FreePint: Join
Join FreePint and receive the Newsletter every two weeks for free.
Join now »
|
|
|
If you find FreePint useful, please supply
a testimonial »
|
|
FreePint Family:
Monthly magazine reviewing business information products »
Articles, tools, and a monthly magazine, to give you practical help with information skills »
Recruit for information-related roles, or find your next challenge. »
Daily update of web-based resources »
Daily update of free, full-text reports »
|
|
|
|
Home > Forum > Bar > Message |
|
|
Join FreePint and receive the twice-weekly Bar Digest and twice-monthly tip-packed Newsletter. It's free. [ more ]
|
|
|
|
The FreePint Bar is generously sponsored by Dow Jones Factiva.
|
|
|
| Start New | Message Index | Flat View |
| Re: Jobs Advertised on Free Pint |
| Author: | Steve Coleman |
| Date: | Thursday, 25th Apr 2002 22:31 |
| Views: | 3,069 (excluding Digests and RSS feeds) |
| Category: | Information Issues | | URL: | http://www.freepint.com/go/b17333 |
|
Yes. One hears about the the vital role that the information professional *must* play in the wired economy. However, and as Ginny pointed out, the financial rewards remain poor vis-à-vis other sectors where certain skill sets (e.g. webmaster) are shared. In the long term I feel that the situation will discourage young "web savvy" people from entering the information profession. Instead, I think they will gravitate to the world of Computing (IT). Not only will this be damaging for the Info Sc. profession but also for the quality of info being organised on Intranets/Extranets/Internets. Remember programmers might be wizards at Perl and VBscript but the actual building of the "info chasis" is our job and, I believe, we are the best people to do that work - *not* the computer graphics artists and *not* the programmers.
The profession needs to blow its trumpet about the real benefits that an information professional can bring to a networked environment. Further, the profession needs to set an example and recruit info professionals for web posts when they arise? I wonder if the web post recently advertised by Re:source will go to an Information Architect or a person holding a computing qualification? After all, if we don't believe in the migration of traditional library skills to the web, then who else will?
Such thoughts are based on several months of unemployment after gaining an MSc in Info Science. For my dissertation I wrote about The Provision of an online Directory in an XML Environment. A topic I thought may have been of interest to industry! After nearly 200 avenues explored, this does not appear to be the case. What pains me are the clerical rate salaries that are offered to an MSc postgraduate with HTML/ASP/XML experience. It kinda makes you wonder why you wasted time, money and effort instead just taking a nice big holiday and then walking into the nearest Kelly Girl on your return to London. A crazy state of affairs. Anyway, here are five ideas to ponder:
1. Begin at home - Remember the Information Architect when you recruit web staff
2. Tell employers what the profession can bring to the web
3. Tap the genuine enthusiasm that career change applicants possess
4. Lobby for commensurate salaries with IT
5. The litmus test - L + I Appointments less than 5% of vacancies for web work
Much as the info sc. academics, recruitment agencies, and CILIP will bleat about the rosey future, point five is the BIG one. In short, if the percentage of web posts offered to this sector does not increase then the role we can play in brave new world will remain ignored and restricted. A pessimistic viewpoint you might think, then come and live at the sharp end for several months and see how you would feel?
Steve Coleman
The Garage
http://www.garage.clara.net |
|
| Start New | |
| Topic |
Author |
Date |
ID |
|
Ginny Brink |
25/04/02 15:01 |
17329 |
|
Karen Huber |
16/05/02 16:20 |
17742 |
  | Re: Jobs Advertised on Free Pint | | Yes. One hears about the the vital role that the information professional *must* play in the wired economy. ... |
|
Steve Coleman |
25/04/02 22:31 |
17333 |
| | Re: Jobs Advertised on Free Pint | | There are two, maybe three, problems here:
(a) the lay view of information structuring/architecture that 'it's all just common sense, isn't ... |
|
Patrick Wallace |
17/05/02 14:15 |
17764 |
|
Ian Fantom |
02/05/02 18:59 |
17496 |
Please note: The reply form is not showing because the posting is older than six months or the thread is locked. Please start a new topic or contact the forum administrator.
|
|
