Bill Nigh

Technical Writer, Blogger, Trainer, Course Developer, Mentor and Interviewer

I am a globally-oriented, well-rounded and affable IT professional, with exceptional writing and user acceptance-related skills. My comfort with the software development life cycle derives from personal experience in application development on several platforms; I understand what developers and project leaders are going through and am a team member always willing to wear many hats; in this spirit, I've done press releases, created tutorials, done blogging, created product demo videos, and done informal QA, in addition to my formal role of tech writer.

I pride myself on generating documentation to spec and on time with minimal impact on staff time. I get a kick out of exceeding client/employer expectations, and have gotten that kick a lot of times.

I have a decades-long track record of success in the area of end user and technical training and course development; the technical courses were richly informed by my stints as developer, a great way to generate real-life 'war stories'.

Dating all the way back to the high school yearbook, I have always had a knack for catching and correcting errors, and bring that copy editor skillset and mindset to every engagement. Typically my duties expand to include editing, once my skills in this area are made known on the job; I always (diplomatically) offer it, helping with press releases, web page content, brochures and other print matter. I am a willing and quite able Semantic Sentinel, helping to build and maintain a consistent message.

I work with Dreamweaver, Microsoft Office, Wikis, CMS, Photoshop, Robohelp, ERWin, XMLSpy and Camtasia in addition to a number of admin consoles for RDBMS. I have created effective product demonstration and training videos of software apps in several formats. I focus on task, not tools, by the way; the main thing is to get the job done, with whatever resources the employer or client furnishes.

I understand workflow as it relates to content creation, and worked extensively with Hippo-based CMS; have also used Sharepoint, and have created a workflow software module for a client.
I have been involved in social media for several clients, some of them ongoing; at one engagement, Evident Software, I maintained a presence on Facebook Twitter and DZone, as well as posting to the corporate blog, and live tweeting from GigaOm in support of a long tail SEO strategy.

I am a quick study, and use my personable nature to build successful and amiable business relationships. I know what it takes to meet targets and aggressive deadlines. Since I have worked in a wide variety of work environments, I am able to 'plug in' to projects effectively and hit the ground running, as either a contractor, consultant or employee.

As a more senior person, I enjoy serving as a resource to those who are just getting started in the business world, and have also taken part in the veteran's mentor program at my alma mater, Rutgers.

I enjoy interviewing people as a hobby, but would be happy to do so for money :)

These attributes characterize my work:

Quality - in pursuit of self-actualization, it is a necessary part of a successful personal aesthetic
Flexibility - the ability to conform to the standards and practices of the employer or client
Ingenuity - the ability to 'think outside the box', leveraging my wide-ranging experience to good effect
Communication - effective, persistent yet diplomatic follow-up which is respectful of stakeholders' time
Attention to detail - which puts the finishing touch on quality work and rewards attentiveness
Honesty - which honors the other party and frankly is the most efficient way to do things if you take the long view of success, and of personal self-esteem. Since I am confident, and have talent, I don't need to cheat or cover up; in this way, enlightened self-interest causes honesty to be the default behavior, the easy and successful path

These core principles resonate well with the person I strive to be. I have been fortunate to have had two wonderful parents, from whom I learned valuable lessons about constancy, application, honesty and an optimistic outlook. I try daily to apply these lessons, to honor them and to reward their faith in me.

Click here for examples of my work, sample blog posts and my resume. Here is some feedback from satisfied clients over the years.

I am active on Twitter Facebook and LinkedIn, and have built a solid reputation over several years of engagement there. Anyone interested in knowing more about me can read my contributions there.

bill(dash)nigh(at)cdeis(dot)com