The Relevance of Information Credentials: We have Work to Do

My fellow instructors in the Professional Learning Centre at the University of Toronto Faculty of Information and I had the occasion recently to meet with its new Director, Bruce Stewart (www.ischool.utoronto.ca/news-events/news/professional-learning-centre-welcomes-its-new-director).  During our meeting, we touched on the ramifications of the fact that "information credentials" prepare professionals for many jobs and functions going far beyond the traditional ones.  We each could relate personal experience illustrating how expertise in the management of records, documents, information objects such as multimedia clips, intellectual property rights, and other variations of information and knowledge is relevant in workplaces that are likely outside the job search scope for recent MIS graduates and mid-to-late career changers alike - and similarly out of view for managers looking for qualified personnel.  We see a need for efforts to bring together the cadre of employers needing information professionals, but not labeling them as such, and the cadre of information professionals whose skills are easily transferable to a wide range of settings.

 

As an example, some information professionals work as business analysts.  Wouldn't information credentials be relevant in facets of safety and security work as well?  Public policy analysis and development deserves a closer look as a career path for information professionals; information forensics could prove a fascinating line of work, and so on.  However, "we're not there yet".  For starters, typical job descriptions, classifications, and assessments require tuning to accommodate the contributions skilled information professionals are in reality able to bring to the table.

 

Our discussion turned to the need for supplementing technical information related skills with "soft" ones associated with organizational dynamics, interpersonal communication, the art of influencing at the grassroots and senior decision maker levels, managerial and political savvy, and the like.  Something as basic as presenting oneself convincingly to a potential employer outside traditional mainstream work settings was pointed to as an example of a skill area often receiving insufficient attention.

 

Working to assist our course attendees widen their skills and their career scopes, we instructors in effect participate in a permanent campaign to deliver the benefits of information credentials in new domains such as the ones suggested here.  There is much work to be done, and I for one look forward to the ongoing process of doing my part.  Welcome, Bruce!

Comments

[Wendy Reynolds]

Fascinating post, Ulla. I wonder if some of these jobs come after a few years of experience in the workplace. How much can one degree program include, and still provide an meaningful educational experience? If the program goes in too many directions, there's a risk that the marketplace won't know what to do with the grads.
Communication is going to be a really important piece of this. I'll be watching with interest.

[Bruce Harpham]

I would agree that there is some potential for information professionals to work in the business analysis space. The challenge, as I see it, is that the culture of library schools is overwhelmingly focused on the public sector. So many library students/new professionals don't have much understanding of doing the kinds of analysis that businesses want. The related challenge is convinving employers that explictly ask for business education (e.g. bachelor of commerce or a MBA) that a librarian can perform that role.

I think the case can be made but I think that many organizations would screen information professionals out for failing to meet some of these requirements.

As usual, a very thought provoking post, Ulla.