Dana Aubin, Comtech Services
April 15, 2025

In the evolving landscape of technical communication, collaboration across functions is no longer an option—it’s a necessity. Technical writers must navigate complex organizational structures, balance competing priorities, and establish credibility with stakeholders who may not immediately understand the value of documentation. At a recent roundtable, CIDM members discussed key strategies for managing across their teams effectively, offering actionable insights for technical writers seeking to optimize collaboration and influence without formal authority.

The Power of Proactive Communication

One of the recurring themes in the discussion was the importance of proactive engagement. Many technical writers find themselves in a position where they must advocate for documentation needs rather than being naturally included in development processes. To bridge this gap, a member suggested that technical writers should:

  • Identify Key Stakeholders Early: Reach out to product managers, UX designers, developers, and customer support teams at the beginning of a project to understand their needs and explain how documentation fits into the workflow.
  • Attend Planning Meetings: Invite yourself to roadmaps, sprint planning, and design discussions. Even if documentation isn’t an immediate concern, your presence can ensure that content needs are considered from the outset.
  • Establish Regular Check-ins: Foster relationships with cross-functional teams by setting up periodic touchpoints to align on updates and changes in product development.

Aligning Priorities Amid Competing Interests

Technical writers often face competing demands, with multiple teams requiring documentation support but limited resources available. Members agreed that successfully managing these demands requires:

  • Setting Clear Priorities: Collaborate with leadership to define a priority framework that categorizes documentation projects based on business impact, regulatory requirements, and customer needs.
  • Using Data to Justify Needs: Collect metrics on documentation usage, customer feedback, and support ticket deflection rates to demonstrate the impact of well-structured content.
  • Educating Peers About Documentation Value: Many teams see documentation as an afterthought. By demonstrating how content enhances user experience, reduces support costs, and facilitates faster onboarding, technical communicators can shift perceptions and gain buy-in.

Leveraging Natural Partnerships

Members commented on how technical writers are uniquely positioned to connect disparate teams within an organization. Because they interact with a wide range of stakeholders, they can act as information brokers, facilitating communication and ensuring alignment. Some key partnerships to cultivate include:

  • Support Teams: Work closely with customer support to identify common pain points and ensure documentation addresses frequent user issues.
  • Product and UX Teams: Advocate for integrating content into the user experience by contributing to UI text, tooltips, and in-app guidance.
  • Engineering Teams: Establish a workflow for reviewing technical details early in the development process to minimize last-minute documentation rushes.

Making Documentation an Integral Part of the Development Process

A frustration shared by members was that many organizations still treat documentation as a post-development task rather than an integral part of the product lifecycle. To change this perception:

  • Embed Documentation in Agile Workflows: Advocate for documentation as part of the Definition of Done (DoD), ensuring that content creation progresses alongside product development.
  • Use a Single Source of Truth: Avoid rogue documentation portals by centralizing content creation and maintenance to prevent fragmentation.
  • Encourage Team-Wide Responsibility for Content: While technical writers lead documentation efforts, subject matter experts and other stakeholders should recognize their role in contributing to content accuracy.

The Role of GenAI in Technical Communication

GenAI is increasingly becoming a topic of interest in technical communication, with organizations exploring how it can optimize content strategy. While GenAI cannot replace technical writers, it can assist them by:

  • Analyzing Support Cases to Identify Documentation Gaps: GenAI can process large amounts of unstructured data to highlight areas where documentation improvements could reduce support tickets.
  • Enhancing Searchability Through Intelligent Tagging: GenAI-driven indexing and categorization can help users find relevant content faster.
  • Automating Routine Documentation Tasks: GenAI tools can generate draft content, summarize complex topics, or recommend content updates based on product changes.

Overcoming Resistance and Gaining Influence

Members agreed that influencing colleagues without formal authority remains one of their biggest challenges. To strengthen influence, it was suggested to:

  • Position Yourself as a Problem Solver: Show how documentation can streamline workflows, improve user satisfaction, and support business goals.
  • Find Champions in Leadership: Gaining support from executives or directors can help secure resources and encourage broader collaboration.
  • Leverage Peer Networks: Build alliances with other technical communicators, UX designers, and support staff to amplify messaging and drive change collaboratively.

Conclusion

Managing across functional teams requires technical writers to be proactive, adaptable, and strategic in their approach. By embedding themselves in the product development lifecycle, aligning documentation priorities with business goals, and leveraging AI-driven efficiencies, they can enhance their influence and drive greater collaboration. As organizations continue to evolve, technical writers who excel at cross-functional collaboration will be well-positioned to lead content strategy and innovation in the years to come.