Keeping the talent in B2B journalism

In the past few days I've chatted with four old friends from my early days in trade journalism.
None of them is still working in B2B. One is in public relations. One is at a mainstream newspaper. One works for a major network. One works for one of the wire services.
I'm proud of these folks. They've done well.
But there's something sad about the fact that none of them is still working in B2B.

I understand why they left. A quick glance at my resume shows that I've severed my ties to B2B numerous times. I've left trade magazines to work for the Winston-Salem Journal, CNNfn (now CNNMoney), Bloomberg and to start a business. The truth is that there's more glamour in other parts of the media. There's often more professionalism too. And there are plenty of more lucrative ways to make a living than B2B editorial.

The truth is that our industry has a difficult time retaining its most talented people. And in a world where every journalist can become his own publisher, I expect established B2B companies will have more difficulty keeping staff in the future.

So I applaud ASBPE, which several years ago developed its Young Leaders Scholarship as a way to keep young editors interested in B2B journalism. The YLS scholarship sends worthy young editors to the ASBPE convention. (You can find information and an application for this year's scholarship here.)
And now, for the first time, young editors from international publications have a similar opportunity. Trade, Association and Business Publications International will offer its own YLS scholarships to send young editors to the ASBPE show in Chicago. (Information and an application can be found here.)
If you're under 30-years old and working at a B2B publication that won't pay your way to the convention, fill out an application.
I'm serving on a panel at this year's ASBPE show. I hope to see you there.

tags: journalism, b2b, media, trade press, magazines, newsletters