User:CorporateM/Advice for editing articles on organizations
This is an essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
Wikipedia pages about organizations should comply with the What Wikipedia is not policy. Specifically they should not include promotion, attacks, original thought, or indiscriminate lists of information. Wikipedia articles about organizations are historical reference works, not a crowd-sourced review site, forum, or advertising medium. Distinguishing between promotion, coatrack, and legitimate neutral content is not always clear. Articles should be representative of the total body of literature on the subject and may - in some cases - be very negative or very positive and still be compliant with the neutral point of view policy.
Directory information and indiscriminate lists
[edit]Articles about organizations should not include an indiscriminate list of clients, awards, executives, products, product specifications, features, industries served, countries of operation, or lawsuits, even when reliably sourced and especially when listed without context or cited to low-quality sources. The company website, not Wikipedia, is often the best place for readers to find this information.
Awards and rankings
[edit]Many awards or rankings are granted by organizations that are normally acceptable sources to cite, such as the press, but are primary sources when reporting on awards or rankings that they themselves organize. According to WP:PRIMARY, primary sources are "close to an event, and are often accounts written by people who are directly involved," which is the case with using the organizer of an award program itself as a source.
Primary sources may verify the fact that the award was given, but do not validate that the award or ranking is a significant milestone in the company's history that warrants inclusion. The significance of an award or ranking can be justified if the award is notable enough for its own Wikipedia page or if secondary sources (independent from both the organization and the award-organizers) cover that the organization was honored with it, with more than a brief mention or directory listing.
Inclusion of an award or ranking is less likely to be justified if the company was merely nominated, a finalist, or one of dozens/hundreds to be included in the ranking or award. At least one revenue or market-share ranking, such as the Fortune 500, should be included when available. While primary sources from the media do not justify inclusion of an award, they can often be used as a secondary source for other information not related to the award itself.
Dedicated "Awards" sections should be avoided in most cases. Awards that do warrant inclusion can be included in a section that corresponds to the subject of the award.
Products
[edit]Wikipedia articles about organizations should not indiscriminately list products, features, specifications, or prices. In most cases, the page should summarize the types of products and services the organization offers generally, rather than create a long list. An organization's products and services should be identified individually if they are few in number, if each product is notable enough for its own Wikipedia page, or if there is one flagship product the organization is known for.
Generally, the price of products and services should not be included. The exception is if there is substantial analysis of pricing in proper sources. Individual features should be discussed on pages about a product. However, a company page should describe what the product and service is generally, what it's for, and what it does, without creating detailed lists of individual features.
Executives
[edit]Wikipedia articles about organizations should avoid general profiles on executives or a complete list of the C-suite, even in the infobox. When credible, independent sources discuss the impact an executive had on the organization, this should be included under "Corporate history" or in a similar section. This content should remain focused on their impact on the organization, rather than the executive's general background. In most cases, listing only CEOs, Presidents and a Chairman of the board is appropriate for the infobox, or just the CEO for smaller companies. Founders should also be listed in the corresponding parameter.
Multiple Pages
[edit]Wikipedia is not a vanity site for every person, organization, or product that wants to have their own page. Articles about an organization's subsidiaries, executives, products, or divisions should be consolidated, if it can be done while following the guidance of WP:LENGTH, even if each subject meets the bare minimum notability threshold. The article should be named after whichever topic is most notable (the person, company, or product). For example, a product page may have a "Background" section that covers its developers and a company page may have a "Products and services" section summarizing its products. If the founder is the most notable, their "Career" section may cover what the company they founded does. As outlined by WP:LENGTH, separate articles should be created when consolidating them would make the Wikipedia page too long, include off-topic information that belongs on a separate page, or creates too much focus on one subject.