Re: Certification

[Jane Bergen <janeb -at- ANSWERSOFT -dot- COM>]

> >On our last attempt at hiring writers, we got one from a man who
> >had written "procedures for carrying out duties  while in the army"
> >and another whose sole experience was "wrote a manual on bowling."

> >We've talked (and whined) a lot about the issue of certification on
> >this list, but I support it 100%. Until we start taking ourselves
> >and our education seriously, we can't expect our employers or the
> >general public to do so, either.

> I certainly agree, as Larry Kunz keeps saying, that we need to take
> ourselves seriously if we expect others to take us and our
> profession seriously.

> No amount of certification, however, will necessarily induce
> employers to change their hiring practices. If they get a product
> they're happy with from someone they're paying peanuts to, why
> should they pay more.

> You can't legislate respect and demand for quality. If the end user
> doesn't insist on it, if the client doesn't care about it, there's
> no way you can charge a premium for it.  ...RM

I don't remember this being about "pay" --- the point I was trying to
make was that if a PROSPECTIVE employer wants to ensure that he or
she is sifting out unqualified APPLICANTS, certification would
certainly help. I'm sure that some certified applicants could
conceivably be not-so-good writers .... and the reverse could also be
true, that some good writers may not be certified..... but it does
seem to be a better alternative than the current situation.

Jane
...............................................................
 Jane Bergen, Technical Writer
 janeb -at- answersoft -dot- com   or   janeb -at- airmail -dot- net
    "The difference between the right word and the
     almost right word is the difference between lightning
     and the lightning bug" (Mark Twain)
...............................................................