If these people are employees, the cost of using them includes salary, benefits and other overhead. (Figures used are based on San Francisco Bay Area salaries, benefits and overhead. National averages will be lower.)

If the same functions are outsourced for this project, the costs are not burdened by benefits and overhead. (The costs used for contract workers in this analysis are averages, derived from a range of typical costs for each function. The actual cost in any

This article examines the pros and cons of entrusting all or part of the technical publications function to outside vendors. By examining a typical project, I will analyze costs and also answer questions about when to staff which functions internally.

Numbers Speak for Themselves

For both start-up and mature companies, the basic questions are: When do you outsource your technical publications, and when do you staff technical publications internally? There are no quick answers to these questions, because there are several factors to consider. The easy part of the answer is straightforward number crunching. The more difficult part of the answer depends on how large your company is, the nature of your products/technologies, and how you operate internally. I can’t provide all the answers for your specific company. However, drawing on my 19 years of experience in managing the technical documentation function, this article provides a framework for analysis and decision-making vis-?-vis outsourcing and/or staffing the various functions vital to technical publications.

Let’s take the easy part of the equation first by examining a typical case: Company X requires a new documentation set for a complex piece of equipment, say a new line of network routers. The associated document has the following requirements:

• The document must be complete and ready to go to the printer (or be posted on the corporate website) in 14 weeks.

• The document will be approximately 200 pages long and contain about 50 graphics (a mix of renderings and diagrams).

• There will be two drafts (first and final).

• Editing will take place during each review draft (two edits).

• A production specialist will develop the template suite.

The people required for the project are:

• Senior technical writer.

• Graphic artist.

• Copy editor.

• Production specialist.

If these people are employees, the cost of using them includes salary, benefits and other overhead. (Figures used are based on San Francisco Bay Area salaries, benefits and overhead. National averages will be lower.)

If the same functions are outsourced for this project, the costs are not burdened by benefits and overhead. (The costs used for contract workers in this analysis are averages, derived from a range of typical costs for each function. The actual cost in any

Numbers Speak for Themselves

For both start-up and mature companies, the basic questions are: When do you outsource your technical publications, and when do you staff technical publications internally? There are no quick answers to these questions, because there are several factors to consider. The easy part of the answer is straightforward number crunching. The more difficult part of the answer depends on how large your company is, the nature of your products/technologies, and how you operate internally. I can’t provide all the answers for your specific company. However, drawing on my 19 years of experience in managing the technical documentation function, this article provides a framework for analysis and decision-making vis-?-vis outsourcing and/or staffing the various functions vital to technical publications.

Let’s take the easy part of the equation first by examining a typical case: Company X requires a new documentation set for a complex piece of equipment, say a new line of network routers. The associated document has the following requirements:

• The document must be complete and ready to go to the printer (or be posted on the corporate website) in 14 weeks.

• The document will be approximately 200 pages long and contain about 50 graphics (a mix of renderings and diagrams).

• There will be two drafts (first and final).

• Editing will take place during each review draft (two edits).

• A production specialist will develop the template suite.

The people required for the project are:

• Senior technical writer.

• Graphic artist.

• Copy editor.

• Production specialist.

If these people are employees, the cost of using them includes salary, benefits and other overhead. (Figures used are based on San Francisco Bay Area salaries, benefits and overhead. National averages will be lower.)

If the same functions are outsourced for this project, the costs are not burdened by benefits and overhead. (The costs used for contract workers in this analysis are averages, derived from a range of typical costs for each function. The actual cost in any

Let’s take the easy part of the equation first by examining a typical case: Company X requires a new documentation set for a complex piece of equipment, say a new line of network routers. The associated document has the following requirements:

• The document must be complete and ready to go to the printer (or be posted on the corporate website) in 14 weeks.

• The document will be approximately 200 pages long and contain about 50 graphics (a mix of renderings and diagrams).

• There will be two drafts (first and final).

• Editing will take place during each review draft (two edits).

• A production specialist will develop the template suite.

The people required for the project are:

• Senior technical writer.

• Graphic artist.

• Copy editor.

• Production specialist.

If these people are employees, the cost of using them includes salary, benefits and other overhead. (Figures used are based on San Francisco Bay Area salaries, benefits and overhead. National averages will be lower.)

If the same functions are outsourced for this project, the costs are not burdened by benefits and overhead. (The costs used for contract workers in this analysis are averages, derived from a range of typical costs for each function. The actual cost in any

• The document must be complete and ready to go to the printer (or be posted on the corporate website) in 14 weeks.

• The document will be approximately 200 pages long and contain about 50 graphics (a mix of renderings and diagrams).

• There will be two drafts (first and final).

• Editing will take place during each review draft (two edits).

• A production specialist will develop the template suite.

The people required for the project are:

• Senior technical writer.

• Graphic artist.

• Copy editor.

• Production specialist.

If these people are employees, the cost of using them includes salary, benefits and other overhead. (Figures used are based on San Francisco Bay Area salaries, benefits and overhead. National averages will be lower.)

If the same functions are outsourced for this project, the costs are not burdened by benefits and overhead. (The costs used for contract workers in this analysis are averages, derived from a range of typical costs for each function. The actual cost in any

If these people are employees, the cost of using them includes salary, benefits and other overhead. (Figures used are based on San Francisco Bay Area salaries, benefits and overhead. National averages will be lower.)

If the same functions are outsourced for this project, the costs are not burdened by benefits and overhead. (The costs used for contract workers in this analysis are averages, derived from a range of typical costs for each function. The actual cost in any specific instance will vary.)

Cost of Outsourcing on 14-Week Project

Function           Hourly Rate      Hours      Total

Sr. Tech Writer         75          560      42,000

Graphic Artist          75          150      11,250

Copy Editor             65           68       4,420

Production Specialist   65           36       2,340

Total for Project - $60,010

The savings in this scenario is $55,969 when the work is outsourced. If you’re just looking at 14 week’s worth of work, the monetary analysis is compellingly in favor of outsourcing. But of course, most companies have more than 14 weeks worth of technical documentation work. On average, a typical company has two or three releases of a product, resulting in two or three projects (of approximately 14 weeks duration) per year. Over a year’s time, then, let’s assume a company has three technical documentation projects that last about 14 weeks each (for a total of 42 weeks).

Using the same figures as above, let’s look at the annual cost of using outsourced labor vs. in-house employees. The table below provides the data.

Annual Cost of Outsourcing vs. Employee

Employee vs. Outsourced     Annual Cost

Employee                       $430,779

Outsourced                     $180,030

Delta                          $250,749

The reason for the rather eye-popping savings of $250,749 is that contractors go away between jobs, and employees don’t. A good rule of thumb is: If you have 42 (or more) consecutive weeks of work, in-house staffing is economically feasible. If your work flow comes in bursts of activity, followed by weeks or months of low activity, outsourcing remains the best solution.

Which Functions Should Be Staffed First?

Even if you have a fairly steady flow of technical publications work, there remains another decision: Which functions are best staffed in-house, and which are best outsourced? Looking at the sample 14-week project, the percent of time each function is required during that 14-week period is presented in the chart below.

Percent of Time Required During 14-Week Project (560 Hours)

Function             Total Hours    Percent of Time

Sr. Tech Writer           560            100%

Graphic Artist            150