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Seven Things to Look for in a Professional Association
After the search of trying to find the two associations that would fit me the best, I decided on two: Society for Technical Communication (STC) and Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP):
Here are the seven things to look for when choosing an association:
1. Do you want a local, national, or international association – I decided that for me, I wanted a national association with a local chapter. It is the best of both worlds. While the association is big enough that I am able to interact with like-minded professionals around the country, I am also able to find local events offered by the chapter. I love that live in the DC area because more than likely, there will be a local chapter.
• STC is an international writers association with a DC chapter. Additionally, the main office is in Fairfax, VA, which is where I live!
• AITP is a national technology association with a DC chapter.
2. How long has the association been in operation – When I had my LLC with my ex-business partner, we decided to join a small association that had just launched that focused on technical and proposal writers. Big mistake! They never offered anything that would be of value to us. They didn’t publish their e-newsletter as often as they should have. There were barely any workshops, conferences, or seminars. Additionally, it took weeks for them to get back to us. Luckily, we got our money back.
• STC started in 1953
• AITP started in 1951
3. How many members do they have – I prefer an association that has over 3,000 members because you are able to interact with more professionals, and you don’t have to worry about them going under, as a smaller association I mentioned eventually did.
• STC has over 14,000 members
• AITP has over 7,000 members
4. Who are they targeting – Even if the association tailors to Writers, I want to make sure that there are Technical Writers who are members. A writers association that focuses on magazine and creative fiction writing is not going to be much of an asset to me.
• STC targets technical communicators
• AITP targets IT professionals
5. Their web site – A site that is hard to navigate and/or there is not much information is something that I usually shy away from. Usually, when people want to find out more information about something, they go to the Internet. Therefore, the association’s site has to be informative, easy to navigate, and user friendly.
• STC has an amazing web site. It is probably the best one I have seen from the associations I looked at.
• AITP needs to redesign their web site. Nevertheless, you can find the information you are looking for.
6. What membership types do they offer – You want to join an association that has different membership types. The usual ones are the professional, student, and premier ones. If they offer an e-membership where you are able to forego the printed publication(s), then that is definitely a plus.
• STC has five membership types: classic, e-membership, student, retired, and super SIG package.
• AITP has three membership types: professional, student, and interim (former students).
7. What are the benefits they offer – Benefits are the main reasons for preferring one association over the other. This is the main reason you are trying to find one is for the benefits that go along with it. The important ones for me are the following:
• Publications (online and printed)
• E-newsletter
• Job database
• Workshops
• Conferences
• Exclusive discounts
• Insurance options
• STC benefits: http://stc.org/membership/
• AITP benefits: http://www.aitp.org/join/join.jsp
If they are involved in social media, then that is a major plus. This means that they are a forward-thinking association that is paying attention to what is happening around them.
Newspapers and magazines are going out of business every day. I mention this because one of the usually major perks of an association is their published trade journal. They should offer a digital version of their trade journal and an e-newsletter.
These were the major reasons why I chose the two associations. Are there any other important factors that an association must have? If so, leave a comment on what those are.
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EARTH DAY READING: The Nine Must-Read Feeds for Going Green
Tomorrow is Earth Day. What is Earth Day? It is a day where we can celebrate the beauty that this world holds, and unite to find ways to help keep it the way it is, or make it better. Below are the nine green RSS feeds that I read every day and provide me with helpful tips and articles to get rid of my own carbon footprint.
1. TreeHugger
2. Dot Earth
3. EcoGeek.org
5. Environment | guardian.co.uk
7. Gristmill
9. New York Times’ Environment
Do you have any “going green” sites that you read? Please post them in the comments, so I can add them to my Google Reader.
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Federal Agencies Should Have Cloud Computing Systems, But Will They?
Cloud Computing, originally uploaded by Kris Barz.
Cloud computing is still in its infancy and standards need to be developed around the emerging technology, several experts said today at the Strategies and Technologies for Cloud Computing Interoperability meeting sponsored by the Object Management Group.
However, they urge federal agencies to begin creating cloud computing systems, even if it is currently in its infancy. There is a problem within federal agencies. They are always ten steps behind the rest of the world. I remember when I was contracting with the Dept. of State. They were using the oldest version of IE, had ancient computer systems, and still had MS Access databases. It was shocking to me because I would have thought that they would always be using the latest and greatest due to all these people trying to infiltrate their systems. Nope, I was wrong.
It would be great if they start being more cutting edge when it comes to technology. I hope they do start their own cloud computing systems, all of them have social networking apps, and have technology that is able to support this innovation. Maybe some companies should jump at the chance after reading this article and start offering to assist federal agencies to start this effort. Hey, I’d be down to helping them write these proposals, but all we can do is watch and see.
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Have You Ever Googled Yourself? Maybe It’s Time You Did
Before the internet era, the only way to find out about people was by either asking around or if someone had wrote about them in a media outlet (e.g. newspapers, tv, magazines, etc). The internet has finding out about people easier than ever. You are now able to go to any search engine and type in their information.
I am guilty in doing this. Whenever I meet someone or are going to, I get on my computer and google his/her name. I usually type in the following information:
1. Name
2. Username
3. Email
4. Name + Location
5. Name + Email
What if you find something that is not very flattering on someone else’s site?
1. Contact the Site’s Webmaster - The best way to handle it is by going directly to the source. Email the Webmaster, and see if he/she has pity on you and removes it.
2. Fill Out a Removal Request (Google Only) – Google has a Removal Request form that you can fill out and send to them to remove a web page:
https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/removals
I checked Yahoo and Ask.com, and they do not have a similar tool.
3. Hire a Lawyer – If it’s something that could prevent you from getting jobs or dates, and you really want it off, you could hire a lawyer and write a cease and desist letter.
Remember that people are now viewing you from what they search on search engines, so if you care about how you are perceived, be careful about what sites you register with, angering the wrong geek, and/or what you post on your own site.
I decided to Google myself. Here is what came up (double-click if too small):
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