Knowledge of Sarbanes-Oxley required.Expertise needed in loan origination

and mortgage litigation. Prefer Business Analysts who are

Technical Writers.

These are just a few samplerequirements found in jobdescriptions that were recentlyposted by local financial com-panies looking for technical

writers. As a senior technical writer andjob seeker, I’m intrigued by the employ-ment potential for writers in the finan-cial industry. If you share my interest,please read on to learn more about thevarious types of financial companies andthe opportunities now being offered toqualified members of our profession.

Financial Companies and Their Business Processes

Financial companies come in allshapes and sizes. Some offer mortgagelending only or investment managementonly, while others offer a broad range ofservices, which can include banking,insurance, loans, investments, mergersand acquisitions, trusts, estate planning,and more. And let’s not forget that largecompanies whose primary business is notfinancial must nonetheless operate inter-nal financial departments.

Like most large corporations, finan-cial companies engage in multiple, com-plex business processes. These includeindustry-specific processes such as loanorigination and general processes suchas human capital management. Today,executives are taking unprecedentedsteps to effectively manage their compa-nies’ business processes. Many are now

implementing comprehensive enter-prise systems, such as Peoplesoft or Ora-cle, which offer customizable, interactivemodules for managing every significantbusiness process.

One of the motivators behind theheightened U.S. interest in improvedbusiness process management is the Sar-banes-Oxley Act of 2002, enacted in thewake of large-scale accounting scandalsthat involved some of America’s best-known corporations. Sarbanes-Oxley, orSOX as it is called by industry insiders,requires companies to carefully docu-ment their financial processes and beprepared for periodic audits.

User documentation and trainingmaterials for enterprise software mod-ules, and reports that meet SOXrequirements, are generalized examplesof financial writing tasks that may beneeded at any company. The followingparagraphs examine a selection of thewriting projects now being done at spe-cific types of financial companies.

Writing for a Mortgage LendingCompany

The primary business of a mortgagelending company can be summed upas loan origination. The steps towardplacing a loan on the books include thefollowing:• Solicitation of the customer• Application processing• Credit evaluation and background

check• Appraisal and title search• Loan package selection and closing

Have you ever been on the phonewith a loan officer, applying for homerefinancing or an equity line of credit?

Perhaps you were aware the loan officerwas using a software application thatallowed him or her to enter your dataand calculate numbers, such as your esti-mated monthly payment with two orthree refinance options.

Behind the scenes, the loan officermust clearly understand company pol-icy toward all levels of customer inter-action and must follow specificprocedures for qualifying applicants andmatching them with appropriate loans.Typically, this knowledge is conveyedthrough training programs, policy andprocedure documentation, and help sys-tems or printed user manuals for soft-ware applications. Some mortgagecompanies expect their financial expertsto develop these materials themselves;some realize they will get better results ifthey hire technical writers to help; andsome appear to be confused about theissue. Mortgage and other financialcompanies are fairly new to the game oftechnical writing and are undergoing alearning curve regarding the appropri-ate skill set for technical writers.

Diane (fictitious name) is a technicalwriter employed by a leading OrangeCounty mortgage company. When Diane

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Technical Writingin the FinancialIndustryBY SANDY J. LARSEN, Senior Member, Orange County Chapter

was hired one year ago, she had nofinancial background. Over time, shelearned industry jargon and acronyms,and came to understand the “paperflow” through the organization thatoccurs when a mortgage is sold. Diane’smanagers realized how helpful it is fortheir writers to have previous financialexperience; but temporarily, they havelost track of the importance of technicalwriting skills. As a result, they hired sev-eral people who have financial knowl-edge but no writing skills. Diane is nowvery busy teaching these employees howto write.

Writing Positions at a Mergers andAcquisitions Firm

To understand what a mergers andacquisitions (M&A) firm does, I had tolook up the terms in an online invest-ment dictionary. In a merger, two com-panies are combined. In an acquisition(takeover), one company purchases allof or a majority interest in another com-pany and takes controls of its opera-tions. Where does technical writing fitinto this picture? To find out, I inter-viewed Richard Stone (fictitious name),a vice president at an investment bank-

ing company that manages mergers,acquisitions, and divestitures for the pri-vate middle market.

By talking with Richard, I came tounderstand his firm’s business model asfollows. The firm initiates the salesprocess through seminars that showpotential clients how to get the best val-uation for their companies. An inter-nally developed software systemschedules the seminars, books prospec-tive clients and makes their travel reser-vations, and manages billing. When asale is made, the firm thoroughly ana-lyzes the client company and prepares acompany valuation document. Addi-tionally, the client may purchase mar-keting services to find potential buyers.

Richard acknowledged that his firmemploys writers in several capacities, buthe did not feel comfortable categoriz-ing all of them as technical writers. Heopined that technical writers developsystem and software documentation,while business writers have specializedfinancial knowledge along with generalwriting skills. Other companies may usethe titles business analyst or financial ana-lyst to describe the latter position, andthe people who bear them are expected

to have excellent communication skills.According to Richard, contract tech-

nical writers document his firm’s soft-ware booking system and writemarketing communication materials.Graphic designers, in cooperation withseminar leaders and other companyexperts, create seminar presentationsusing PowerPoint. Business writers origi-nate the text for company valuation doc-uments and draft legal contracts, andthese projects each require different,specific financial expertise. Technicaleditors support the writers with editing,rewriting, and proofreading to ensureaccuracy, consistency, and adherence tostyle guidelines. It wouldn’t surprise meif the career path for technical editors atthis M&A firm includes advancement tothe position of business or technicalwriter!

Financial Planning and AssociatedWriting Projects

Generally speaking, financial plan-ning companies sell their services toindividual or corporate clients. For anindividual client, an analyst uses finan-cial modeling software to evaluate fiscalneeds; suggests portfolio additions suchas stocks, bonds, or mutual funds; andforecasts potential earnings over time.

For a corporate client, the analyst per-forms in-depth research and analysis ofa wide range of capital investmentopportunities, such as securities, venturecapital offerings, and real estate acquisi-tions. Using additional features of thefinancial modeling software suite, theanalyst develops a comprehensive writ-ten business plan, which may include anaudiovisual presentation with illustratedfiscal scenarios, to be delivered to theclient corporation in person or online.

The financial software suites provideobvious opportunities for technical writ-ers, and the business plans seem to pro-vide more. For verification, I talked toMichael Fuller, a local expert who for-merly held analyst and management posi-tions with financial services, securities, andinvestment firms. Michael considers him-self to be the best technical writer heknows, as well as a subject matter expert inhis field. He has advanced proficiency withthe standard desktop publishing tools

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used by technical writers, and he routinelysubmitted the business plans and market-ing presentations he wrote to his formermanagers and attorneys for review.

I asked Michael if he knows of othertechnical writers in the financial indus-try, and he answered with a touch ofirony, “Yes, but they are attorneys andparalegals!” When a wealthy client needsestate planning, Michael explained, theproject is so complex—involving realestate, tax, probate, and investmentlaw—that it must be transferred to anattorney and legal staff who specializein this field. The easiest way for a tech-nical writer to play this game, Michaelasserted, is to become a certified parale-gal. Indeed, I was aware of legal researchand legal writing, having done some ofit in a past life, but the existence of legaland financial cross-functional specialtieswas news to me!

What the Want Ads SayThe experts I interviewed did more

than hint that writers with subject matterexpertise are highly valued in the finan-cial industry, and my frequent readingof the want ads underscored this point.For many months, the major job boardshave been running ads from varioustypes of financial companies thatrequire technical writers to have previ-ous industry experience in no uncertainterms. “Just how necessary is this really?”I mused. I can do research, interviewexperts, and write effectively on any sub-ject, financial or otherwise. With soft-ware, all I have to do is use it until Iunderstand it, and great documentationthen flows fast and furiously.

I was especially piqued by a recruiter’sad for a writer who could independentlydevelop company valuation documents.This ad, for a position with a Carpente-ria investment firm, even stipulated that“experience with documenting finance-related software is not enough to qual-ify.” So I called Jack Molisani, presidentof Prospring Technical Staffing, whohad posted the ad. Jack didn’t deny thata competent writer could do this jobeven without prior industry experience,but he clearly stated that in today’s jobmarket, employers can demand an exactmatch for their requirements. “Why

should they accept a close match whenthey can get an exact match?” Jackasked. “Employers would rather havesomeone who is already familiar withtheir industry and terminology so theywon’t have to pay for training.”

Well then, what kind of writer is actu-ally qualified for this job? “Someonewho has done the same job for anotheremployer,” said Jack. “Someone who hasan MBA and writing experience, or hasworked for another investment bankingcompany and understands the relevantterminology.” But the saving grace camewhen Jack revealed that two years ear-lier, he had placed a writer with the Car-penteria company to write softwaredocumentation, and now she is writingcompany valuations.

Qualifying as a Financial WriterThe truth is, specialized industry

knowledge is a critical factor in thecareer of every technical writer. Doesthis mean you are forever stuck with theindustry in which you have experience?Academically speaking, the answer is no.If you want to transition to the financialindustry, you can get an MBA in twoyears; become a certified paralegal inten months; or explore other expensive,time-consuming educational remedies.But technical writing experts maintainthat there is a cheaper, faster solution:volunteer your writing services and addthe experience to your résumé.

Jack Molisani suggests that you findsomeone who is working on financialdocuments and offer to help—free ofcharge, if necessary. You can solicitemployers directly or approach inde-pendent contractors and volunteer yourassistance with their projects. Once youhave some experience with financialprojects on your résumé, you can lever-age it to get projects of your own.

Adrienne Escoe, president of EscoeBliss Communication, suggested puttingin some extra time to assist the finan-cial department at your present place ofwork. If you’re applying for a job thatrequires industry-specific experience,Adrienne advised, you can offer to workone week for free to demonstrate yourskills with the new subject matter. Adri-enne also emphasized the importance

of strong skills with authoring tools suchas Robohelp, and of a picture-perfectrésumé that showcases your excellentskills with the formatting features ofMicrosoft Word as well as your proof-reading talents.

I was encouraged when Adrienne toldme that Escoe Bliss recently placed tech-nical writers at three prominent OrangeCounty and Los Angeles mortgage com-panies, two of which did not requireprevious financial industry experience.All three of the companies did, however,require experience in writing corporatepolicies and procedures. Some of thewriters worked in industry-specific areas,including loan origination, loan servic-ing, and default management. Theother writers developed policy and pro-cedure documentation and wrote con-tent for the company intranet andnewsletters.

I was also inspired by these words onthe Writer’s Market Web site (www.writersmarket.com): “The financial writer[may acquire a basic business sense]through formal education, practicalexperience, or informal study. Knowl-edge of the stock market is a commonfoundation; the writer then develops afinancial specialty [that] may take anyof several forms...Writers keep currentin their field by regularly reading indus-try publications, union newspapers, TheNew York Times and The Wall Street Journal.They gather economic informationfrom government offices, public rela-tions agencies, and professional societiesassociated with their writing specialty.”

In conclusion, I believe that a techni-cal writer can transition from one indus-try to another by mastering the currentauthoring tools, acquiring experiencethrough volunteering, taking some formof relevant education, and reading lotsof industry publications. The financialindustry should be no exception to thisrule. I offer my sincere thanks to every-one who made this article possible byanswering my questions and providingthe necessary information.

This article originally appeared in the June2004 issue of TechniScribe, the newsletterof STC’s Orange County chapter. It appearshere with changes.

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