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Re: Taking Credit

Subject: Re: Taking Credit
From: Dick Margulis <margulisd -at- comcast -dot- net>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Fri, 25 Mar 2005 12:21:02 -0500




Oja, W. Kelly wrote:

Just curious here, on everything I have done so far at my current
location, I have not included my name or initials on anything. Granted,
everyone and their dog knows what I have done, so I was content to go
with something along the lines of "Prepared by Operations" or some other
similar variation.

Question: AM I all wet, or should I throw in my WKO somewhere?


This is a recurring thread. Points that are raised repeatedly include:

1. Your company may have a policy that discourages or prohibits the crediting of individuals (you should check).

2. Taking credit means you also have to take the blame. This can be problematic if there is a lawsuit later and the documentation figures in that suit. It could also be problematic if people start writing to you after you have moved on to other projects in other divisions or another company and ask you to correct an error or update a section or answer their detailed technical questions.

3. On the other hand, pointing to your name adds credibility when you are showing the book as a sample in a job interview.

So here's an idea: From this point forward, on every project, pick an easily located sequence of three paragraphs (maybe the beginning of the first chapter), and start those three paragraphs with W, K, and O respectively. Surely you can find a way to do that. Then, if the question of your veracity is raised in an interview, just point out that feature. It's subtle. Nobody at Verizon will know; and if they know they won't care. It isn't a strong enough identifier to get you dragged into court. And nobody will call you because of it at three a.m. to discuss signal strength.

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References:
Taking Credit: From: Oja, W. Kelly

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