How do we prepare the next generation of publishing INDUSTRY leaders?

This article was originally published for The Publishing Training Centre in the UK

Preparing the Next Generation of Publishing Industry Leaders

​Let’s talk about mentoring
When was the last time you heard someone talk about mentoring in the industry? I talk about it all the time. When I first started in the book trade in 1990, I was taken under the wing of our Sales & Marketing Director and for the first four years of my career he shared his immense knowledge with me. He took me to book fairs so I could meet booksellers, he included me in meetings with library and educational suppliers. He taught me how important customer service is and how to get distribution right for all your channel partners. When the company was sold, again I was lucky to be led my two extraordinary women – one the Managing Director and the other my General Manager. Together with the business manager, they taught me about leadership, communication, management, and how publishers operate as a business. I’m forever grateful to all of those who spent their time giving me the best education I could have on the industry. And over the years I’ve shared that experience with other people.
 
Mentoring insights
To me, mentoring is about sharing knowledge and offering insights to help mentees grow. It’s also about skills development and how one can use those for career advancement. It’s also about networking. When I was younger and heard the word “networking” I was filled with dread. While I am naturally an extrovert, I thought networking was about small talk at parties and going to business events to try and “sell your wares”, so to speak. But in this industry, having an extensive network is a wonderful way to increase your knowledge and expertise. It’s not something to fear – it’s about something to grow in the years you work in publishing. It’s also about confidence. And it’s about learning – discovering who’s who in the industry and who does what. It’s about learning about trends and opportunities. And learning from your mistakes!
 
Industry observations
One of the things that concerns me most in the past decade is the lack of knowledge many people in the industry have about key players or sales channels. They don’t know the who’s who, they don’t know the what’s what. These are people who have been in publishing for many years but have not been encouraged to look outside their role or the company they work for – and this disturbs me. We are living in a time where the industry itself creates events to discuss the latest trends or issues but not everyone can attend these or the entry price is too high for smaller publishers. And then when people DO attend, how do they share this knowledge with others?
 
Training and induction
I’ve heard horror stories about inductions at publishing companies. I remember a time when a lot of thought was put into it – weeks of getting to know colleagues and what roles they performed. Months of learning about systems and how everything works. And longer for truly understanding the philosophy of a publishing company. Trust me, there is one. I worked for some years with David Cully at Baker & Taylor and he once told me that “every publisher has its own story and once you knew what it was, you could find a way to work with them”. Staff may get a presentation from someone in HR that puts some sort of slogan or mission statement that “represents” the organisation but it takes a long time for that to take meaning. And some staff will never experience that. And when it comes to workflows, responsibilities and decision making, there is often not enough documented so you’re considered lucky if you get a proper hand-over with the person who was doing the job before you. These days it’s very much a case of “hit the ground running” and that means some tasks fall between the cracks.
 
Let’s piece it altogether
Where I see many publishers failing these days is giving their staff a thorough understanding of the industry as a whole. And not just in their region, but worldwide. People should know the organisations that play a part in how we operate globally. How does metadata work? How does the supply chain work? Who are the major ebook and audiobook players? Who provides content to libraries? What’s happening with textbooks? What are sales rights? How do authors get paid? How can we help our authors succeed? How does social media work? What genres are trending up and down – and why? I could come up with 100 questions that I expect publishing staff to know regardless of whether they are in sales and marketing or working in the warehouse.
 
Why mentoring is important
Everyone has a role to play and sharing knowledge is important. Having a mentoring program – informal or formal – shows leadership and a commitment to the professional development of staff. It helps with career development of existing staff or attracting top talent to your organisation. And from my own experience – whether mentor or mentee – it’s something that helps with personal and professional development. And it’s been highly rewarding.
 
I read somewhere that mentors can influence and shape the future of their industry. It can prepare the next generation of leaders. I’m more than happy to share my knowledge over the 35 years I’ve been in the industry. Are you?
 
 
Rachael McDiarmid has worked in the publishing industry since 1990 in mainly academic & professional publishing, library supply and distribution. She launched her outsourcing and consulting business, RM Marketing Services in 2014 and began teaching the Book Marketing & Sales unit at the University of Sydney in 2022. As she’s too busy running social media accounts for her publisher clients, she’s not great at managing her own channels so best you follow her on LinkedIn where she posts more frequently https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachaelmcdiarmid/