Stan Adamchek — Resume
Last updated: July 1, 2008

Software Documentation — Marketing Communications
www.sadamchek.com

Objective

A permanent position or long-term contract as a senior technical writer or manager in a dynamic software development environment with other motivated professionals. Hope to join an enthusiastic multi-disciplinary team using emerging technologies to build online business applications.

Career Profile

Approximately twenty years experience writing, editing, and managing in a wide variety of technical publication environments. Have written or coordinated production for a broad range of hardware devices and software applications, producing organized and coherent documents with consistent clarity and style. Proven record as a documentation manager—understand the roles and dynamics involved in document productionand can organize and motivate team members to produce timely and effective technical publications. Have designed and implemented online documentation strategies with all current authoring tools. Expert-level skills in FrameMaker, WebWorks, RoboHelp, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Visio, PowerPoint, and Microsoft Word.

Professional Experience

VBrick Wallingford, Connecticut
Senior Technical Writer
2005 — present

Write technical documentation including user guides, admin guides, release notes, web pages, etc. for a high-tech start-up that designs and builds high-quality streaming video products for IP networks and the public Internet. Work in a fast-paced development environment with software developers and video engineers creating documentation and marketing collateral for leading-edge streaming media products that capture and broadcast digital video. Primary duties are to document new products under development (streaming media servers, hardware encoder devices, etc.) and to migrate legacy documentation to an HTML-based, online format. This effort includes complete responsibility for the design and implementation of an online support page for all VBrick technical publications using FrameMaker, WebWorks, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, and other tools.

Pfizer New London, Connecticut
Technical Writer
2003 — 2004

Worked as a contract writer for an informatics group at Pfizer Global Research and Development. The writing projects included validated systems used in the regulatory approvals process and internal systems that interfaced with document and image repositories. All documents were subject to review by U.S. and international regulatory agencies; all were created within a structured software development lifecycle that specified which documents were required at each stage of the process. For example, wrote complete project documentation for a Livelink application that created electronic submissions for regulatory agencies from files in a Documentum repository. The documentation validated the application against U.S. and international regulatory guidelines and verified compliance with 21 CFR Part 11 standards for electronic records. Created all required documents (project plan, functional requirements, test plan, test scripts, etc.) and worked closely with business stakeholders to define and track requirements and verify that delivered features and functions matched stated requirements.

Metaserver New Haven, Connecticut
Documentation Manager
2001 — 2003

Managed the documentation effort and wrote technical documentation, use cases, white papers, etc. for a pre-IPO startup with 100+ employees. The documentation explained how to use a graphical modeling environment to create distributed J2EE business applications for a proprietary XML and Java-based web engine. Primary duties were to implement and manage a browser-based, online help system for all Metaserver documentation. This help system provided full-text search for all application documentation, including white papers, FAQs, training material, etc. and was built with FrameMaker, WebWorks, and FrontPage. Other documentation tools included Visual SourceSafe (version control), Silk Radar (bug tracking), and XMLSpy (schema editing). The documentation team also built and managed a context-sensitive JavaHelp system and a complete product knowledge base.

Neuvis Shelton, Connecticut
Documentation Manager
2000 — 2001

Planned, coordinated, and implemented the complete documentation strategy for a pre-IPO startup with 300+ employees. Hired and managed a staff of four writers documenting a model-driven, UML-compliant application that built transaction-oriented websites and e-commerce applications for large-scale enterprises. The core product was a rapid application development platform that automatically constructed secure, scalable, e-commerce applications in a proprietary environment. It had diverse documentation requirements and the role and objectives of the documentation group continually evolved to match changes in strategy and direction. The documentation objectives for which I was personally responsible focused on three specific deliverables:

• Context-sensitive help implemented a complete context-sensitive, field-level help system for a complex, developer application with over 150 dialog boxes. This functioned as first-level help for all questions about the application.

• Online help coordinated the design and production of a task-oriented, HTML help system for more detailed information about the product. This system was enhanced incrementally with new features, functions, and content for each product release.

• Online manuals coordinated the design, workflow, and production of 35 reference documents (comprising 1000 pages) of linked PDF documentation that were available from within the application. This was a major effort involving 15 application developers, trainers, and technical writers that was tracked using Microsoft Project and Excel.

Notara Stratford, Connecticut
Senior Technical Writer
1999 — 2000

Designed and wrote technical documentation for a pre-IPO development group building a client/server, e-commerce application for the Internet. This n-tier application was constructed with integrated Microsoft components including Windows NT Server, Internet Information Server (IIS), and SQL Server. It was a secure, real-time, application running in a browser and using Active Server Pages to create a dynamic HTML environment. The documentation set was closely tied to the development process and included white papers, a concepts guide, and a help system. It was published to the application server each week with Visual InterDev. The application was also hyperlinked to a product support page that including technical documentation, application notes, API documentation, and bug fixes. Researched and implemented a unique third-party solution that auto-generated API documentation from developer comments embedded in the C++ code.

Meca Software Trumbull, Connecticut
Senior Technical Writer
1998 — 1999

Designed and implemented a documentation plan for a web-based client/server application written in Java. Designed and wrote all technical documentation for this financial application developed with technology partners Oracle, Marimba, and Sun. The documentation set was bundled with a toolkit that also included programming tools and an API and was distributed in both HTML and PDF. The HTML documentation was designed for developers and provided online viewing in an embedded browser as part of an integrated developer environment running on Solaris. The PDF version was designed for administrators and could be displayed in a reader for easier viewing and navigation. To simplify updates, both versions had the same internal and external hyperlinks and were created from one fileset using FrameMaker, WebWorks, Acrobat, and Visio.

Data Switch Shelton, Connecticut
Senior Technical Writer
1991 — 1998

Wrote user and installation manuals, marketing material, white papers, etc. for leading manufacturer of mainframe networking devices (annual revenue 100M). These systems were typically used in large data centers and communications networks for tape vaulting, disaster recovery, and similar applications. Designed the format and created automated templates for all corporate technical publications. The documentation set generally included printed material, context-sensitive help, and online manuals. Responsible for all end-user documents supporting partnering agreements with Microsoft and Sun.

Documented numerous data center products running on OS/2, Windows NT, and UNIX, including optical switches, intelligent patch panels, remote monitoring devices, and fiber optic multiplexers. Wrote installation guides for a family of devices that linked high-speed mainframe channels directly to LAN desktops via UNIX and NT-based servers. This documentation was designed to simplify the complex task of configuring common communication channels for fundamentally different architectures. Also responsible for three, UNIX-based, client/server applications running in a networked, multi-mainframe environment that supported multiple SPARCstations, local and remote X terminals, and remote control nodes.

Executone Darien, Connecticut
Technical Trainer
1985 — 1989

Trained technicians and customer service representatives to install and maintain microprocessor-based telephone systems. Prepared and conducted two-week classes emphasizing the installation, programming, and troubleshooting of simultaneous voice and data communications systems. Interfaced with technical writers and had valuable hands-on experience using technical publications in a platform training environment.

TSI Software Wilton, Connecticut
Software Writer
1984 — 1985

Wrote and edited end-user documentation for this software division of Dun & Bradstreet. Defined objectives, estimated requirements, and coordinated production (typesetting, mechanicals, and printing) for data entry, document retrieval, and audit reporting systems. Created a unique system to encourage feedback by including selected end users in the review cycle of technical documents.

Unisys Irvine, California
Systems Writer
1980 — 1983

Wrote and edited technical manuals for commercial program products running on Unisys mainframes. Worked in a regional applications development center with programmers and engineers generating original text and illustrations for user, reference, and capabilities manuals. Documented software applications, storage devices, and printers. Also documented an innovative utility for the remote configuration of new systems and upgrades at remote branch locations. Responsible for all phases in the production cycle of documents including the preparation and printing of final reproduction copy.

Bell & Howell Newport Beach, California
Senior Technical Writer
1975 — 1980

Wrote technical publications for leading COM (computer output microfilm) manufacturer. Wrote user and installation manuals, sales brochures, and related publications for a complete line of micrographic equipment. Wrote complete, original documentation, including sales literature and marketing strategy, for a microfilm retrieval application based on innovative Digital PDP-11 technology.

Military

United States Army Vietnam
Communications Center Specialist
1966 — 1968

Operated computers and data transmission equipment in mobile communications centers providing communications and logistical support for an infantry division. Assigned to a signal battalion that provided and protected secure command and control channels for ground forces. Decorated for combat service in Vietnam and honorably discharged.

Education

B.A. English 1974 Cum Laude
U.C.L.A. School of Letters and Science — Honors Graduate

Memberships

Contact

       Home