This presentation, delivered at the ARMA Kelowna conference in Kelowna, BC on 10/5/2022, outlined an approach for professional development for information professionals. Attendees were introduced to a professional development matrix as well as options for professional development resources and how to pay for them.
9. Boundary
Issues
• No IM body of knowledge
addresses every single information
management-related domain.
• For example…
• Engineering drawing
management
• Customer communication
management
• Web content management
• Document control
10. Taxonomy and Terminology
Issues
• Terms means different things to different
organizations and even different
departments.
• “Record”
• “Knowledge management”
• “Information governance”
11. The Expertise Dilemma
• Bodies of knowledge about a
thing…
• Are built by those who have done
it for a long time…
• Who are probably more senior,
meaning they aren’t “in the
trenches” anymore…
• And who may not be up to speed
on the newest developments.
12. It Depends…
• What you need to know depends on…
• Where you are in your career
• Where you want to go in your career
• What you want to do for the next X years
14. Success begins with figuring out what
you want, then making the choices
that will get you there.
Shellye Archambeau
Former CEO, MetricStream
AIIM21 Keynote
16. It’s Your Responsibility
• You know what you want to be when you
grow up.
• Determine your goals
• Assess your current state
• Assess what you need to do to achieve
your goals
19. The Four Pillars
of Professional
Development
Structured Learning
Unstructured Learning
Coaching and Mentoring
On-the-job Training
20. Structured
Learning
• Degree programs
• More recognized
• More valued…?
• Much more expensive
• Can get dated very quickly
• May be required for employment
or advancement
21. Structured Learning
Certifications
Formal designations
Generally require a formal
assessment and ongoing
maintenance
Should be updated regularly
Certificates
Less formal, may not include a
designation
Generally include learning and an
assessment of that content
Do not require ongoing maintenance, but
should still be updated regularly
27. Coaching and Mentoring
Coaching:
More performance-driven
More structured & formalized
Mentoring:
More development-driven
Less structured
Both are valuable - but different – and you get from each
what you put into them
28. On-the-job
Training
• Observation of skilled practitioners
• “Practice” at job tasks under close
supervision
• Example: Conduct a records inventory
• Review the inventory process and approach
documentation
• Shadow team members who are conducting the
inventory
• Inventory a dedicated training location
• Inventory your own file share
• Very good for employees and organization –
but needs focus and attention to be
successful
29. The Five Types of
Competencies
Sector/industry competencies
Information management process-
oriented competencies
Information management technology-
oriented competencies
Professional competencies
Organizational competencies
30. Sector / Industry
Competencies
• What industry do you operate in?
• Example: Federal or provincial
government
• Example: Oil & gas - upstream
• What unique IM-related competencies are
required in that industry?
• Example: Responding to Freedom of
Information Act (FOI) requests
• Example: Managing well log files and
engineering drawings
• Where can you acquire those
competencies?
31. IM Process-Based Competencies
What is your role –
what processes do you
work on?
• Records
management
• Business analyst
• SharePoint user
What process-type
competencies do you
need to be effective?
• Reading a retention
schedule
• Leading a
requirements
gathering workshop
• Create and save
documents in
SharePoint
Where can you acquire
those competencies?
32. IM Technology-Oriented Competencies
What is your role –
what processes do you
work on?
Records management
Process owner
SharePoint administrator
What tools do you use?
A content repository
An office productivity suite
A specialized application
What technical
competencies do you
need to be effective?
Use analytics tools in
support of a file share
cleanup
Create a flowchart
Create sites and site
templates in SharePoint
Where can you acquire
those competencies?
34. Organizational Competencies
• How do you do your job at your organization?
• Organizational culture
• Risk tolerance
• Terminology and acronyms
• How a specific tool is implemented and
configured
• Specific workflows and processes
• Changing organizations – or departments – may
require you to relearn these
• How can you acquire those competencies?
35. The PD Plan Matrix
Domain Structured
Learning
Unstructured Learning Coaching/ Mentoring OJT / Experiential
Degree programs
Training programs
Certifications
Certificates
Conferences
Books & publications
Standards
Social media
MOOCs
Lunch & learns
Formal or informal
(More effective with
more structure)
OJT: As directed,
with/instead of
coaching or mentoring
Experiential:
Just Do It! ™
Sector/Industry
competencies (e.g. energy,
legal, government)
IM process competencies
(e.g. RM, BA)
IM tech competencies (e.g.
metadata, flowcharts)
Professional/soft skills
competencies (proj mgmt.,
change mgmt.)
The Professional Development Plan Template
36. My Plan for 2021
Domain Structured
Learning
Unstructured Learning Coaching/ Mentoring OJT / Experiential
Sector/Industry
competencies – for me this
is associations and
government
Complete 1 ATD
certificate course
Attend NAGARA 2022 N/A N/A
IM process competencies
– for me this is privacy and
general IM process
developments
Complete CIPM
prep course and
exam
Attend ARMA InfoCon
2022
Review updated ISO
standards
Maintain CIPP/US
N/A N/A
IM tech competencies –
for me this is analytics and
RPA
Complete
certificate program
on ML
Complete MOOCs on
RPA and analytics
N/A Build a demo
information inventory
using Treesize
Professional/soft skills
competencies – for me this
is change management
Attend Prosci CM
course
Read 2 specific CM
books (AKDAR, Kotter)
N/A Build a CM plan
template with examples
39. For More
Information
Jesse Wilkins, CIPP/US, CRM/CIGO, IGP, ICE-CCP
President and Principal Consultant
Athro Consulting
https://www.athroconsulting.com
jesse.wilkins@athroconsulting.com
Twitter: @jessewilkins
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessewilkins