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.
What I need to know is what kinds of questions would you ask a
recruiter about a potential job? (Other than issues that deal with
pay.) For example, I always ask if I will be working in a team.
Tony Markatos responds:
When the job involves documenting existing software, always ask if
you can review the requirements specs upon which the software was
based.
I the response is "There are none", watch out -- you will be dealing
with very primatively designed software. A real pain!
If they let you look at the specs, but you can not make heads or
tails of them, then the software is still primative - maybe a little
less so than the above situation.
If you review the specs (for about a half hour or so) and get a
fairly good understanding of what the software does from an end user
perspective -- take the job. You have found an organization worth
working for.
Note: When reviewing requirements specs the key thing to focus on is
the degree to which they discuss WHAT the software does.
Unfortunately, most specs are very poorly done; the focus on HOW the
software works.
Tony Markatos
(tonymar -at- hotmail -dot- com)
_______________________________________________________________
Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com
