A conversation with a friend from work today resulted in me typing out something I usually say at meetings about web sites. Since it was typed I though it would be good to record it for posterity.

“Once a website is live, the work is not done. The real work is, in fact, only just beginning if you want the website to be successful and dynamic. Someone will have to monitor, update and repair the website all the time. There will be no thanks for it and there will be no recognition for it. There will be no management support for it and there will be no job created to do it. If you’re lucky, then x months or x years down the line there MAY be some recognition, but don’t count on it.”

The conversation we were having was that society at large tends to follow the same misconception that once something has been thought of and implemented, it will manage itself. Projects, communities, technical advancements, banks etc. Everything needs some sort of management by people who KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING or it'll fail.

Just a small point really, but one that tends to be true and tends to be forgotten.