API Technical Writer Job in Rancho Cordova, California US

API Technical Writer

eBay is the world's largest online marketplace. We enjoy our work and we'll be the first to admit it! We think it's because we are doing something that has never been done before. Creating this incredible new space where buyers and sellers come together to exchange just about anything. What we've done at eBay is promote the growth of communities where people can share similiar interests about things they have or want. API Technical Writer Job Description We're looking for an API technical writer to join a team that is passionate about helping customers and driving growth for X.commerce, eBay's open commerce platform group ( www.x.com ). This position is NOT located in San Jose, CA. We have openings in Austin, TX; Rancho Cordova, CA; or Los Angeles, CA. About X.commerce X.commerce is a high-energy startup within the larger eBay Inc. corporation. As an early X.commerce employee, you'll have an opportunity to influence the evolution of our products and our docs. Every day, eBay's global portfolio of businesses connects hundreds of millions of people, enabling them to buy, sell and pay online. With a presence in 39 markets and approximately 90 million active users worldwide, eBay has changed the face of Internet commerce, and we are continuing to grow. For details, see our report from eBay, Inc.'s Analyst Day event on Feb. 10, 2011 ( http: //www.ebayinc.com/press_releases #20110210007076 ). X.commerce will leverage the collective power of eBay Marketplaces, PayPal, Magento, other subsidiaries, and our developer community to help merchants and developers around the globe grow their businesses. Our platform will provide a set of services and solutions for merchants, and enable developers to extend these with their own products and services. In addition, we're partnering with some of the world's biggest and most exciting commerce companies and startups to further enhance our commerce operating system. The X.commerce ecosystem will be at the forefront of commerce innovation for eBay Inc., and we're looking for talented and motivated professionals who want to help make the X.commerce experience remarkable for our developers, merchants, and consumers. About Our Culture We're passionate about the people, businesses, and technologies that we support, and we believe this passion is reflected in our products and in our interactions with the developers and merchants who use our platform. We bring a lot of energy to our work, and we hold ourselves accountable for producing results that matter. Our company culture starts with our values: We believe people are basically good, and that everyone has something to contribute. We encourage everyone to treat others the way we want to be treated, and we believe an honest and open environment can bring out the best in our people. We're rewarded for taking the right risks, driving results, and seeking insights that help us grow. We're excited about the great work we're doing. When challenges arise, we use careful judgment to make decisions that we believe are right for our company, our communities, and each other. We remind each other to delegate decisions appropriately, as we focus on getting our jobs done. This comes down to trusting each other, and trust is rooted in the belief that our different skills, approaches, and points of view can all serve our purpose. We strive to "keep it human" with each other and with our customers, because it's our ability to relate to each other as human beings that adds meaning to the connections that technology provides. Primary Responsibilities As an API technical writer in the product technology team, you'll create docs that enable our customers to innovate on the platform, and you'll have the opportunity to provide creative input on our docs and products as our platform evolves. Your main job will be to document commerce services, such as inventory and catalog management, search, order management, fulfillment, and/or other services. (See examples of our products at www.x.com ) Your audience will include novice and expert engineers, architects, product managers, hackers, affiliates, and merchants. You'll write API reference docs, explain business and technical concepts, and describe functional details of our products. At times, you'll juggle multiple projects and deliverables. You'll also contribute to our evolving doc design and standards. As a member of our doc team, you'll be valued for your technical and subject matter expertise in the areas you document. This means you'll be expected to develop your own understanding of our products, our audience, our business objectives, and our standards, and then use that knowledge holistically to craft your documentation. These will be your primary responsibilities: Write API reference, conceptual, and task-oriented docs for a variety of commerce services Personally test services and capabilities that you document, to ensure doc accuracy and completeness Create XML, JSON, and/or REST samples to include in docs Demonstrate that you understand the technical and business needs of your customers Influence the design of the APIs you document Contribute to doc and product usability testing with third- party developers Participate actively in doc and product planning discussions Contribute to continuous improvement of doc standards, tools, and processes Establish and monitor a set of metrics that measure the success of your own documentation Resume tip: We suggest you tailor your resume to highlight your past experience in these areas. Qualifications We work closely with project, technical support, and evangelism teams, as well as with customers. While our docs cover more commerce topics than technology, we need to be reasonably "technical" in order to communicate effectively with our stakeholders and audiences, and in order to install and run development tools and test the APIs ourselves. Our ideal candidate has all of these technical qualifications: Experience designing, writing, and usability-testing API reference docs 5+ years experience writing docs for developer audiences Able to articulate basic concepts and uses of Web services technologies (WSDL, XML, SOAP, JSON, and/or REST) Basic understanding of HTTP request-response protocol Basic understanding of W3C XML Schema (XSD) Basic ability to read, modify, and test sample code (e.g., JavaScript, PHP, Ruby, Perl, ASP, C#, or Java) Able to articulate basic database concepts at a conceptual level Comfortable authoring in HTML and XML using plain-text editors (no WYSIWYG) Experience with Adobe FrameMaker Nice to have: Experience authoring in Drupal or similar CMS Nice to have: Ability to code new apps from scratch Nice to have: Experience with localization (L10n) Nice to have: B.S. or higher in EE, CS, or equivalent Plus, our ideal candidate has these qualities: Familiar with and enthusiastic about eBay, PayPal, and/or Magento Able to work independently, but also happy to co- author docs with other writers Able to organize your own work with minimal supervision, given project deadlines Proactively and independently learns new concepts and technologies to improve the quality of your docs Proven ability to focus on what's important (with an eye for subtleties that matter) Adapts to changes in priorities, projects, and processes with equanimity Advocates for product and/or doc improvements when appropriate Builds great relationships with internal subject matter experts and external customers Tip : Be prepared to discuss or demonstrate these qualifications and qualities during interviews. If you're excited about this opportunity, we encourage you to apply at www.ebaycareers.com (choose "All" subsidiaries in your search). If possible, please include links to relevant writing samples in your resume. Job Requirements Salary/Benefits: N/A Job Location: Rancho Cordova Loading map ... Job Number: 54761BR Company URL: http://www.ebaycareers.com Apply Now