The Week in INALJ Non-Library Job Interviews : June 1-5, 2020

by Naomi House, MLIS

The Week in INALJ Non-Library Job Interviews :
June 1-5, 2020

Welcome to the second weekly summary of INALJ’s 2020 series on non-library jobs for library workers and those with their MLIS. For the first weekly summary please read The Week in INALJ Non-Library Job Interviews : May 26-29, 2020.

I am grateful for the time and expertise of all of this week’s interviewees. The aim of the weekly summary is to give a snapshot of the top two takeaways for each interview, then as a value-add I have included further resources for each job title, with an emphasis on jobs resources, associations, and certifications.

As always INALJ remains free and accessible to all with a focus on LIS (library and information science) folk. If you find value in our labor consider contributing. Employers can sponsor a job (which is the funding for the site) or post free jobs and readers can donate. If you would like to contribute your own non-library job career story please email naomi dot house at inalj dot com. I hope you enjoy the series and gain knowledge that helps you in your own job hunt or career.

Here are this week’s 5 interview summaries:

Skip ahead to what to expect next week!


*****

Research Analyst, Data Analyst & Client Analyst, Data Summary

I got the week started with an in depth interview about her career path with Karly Szczepkowski, “On Research Analyst, Data Analyst & Client Analyst, Data Work : an Interview with Karly Szczepkowski.” Two key takeaways from the interview:

  • “Like many companies not affiliated with public or academic libraries, management here is not familiar with the training we receive when we pursue the MLIS. Nor do they understand the transfer of skills in cataloging books to categorizing survey measurements… I had to educate them as to why the MLIS made me a great fit.”
  • “Never stop learning. The MLIS was merely the starting point. To continuously evolve in my career, I had to continuously evolve my skills. The skills that helped me most as a Client Analyst, Data were: Excel, Powerpoint, instruction and access to information, data analysis, and being able to confidently present complex information and data to others. When I moved to the Data Analyst role I added to my skillset with Access, Tableau, Power BI, Microsoft Teams and Salesforce. In my current role as a Research Analyst I’ve expanded my tech skills to include SQL and Python, while also studying survey methodology.”
  • Read the full interview and more tips “On Research Analyst, Data Analyst & Client Analyst, Data Work : an Interview with Karly Szczepkowski.”

Further Resources for Research Analyst, Data Analyst and Client Analyst, Data Jobs


*****

GIS (Geographic Information System) Summary

My interview with Fallon Zschiegner-Bleich explored the ways LIS education already prepares you for GIS work, “On GIS (Geographic Information System) Work : an Interview with Fallon Zschiegner-Bleich.” Two key takeaways from the interview:

  • “If you’re wanting to take this on, definitely stress that database work in an interview. Talk about your ability to work with multiple formats, your past work with maintaining databases and any python or SQL work you may have had. These are all important keywords to mention.”
  • “There is a lot of freeware out there; the most important being QGIS. It is structured differently than ArcGIS which is what many institutions use, but it is a great tool to play with to get started. If you can, for some reason, get a free license to use ArcGis, then Esri has SO many videos for free that can help you learn the basics. Definitely play around with any of those that you can.”
  • Read the full interview and more tips “On GIS (Geographic Information System) Work : an Interview with Fallon Zschiegner-Bleich.”

Further Resources for GIS (Geographic Information System) Jobs

  • Keyword searches for analyst positions on both major library jobs boards like INALJ, SLA and ALA, as well as job aggregators like Indeed and LinkUp. I found the list of career titles by level very helpful, What can you do with your GIS degree?
  • There are certification options as well as online classes that may help. Fallon mentions that “there are a ton of GIS Graduate Certificate programs out there, many of which are entirely online.”


*****

Due Diligence Summary

When I started thinking about doing an interview/article series on non-library jobs for librarians I was inspired by two things: the way the global pandemic was shrinking the availability of traditional library jobs, and my former classmate, Brian Miloscia’s description of his work in due diligence. I realized many in our field may not be familiar with the breadth of job fields they qualify for so I reached out to Brian. He agreed and this is his description of his work, “On Due Diligence Work : an Interview with Brian Miloscia.” Two key takeaways from the interview:

  • “Having a strong understanding of how people search for information and human-computer interaction has helped me build better information repositories and file structures. Sharing information within a bank’s many divisions is critical- so knowing how to organize and present that information is just as critical.”
  • “If you are looking outside the realm of traditional libraries as a career, then I recommend taking the courses that are more transferable. Take the courses on searching, public records, web design, classes pertaining to data organization and presentation and anything with analytics… By taking a number of the more technical courses, such as website development and information visualization, I am able to speak to vendors and IT professionals on their level.
  • Read the full interview and more tips “On Due Diligence Work : an Interview with Brian Miloscia.”

Further Resources for Due Diligence Jobs

  • Due diligence work is done in a number of fields. I myself ran basic due diligence searches at several jobs when they were looking at candidates to give awards to. So the skill of due diligence is used in many traditional libraries as well. For more specific due diligence jobs look at business oriented job search aggregators such as Indeed and LinkUp. Keywords to look out for in your job search include “Enhanced Due Diligence” or “EDD,” “KYC analyst,” and “due diligence.” INALJ covers these too.
  • There are certification options as well as online classes that may help. Brian recommends, “the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists or ACAMS is pretty much the standard.” There are also other associations to look at such as the IMDDA (Investment Management Due Diligence Association).


*****

Training Consultant Summary

If you are a California librarian or library worker then you will definitely want to read this interview with Keisa Williams, but there is enough great info to make it relevant for all library job hunters, “On Training Consultant Work : an Interview with Keisa Williams.” Two key takeaways from the interview:

  • “Don’t be modest here; value your skills at the highest levels. “
  • “Librarians are the ultimate program managers. Our library duties involve program evaluation and planning, policy analysis, systems development, budgeting, planning, management and personnel analysis, and providing consultative services to management and other stakeholders. We are also deeply engaged with the community. Librarians are highly skilled at gaining and maintaining the confidence and cooperation of business partners.”
  • Read the full interview and more tips “On Training Consultant Work : an Interview with Keisa Williams.”

Further Resources for Training Consultant Jobs

  • Keisa delves in depth to answer all the steps you need to do to successfully get a job in the State of California system in her interview including listing job titles that fit librarian’s skillsets. Beyond CA, keyword search for analyst and trainer positions on major library jobs boards like INALJ, SLA and ALA, as well as job aggregators like Indeed and LinkUp.
  • As she says, “my biggest tip is to learn how to describe your librarian duties, using the language from the State job description.”


*****

Development & Prospect Research Summary

Kate Tkacik continues our education about the Prospect Research field that Nicole Fonsh’s interview was about last week in her interview, “On Development & Prospect Research Work : an Interview with Kate Tkacik.” Two key takeaways from the interview:

  • “Let go of the librarian identity and carefully craft your resume and cover letter in a way that explicitly translates your experience and education as a librarian to show how those skills will help you bring success to this ex-library role. Ahead of interviews, familiarize yourself with common prospecting tools. Also, be ready to talk about the mission of the organization you’ll be working for. Fundraising is akin to sales, and your product is your organization.”
  • “Before making the switch, you may want to spend some time researching the state of philanthropy. Like I said above, it’s a major industry, and it’s also a practice with a long, complicated history. Personally, I believe there is an important role for responsible private philanthropy to play in our world. But it is still a field fraught by significant issues relating to power, oppression, and colonialism. It’s also a field overwhelmingly white and male.”
  • Read the full interview and more tips “On Development & Prospect Research Work : an Interview with Kate Tkacik.”

Further Resources for Development & Prospect Research Jobs


*****
Next week I will share interviews from those working in the following fields:

  • Curator
  • DAM (Digital Asset Management)
  • UX & Content Strategy
  • User Research
  • Talent Intelligence

I will continue to run interviews as long as I have them throughout the summer along with other series as yet to be determined. Looking forward to sharing more job fields and more perspectives from LIS Pros / Info Pros who work in non-library jobs. If you are interested in being interviewed for this series, and you are working in a non-library position please email me at naomi dot house at inalj dot com. I am open to those with education and experience in the other GLAM fields as well.

****

Views expressed are those of the interviewees and not INALJ or their employer. Photos provided by the interviewees and permission granted to use them for these interviews.

All INALJ Library and LIS jobs may be found here. How to Sponsor or Post a Job information here.

 

Updated 6/16/2020 : changed the “and” in the title to “&” for consistency across the interview series

Naomi House

Naomi House, MLIS, is the founder and publisher of the popular webzine and jobs list INALJ.com (formerly I Need a Library Job) and former CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) of T160K.org, a crowdfunding platform focused on African patrimony, heritage and cultural projects. INALJ was founded in October 2010 with the assistance of her fellow Rutgers classmate, Elizabeth Leonard. Its social media presence has grown to include Facebook (retired in 2016), Twitter and a LinkedIn group, in addition to the interviews, articles and jobs found on INALJ. INALJ has had over 21 Million page hits and helped many, many thousands of librarians find employment! Through grassroots marketing, word of mouth and a real focus on exploring unconventional resources for job leads, INALJ grew from a subscription base of 20 friends to a website with over 500,000 visits in one month. Naomi believes that well-sourced quantity is quality in this narrow job market and INALJ reflects this with many new jobs published daily. She has also written for the 2011, 2012 and 2013 LexisNexis Government Info Pro and many other publications in the past decade. She presents whenever she can, including serving on three panels at the American Library Association's Annual Conference in Las Vegas; as breakout presenter at OCLC EMEA in Cape Town, South Africa; as a keynote speaker at the Virginia Library Association annual meeting; at the National Press Club in Washington DC; McGill University in Montreal, Canada; the University of the Emirates, Dubai, MLIS program and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Naomi was a Reference, Marketing and Acquisitions Librarian for a contractor at a federal library outside Washington, DC, and has been living and working in Budapest, Hungary and Western New York State. She spent years running her husband’s moving labor website, fixed and sold old houses and assisted her husband cooking delicious Pakistani food. She is preparing to re-enter the workforce and is job hunting. Her husband is now the co-editor of INALJ, a true support!  She has heard of spare time but hasn’t encountered it lately. She pronounces INALJ as eye-na-elle-jay. 

Tags: