Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Chief Vice-President Of Rainbows And Puppies

Back in the heady days of March 2009 I wrote a post on this blog about social media job titles. At the time I was freelancing so was Chief Bottle Washer, but had ambitions to move up to Chief Letter Opener.

What brought this to mind was a job posting I saw today for "Director of Customer Success." What the hell does that mean?

In this non-fad (read: ingrained) social media era, is there a competition to think up the most vague job title going? How does a Director of Social Media, Director of Community Management or -- heavens above! -- Director of Marketing and Communications relate or compare their level of employment with a Director of Customer Success?

When they go to job interviews, how do they get a gauge on salary expectations when there is nothing to relate to? Does a Director of Customer Success earn more than a Director of Community Engagement, for example?

The point I'm trying to make is with all these weird, made-up social media job titles starting to propagate, anyone can call themselves something ... but it doesn't mean anything! There's no yardstick to rate the position or job role against.

Agree? Disagree? I'm open to opinions.

Regards,
John Carson
Chief Vice-President of Rainbows and Puppies