One day next week, Poynter’s homepage will look a bit different. The new right rail you’ll find today on this page will soon appear on all pages, linked to a new Poynter Career Center that’s already quietly open for business.
Did you notice what’s different on that page? Sometimes change is hard to see — even when it’s right in front of us.
Spotting change can be especially difficult when the context stays the same. Poynter’s logo still anchors the top of the page and the color palette and design look familiar. Romenesko remains on the right, followed by Al’s Morning Meeting and the usual fine columns. But we’ve added something new.
The Poynter Career Center offers advice on career management, short takes on lessons learned in various jobs, services and resources to help you better prepare for seeking a job — and, most significantly, a help-wanted advertising section. If you’re an employer, we invite you to purchase an ad for jobs you need to fill. If you’re a job seeker, we invite you to browse the jobs available. If you’re neither, we invite you to peruse Career Center content for tips on getting better at the work you’re already doing.
We’re creating the Career Center because we see change around us. Several pieces on Poynter Online this week have documented fundamental change in the news business, especially the centerpieces by Rick Edmonds, Tim McGuire and Geneva Overholser.
Many reports on the state of the media these days focus on cutbacks and decline, leaving many to wonder if they can expect a career in journalism or the news business. The Career Center looks at industry jobs with new vigor. It offers a daily reminder of the range of options available.
We also see ways in which Poynter needs to change.
The Poynter Career Center broadens our focus from just the newsroom to the whole news enterprise. Sales, marketing, technology and other staffers will see themselves represented along with reporters, editors, producers, designers, photojournalists and media executives.
The Career Center moves Poynter squarely into commercial ventures. The Center is designed as a profit-making entity that charges for posting job openings and for other special services. It operates separately from our academic programs. The Center is led by Colleen Eddy, who joined Poynter earlier this year as director of the Career Center and Business Development. Colleen is a veteran advertising and human resources executive, with experience at The Hartford Courant, the Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle, and the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
The Career Center provides funds for Poynter to strengthen its service to journalists and media leaders. More than half of our revenue comes in the form of dividends from the St. Petersburg Times and other ventures of the Times Publishing Co. The remainder comes from tuition, grants, contributions, and Poynter products. Revenue from the Career Center will help us keep our tuition affordable and provide scholarships for those who need assistance.
If you have suggestions or questions about the Poynter Career Center, I invite you to send them to me by e-mail, add them to the Feedback area below this article, or fill out a special survey we’ve set up here.
For more than 30 years, we’ve taught courses on journalism craft and values, and we’ll continue that focus. Check out our 2007 Poynter seminars and NewsU courses to see the tried and the new offerings for next year. We’ll keep teaching and reaching out and innovating. As we change, we won’t stray from our mission to strengthen journalists and media leaders as they serve citizens in democracies.
At Poynter, that remains the bottom line.
