Hiring an indexer
When you engage an indexer, you are employing an information professional with:
- an eye for detail
- communication skills
- the ability to meet deadlines.
To ensure your index is a good one:
- engage the indexer as early as possible; some have skills that can be utilised from the very beginning of the project
- recognise that a good index takes time
- plan the scope, content and target audience
- clarify the style, format and mode of delivery
- specify whether the job is to be done in-house or externally
- set the deadline
- negotiate the fee
- confirm the contractual details in writing.
How to find an indexer
The Australian and New Zealand Society of Indexers is a network of professional indexers with members in all Australian states and in New Zealand. The Society recognises professional competence through registration of indexers. It maintains a list of Indexers Available on its Website.
How much will it cost?
The Australian and New Zealand Society of Indexers has a recommended hourly rate for book and periodical indexes. Complicated or urgent indexes may attract a higher rate. Database indexing is usually costed on a per item basis commensurate with the recommended hourly rate.
Without indexes documents become useless, institutions lose their corporate memories, information becomes inaccessible and knowledge vanishes.
