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Technical Writing in Israel
Israel
is a small country with a diverse population. Over five million Jews and 1 million
Arabs and Christians occupy a narrow stretch of land the size of New York State.
Three million Palestinians live across the green line, in the Palestinian territories.
The current political conflict between Palestinians and Israelis has been portrayed
in the news.
What is it really like living in the “holy” land and working as a technical writer?
This article provides an introduction to working as a technical writer in Israel.
View of the temple mount and old city in Jerusalem
Israel is a land of contrasts. On the one hand are conditions characteristic of third world and developing countries, on the other hand, the country benefits from a highly educated workforce and sophisticated technological products, which have helped raise the gross domestic product (GDP) and standard of living to a level comparable to that of the more industrialized, western nations. The local Information technology (IT) industry is referred to as “High Tech”, and employs around 150 000 workers, of which 800-1000 are technical writers.
The high tech industry is spread throughout the country, with the main industrial areas in Tel Aviv, the Sharon area, Haifa and Jerusalem.
Israeli companies specialize in almost all areas of advanced
technology, including: Telecommunications, IP networking, security, Internet,
pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, agriculture, mining and other fields.
You can find out more about the Israeli economy in the Globes Business Arena
(http://www.globes.co.il/), an online
financial newspaper in English that provides news items on the Israeli economy.
Most of the technical writers come from the Jewish population, although there are also Arabic and Christian writers. Many writers are Anglo-Saxons from the US, Europe, South Africa and Australia, who studied other professions at university level and found technical writing opportunities in Israel. The backgrounds of writers include those from the humanities and behavioral sciences (English literature, political science, music, psychology and teaching) and those with technical backgrounds in computer science, engineering and medicine. Most writers are either citizens of Israel, are married to Israeli citizens or have recently immigrated.
Although there are currently no university level technical writing training programs in Israel, many private schools have opened up within the last several years to meet the burgeoning demand. Some of these programs are sponsored by the office of National Insurance, which provides subsidies for Anglo-Saxons, trained in other fields, who wish to study technical writing.
New writers with little experience may find it difficult to break into the field, given the current economic climate and the large number of students trained in the private schools. New writers usually start out working for contracting agencies, which pay minimum wages. However, those with experience and excellent skills are likely to find suitable employment.
Since Israel is a small country, jobs are often found through networking or leveraging existing connections.
Companies expect writers to have English as a mother tongue, a university education and some experience writing technical documentation. Skills most commonly required include MS Word, FrameMaker and RoboHelp, with some experience of graphic tools and PDF production.
Salaries for a technical writer range from 6000-8000 NIS (1300-1700 $) per month for a new or junior writer, 9,000-14.000 (1900-3000 $) for an experienced writer, and 15,000-18.000 (3250-3900 $) for a writer in a senior or managerial position. Contract writers can charge between 30-50$ per hour, although the current average is around 38.5$ per hour.
Benefits often include stock options or shares, subsidized meals (coupons that are valid at many restaurants in the industrial areas), a cellular phone, pension plan and insurance plan. Some companies offer the option of hiring a car at a subsidized price.
Taxation and deductions are high, when compared to other countries. The tax bracket that most technical writers fall into is over 50%. Salary deductions are made towards the national insurance, health coverage and the national pension fund. Employees who are laid off receive compensation of 1-month salary for each year of employment.
The average working week is 45 hours (9 hours X 5 days), or 190 hours per month. Working days are from Sunday to Thursday. Hours are usually flexible, and typically range from 8/9am – 6/7pm.
Israeli companies are typically small to medium sized (between 40-400 employees), and may be traded on the New York stock exchange and have offices abroad. Work conditions in smaller companies are informal and friendly. Working hours are flexible, and no dress code is enforced. Most employees come to work in comfortable clothes, or even wearing a T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, especially during summer, when the weather is hot and humid. Since space is at a premium, technical writers usually have to share an office, or are allocated to a cubical.
Hebrew is the language spoken in the office and on the streets. However, most high tech workers are competent in English, which is also the language used for sending emails and writing documents. Many technical writers are able to manage with a minimum level of Hebrew, although most companies expect their employees to be able to understand Hebrew.
Living in Israel can be both challenging and fulfilling. There are plenty of socialization opportunities and night clubs for younger, single people, usually in the Tel Aviv area. Israeli society, in general, is conservative and most adults over 30 years are expected to be married and have families. Many communities and work environments are oriented towards family life.
On weekends (Friday afternoon and Saturdays), the country closes down. All businesses and the majority of shops are closed and there is no public transport, making a private mode of transport essential. In the summer, Israelis gravitate towards parks and beaches. Nature reserves in the Galilee, Negev desert and other parts of the country are popular outdoor venues.
Israel is set up to cater for the tourist industry. However, many Israelis prefer to take their vacations abroad. Greece, Turkey, Eastern Europe and Europe are popular destinations, which are accessible and competitively priced in comparison to local venues. For those who choose to take their vacation locally, Eilat, the Dead Sea and the upper Galilee are popular locations.
For the most part, Israelis feel secure in their home and work environments. Security is extremely tight throughout the country and the presence of armed soldiers, roadblocks and police is everywhere. Buses and cars are routinely stopped and checked. Security guards protect the entrances to all public buildings and schools.
The Israel Chapter of the Society of Technical Communications
(STC) has over 100 formal members and many more who are not registered but practice
in this country. The Israel STC chapter arranges regular meetings and seminars
on topics of interest to technical writers. For more information refer to the
Israeli STC Chapter web site: http://www.stc-israel.org.il/
Techshoret, an online email forum, provides a resource for technical writers to communicate with each other and discuss job-related issues. Other private companies and schools offer a variety of training courses and occasionally bring in overseas experts for seminars.
To subscribe to Techshoret, send an email to: techshoret-subscribe@yahoogroups.com, or visit their Web site at: www.techshoret.com
The following short extracts are from technical writers in Israel, describing what they do.
Tori Friedlander is a full-time technical writer. " I've been in the field for almost eight years now. Currently, I'm the sole technical writer for Camtek, Ltd. in Migdal Ha'Emek. Camtek produces nine separate automated inspection systems and several software packages. Because the company was without an in-house writer for sometime, there's quite a backlog -- and frankly, I'm still just as happy at work as I am at home. Life is good."
Says Tova Sneir: " I have been working as a technical writer for the last
6 years and I love it. I will soon start my MA in technical communications.
Currently, I am documenting hardware and software, usually for end users and
am writing online help projects."
"I love documenting a new product under development. It is a challenge
understanding it and finding the way for explaining it to the end users. The
interaction between the writer and the developers is usually very fruitful and
important. I can always help them come up with a better product interface wise.
I also love the actual writing. However, the most fascinating of all is writing
an online help and turning written words into something very dynamic."
Shmuel Goldshtein is a documentation manager in Israel. Shmuel explains how he entered the profession: "There was a time in Israel, like today, that the economy was very slow. I had studied Electro-Optical engineering at Machon Lev, finishing in 1988. I worked for Indigo as a junior researcher for a year, but when that finished, I was back on the job market. I saw ads for Technical Writers and said to myself, "Hey, I can do that!".
"At the beginning, all of our graphics work was done by hand, and the photos by a professional photographer, whose photos we physically pasted into the books. By the time I left in 1996, most of the drawings were done on computer, and some of the photos were scanned. I then went to ECI, where I used some of my experience from LI in writing, in addition to learning online help. Later at ECI, I advanced to a management position where I was responsible for the whole set of documentation for their DCME business unit. I left ECI early in 2001, and now work at PacketLight, a telecom startup based in Kfar Saba. I have set up their documentation from scratch, and write it as well."
"It is a good job, and there is still demand for it, even though the economy is slow now. It is easy for me to do. I do not have to be responsible for correct or incorrect design of a system. I get to play with computers. I get to do drawings. I like to organize things. It is technical, but also artistic."
I've been living and working in Israel for the past 10 years, several of which
were in the High Tech industry as a technical writer. One of the advantages
to working for an Israeli company is that most companies are small to medium
sized, so that you get to know everyone on a personal basis. People tend to
be closer to each other and it is much easier to forge friendships.
Israeli High tech companies, many of which are in the start-up stage, tend to
be flexible in their approach. The upside of this is that with luck and some
skill, it is possible to forge the type of job and responsibilities you want,
and to wear many hats. On the downside, many companies seem to struggle on interminably
in the startup stage, without developing into mature companies. Often, companies
lack clear structures, long-term goals and capital. Management is sometimes
mediocre.
Working in a Hebrew speaking environment and culture has some advantages. The linguistic skills and cultural experience of English-speaking technical communicators is highly valued, since these skills are a bridge to an international market. Experienced English mother tongue technical writers are also something of a rare species, adding to their value.