Alex Radu talk for CodeLand 2021

1. DOCS ARE EVERYONE’S
BUSINESS
Really, they are
Alex Radu
Views are my own and do not represent those of my employer @AlexandraMMR

2. DOCS ARE EVERYONE’S
BUSINESS
Really, they are
Alex Radu
Views are my own and do not represent those of my employer @AlexandraMMR
short for documentation or documents

3. What we’ll
cover
WHAT HELPS
HOW IT’S GOING
HOW IT STARTED
OPEN SOURCE DOCS
@AlexandraMMR

4. About Me
Public Cloud Product Adoption Lead
Content Strategist
Software Engineer
Conversational Designer
Developer Advocate
Unicorn Lover @AlexandraMMR
Tech lover from
1994

5. ● Outdated product documentation not owned by any team
● Cumbersome contribution process to update docs
● No central content and UX writing evaluation point for changes
● Outdated front-end framework for platform
● Customer frustration with navigability of docs
● No marketing or communication of changes in documentation
@AlexandraMMR
How it started (2020)

6. … then magic
happened!
@AlexandraMMR

7. How we wish it
were going
@AlexandraMMR
Unicorns and
rainbows

8. How it’s going (2021)
@AlexandraMMR
● Content audit for all documentation
● Template creation for common use cases
● Open source contribution model (internal)
● Tech writing and content team to review and approve changes
● Upgraded front-end framework
● Customer research and testing in all stages of design
● Customer feedback loops on documentation platform
● Inclusion of documentation in:
○ Definition of done (engineering)
○ Weekly release notes (communications)
○ OKRs and end of quarter updates from leadership (marketing)

9. 137K sessions 76K sessions
31k unique users
4.4 sessions/user
680k pageviews
(65% increase)
22.5k unique users
3.3 sessions/user
430k pageviews
2020
2021
Usage
Statistics
for our
Product Docs
@AlexandraMMR

10. OPEN SOURCE DOCS, WHY?
@AlexandraMMR
Drive product adoption and ownership
Increase transparency and centralize knowledge
Improve customer experience and amplify their voice

11. Advertise, advertise, advertise
Contribution guide and established process
Dedicated approvers and reviewers
OPEN SOURCE DOCS, HOW?
@AlexandraMMR

12. Have a team to
support it
Audit current state
Bring everyone in
and upskill
Set clear objectives
What helped us
@AlexandraMMR

13. What could help you
Audit and plan for your goals
@AlexandraMMR
Get everyone involved
and upskilled
Prioritize feedback and customer
input
Try Markdown or a Content
Management System
Create templates and
contribution guides
Automate what / if you can

14. Why open source your docs?
Accountability and transparency
@AlexandraMMR
Real time feedback and support
Customer value and engagement
Distributed accountability
Consistency and efficiency
Increased adoption and usage

15. Because docs are
everyone’s business
@AlexandraMMR

16. Thank you!
Questions?
@AlexandraMMR