TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:RE: Another interview thread ... From:Tothscribe -at- aol -dot- com To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 14 Jun 2001 10:52:13 EDT
>The job description (technical writer who uses the
>robots and then documents them) was different from
>what they interviewed me for
And then there is the problem of employers dressing up a job description with side skills to the point of burying the real skill they require. I once applied for a job that wanted layout experience, Photoshop, HTML, and Quark, focused on a publisher's requirements. At the time I had 10 years experience with assorted publishers, had a portfolio of documents and advertisements I'd done layout for, plus a website full of Photoshopped art. I was slated for a Quark class to start within a fortnight.
So I sent off a resume and cover letter, but was cut dead during the callback. Turns out what they *really* wanted was a Quark expert who might eventually do the web, and they wanted said expert *right now* not at the end of a class. Nothing in their call suggested that Quark was any more important than the other requested qualifications, and to this day, I think they'd get faster results by training someone who knew everything else in Quark than trying to train a Quark specialist in everything else.
Then there's the person who wanted a "web specialist with three years experience" only to admit that what they really wanted was a secretary for the guy who did the ASP coding.
War stories aside, I honestly don't understand this. Luring the wrong people to apply for a job just wastes everyone's time.
*** Deva(tm) Tools for Dreamweaver and Deva(tm) Search ***
Build Contents, Indexes, and Search for Web Sites and Help Systems
Available now at http://www.devahelp.com or info -at- devahelp -dot- com
Sponsored by Cub Lea, specialist in low-cost outsourced development
and documentation. Overload and time-sensitive jobs at exceptional
rates. Unique free gifts for all visitors to http://www.cublea.com
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as: archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
