Remember that old stereotype of the records manager working alone in the basement, shuffling papers? Let me tell you why that image is completely outdated and why today's information management professionals need a much more dynamic skill set.
The contemporary information management practitioner needs:
- Strong collaboration abilities
- Business analysis skills
- Technical competency
- Excellent communication skills
- The ability to translate between technical and non-technical needs
At a recent conference, I heard someone say, "Well, I'm just a records manager. I don't deal with AI." This broke my heart! This is exactly the kind of thinking we need to move away from. Information management professionals have a unique opportunity to get in on the ground floor of emerging technologies and help guide their implementation.
One of my favorite examples of bridging this gap comes from a structured data archiving project I led. We had to create a heat map and roadmap for what to tackle first, involving stakeholders from both business and IT. There was often a gap in understanding the lingo between these groups, but that's where information management professionals can add tremendous value - by helping both sides understand each other's perspectives and needs.
Don't limit yourself by thinking you're "just" anything. If you want to grow your career and elevate your profession, be open to new opportunities. Whether it's dealing with hard copy records or AI-generated content, the fundamental principles of information management still apply - we just need to adapt our skills to new formats and technologies.
The future of information management isn't in the basement - it's wherever information lives in your organization, which today means everywhere.
This blog post is based on an original AIIM OnAir podcast. When recording podcasts, AIIM uses AI-enabled transcription in Zoom. We then use that transcription as part of a prompt with Claude Pro, Anthropic’s AI assistant. AIIM staff (aka humans) then edit the output from Claude for accuracy, completeness, and tone. In this way, we use AI to increase the accessibility of our podcast and extend the value of great content.