Agile and collaborative documentation production - the key to achieving user satisfaction
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Transcript of Agile and collaborative documentation production - the key to achieving user satisfaction
Agile and collaborative production - a key to achieving user satisfaction?
Andy McDonald, edc product manager
State of the art
Technology
Traitement de texte
SGMLInternet XML DIT
A
NormsMediaTraining
Use case
User documentation for a multisipliniary geoscience software platform
-4 years, after restarting from scratch - - contextual documentation on >1000 UI
elements- - >1600 pages added on top of that- - 2TW + experts + support team
Planned and managed in agile mode
Use case
Full coverage is not enough
What users are we dealing with, and what are the issues ?
New users Expert users
- Getting up and running when training is too hard to organize
- How can we provide information on what they don’t know ?
Use case
What is the client asking for?
• taxonomy based search
• participation• annotation, comments & contributions
(in their products)
• usage statitstics• UI ergonomics & terminology
• new forms animation, video, e-learning
Market Study
How software editors deal with documentattion
Panel of editors• startups / intermediairy size• french market/ international• classical business model / SaaS• installed products/ web based• opens source / proprietary
Market Study Documentation is a liability
• stuck in a design model where obscelescence predmoninates
Form and process stuck in the 1990’s• creation unsychronized with development
(even in agility)• it’s not connected, hardly multimedia or
interactive and often out of date
Market Study Unable to reinvent the model
• mnimum service only• or complete
• even if they are « innovators »
• they can’t image anything different, interactive, innovative
Document is a cost centre, and far from an added value
Software EditorsHow to motivate them ?
• identify added value• concentrate on user satisfaction• propose a better production model
Software EditorsWhat can we propose
• they/ we take over• better explain and agree on what we add• be a part of the development process
Software Editors
And
Writers
What can we suggest ?• they / we manage a content strategy• build documentation with agile methods• build from the ground up• implement collaboration
Content strategy
ObjectivesAudienceDistribution channelsContents structureSource identificationValidation mechanism
Incremental buildingBottom-up production
• start with the UI• add connex subject matter• comment, contribute• validate• publish
Collaborative work processes
Who collaborates & how?• developers & TW• support & TW• experts & TW• product owners & TW
Agility & content strategy
+Content strategy can fit into agile methods
Agility & content strategy
+An overview is designed with the product owner
Agility & content strategy
+Target audience is defined when defining the requirements
Agility & content strategy
+Publishing cgannelsAre defined in plannifaction
Agility & content strategy
+Content buildingAn iterative phasealongside project dev in sprints
depth of contextual doc on UI bricks defined with developers- connexe doc depending on objectives
- procedures with experts- FAQ & Howtos (with support- tutorials with training
Agility & content strategy
+Sources are also human- PO > concepts- PO & experts > procedures- support knows user needs- trainers know what tutorials they need
Agility & content strategy
+Tests & validation during development
Feedbackis continuous- capture user experince
- improvement cycle
TW
implementing change
TW beyond writing• architect - structure & contents• responsability - editorial cycle• abritrator - production cycle
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