The Impact
The next question posed—“Have you ever worked in the print industry?”—was to validate if their stated intention was actually acted upon. Eighty percent said they have (or had) a career in the industry, 18 percent said they did so while interning, and 2 percent have never worked in print. The good news was that 60 percent of the respondents still work in print. These results reflected the success of the program, the follow-through of the alumni and an outcome the program seeks.
When You Declared as a Graphics Major, Did You Intend to Work in the Print Industry?
So, why do companies need to be aware of the shift in both gender and the apparent disinterest in pursuing a career in print? The results from the survey’s last group—FTA members—showcase the differences as well as the potential impact. Simply put, the current gender distribution is in opposition of the graphics education programs with a ratio of 67 percent male to 33 percent female. As with most manufacturing, there is the factor of the eventual “aging out” of the workforce, but the concern should stem from the limited number of 20-to-30-year-olds who were interested in print. These are the individuals (both male and female) who will be needed for normal replacement of those who retire. This is a concern because there simply aren’t enough young people to replace their older counterparts. Are companies going to be hit with a double whammy: not enough skilled/educated young professionals to replace departing workers and also a perception of a male-centric workforce when the largest pool of potential new employees is in fact female?
To explore this notion, both alumni and female FTA members who stated they had left the print industry were given the opportunity to explain why they left. Interestingly, the results are in line with other research related to women in manufacturing fields. These results can be easily grouped under several umbrellas such as:
- Opportunities are not equal for all
- Equal treatment between the genders in regard to promotion
- Salary gap between the genders
- The stereotype women will not be as serious as employees, because of marriage and family
- Belief that women are underrepresented within their organization’s leadership team
- A lack of people whom they could look to as role models, mentors or sponsors
Did/Do You Intend to Enter the Printing Industry After Graduation?
Whether any of these generalizations are in fact true within the print industry is irrelevant because as long as the perception is there, it will influence young professional women’s opinions and decisions to either enter and stay or leave the print industry.
Changing the Industry
To wrap this up, when comparing previous graphics students and current ones, it is clear something will need to be done to attract and retain the best and brightest, firstly in the four-year institutions and ultimately, in the print industry as well. If the “best and the brightest” happen to be female, the industry will want to develop a formal mentoring program, create more flexible work practices and expand the number of women in leadership roles. We all need someone in the work environment who “looks” like us—someone we can see as a success story.
Furthermore, a concerted effort should be undertaken to re-brand the entire industry as more female-friendly. Every day we help manage millions of brands, successfully executing the physical form of a product’s brand “story.” It is time to do the same for our industry.
About the Author: Dr. Nona Woolbright has been a faculty member at Clemson University since 2002 and has more than 20 total years of teaching experience. She is currently lead instructor for GC 4480: Planning and Controlling Printing Functions. Over the past six years, Dr. Woolbright has coordinated Clemson’s Phoenix Challenge college team—an international competition for flexographic printing where her team has won multiple awards. She also developed the department’s first study abroad program and for the past six years has led a group of students to the U.K. to study global packaging design. Dr. Woolbright is also the department’s graduate studies coordinator and has been appointed to a number of other departmental and university-wide committees over the years. Dr. Woolbright has also been a judge for and served on several FTA committees, and spoken at FTA events.