Keeping a Usability Portfolio

When I scan the want ads for people in the design end of usability, I often see language like "Must show portfolio". Huh? Most of us would find that requirement very hard to fulfill, no matter how long we've been in the business. It's not like we're artists in a garret, and our work endures down the centuries. It may last only days or weeks. And it may be buried in the overall design of the site. Further, we may not be the graphical designer, who will get credit for the look of the site. Perhaps more importantly, websites are inherently team affairs, largely produced by committees. After the wrangling is over, any usability person might question where his or her work might be found and pointed out. Add to this the short life spans of many design companies or design departments. Even if the company name sticks around, the personnel turn over rapidly in some places. After we've been gone for a year or so, nobody there remembers us. The lesson here is that when a site goes live, we should take screen shots and put them away on a CD somewhere so that later we can make up "portfolios". Forget, and the opportunity may slip away forever. Put it into your design process.