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Most of us are experienced with researching, analyzing, and reporting
business and system requirements. I don't think that approach is taken with
regard to professional certification.
Rather, it seems that some approach the matter with emotion, instead.
During the first twenty years of my professional life, I served as a US Navy
cryptolinguist. Most of those few of us who were in that field believed that
he or she was the best linguist around; that almost no other was her or his
equal. Yet, each year we were tested so that the service could identify the
best "pure" linguists amongst us, to build the continuing "book of
knowledge" about our field, and to quantify the need for intermediate and
advanced language training.
We took the test, of course. And, not just because we were "ordered" to do
so. We just applied our egos to the situation: each believed that the
results would prove his or her superiority. And, we let it go afterwards.
If you are an out-of-work technical communicator whose portfolio and
sterling recommendations are not factors considered by hiring managers,
perhaps a respected certification would help. Help, that is, get you through
the stone wall that is HR.
If you are an HR professional with no experience in technical communication,
perhaps the inclusion of a respected professional certification is something
that would make one set of resumes stand out from others.
Past performance, recommendations, and portfolios count only when you're
face-to-face in an interview, if at all.
Whether the Society's approach to certification will be respected is another
matter. No standards? No testing? No qualification? Hard to predict that
matter.
Cheers,
Donald H. White
James River Technical Communications
804.795.2914
dwhite -at- jrtcllc -dot- com
www.jrtcllc.com
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