I spent much of today writing down requirements, in preparation for a kickoff meeting at work tomorrow afternoon. We’re going to re-introduce a feature from the past, but this time we’re going to do it ourselves, rather than outsourcing the service. Despite problems with the outsourcer which led to our discontinuing the offering, readers (tens of thousands of them) enjoyed the service. We’ve talked about renewing our efforts here for (literally) years. We start tomorrow. That gets me excited. We’re doing something you would recognize. In fact, part of our success will come from mirroring the lessons and subtle touches of similar services well enough that there is no hesitation or questioning about (a) what the service offers and (b) how it works and (c) why you would want to use it. Making that ball of wax silky smooth for readers will take some solid work. When you ‘follow in the footsteps of giants’ you have to take big strides. How’s that for building on an old metaphor? And mangling/mixing others?
All this vagueness about the service in question seems pointless, especially because we’re not creating something that surprising. But if I’m going to be a public voice for my workplace, I’m going to run it by my boss first, and I haven’t shared my personal blog with him (although I know he’s bookmarked my work blog, I’m proud to note). I believe in blogs, but there is a constancy to the workplace approach to publication. It wins awards and a loyal audience. For now, I’m loath to pretend I speak for more than myself, beyond putting a personal touch on my responses to reader email. I don’t hide my job, but I don’t reach for Scoble-hood, either.