Spectrum 2022, Communication by Design: Unleashing the Power of Design in Technical Communication, takes place April 3 and 4 online. Sunday features a symposium and Monday is the main conference day.
The Rochester Chapter of the Society for Technical Communication (STC) invites technical communicators and professionals to submit a proposal for Spectrum 2022. The conference theme, “Communication by Design”, focuses on who, what, when, where, why, and how design effects our ability to communicate effectively.
Sarah Richards suggests “Content design isn’t graphic design or just copywriting under another name. Content design focuses on what content best serves the users’ needs, whether it be the written word, infographics, visuals, videos, or charts.”
At the core of content design are the needs of the users—and this means determining what your users want. More than this, it’s about analysing data to determine when, where, and how users want to digest information. There is no room for assumptions in content design—success or failure hinges on how well you understand your users’ needs.”
And Michael J. Metts suggests “Without words, apps would be an unusable jumble of shapes and icons, while voice interfaces and chatbots wouldn’t even exist. Words make software human–centered, and require just as much thought as the branding and code.”
Use these passages as inspiration to design your proposals for Sunday’s symposium, Monday’s conference presentation, or both. The symposium proposals are 18-minute TED-like talks and must address “Designing for the Future: Communication and Design for Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence”. The presentation proposals are open for any intersection between communication and design and are expected to be 40-45 minutes long.
You are invited to submit up to two proposals for the Sunday symposium and two proposals for the Monday conference. You do not need to be an STC member to be a presenter at Spectrum.
The submission deadline is January 15, 2022.
Conference presenters receive free registration. (If there are multiple presenters in the session the registration fee discount will be divided among the presenters.) Symposium presenters receive 50% discount on the registration fee.
Please complete the Spectrum Presentation Google Form to submit your proposal. If you have any questions or need to use assistive technology during your presentation, please contact spectrum@stc-rochester.org.
Thank you for your interest in participating as a Spectrum 2022 speaker. The Rochester Chapter hopes to see you at Spectrum!
