Senior Technical Writer (Contract)

At Censys, we know the internet and cloud better than anyone else. Censys stands at the forefront of internet and cloud expertise, empowering customers through our Attack Surface Management solutions. We offer a unique attacker-centric perspective, providing a comprehensive view of external internet and cloud assets to prioritize and mitigate critical risk exposures effectively. Our daily IPv4 scans and the world’s largest SSL/TLS Certificate database ensure customers have continuously updated attack surface insights. Enterprises rely on Censys to stay ahead of cyber threats and proactively safeguard against attacks, driving tangible impact in the digital landscape.

Role Summary:

As a Senior Technical Writer, you will manage and enhance the content management system (CMS) for consistent and professional presentation of technical documentation. Your role includes developing a comprehensive style guide, collaborating with product, customer success, and engineering teams to assess documentation needs, and creating clear, concise materials that guide customers in using Censys. You will organize and maintain product documentation, ensure logical content structure, and document technical aspects. Additionally, you'll maintain a library of technical terminology, continuously improve documentation quality, and incorporate feedback to meet and exceed customer expectations.

Why Censys Sticks Out:

• Humble Brilliance: We celebrate intelligence and foster a culture where tackling cybersecurity challenges is exciting and rewarding.
• A Mosaic of Minds: Our diverse team brings together various talents and backgrounds, fostering true innovation through diverse perspectives.
• Thinkers and Tinkerers: At Censys, we encourage questioning the status quo, experimenting, and pushing boundaries to drive breakthroughs.
• Coffee-Fueled Collaboration: Collaboration is at the heart of our success, fueled by a shared passion for disrupting the cybersecurity scene.
• Trailblazing Impact: Your innovations at Censys make waves in real-world cybersecurity, shaping the future and leaving a lasting legacy.
• Life Beyond the Firewall: We prioritize work-life balance and support your well-being inside and outside the office.
• Empowered Voices: Your voice matters at Censys; we champion an inclusive culture where diverse perspectives drive change.

What You’ll Do:

• Manage the implementation and theming of our content management system (CMS) to ensure consistent content presentation and a professional appearance
• Develop and maintain a comprehensive style guide for technical documentation
• Collaborate with product, customer success, and sales engineering to determine customer documentation needs
• Write and update documentation for customers that clearly explains how to use Censys products
• Efficiently create, merge, and maintain product documentation and release posts
• Implement content topic types in both new and previously created content to make product documentation easier to read, understand, and use
• Ensure that product documentation pages are well-organized by using effective naming and logical groupings
• Collaborate with engineering to document our platform, User interface, REST APIs
• Provide seamless updates to all technical literature
• Create a comprehensive library of technical terminology and documentation
• Work collaboratively on publications, websites, and presentations in a technical field
• Ensure that our technical documentation meets and exceeds customer needs
• Continuous improvement mindset, with a proactive approach to incorporating feedback (internal and external) and evolving documentation practices to meet customer needs.

What You’ll Bring:

• Bachelor’s degree in Technical Writing, Communications, English, Journalism, a related field, or equivalent practical experience
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal
• At least 4 years experience documenting technical consumer and/or enterprise software
• Proven ability to collect and disseminate complex technical information in a way that is organized effectively and easy to consume from the perspective of the intended reader
• Previous experience documenting HTTP REST APIs
• Familiarity with Markdown, HTML & CSS

Bonus Points:

• 3+ years tech writing experience previously at a cybersecurity company 

Our target pay for this contract role is $45 to $55 per hour. 

Our roots are in Ann Arbor, Michigan with location hubs in Seattle, the Bay Area, and Washington D.C. Our innovation is fueled by the team’s global perspectives and diverse backgrounds. For this role, we are looking for candidates based in one of these locations: Ann Arbor, MI - Kirkland, WA -  Los Altos, CA - Tysons Corner, DC. 

Don't meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they feel they meet every qualification. At Censys we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace - so if you're excited about this role but your past experience doesn't align perfectly with every listed requirement in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be exactly who we need to fill this role or others! 

We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Censys is an equal-opportunity employer.