Standards
How these conversations are made
Work in Conversation publishes interviews. The value of an interview is entirely in whether the reader can trust that the answers are real, so this page sets out what we do and what we do not.
01
Interview accuracy
Every published conversation is based on a real interview conducted by a named member of the editorial desk. We do not assemble interviews from press materials, and we do not publish answers that the subject did not give.
Where an interview took place over more than one session, or in writing rather than in person, the introduction says so.
02
Editing for clarity
Answers are edited for length, repetition and clarity. Editing does not change the meaning of an answer, add claims the subject did not make, or reorder a response so that it appears to answer a different question.
Where an answer has been shortened substantially, the piece carries an editor's note saying so.
03
Subject review
Subjects are sent their edited answers before publication and may correct factual errors, withdraw a statement, or clarify wording. Questions are not shown for approval and are not negotiated.
Editorial judgement about what to publish, and in what order, remains with the desk.
04
Factual review
Biographical details — titles, employers, dates, qualifications — are checked against material the subject or their organisation has confirmed. Where a detail cannot be confirmed, it is left out rather than estimated.
We do not publish figures a company has not disclosed, and we say when a figure has not been disclosed.
05
Quotations
Text set as an answer or a pull quote is the subject's own wording. Pull quotes are drawn from answers that appear in full in the same piece, never composed from fragments of several answers.
Editorial notes are clearly marked and are the publication speaking, not the subject.
06
Corrections
If we publish something inaccurate we correct it on the page and note what changed. Requests for a correction can be sent to the desk and are answered by a person.
We do not quietly remove published conversations; a piece withdrawn for a substantive reason is marked as withdrawn.
07
Contributor disclosure
Interviews are not paid for, by either side, and subjects do not pay to appear. Where a contributor has a relevant commercial relationship with a subject, the conversation is assigned to someone else.
The publication carries no advertising alongside interviews.
Questions about any of this, or about a specific piece, go to the desk — contact us.