Carol's post brings forward some excellent points. Would like to second 
the view that the work of records managers is broad, deep and multi-
disciplinary.  To her advice that we reach into information science, law 
and business, I would add organizational development and learning. A 
miriad of sub-disciplines, some (like forms management) roundly ignored by 
many, characterize a domain that is rich with opportunity to make 
meaningful contributions in business, governance and beyond.  It is a rare 
records manager whose position fully integrates the potential of the 
role.  But, a study I conducted a while back (and due for updating) 
revealed that we come from a great diversity of backgrounds (actuarial 
science through zoology), use multiple intelligencies (logical, verbal, 
spatial, kinetic, etc.) and bring forward leadership attrubutes to  
positively influence organizations despite considerable odds and often 
against opposition.  What's missing? Adequate recognition--and a great 
theme song!  Some of us have made great strides on the recognition front--
now about that song...


John James O'Brien, CRM, MLT
IRM Strategies Asia
[log in to unmask]
http://www.irmstrategies.com


On Sat, 30 Sep 2006 13:50:29 -0400, Carol E.B. Choksy, Ph.D., CRM, PMP 
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>Dear Everyone:
>
>Steve is absolutely correct that "Certificate" and "certification" are 
two very different things. There is also different value in 
certifications. For example, our ICRM certification resembles an 
architects certification on one regard: that you need several years of 
experience after college, but differs in that most people getting the 
architecture experience have degrees in architecture. One is then licensed 
in a state as an architect. 75 years ago to take the bar exam in a 
particular state one had to have apprenticed oneself to an attorney and 
worked for several years in that capacity. Our certification is not bound 
by state laws and is recognized internationally because it reflects both 
experience and a rigorous test.
>
>Also, do not confuse taking a course with having a degree in a subject. I 
took quite a few courses on ecology and evolutionary biology and geology 
as an undergraduate, but my degree is in the Humanities. A course, 
depending upon the school, requires approximately seven solid days of in-
class experience. This is very different from sitting in a seminar for a 
week and then taking a test. In a course, you go away and do reading and 
writing assignments and then you come back in to class and discuss what 
you have read, done, and thought about. The intellectual experience of 
coursework versus a week-long seminar is very different. The degree 
requires you to take many classes in a subject and even the electives are 
restricted to a more general topic.
>
>One of the problems we have in records management is that we have a 
toehold in three different areas: information science, law, and business. 
Where many archivists could be quite comfortable taking all their courses 
in a school of library and information science, a records manager would 
need to break out and take courses in the law school and the business 
school as well--courses that many schools of library and information 
science would not permit because of campus policies about who gets your 
tuition money when you take classes outside your unit.
>
>You should also be wary of distance learning opportunities. Your success 
or failure in these is directly correlated to your own discipline, there 
is no one to link arms with and march through the coursework as there is 
with in-class work. Also, a professor in a university expects to be asked 
for recommendations. What type of recommendation could be given to a 
student whom you have never laid eyes on? There are distance learning 
structures that assist this problem. Some require a weekend on campus, 
some use video technology for a virtual "classroom" experience.
>
>There are several graduate schools that advertise information/archives 
and records management programs including, University of Michigan, 
University of Maryland, University of British Columbia. You will note, 
however, that the records management courses are taught primarily by 
archivists. Look carefully at the curriculum. Most of them, not all, are 
archives curricula with a course in records management tossed in.
>
>The work of records management is at the graduate level. Our work is 
highly intellectual, requiring a degree of abstraction found in very few 
professions. You guys are theorists of the highest caliber whether you are 
managing boxes in a warehouse, files in the basement, or you are writing 
corporate policies and procedures--which is why I like hanging with you. 
Courses taught in community college can give you some how-to's. Courses in 
colleges can give you some more how-to's. But to get to the real core of 
what you do, take a graduate course, from a school of library and 
information sciens, a business school, or a law school. Use seminars like 
you would college courses, to get some how-to's and be delighted when they 
take you further.
>
>Records Management Rocks!
>
>Best wishes,
>Carol
>Carol E.B. Choksy, Ph.D., CRM, PMP
>CEO
>IRAD Strategic Consulting, Inc.
>(317)294-8329
>
>Adjunct Professor
>School of Library and Information Science
>Indiana University, Bloomington
>
>List archives at http://lists.ufl.edu/archives/recmgmt-l.html
>Contact [log in to unmask] for assistance
>=========================================================================

List archives at http://lists.ufl.edu/archives/recmgmt-l.html
Contact [log in to unmask] for assistance