Prior to visiting the Horologists shop I created and grouped 50 questions about the profession. The purpose of this exercise was to create groupings of concepts to help me determine what focus I wanted to pursue when interviewing the horologists.
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== Repair What's the most common service you do for watches What is the easiest/hardest watch to work with What are the most difficult watches to work on When a watch fails, what are the most likely reasons for
failure What are the strangest watch problems you've had to solve How long does it take to clean a watch How do you determine what to charge for a service? What types of errors do you make? Do you frequently drop or lose small parts? How often is a watch returned because of faulty
repair/mistakes? How many breaks do you take? Is it common for 2 people to work together on the same
watch? Do each of
the repair people specialize in a particular type of watch? What is your
specialization? ==
Workplace Do you experience ergonomic problems (back, muscles)? How many other stores in town have repair shops? Are you guys always busy? How many different types of tools do you use Are these your personal tools? Is a particular type of lighting important to watch
repair? Is there a name for a horologist's work area? Does your work adversely affect your eyesight? ==
Business of watches Where do you get your used inventory? What are the best selling watches? What are the most interesting watches from horologist
perspective What watch is the best investment Do watches appreciate in value? If not, is there a rapid
depreciation curve? ==
Customers/ Owners What types of care errors do owners make If you had to generalize your customers very broadly, as
personas, what would those categories be? What is the most unusual type of customer What is most typical sort of customer? Can you tell if a watch is stolen? Do expensive watches instigate robbery/mugging? Have you ever had a fake watch and had to tell a customer? |
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Mechanical/Aesthetic What types of metal are used in watch cases for what
reasons What has changed most about watches in the last 30 years What are the latest mechanical innovations in watches? What are the latest aesthetic innovations in watches? Are
they cyclical? ==
Watches General Why are watches important? Why are you a watch guy? What makes a watch interesting? Are mechanical watches an anachronism? What effect has the cellphone
had on watch sales? What watches do you own ==
Information resources What internet information resources do you use in your
work? What internet marketplaces do you use in your work? Do you subscribe to any periodicals for work? Is there a definitive text or group of texts on Horology? ==
Horologists General How did you learn to fix watches? Where do most horologists learn their trade? School?
Autodidact? Is there a certification process for horologists? Is there any self-expression in horology? What makes you
unique as a watch technician? What do people presume when you tell them you are a
watchmaker? (uninformed stereotypes) What are accurate stereotypes of horologists - are you a
demographic? What other profession is most similar to watchmaking? If you were not a watchmaker what would you do
professionally? |