Technical Writing in India — Interview with Sandeep Balakrishna

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Duration: 32 min.

In this podcast, I talk with Sandeep Balakrishna, a seasoned technical writer based in Bangalore, India. He has been a technical writer for 10 years, and has observed the explosive growth of technical writing in India. According to Google Trends, seven of the top ten cities where the term “technical writing” is searched is India. What does that mean? Is outsourcing growing or shrinking? What is the Indian perspective on technical writing?

Topics in this podcast include:

  • Growth rate of technical writing in India
  • Techniques Indian technical writers use to interact with outsourcing companies
  • Resources Indian technical writers use to learn about technical writing
  • Technical writing curriculums in India
  • STC India and Technical Writers of India (TWIN)
  • The future of technical writing in India
  • Salaries of technical writers and the respect of the technical writing profession
  • Cultural factors in the workplace
  • Common tools used by Indian technical writers
  • Descriptions of Bangalore

Resources mentioned:

You can contact Sandeep at deepu.sandeep@gmail.com.

10 thoughts on “Technical Writing in India — Interview with Sandeep Balakrishna

  1. Tom Johnson

    Right-click where it says “Download MP3″ and then select either Save Target As (if you have IE), or Save Link As (if you have Firefox).

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  4. Ryan Schmid

    Great stuff Tom. The number of tech writers in India is surprising, but the population is huge. I thought it was interesting when Mr. Balakrishna said that Bangalore used to be a pensioner’s paradise and now the IT boom has made it the fastest growing city in India.

    Mr. Balakrishna is humble, yet proud of his industry in India. He has given us a great quote:

    “The internet is the godfather of technical writing in India.”

    1. Tom Post author

      Ryan, thanks for the feedback on the podcast. He is a humble guy. Thanks for pulling out that quote. I had forgotten that one.

  5. piya

    Hi,
    I am a software professional, but i have a break of about 5-6 years in my career. Can you please guide me, if it will be good for me to make Technical Writing as my career.

  6. Sandeep

    Wow! It’s 3 years since this interview and I’m seeing it again. :)

    Thanks so much for putting it up here.

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