Get It In Writing

Advice for those who are being given questionable orders to do things that may result in them being blamed for bad decisions, actions, etc. Of course this kind of thing runs into a limit when the action one is requesting documentation for is evil or illegal in itself. Orders won't exonerate you in that situation, but they will bring down the person giving the order with you, which may be enough to escape the order in the first place. --RaySchneider

In addition to following TheConsultantsMantra, I also use the RequirementsMiranda: If you can not afford a set of requirements one will appointed to you. This usually takes the form of a verbal request from the client to do XYZ, whereupon I send back a memo, email, or drop a note on their desk saying, "So, you want me to do XYZ, right?" At that point they quibble and say (verbally only, of course), "No, no, I really want XYZ'." I send back a written confirmation outlining my need to build XYZ' per their request, and on and on it goes. The whole process is iterative until the client sees what he wants in writing in front of him.

Then I start the work.

-- MartySchrader

If you can't get the other party to produce the writing, then send them an email along the lines of, "To make sure I understood you correctly, in our conversation, we agreed that [such and such]. If this is inaccurate or has changed, please let our group know. Thank You."

Corollary: IfItsNotInWritingItsNotTrue