It was with great pleasure that Nicola Franklin, Head of Information Division at Fabric, accepted an award recognising her outstanding involvement and contribution to the information and records management profession from Matt Stephenson, the current Chair of the newly renamed IRMS (Information and Records Management Society), at the Gala Dinner of this year’s Conference.
“I am greatly humbled and proud to receive this award,” said Nicola Franklin. “It is not only vital that a recruiter has a thorough knowledge of the sector they are working in, but I also believe in the importance of good information management to the success of organisations and that information professionals of all kinds receive greater recognition. Having the work I have done to try and help achieve this recognised by the community means a lot to me.”
Getting involved with one or more of the membership groups and associations that represent the information profession is a great way to open the door to continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities. Nicola is a great believer in the fact that career development is in the hands of the individual, and it is up to individuals to grasp opportunities.
As a recruiter supporting the information and records management industry for the past fourteen years, Nicola is a member of many of these groups and enjoys reading their journals and attending events. To get the most out of membership, however, she believes it is important to get more involved and so over the years has volunteered to write articles, speak at seminars and conferences and sit on committees.
Nicola has been attending the IRMS Conference every year since it was held in Leeds in 2003. She has been a speaker for three of those years, ranging from CV and interview advice to marketing records services internally.
Nicola joined the IRMS Accreditation sub-committee at its formation in 2007 and has been working to develop the assessment criteria and marking scheme with her colleagues on the committee. The Accreditation scheme was launched at the 2011 Conference and all the documentation for it can be found on the IRMS website.
Nicola has also been working with two colleagues to organise the ‘Fragmentation of the Information Profession’ meetings. These are designed to facilitate closer collaboration and co-operation between as many of the information groups and associations as possible.
“I would always advise new entrants to the profession to get involved with their professional groups and volunteer for things,” says Nicola . “If you are nervous start off by taking small steps, like doing a short ‘newsy’ report on your experience of a conference for one of the journals, or comment on someone else’s blog post. Gradually this extra-curricular activity will raise your confidence level, which itself will heighten your chances of getting a good career move. Get involved in your professional associations, sit on sub-committees or volunteer for co-opted officer posts – make your association the group you want it to be.”
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