How to be noticed and heard in cross-functional teams

I've worked as a technical writer for a major part of my career and recently transitioned into the role of a content designer. This is my 5th year as a content designer. Both the roles involve working with cross-functional teams and navigating different sets of challenges.

In both of these roles, I've heard fellow writers complain about how their opinions are never counted, how they're approached towards the end of the product development lifecycle for content support, or how they are cold shouldered when they approach subject matter experts.

I've adopted some good practises that have helped me work around these hurdles.

Learn the product and understand the needs of the end users

It helps immensely if you invest time in understanding the product or service you're writing content for. It's equally important for you to understand who the end users are.

This gives you an upper hand when you approach subject matter experts. Respect their time as much as you would want someone to respect your's. Prepare a focussed set of questions for subject matter experts after you've done your homework. Learning the product and understanding end users will help you steer content discussions in the right direction. This allows you to work independently with minimal support and handholding.

As a technical writer, this knowledge helps you in creating a content strategy and planning your deliverables. As a content designer, this knowledge helps you empathise with end users and enables you to speak their language. Content designing is all about crafting compelling microcopy, and every word counts.

Be proactive and vocal

If you're confident about user needs and what the product has to offer, you can add great value to the product design and functionality. Being a content designer or technical writer does not limit your contribution to authoring content alone. You should be knowledgeable enough to identify anomalies from a user experience perspective.

Typically, a content designer or technical writer has visibility into the larger scheme of things. Use this privilege to your favour and try to plug in gaps in the product. Look for inconsistencies between similar features. Collaborate with writers from other product areas to bring in a consistent product experience.

As a content designer you are invested in making the end user navigate the product seamlessly with the help of microcopy. If the microcopy and design fail, users turn back to documentation and support. If that fails, then it's one customer less for the business.

Look for opportunities to improve the product experience. For instance, volunteer to conduct an accessibility audit for the team, or participate in research sessions, or conduct a usability test for the product as well as content. All of these will reinforce your confidence around the product as well as your craft.

Be on top of things

Try to attend meetings that discuss the status of the sprint/project. Know your deadlines. Do not wait for someone else to follow up on your deliverables. This helps build trust in you and gauge your commitment towards the success of the product.

Communicate your deadlines in accordance with that of other functional teams. Prioritise and plan your deliverables so that you have ample time to give your best piece of content. If you're not aware of what's happening in the development cycle and stick to the initial plan that would've been communicated to you during the project kick off, you're bound to miss the bus.

Communicate clearly

One of the greatest strengths of writers is communication. Make sure that you communicate clearly and politely with stakeholders. Never burn bridges. Everybody is working against deadlines and it's extremely important for us to maintain the professional decorum. Of course, this applies to any other functions. However, in my experience, we writers have to navigate the diverse teams more often than any others. Record the minutes of meetings. If you've verbally agreed to any content decisions, document them in an email and share with stakeholders. Craft clear and concise emails calling out the key pointers.

If you have to convince stakeholders about a certain content decision, you need to use your persuasion skills coupled with right logic to be heard and valued. Be rational and reasonable in your arguments.

Summary

To summarise, it's easy to complain and dwell in unhealthy processes, but the power to change and challenge things that are not working for us, lies with us.

At the end of the day who doesn't want to be heard and valued?