Technical Writer and Documentation Manager Leader

Ellen Black

Scottsdale, AZ 214-***-**** ************@*****.*** www.linkedin.com/in/ellenblackwriter

SENIOR TECHNICAL WRITER/MANAGER

Award-winning technical writing and IT professional with in-depth management experience. Strong leader and developer of documentation and technical writing teams, having managed both in a Scaled Agile Environment (SAFe). Have experience in the technology, telecommunications, educational, banking/securities, and pharmaceutical industries. Enthusiastic about developing and nurturing team members, as well as solving problems.

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

Technical Writing & Communication Online Help HTML Agile Methodologies Project Scoping

Team Leadership & Development Proposal Writing Risk Assessment Strategy & Implementations

Document Control Training & Development Program/Project Management

Web Content Editing E-Learning Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) Presentation Skills Budget Management

Software & Technical Documentation Instructional Design Content & Knowledge Management

Conflict Management & Mediation Needs Assessment

TECHNOLOGICAL COMPETENCIES

Word FrameMaker Acrobat RoboHelp Confluence SnagIt DayCQ CMS Planview SharePoint JIRA

HONORS & AWARDS

Society for Technical Communication: Excellence – Data Explorer User Guide Excellence – Data Explorer Administrator Guide Merit – Data Explorer Training Guide Merit – Configuration Explorer User Guide

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

American Express, Phoenix AZ 08/2024 – 12/2024

Senior Technical Writer

Supported the architecture team with all of their internal systems and marketing documentation using markdown.

Splunk, San Francisco (Worked Remotely from AZ) 12/2021 – 01/2024

Documentation Lead

Wrote documentation that described technical issues encountered by customers using the company’s cloud product. The content also detailed the fixes being implemented to prevent future occurrences.

Created/edited runbooks in Confluence that provided various procedures that needed to be followed.

Edited the other writers’ documentation.

Managed this work using JIRA.

Silicon Valley Bank, Tempe AZ (Worked Remotely) 06/2021 – 12/2021

Agile Transformation Content Creator/Technical Writer

Provided documentation for the Agile Transformation team as they moved the bank from waterfall to a customized Agile methodology process.

Reviewed online training to ensure quality and clarity.

Wells Fargo, Chandler AZ (Worked Remotely) 06/2020 – 06/2021

Platform Analyst/Technical Writer

Supported the Platform team and documented different tools.

Worked with two engineers to gather requirements to determine whether the Platform team needed one or more of these Atlassian tools: Service Desk, JIRA, and Confluence.

Provided information about Agile/SAFe, so the team could determine whether they needed to go the full SAFe route versus Agile Scrum or Kanban, and created Agile-related documentation.

Ellen Black ************@*****.*** Page 2

SAFe Technical Writer 02/2020 – 06/2020

Supported the Enterprise Architecture team, as they moved from a waterfall to an Agile Scrum/Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) environment.

Researched/documented teams’ SAFe implementation status, then worked with lead architects and a third-party vendor to design the best framework for the architecture team.

Updated architecture documentation in Confluence and created other documentation, as requested.

Bank of the West, Tempe AZ 10/2019 – 12/2019

Senior Training Consultant & Content Analyst

Worked with analysts and created documentation for internal trainers and auditors

Apollo Education Group/University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ 03/2010 – 08/2019

Technical Documentation Director – Agile People Leader

Recruited by former director at Yahoo to position. Created and oversaw the company’s first Technical Documentation team, which supported internal and external customers. Managed all documentation pertaining to Web 2.0 systems and tools for multiple global institutions, including the University of Phoenix (UOPX). Partnered with program/project/product managers and user experience (UX) experts in an Agile environment. Also wrote Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for various teams and worked with InfoSec managers to ensure all content met required standards, and created online Help content using an internal system and HTML.

Reduced UOPX’s help desk call volume 10%, $14 per call, by creating a comprehensive online support database.

Supervised and coached 9 technical writers in Phoenix, San Jose, San Francisco, and Seattle.

Received Community Recognition Award (2010).

Honored with 70+ EPIC Recognitions for consistently upholding Apollo’s core values.

Promoted to an Agile People Leader, helping engineers determine their career paths and work with them to obtain the training needed. Worked as a Mentor in one Employee Resource Group (ERG) and was the Director of Communications in another ERG.

ADDITIONAL RELEVANT EXPERIENCE

YAHOO, Senior Technical Writer Consultant (Dallas, TX)

IMC2, Senior Technical Writer/Web Content Writer Consultant (Dallas, TX)

USDATA, Technical Communications Manager (Dallas, TX)

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

English Coursework St. Edward’s University, Austin, TX

Situational Frontline Leadership & Situational Leadership II Ken Blanchard, Phoenix, AZ

Management & Coaching Skills Baker Communications, Inc., Dallas, TX

Manager 101 & 102 Development Dimensions International, Phoenix, AZ

Designing Online/Web Systems, Documenting Policies & Procedures Information Mapping, Boston, MA

Introduction to Online Documentation Communitec, Houston, TX

How to Create User Documentation American Management Association, New York, NY

Product Owner/Product Manager, Scrum Master, Leading SAFe, & Teams Training SAFe – Phoenix, AZ

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