Professionalism in Creative Industries

Being a Professional Web Developer!

W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) is the organisation that produces the development standards for the web. Individual Web Developers, Universities, Government and non-profit Organisations can sign up to be members. Serious professional Web Developers will look to implement and promote these standards in their work to ensure compliance across multiple browsers and devices.

Codes of Conduct

W3C have developed a code of ethics and professional conduct standards. These standards look to promote high standards of professional practice and define accepted and acceptable behaviours for professionals working in the web development industry. Professional standards encourage members to behave ethically, and drive the implementation of these standards. 

There is a need for standards in Web Development given the variation of browser and devices technologies now being used by clients and their customers. These standards have been developed to try and ensure the end users experience is the same regardless of the technology they are using. It would be unacceptable and unethical to develop a web site, web application or native app for a client that only looked great or functioned properly on one browser technology or device type but not on another. Paying Clients expect this element of professionalism as a given. 

W3C run a validation service that allows professional web developers to validate code against the developed standards. This validation ensures compliance across multiple technologies. Validation and compliance are a must especially when the client is paying for a professional service. 

In the wider IT industry institutional organisations like the BCS and IEEE implement and drive forward their codes of conduct and responsibility. The Computer Ethics Institute have gone a step further and have published the Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics to again drive forward ethical working practices within the wider industry. 

Working to standards and behaving in the correct manner are key parts of being a professional web developer.