Re: Senior vs. principal writer

[Bill Swallow <techcommdood -at- gmail -dot- com>]

> Seriously, some companies have career ladders that are used to determine
> promotions. It's a pretty tiny ladder with very few promotion opportunities
> if it has just Tech Writer, Sr. Tech Writer, and Manager. :-)

Don't get me started on putting Manager in a career path. A senior
level doer is not always and should not be expected to be building
toward management. Manager really is "entry level" into the
supervisory structure in an organization. Some of the worst managers
I've ever worked with were promoted up from doer ranks because they
could go no higher. They were great people, but even they would tell
you they weren't exactly thrilled with their jobs. They'd much rather
be doing than managing, and some even took an opportunity to downgrade
just to save their sanity.

You should never promote into management. It should always be a hire,
even if internal. There should be a formal interview process to ensure
the candidate has the right skills for the role. And if not, continue
to reward the person as an exceptional doer.

-- 
Bill Swallow

Twitter: @techcommdood
Blog: http://techcommdood.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/techcommdood

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