Members

Mona Albano

Mona Albano specializes in technical documentation, primarily about information technology software and hardware. She does information analysis and delivery. This includes defining audiences and content for a set of manuals, structuring the content, interviewing subject matter experts, designing page formats, creating document prototypes for review, coördinating other writers, indexing, and creating paper and online documents using a variety of publishing and graphic software tools.

She also participates in user interface design, including Web site design, and usability testing. She is available for contract work in the Toronto area. Visit her Web site at www.mona-albano.com.

Mona enjoys doing technical editing to ensure that documents are complete, accurate, well structured, consistent, grammatical, and clear. She is also a trained plain-language consultant.

Mona worked full-time as a technical writer for several years and has been freelancing for the last ten. She is an affiliate of IBI Group, a firm of engineers and architects with worldwide operations.

She has completed most of the courses for a post-graduate certificate in Information Design from the University of Toronto.

STC Activities

Mona is a senior member of the STC and is currently Employment Manager. Over the years, she helped to revive the dormant Toronto chapter and served on the executive several times.

• As membership manager in the early days, she created a membership database, printed the newletter labels, and quintupled the membership in two years.
• She helped to send out the chapter newsletter when we stuffed our own envelopes. She has also written articles and copy-edited the newsletters.
• She assisted in choosing papers for Toronto's Technicom ‘89 conference (managed by Ann Rockley).
• In 1993, she helped to produce a resource directory of members, an effort led by Celia Clark.
• She has been a perennial judge in the annual technical publications contest.
• As information manager, she advised prospective members about technical writing careers and becoming a technical writer.
• Along with many others, she volunteered when Toronto hosted 1997’s very successful annual international conference (managed by Michelle Hutchinson), and helped to produce the first ever STC conference proceedings on CD-ROM (coördinated by Ann Rockley).
• At various times she has been executive secretary, publicity manager, and programme manager.
• She managed the STC Toronto Web site for two years, from 2002 to June 2004, and expanded the Web site.

She is delighted by the new talent and enthusiasm that is supporting the chapter now.

In 2002 - 2003, she received the Rennie Charles Award for outstanding service to the chapter, the highest award that the chapter gives.

Personal note: "An STC Toronto member referred me to the fascinating Web site BookCrossing, a way to share books and love of reading."