Technical Writer III

Job Description

As part of the Thermo Fisher Scientific team, you’ll discover meaningful work that makes a positive impact on a global scale. Join our colleagues in bringing our Mission to life every single day to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We provide our global teams with the resources needed to achieve individual career goals while helping to take science a step beyond by developing solutions for some of the world’s toughest challenges, like protecting the environment, making sure our food is safe or helping find cures for cancer.

Location/Division Specific InformationWork Location: Carlsbad, CA (on-site) preferred. (May be open to remote work from the Bay Area, CA.)

Group: Life Sciences Solutions Group

Division: Genetic Sciences Division

How will you make an impact?

Our Service and Support Development team strives to deliver the highest quality documentation to Thermo Fisher Scientific’s global footprint of Field Service Engineers. As a key member of the team, the Technical Writer will create and improve service and support documentation and Web-based documentation for complex scientific instruments and software.  The candidate must be detail oriented, passionate about clear and concise technical communication, and able to build strong relationships with internal stakeholders to move projects along tight timelines.  An ideal candidate will have proven experience in hardware engineering and can evaluate and analyze complex information.  Candidates with experience in topic-based authoring, XML or HTML authoring, and DITA are preferred.

What will you do?

• Develop scientific/technical documentation for end users from information provided by research scientists, product managers, engineers, regulatory analysts, and other key business team members. Regularly interact with subject experts and attend project team meetings as needed.
• Manage multiple projects with multiple deliverables simultaneously.
• Analyze information to accurately identify workflows. 
• Proactively solicit information from other experts within the company as needed (e.g., technical support, field service engineers).
• Organize content logically into single-purpose topics following DITA standards and department information models. 
• Write clearly and concisely to meet the needs of the target audience.
• Work collaboratively with other writers on topic sharing and content reuse using the department’s XML-based authoring tool and content management system (Oxygen XML Author and SDL Publication Manager, respectively).
• Work with additional authoring tools (Microsoft Word and Adobe FrameMaker) as needed.
• Work with minimal supervision and manage time effectively. 
• Deliver under tight deadlines.
• Identify and communicate risks to project deadlines in advance.
• Adapt to changes in project priorities.
• Estimate and schedule complex documentation projects.
• Follow all processes, style guides, templates, and brand guidelines.
• Manage documents within a document control system.
• Identify and suggest improvements to processes and deliverables.
• Innovate with document and content delivery strategies.
• Lead departmental special projects as needed.

How will you get here?

Education

• B.S. in a scientific or technical field

Experience

• 2+ years of experience writing or editing documents in a scientific environment.  Hardware engineering experience is preferred.
• Experience with clinical and/or diagnostic systems a plus.
• Thorough understanding of technical/scientific content.
• Experience with topic-based authoring using DITA preferred.
• Experience with XML authoring tools preferred.
• Experience with HTML and CSS markup languages a plus. 
• Expertise with Microsoft Word desirable. 
• Expertise with Adobe FrameMaker and Adobe Acrobat a plus.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Ability to organize information logically.
• Ability to write clearly, concisely, accurately, and quickly.
• Keen attention to detail and high regard for quality.
• Ability to quickly learn new processes and software tools.
• Ability to effectively adapt structure, tone, and style to meet business needs.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Strong relationship management, project management, and critical thinking skills.
• Advanced knowledge of relevant style guide(s) and best practices.

This position has not been approved for relocation assistance.

We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards package that our US colleagues and their families can count on, which includes:

• A choice of national medical and dental plans, and a national vision plan
• A wellness program, and valuable health incentive opportunities for company contributions to a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) or Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Tax-advantaged savings and spending accounts and commuter benefits
• Employee assistance program
• At least 120 hours paid time off (PTO), 10 paid holidays annually, paid parental leave (3 weeks for bonding and 8 weeks for caregiver leave), accident and life insurance, short- and long-term disability, and volunteer time off in accordance with company policy
• Retirement and savings programs, such as our competitive 401(k) U.S. retirement savings plan
• Employees’ Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) offers eligible colleagues the opportunity to purchase company stock at a discount

Our Mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. Watch as our colleagues explain 5 reasons to work with us. As one team of 100,000+ colleagues, we share a common set of values - Integrity, Intensity, Innovation and Involvement - working together to accelerate research, solve complex scientific challenges, drive technological innovation and support patients in need. #StartYourStory at Thermo Fisher Scientific, where diverse experiences, backgrounds and perspectives are valued.

Apply today! http://jobs.thermofisher.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific is an EEO/Affirmative Action Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status.

Accessibility/Disability Access

Job Seekers with a Disability: Thermo Fisher Scientific offers accessibility service for job seekers requiring accommodations in the job application process. For example, this may include individuals requiring assistance because of hearing, vision, mobility, or cognitive impairments. If you are a job seeker with a disability, or assisting a person with a disability, and require accessibility assistance or an accommodation to apply for one of our jobs, please submit a request by telephone at 1-855-471-2255*.  Please include your contact information and specific details about your required accommodation to support you during the job application process.

This telephone line is reserved solely for job seekers with disabilities requiring accessibility assistance or an accommodation in the job application process. Messages left for other purposes, such as not being able to get into the career website, following up on an application, or other non-disability related technical issues will not receive a response.

Compensation and Benefits

This position may also be eligible to receive a variable annual bonus based on company, team, and/or individual performance results in accordance with company policy. We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards package that our U.S. colleagues and their families can count on, which includes:

• A choice of national medical and dental plans, and a national vision plan, including health incentive programs

• Employee assistance and family support programs, including commuter benefits and tuition reimbursement

• At least 120 hours paid time off (PTO), 10 paid holidays annually, paid parental leave (3 weeks for bonding and 8 weeks for caregiver leave), accident and life insurance, and short- and long-term disability in accordance with company policy

• Retirement and savings programs, such as our competitive 401(k) U.S. retirement savings plan

• Employees’ Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) offers eligible colleagues the opportunity to purchase company stock at a discount

For more information on our benefits, please visit: https://jobs.thermofisher.com/global/en/total-rewards