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Same here, 25 years writing software, never heard it, even working in the Bay Area.

I got a pretty large number of upvotes on the three-word post above so I think the term is common in some circles, unheard of in others. Someone should map it somehow.

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Map it somehow? What do you mean? There is a Wikipedia entry on it [1] that is a start.

To your point, maybe there needs to be an HN glossary of terms or something like that.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subject-matter_expert

I mean map which companies use this SME acronym and which don't, similar to how "soda", "pop", and "coke" map to different regions of the USA.

My hunch is it comes from companies that use PMI project managers. Maybe that maps to older non-tech companies, but I have no proof to back any of that up.

> never heard it, even working in the Bay Area.

I think SME is would be less common in the Bay Area. I tend to associate it's usage with older, less computer tech first, companies.

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