Senior Technical Writer

Position Summary

Effectual Technical Writers are members of the Public Sector Program Management team responsible for ensuring that customer-facing projects are delivered with exceptional customer satisfaction and technical excellence. Effectual Technical Writers are “Brand Ambassadors” and are expected to stay current on leading practices to deliver high-quality, well-conceived solutions to customers.

A Glimpse into the Daily Routine of a Senior Technical Writer

The Senior Technical Writer will gather, create, and maintain technical documentation. Translate complex technical information into clear and comprehensive content that can be easily understood by target audience. Support subject matter experts, participate in reviews, and engage in cross-functional collaboration to modernize and maintain a cloud platform and migrate varied and multiple applications and workloads. Their work combines independent tasks, research, collaboration, and documentation refinement to create valuable resources for users leveraging cloud technologies.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain comprehensive technical documentation for cloud-based products and services, including user guides, API documentation, system architecture diagrams, deployment guides, and best practice documents
• Collaborate closely with subject matter experts, cloud architects, engineers, managers, security specialists, application developers, and other stakeholders to understand complex cloud concepts and translate them into clear and concise documentation
• Research and stay updated on the latest cloud technologies, trends, and best practices to ensure accurate and relevant documentation
• Write, edit, and proofread technical content with a focus on clarity, accuracy, and consistency, adhering to the organization's style and branding guidelines
• Organize and structure complex information effectively, considering the needs of different target audiences, such as developers, system administrators, and end-users
• Create and maintain code samples, command-line instructions, and configuration examples to assist developers in integrating with cloud services
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including but not limited to management, engineering, security, application development, innovation, and support, to gather information and ensure documentation aligns with product features and updates
• Conduct regular reviews of existing documentation to identify areas for improvement, update outdated information, and address user feedback
• Continuously improve documentation processes, tools, and templates to enhance efficiency and quality
• Assist in the development of training materials, video tutorials, and knowledge base articles to support self-service customer education
• Stay up to date with security and compliance requirements related to cloud services and ensure documentation reflects the necessary guidelines and best practices

Qualifications

• Minimum Education: Bachelor’s degree in related discipline AND
• Minimum Experience: 4 years’ experience in editing technical documents preferably specialized cloud technologies OR
• Substitution/Alternative to Minimum Education and Experience: Must have at least 12 years of on-the-job experience
• Be able to work remotely but, be able to go on-site as requested and/or occasionally with potentially some form of post-pandemic cadence, on-site in Washington DC
• Must be a US Citizen
• Strong knowledge of leading cloud/security practices
• Superior attention to detail
• Proven experience as a technical writer, specifically in the cloud domain, with a focus on public cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, Google Cloud)
• In-depth understanding of cloud concepts, including infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), platform-as-a-service (PaaS), and software-as-a-service (SaaS)
• Familiarity with cloud-based technologies, services, and tools, such as virtual machines, storage, networking, containers, serverless computing, and microservices architecture
• Strong knowledge of cloud deployment models, such as hybrid cloud, multi-cloud, and cloud migration strategies
• Experience with cloud infrastructure management tools, such as Terraform, Kubernetes, or Ansible
• Proficient in using documentation tools and platforms, such as markdown, DITA, Git, and content management systems (CMS)
• Ability to quickly grasp complex technical concepts and explain them in a clear and concise manner to various audiences
• Excellent writing, editing, and proofreading skills, with a keen eye for detail and strong knowledge of grammar, punctuation, and style
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously while adhering to deadlines
• Good collaboration and communication skills to work effectively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders
• Familiarity with agile development methodologies and experience working in an Agile or Scrum environment is a plus
• Knowledge of information security and compliance frameworks, such as SOC 2, HIPAA, or ISO 27001, is advantageous
• Ability to work Eastern Standard Time Zone schedule

Nice-to-Have Skills and Experience

• Active Clearance or Public Trust (DOJ Preferred)
• AWS Associate, Professional and/or Specialty certifications
• Cloud Migration Experience
• Proficiency in Infrastructure Automation (IaC) frameworks like Terraform, AWS CloudFormation
• Knowledge of Containerization and Orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes)
• Understanding DevOps Practices (CI/CD, Jenkins, GitLab)
• Familiarity with Security and Compliance (Cloud security, HIPAA)
• Cloud Cost Optimization
• Understanding Data Analytics and Big Data (Hadoop, Spark, Redshift, Azure Data Lake)
• Proficiency in Scripting and Programming (Python, PowerShell, Bash)
• Continuous Learning (Staying updated with cloud advancements)

Company Offered Benefits

Full-time employees are eligible to participate in our employee benefit programs:

• Medical, dental, and vision health insurances,
• Short term disability, long term disability and life insurances,
• 401k with Company match
• Paid time off (PTO) (120 hours PTO that accrue over one year)
• Paid time off for major holidays (14 days per year)
• These and any other employee benefit offerings are subject to management’s discretion and may change at any time. 

Physical Demands and Work Environment

The work is generally performed in an office environment.  Physical demands include sitting, keyboarding, verbal communication, written communication.  Employees are occasionally required to stand; walk; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions.

Salary Range for this position: $78,000-$113,000

CA ID CM02000003

"Salary ranges provided are for informational purposes only and may vary depending on factors such as experience, qualifications, and geographic location. The final salary offer will be determined based on the candidate's skills and alignment with the role requirements."

This job description may not be inclusive of all assigned duties, responsibilities, or aspects of the job described, and may be amended anytime at the sole discretion of the Employer. Duties and responsibilities are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities. To perform this job successfully, the incumbents will possess the skills, aptitudes, and abilities to perform each duty proficiently. This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an “at will” relationship. Effectual Inc. is an EEO employer and does not discriminate on the basis of any protected classification in its hiring, promoting, or any other job-related opportunity.