At an exclusive roundtable discussion, the nominees for the LIA-Heidelberg Graduate of the Year Award told ProPrint that the way to attract youth to the printing industry was to dispel negative myths and make it seem like an exciting place to work.
The future of the industry was recently called into question by the closure of RMIT’s print training school and the release of a report by the Printing Industries Association of Australia (PIAA) into the changing face of the industry.
Prospective young printing employees have to be made to realise how dynamic and technologically advanced the industry is, according to Murray Grant from Screen and Display, a nominee for Graduate of the Year.
“What I’d like to do is show the procedure of how you can turn a t-shirt into a piece of art,” he said.
“All they see is the design at the end and they’re impressed with that, but they don’t know how it’s done, so to actually show them what goes into that process would spark something inside the younger generation. They would want to get involved in it.”
Fellow nominee Erica Mast from All Book Bindery agreed. “A lot of younger people want to grow up to be artists and do all these wonderful things, and they don’t really know what medium to work in. Print is a really brilliant medium for any artist,” she said.
The PIAA’s national director of communications and marketing, Joe Kowalewski, told ProPrint it was “vital” the industry attracted young people to work within traditional and emerging sectors.
He said younger workers were best placed to handle new technology mediums like social media, data management, website development and image manipulation.
“We’ve got a dynamic, developing industry that we absolutely need new people for,” said Kowalewski.
“There’s just so much opportunity coming through. Print dead? You’ve got to be joking. It’s never been more dynamic than it is now.”
However, Kowalewski said the industry wouldn’t be able to offer roles to young people until it worked out which services it planned to offer in the future.
The LIA Graduates night takes place on 28 May at North Ryde RSL from 6.30pm. RSVPs close this Friday through Mike Williams on 0417 458 032 or email mikewil@optusnet.com.au
Comment below to have your say on this story.
If you have a news story or tip-off, get in touch at editorial@sprinter.com.au.
Sign up to the Sprinter newsletter
About time the printing industry look at the younger generation and recognises what is needed in the market place today to make print relevant. Evolve Printing brings in a new generational way of thinking into a conservative industry. Evolve started in 2009 in the early stages of the GFC with no client base and no one gave us a chance.
My Name is Graham Deaner the Managing Director of Evolve Printing, Printer by trade, Business Consultant and a passion for print very rarely heard of in our industry. Print to me is an art, its part of who I am, and it is something that should be celebrated in todays society.
Evolve printing is having amazing success with a growth rate of over 50% annually not just in sales but in profits, smashing targets, and bringing excitement to our clients, they have not experienced with any other print supplier.
At Evolve Printing we lead the way by setting an example with creative print and push the capabilities in print through our own marketing. (Winning Gold at the 2012 National Print Awards in Melbourne) How are we as an industry meant to excite people about print unless we are excited and are willing to do things differently instead of listening to the doom and gloom that our industry is so very good at advertising.
I love print and love doing things differently, I think as an individual and run Evolve Printing with the passion to help my clients (partner) succeed by creating masterpieces that represent there companies.
When 2 people look at the same picture they see different things, that the way they want to be treated not like a number. It is about time print companies change there way of thinking, that is how we will keep print relevant. Giving companies something they can touch feel and experience and genuinely care about their businesses, because when they succeed we succeed.