Re: Getting Hired...Opinion #2500

[Ned Bedinger <doc -at- edwordsmith -dot- com>]

I agree with Richard that the job description, as a stab at recruiting a 
tailor-made candidate who can do eveything, is far-fetched. I guess I 
approve of the requirement writer's fixation on 'inventory of skills" 
(at least it isn't ambiguous), but anyway, if someone had all those 
skills, I doubt they'd be reading email recruitment notices for tech 
writers.

I'm wary of becoming Mr. Negative about the ability of hiring managers 
and recruiters to effectively capture the meaningful bits for a tech 
writer's job description, especially in a brief recruitment notice, but 
I'll stick my neck in the meatgrinder to demonstrate that I kinda think 
that the first part (excellent communication skills, years experience, 
...) is boilerplate. I weary of this sort of abstraction in assertions 
about what it takes to be a successful tech writer. It seems like all 
job descriptions require excellent interpersonal and (sic) communication 
skills, strong technical writing skills, fair-to-middling background and 
experience, proficiency in MS Office, blah bah.

When they specify all this stuff, it makes me think they're spinning 
their wheels--they want the description to resonate with tech writers, 
but they're aiming at protocol droids ("Hi, I'm Communi-Katie, the 
excellent communications doll. Please insert specific requirments 
module. Please insert specific requirments module. Please insert 
specific requirments module. ..."). . I'm afraid that my T-letters for 
this position would reach out from the page and grab them insistently by 
the lapels, as required, but from there I'd be shaking them and 
administering some sobering slappage.

With kind regards,

Ned "not really a violent person" Bedinger
doc -at- edwordsmith -dot- com


Combs, Richard wrote: