a stalled economy moving by slamming on the brakes. There is only one way to move forward: forward movement!
It occurs to me that the same is true for us in the STC. We may feel like we are stuck in a bleak landscape at the moment, but, as with the economy, the best way to change this outlook is to get busy growing. So, the Boston Chapter of STC is in the midst of starting an exciting year with new energy and initiatives!
Growth Sometimes Means Looking at Ourselves
On September 13, 2001, Saul Carliner, our beloved perennial guru, starts off our program year with an introspective session about "career ladders" in today's market and how you can position yourself on a better rung. We have also invited local placement specialists to share with you their thoughts on market prospects. For more information about this and other upcoming programs, check out Taryn Light's article in this issue. Taryn is our first vice president.
We are also embarking on Competitions 2001, which is in full swing as this issue of the Broadside goes to press. This is a great opportunity for you to make a submission for an objective peer review of your work, or to be a competitions judge and see what others are doing, and what you can learn from that. For more information on Competitions2001, contact Michelle Borelli. Michelle is our second vice president.
Growth Sometimes Means Change
This past August, another organization in the technical communications field, the Society for Documentation Professionals (SDP), decided to close its doors after many years of existence. Disassembling an organization is always sad; however, this instance also represents an opportunity for STC growth. SDP members are energetic and experienced, and we in the STC welcome their enthusiastic contributions to help expand and grow our profession. SDP former president Greg Bartlett has enthusiastically joined this year's Boston Chapter STC Programs Committee to help plan some really great happenings every month for STC members. Welcome, Greg!
Another noteworthy change occurred in our plans for the Region I and II STC conference early next year. For reasons of current conditions (that pesky economy again!) and timing issues, this first major regional conference, entitled "Communicators in Concert," will be postponed until the fall 2002. Many exciting proposals were received from speakers, and the organizers will contact those folks again when we resume planning for the event.
Growth Means Responsibility, Too
We on the Boston Chapter Council take our responsibility to our members seriously. It requires substantial work to run a chapter, and we have all begun tackling the many tasks involved. The following list describes the key contacts for 2001-2002 and their special areas of responsibility in the Boston Chapter:
We hope to hear from you soon.
Come Grow with Us
We hope to see you at upcoming STC programs, where you will discover an energetic and intelligent group of peers with lots of experience and training to share. And to all of you going through less than pleasant times at the moment, hang in there! Come join us and we'll all feel a little better.
Hans Fenstermacher is president of the Boston Chapter STC. In his day job, he is president and founder of ArchiText Inc., a provider of localization and globalization services.
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