Job opening: Microsoft beat reporter for The Seattle Times

Former AAJA National president Sharon Chan will be moving on to the new digital frontier as producer of mobile platforms and user analytics for The Seattle Times.(Congrats, Sharon!)

With Sharon’s new career move comes a great opportunity for someone — you, perhaps? —  to cover Microsoft for The Seattle Times.

Here’s the job posting:

The Seattle Times Business staff is seeking a hard-driving, enterprising reporter to cover one of the most influential corporations in the world: Microsoft. This reporter should have considerable experience covering business and/or technology and should take pride at being ahead of not only local competitors, but the national media as well. He or she must be skilled at working with financial documents, understanding technology, building sources and breaking through a PR machine second to none. This person needs to be skilled at anticipating events, putting together stories that connect the dots and explain to our readers why these events are important. Writing abilities must be sharp and wide-ranging enough to appear regularly on A1, the Business section cover and above the fold online. This candidate should also be comfortable using a variety of tools, from capturing Web video to leveraging social media to engage readers and sources. Availability to travel is also a must.

This reporter, part of The Times’ technology team, must be able to work cooperatively with other team members, as well as peers throughout the newsroom, including photo, graphics and online. He or she will be principally responsible for daily and enterprise coverage of Microsoft’s corporate affairs, strategies, core products, personnel and workplace issues, and software industry trends. Other members of the team will contribute to coverage of the company, especially in the areas of digital media, gaming and wireless technologies. Contributions to the larger Business section staff is expected, including story ideas and suggestions for the betterment of business coverage.

If you think you are up to the challenge of covering one of our premier beats, contact Technology Editor Mark Watanabe at mwatanabe@seattletimes.com or at The Seattle Times, P.O. Box, 70, Seattle WA 98111.