Technical Communication Program
Client: CDM Smith
Role: Strategy, Training, Content Development, Creative Direction, Graphic Design
“Quentin lives each day exhibiting true initiative in his relentless quest for excellence. Where others sometimes tend to “settle” into their positions, he is constantly looking for ways to both improve as an individual/professional and for the firm to advance the look of our materials as a whole. Initiative is in his DNA, and this stems from his desire to exhibit excellence via an overall sense of shared commitment." — Shiela DeMars Enser, Area Marketing Leader
Introduction of Program
As part of the planning and analysis components of water, environment, and transportation projects, CDM Smith develops and produces technical communications (reports, executive summaries, public outreach and stakeholder materials, as well as presentations) as final deliverables. These materials are used to communicate information for, or to, clients as part of a project. They can also include presentation materials for technical luminescence. Many of these documents remain in the public domain for years to come and can impact the firm’s and the client’s reputation. As a result, the Technical Communications program was created to improve the quality of these documents. Through the program, we created a single point of contact for high-quality publishing services, including editorial, graphic design, and formatting. Before, projects would be distributed to whoever had availability. Consequently, consistency and quality were severely lacking–greatly impacting the client experience.
Excerpt from 2-hour training course, delivered once per month by myself and two others.
Key Learnings
Be a strategic asset not a commodity
There are always going to be the ones who think they are designers because they can draw shapes or change colors. It takes significantly more time, effort, strategy, and experience to be viewed as a creative professional who is a strategic asset, not a commodity.
Nothing beats researching the competition
Researching competing firms proved to us the level of service we wanted to offer our clients was in high demand and already being offered to clients—some of which were ours. The findings served as the greatest influence on executives approving starting the program.
Product testing is a valuable resource
It took us nearly a year to develop the two-hour course, working with professional training coordinators. Delivering the course as a test to our key supporters provided us with tremendous intel, allowing us to better tailor the course content to our audience.
Excerpt from Yammer campaign plan presentation, delivered to company leaders.
The Background
Prior to the start of the program, I had been with CDM Smith for 14 years. I was originally responsible for designing pursuit-related communication materials, helping the firm win more than 170 project pursuits—totaling more than $220 million. During this time, I was also providing high-quality client deliverables on an as-needed request, resulting in over $1 million of unexpected revenue. This proved there was a need to provide a similar service on a larger scale.
Even though I could prove there was a need, I encountered leadership not agreeing there was enough of a need to warrant an entire department. Over a few years, I tracked the number of client technical communication projects, hours spent, and the financial impact of the work. Additionally, I researched our competitors and what level of creative services they were providing. The collected data helped prove there was a real need for such a program. Presenting such information led me to connect with two executives who also had a shared commitment for the same level of client documents. The three of us formed a cross unit task force to look at CDM Smith’s technical communication deliverables.
One of many Yammer posts I created and managed.
The Challenge
Starting a company-wide program is no easy task, nor is it a quick process. Many obstacles need to be overcome for a successful launch and to ensure longevity. The greatest hurdle we faced was the perception the graphic designers had within the firm. Many of the firm’s project and delivery leaders viewed the designers as administrative staff whose job was to make things look “pretty.” Consequently, it was instrumental we changed their perception of designers from a commodity to a strategic asset. Another significant challenge was establishing internal client expectations. Many individuals lack the understanding how long it can take to properly design a high-quality communication piece, expecting unrealistic turnaround time frames. Therefore, we had to educate and establish realistic delivery schedules.
Yammer campaign results report, presented to company leaders.
The Approach
In early 2020, a task force was formed to review and improve the quality of our technical communication deliverables. We knew we had to build a strong strategy. Our approach followed a similar method as other creative projects yet more comprehensive.
DISCOVERY
We reviewed verbatim comments from clients who answered questions in a client feedback tool. Dozens of comments were gathered but 4 main themes proved the firm’s technical documents were lacking the high-quality aspect our clients deserve and expect.
IDEATE
With the problem defined, we progressed into brainstorming ideas to solve the problem. After refining the ideas, we arrived at the solution of building a new firm-wide program specific to reviewing and enhancing particular technical communication deliverables.
CONCEPT
The concept of the program was then flushed out to determine its mission, hierarchical structure, and core functions. Following the formal specifics of the Technical Communications Program, came pitching the concept to the firm’s executives.
PROMOTE
Succeeding with executive approval, we wanted to increase the acceptance rate therefore we developed particular strategic internal promotional tactics including a detailed training course, Yammer social media campaigns, webinars, departmental presentations, and virtual meetings.
IMPLEMENT
Making it official, the firm’s executive leadership team announced the program to the entire firm, detailing certain quality expectations. Additionally, we formed an alliance with key project leaders with a shared interest in the program to help “sell” our services to other staff.
EVALUATE
Like any other strategic plan, it is necessary to reevaluate the program to determine what is working, as well as what needs to change. In our evaluation, we reviewed every aspect of the Program followed by strategizing for the following year.
Excerpt from presentation announcing the new program to the entire firm.
Program Leadership
Building this program provided me with many opportunities to grow as a leader. First and foremost, I led the design side of the training course content—developing design-related content, designing the presentation, and delivering design-centric information. Additionally, I led the effort on researching our competition to better understand what level of creative services they provide their clients. As a result, I am recognized as a technical expert on the value of creativity and design within technical communications.
With the program as a full functioning service, I took on the responsibility to develop and implement certain procedures including creative briefs, project management, and file organization structure. Furthermore, I consistently lead numerous multi-departmental teams to produce high quality, visually appealing client communication deliverables. I manage the workload scheduling of the creative projects while also providing creative direction to four other designers—all across different offices including one in India. Performing in this role, I have had the pleasure to mentor multiple junior and intermediate designers, writers, and editors.
Program's internal webpage sharing multiple case studies aimed at increasing the usage of the program.
Clients
Since the formation of the Technical Communications Program, we have provided our Technical Communication services to our firm’s clients, most of which are government agencies including, but not limited to:
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Arkansas Natural Resources Commission
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Buncombe County
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City of Miami
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City of Wichita
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Colorado Department of Transportation
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Dallas Fort Worth International Airport
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FEMA
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JEA
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Missouri Department of Natural Resources
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Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
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State of Georgia
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Texas Department of Transportation
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US Army Corps of Engineers
Graphic used to promote the program's monthly training course.
Results
The Program was launched successfully and has had a tremendous impact on the quality of the firm’s technical communication deliverables for its clients. Our monthly two-hour training course had a significant impact. We educated over 300 of the firm’s top tier technical and project leaders. Prior to the program, we would receive a request once or twice a quarter. At the end of the first year into the program, we had nearly 50 projects with over 100 creative components resulting in over 1,200 creative hours. While we cannot expect the same level of growth, we do anticipate a 150% growth the second year of the program with an even stronger growth for the extended future as the benefits of the program spreads throughout the firm.
Promotional graphic used to encourage staff to try the new program.
Skill Set
Skill sets employed throughout this project includes strategy, training, presentation delivery, presentation development, creative direction, content development, graphic design, project management, as well as social media management management. Technical programs used to build elements of the program materials include Adobe Creative Cloud products, InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, and Adobe Express, along with Microsoft PowerPoint and Yammer.