Ben Woelk, CISSP, CPTC, Governance, Awareness, and Training Manager in the Information Security Office at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), gave an insightful presentation Oct. 26 about how to become a cybersecurity professional, the many job opportunities in cybersecurity, and the transferable skills that technical writers can bring to the field. If you missed it, here is the recording:
P&P SIG Adds to Leadership Team
The P&P SIG has two new leadership team appointees. Longtime SIG volunteer Ann Marie Queeney will be our new treasurer, and Melissa Pagnotta will be our new membership manager.
Where in the World is Monte? Answer Revealed for September Contest
Here is the answer for the September edition of the SIG’s fun monthly contest, “Where in the World is Monte, the P&P SIG Mascot?”
SIG members guessed where Monte is in a photo shared by avid traveler Tricia Spayer, a member of the SIG’s leadership team.
Location: Temple of the Masks, Kohunlich Mayan Ruins in Mexico
Winner: Valentina DiPeri, P&P SIG Website Assistant. Valentina identified the exact location. Continue reading “Where in the World is Monte? Answer Revealed for September Contest”
September Meet & Greet Roundup
P&P SIG gathered for another Meet & Greet on September 27, 2023. Thank you to all who attended!
SIG Manager Sam Lee introduced the SIG’s upcoming webinar, “How to Become a Cybersecurity Professional,” planned for October 26, 2023, 7 – 8 p.m. The presenter will be Ben Woelk, CISSP, CPTC.
Sam also reminded members of the upcoming deadline (September 30, 2023) for the group’s fun monthly contest: “Where in the World is Monte, 
the P&P SIG Mascot?”
In each month’s SIG newsletter, member Tricia Spayer shares a photo of Monte from their travels together. Tricia provided additional clues as to his location in the September photo. You can review the photo and the clues by watching the video of the Meet & Greet below.
Tricia’s first clue appeared on the SIG’s STC Slack channel on September 20, 2023.
September Meet & Greet Coming Up
You’re invited to the SIG’s Meet & Greet on September 27 at 7 p.m.
Join us for conversation and networking with other P&P SIG members. The SIG’s Meet & Greets are informal and relaxed, so feel free to drop in as your schedule allows.
There will also be time to learn more about the P&P SIG. Your questions and suggestions for improving the SIG are welcome!
The event is free, but please register to receive the link to the Meet & Greet: Registration Link.
Congratulations to the Winner of August’s “Where is Monte?” Contest
Congratulations to Jamye Sagan on winning the August edition of the SIG’s fun new contest: “Where in the World is Monte, the P&P SIG mascot?”
Each month, SIG member Tricia Spayer, submits a photo of me, Monte, taken on one of our travels together.
Jamye’s guess, “Lake Erie,” was closest to my actual location in the photo on Lac La Belle in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan.
That’s red sand behind me. It’s the by-product of copper mining that occurred in Upper Michigan, specifically the Keweenaw Peninsula. According to the US Geological Survey, about 7.5 Billion pounds of copper was produced from 1845 till about 1918. That’s why they call it “Copper Country.”
Check your inbox for September’s newsletter to learn more about the August photo and get a first look at September’s photo.
August Meet & Greet Coming Up
You’re invited to the SIG’s Meet & Greet on August 30, 7 p.m. (EDT).
Join us for conversation and networking with other P&P SIG members. The SIG’s Meet & Greets are informal and relaxed so feel free to drop in as your schedule allows.
There will also be time to learn more about the P&P SIG. Your questions and suggestions for improving the SIG are welcome!
The event is free, but please register to receive the link to the Meet & Greet.
If you have any questions or need further information, don’t hesitate to contact Sam Lee, P&P SIG Manager.
See you there!
The Policies and Procedures SIG Announces Distinguished SIG Service Award
STC and the Policies and Procedures SIG are pleased to announce that Louise Tincher has earned the Distinguished SIG Service Award (DSSA) for her service to our SIG.
A longtime member of the P&P SIG, Louise has served in a variety of roles and leadership positions over the last 8+ years. These roles include Webmaster, ListServe Manager, Membership Manager as well as preparing community reports and overseeing the development and distribution of information for new SIG members and volunteers. Louise has also been generous with her professional experience and expertise by developing and presenting a webinar on Microsoft Word, fostering topic related discussions on our discussion list, and presenting several well received P&P related sessions multiple times at STC Summits.
The award citation reads: “For your longstanding commitment, leadership, and generous sharing of your time and expertise to the Policies and Procedures SIG.”
Please join me in congratulating Louise on her well-deserved award and most importantly in thanking her for her service to our SIG and the greater STC communities. Louise is the very embodiment of the volunteer spirit! Thank you, Louise!
About the Distinguished SIG Service Award:
The DSSA is awarded by STC for a member who has significant and lasting contributions to the community over time. The awards are officially announced at the STC Summit and awarded on stage at the Honors event and ceremony.
– Dawnell Claessen
Procedure Professionals Association Announcement
P&P SIG Members, Mr. Mike Brewer of the Procedure Professionals Association has provided this post. Our SIG has members in common with these folks, and lots of professional interests in common. Their Symposium sure looks interesting.
The Procedure Professionals Association will host the 29th Annual Procedure Symposium at the Opal Sands Resort on Clearwater Beach June 20 through 22, 2017. In this format, we will continue to provide a forum for professionals in procedure writing, administration and control to obtain the latest information regarding procedures and the procedure process. The technical program will consist of formal presentations as well as facilitated breakout sessions. As is customary, we will have a strong focus on providing greater and more diverse networking and benchmarking opportunities. All levels of management, procedure writers, work planners, procedure administrators, training specialists, and procedure users will benefit by attending the specialized breakout sessions that deal with the issues related to their specific areas.
We will also offer the full PPA Writer Certification Training Course in conjunction with symposium attendance. With an emphasis on human factors and classroom exercises, this training focuses on the following technical writing objectives:
- Documents are organized using a hierarchical structure.
- A human factored layout and format is consistently applied to all documents.
- Instructions enable action, achieve compliance, and minimize the potential for error.
- Instructions are written clearly, concisely, and consistently using standard American English.
For additional information, please visit the Procedure Professionals Association at www.ppaweb.org or contact Carolee Schmidt at cschmidt@ppaweb.org.
— Posted on behalf of Mr. Mike Brewer of the Procedure Professionals Association.
P&P SIG Call for Progression Session Speakers
Next year’s 2017 STC Technical Communication Summit will be held 7-10 May in Washington, DC. (National Harbor, MD).
The Policies and Procedures SIG plans to submit a proposal to present “Topics In Policies and Procedures” in the Progression Session format at the 2017 STC Summit. P&P SIG is looking for presenters (and their topics). We’d like you to join our proposal! If you plan to attend the conference and have an idea for a topic, we’d like you to develop your topic and present as part of our Progression Session.
We’d especially like to invite the SIG members from the former QPI and ES&H SIGs to join with P&P SIG and present with us in Washington, DC
Any STC member may join our proposal. But you will have to act soon; the deadline for submission is 12 September 2016. I will need your information no later 09 September 2016. If you are interested, send me as much information as you can right away. mail at dawnell.com.
Of course, we encourage all SIG members to develop and propose their individual Summit topics directly to STC. If you plan to do that, here is a link to some tips and tricks. http://notebook.stc.org/tips-for-your-best-ever-summit-proposal
What is a “Progression Session” anyway?
“Progression Session” is a format for an educational session at conference that has as many as 10 different speakers presenting on various topics simultaneously. Each speaker will host a table with a presentation on a topic they have developed from their own area of practice. Attendees will choose a topic and sit at that table to hear a 12-minute presentation about that topic, and then move to another table to hear the next 12-minute presentation. This process repeats 3 times throughout the hour long time slot. This means attendees will hear 3 of the topics presented.
Sessions in this format are very popular and are among the best attended at the conference. Progression sessions are a great way to share a lot of information in a relatively short time. Veteran presenters and new speakers alike can hone their speaking and presenting skills as they present new topics and research.
Subject Matter for Topics
Naturally, we will be looking for topics of relevance to members of our SIGs. But this covers a wide area of related and relevant topics, such as compliance, content management, career development, process improvement, documentation management, and the tools and technologies that we all use in our profession. Of particular interest are case studies and success stories that would benefit our attendees and members.
How to Join our Progression Session
Send me your information as soon as possible and I will submit the proposal. Send me as much information as you have right away. mail@dawnell.com
You will need the following information:
* Your name and contact information
* Working title for your topic.
* A short abstract or description of your topic
* A short professional bio about you, especially about any speaking or presenting experiences you may have had.
* Any further details about your topic, such as an outline or graphics (if you have them).
More information is better, but even if your presentation is not fully developed, please DO propose it anyway!
* Be sure to mention any SIG affiliations you may have.
Summit link: http://summit.stc.org/
Any questions … email me!
Dawnell Claessen, Co-Manager, P&P SIG