Meet the experts on the Scriptorium team

Have you met our experts? Get to know the Scriptorium team members who structure your content operations and position you for success. 

Did you know that most of our team members have been with us for at least a decade? The longevity of our team of experts ensures the continuity of your work with us. If you haven’t already met them, here’s who’s working behind the scenes to make your content projects a success.  

Sarah O’Keefe, Chief Executive Officer

Sarah cuts through technology hype to envision pragmatic content solutions.

Sarah founded Scriptorium in 1997 to answer a simple question: “How can we use technology to improve content and publishing?” Driven by learning and exploration, she takes pride in providing a meaningful contribution to the world of customer-facing content and beyond. As a pioneer in the content industry, she’s authored several books, and is the driving force behind Scriptorium and LearningDITA, a free DITA training. 

When working with clients, Sarah’s goal is to guide the Scriptorium team’s extensive knowledge of publishing and publishing technologies in creating strategies that transform your content operations. She cultivates strong collaborative relationships between consultant and client where we learn from each other, creating solutions that neither of us could have discovered on our own. Her measure of success is when your content evolves from a costly obstacle into a goal-supporting asset. 

As a content industry leader, Sarah identifies trends, assesses new technologies, and recommends best practices for their successful application. Currently, this includes the exploration of knowledge graphs and implications of AI in your content operations. 

Learn more about Sarah on her company and LinkedIn profiles.

Alan Pringle, Chief Operations Officer

Alan connects content creators to consumers through evolving technology. 

As a pillar in the content industry, Alan is the COO and an experienced content strategist on the Scriptorium team. Driven by a mission to connect your content creators to your consumers, he pinpoints technologies and process improvements so your content accomplishes your corporate goals. He then guides your team through company culture and change management obstacles.

As a strategist, Alan identifies the technology that will do the heavy lifting of managing your content lifecycle. He shows your team how these advances make their professional lives better while allowing them to contribute to the growth of your organization. As part of his role on the Scriptorium team, he also: 

• Interviews a variety of content stakeholders to fully scope pain points and inefficiencies in current workflows
• Calculates projected ROI
• Evaluates software vendors and tools to recommend best-fit solutions
• Provides practical guidance on minimizing change resistance

Learn more about Alan on his company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Bill Swallow, Director of Operations

Bill builds best practices for innovations in content operations. 

Bill has been a key player in the content industry since the beginning of his career. He’s worked in a variety of content roles, picking up critical skills and perspectives along the way. He began his career in localization production, moving into online help development, technical writing, documentation management, and consulting, establishing himself as a respected content strategist. 

On the Scriptorium team, Bill partners with your content owners to design and build content systems that solve complex information management, publishing, and localization problems. He also: 

• Balances high-level business priorities with the specific needs of content contributors
• Evaluates content localization for pitfalls, including technology considerations, complex workflows, cultural challenges, and writing practices
• Overseas the successful completion of content strategy and implementation projects 

Learn more about Bill on his company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Simon Bate, Lead Technical Consultant

Simon builds solutions where technology does the hard work for you.

Simon’s passion for identifying process-optimizing technical tools can be traced back to his early work in technical publications before graduating from college. While writing, he developed tools to make his job easier or eliminate repetitive or boring tasks. This drive for innovation, instinct for optimization, technical skill — not to mention a love of puzzles — all make him a natural fit for building the content solutions he makes today.

On the Scriptorium team, Simon develops tools to manage and convert content from one format to another. He also finds or creates tools to automate documentation builds and other procedures. In his role, he also:

• Designs and creates DITA-OT specializations and plugins
• Programs in XSLT, Apache Ant, JavaScript, Schematron, Python, Perl, ExtendScript, and many other languages
• Works with and advises clients on many markup and formatting schemes, such as HTML, CSS, XSL-FO, SVG, Markdown, RST, JSON
• Converts learning content to LMS formats, including SCORM
• Works with a variety of Component Content Management Systems (CCMS), including Heretto, RWS, IXIASOFT, and Adobe AEM
• Provide training in DITA, DITA OT, Oxygen, XMetaL, XSLT, XSL-FO, and many other technologies

Learn more about Simon on his company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Gretyl Kinsey, Technical Consultant 

Gretyl creates future-proof content strategies that maximize the value of your content.

From her early days as an intern to her years of experience crafting content strategy, Gretyl takes your content to the next level. She’s driven by a passion for bridging the gap between content strategies in all departments, being particularly drawn to the convergence of technical and marketing content.

On the Scriptorium team, Gretyl roots out the cause of your biggest pain points and finds the optimal solution for alleviating them, tailoring that solution to your current and future business goals. She establishes a working relationship built on transparency and trust so that you feel confident finding the support you need. As part of her role, she also:

• Develops content models and information architecture to facilitate moving unstructured content into DITA XML
• Designs DITA-based content systems and content strategies to support business goals 
• Mitigates change resistance with continuous stakeholder involvement and customized training
• Develops e-learning courses on DITA

Learn more about Gretyl on her company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Jake Campbell, Technical Consultant

Jake blends technology and design to solve complex problems. 

Jake is an experienced technical consultant who blends technology and design to deliver multichannel publishing solutions for your content. Driven by both a process and solution-oriented approach, and a love for solving puzzles, he’s at home in the technical publishing world. Drawing from his background in e-learning development and software QA testing, Jake is adept at working with people across different disciplines to understand their needs. He then develops workflows that support those needs and your business goals.

On the Scriptorium team, Jake works with you to identify design goals for your content. He determines how to use DITA structures and metadata to automate content delivery in multiple languages. Jake also: 

• Harnesses the focus of a project by looking at the next straightforward target
• Identifies potential expansion points by asking questions such as, “What could be better?” “What needs to change so that we can work more efficiently?” 
• Determines how we at Scriptorium can work more smoothly, and keep you apprised of your project status in a fluid way

Learn more about Jake on his company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Melissa Kershes, Technical Consultant

Melissa brings clarity and confidence to complex DITA workflows. 

Melissa has worked in the content industry since 1998, gaining experience in technical writing, information architecture, structured content, and DITA. As a seasoned Technical Consultant, she is passionate about problem solving and teaching others the benefits of — and how to use — DITA. As an experienced writer herself, she understands the challenges your technical writing team may be facing, and how to guide them to success. 

On the Scriptorium team, Melissa specializes in creating information architecture (IA), metadata, and taxonomies, configuring component content management systems (CCMS), and developing content strategies. With a mind for optimizing processes, she leverages her experience to help your content stakeholders: 

• Organize and structure content 
• Create and specialize document type definitions
• Convert content from other sources to XML 
• Import content into an authoring environment
• Transform content into consumable information for your audience

Learn more about Melissa on her company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Christine Cuellar, Marketing Coordinator

Christine creates strategy and processes that accomplish marketing goals.

Christine Cuellar is an experienced marketing strategist, content marketer, and process-builder. Driven by a passion for connecting people, she specializes in pulling out the unique qualities a company has to offer and introducing them to the people who need them most. 

As the Marketing Coordinator on the Scriptorium team, her work includes: 

• Identifying people searching for the solutions we provide
• Creating frictionless pathways for us to connect
• Communicating the value we bring to your business
• Showcasing the incredible talent of our team of experts

She also has a knack for optimizing processes. In each role she’s held, she’s demonstrated how streamlined processes support your team more than any other business investment. 

Beginning as a copywriter and moving into content marketing management and marketing strategy, she’s developed project management processes that create efficiency and reduce friction. Though she’s new to the world of customer-facing content (outside of marketing), the shared purpose behind content strategy and content operations makes her role with Scriptorium a natural fit. 

Learn more about Christine on her company and LinkedIn profiles. 

Need to talk to our team about building your organization’s content strategy? Contact us here.