Breaking Out of the Matrix Structure: How We Built a Professional Tech Writers’ Community

In 2024, Cloud.ru abandoned its matrix structure. Technical writers, developers, testers, and analysts came under the direct management of product managers. We had to come up with a way to prevent these roles from living by the “raisin-in-the-bun” principle — where each product team has its own standards, with no shared culture or common rules.

Over the next two years, we built professional communities (committees) for all roles — including technical writers. In my talk, I’ll share how we made it happen, how we maintain documentation quality without centralized management, and why our community is more vibrant than any formal department.

Our experience in building an effective professional community will be valuable for companies of any size — whether they’re going through similar organizational changes or have long operated in a fragmented structure — for everyone looking for ways and mechanisms to unite a profession within their company.