Executive Q&A: Brenda Kai, Executive Director, EDSF

Q: Tell us about EDSF, who its beneficiaries are, and how it is funded.

A: The Electronic Document Scholarship Foundation (EDSF) was founded in 1996 and is the only foundation dedicated to enhancing the value and relevance of document and graphic communications worldwide. As a nonprofit international organization, our programs are designed to attract the best and brightest to the industry. By granting scholarships, fostering education, promoting research, recognizing leaders, encouraging innovation, and gathering and disseminating knowledge, we are helping to build the next generation of digital content and delivery professionals.

EDSF is not membership based and relies solely on contributions to fund our scholarship programs and is supported by companies and individuals involved in the Document Management and Graphic Communications industry.

In addition to the scholarships funded by the EDSF supporters, the Foundation administers scholarships for the following companies: Axis, Inc., Clampitt Paper, Heidelberg USA, The Lewis M. Gabbe Foundation, The Hoods Memorial Fund, OutputLinks and Questex Media Group.

Q: What is your background and how did you get involved with EDSF?

A: I joined EDSF in 2008. Prior to EDSF I was Vice president of Marketing at Docucorp International, a technology company specializing in Customer Communication Management solutions. I also held senior management positions in marketing and communications at eCosmetic.com and TIG Insurance Company.

When Docucorp merged with another company in 2007 I felt it was time to re-evaluate what I really wanted to accomplish in my career. My husband had recently started his second career by getting his masters degree and fulfilling his lifelong dream of becoming a teacher. He came home with wonderful stories of his students and really felt he was making a difference – something you don’t always get in the corporate world.

I had a conversation with a colleague about the possibility of working for a nonprofit organization instead of a traditional business. Two days later he called about the Executive Director position with EDSF. I can honestly say it’s been the most rewarding three years of my career and I now have my own wonderful stories about helping students.

Q: What do you consider to be your greatest achievement in this market?

A: Our greatest achievement to date has been the ability to grow our scholarship funding despite the worst economic crisis in fifty years. This was only possible due to the incredible support we received from dedicated individuals in the industry and our amazing Board Members that include 4over, AIIM International, Allegra Network, AlphaGraphics, BCT, Böwe Bell + Howell, C.P. Bourg, Canon USA, CGS Publishing Technologies, Eastman Kodak, EFI, Equitrac, FedEx Office, Franchise Services, GMC Software, Hewlett-Packard, InfoPrint, InfoTrends, Mimeo.com, Océ North America, OfficeMax, Pitney Bowes, Presstek, PrinterPresence, Quark, Ricoh, RISO, WhatTheyThink.com and Xerox Corporation. We were able to help a large number of students who had seen other sources of financial aid shrink or disappear altogether. That’s something we are extremely proud to say that we accomplished.

Q: If you could change anything, either about your career, your company, or the market as a whole, what would it be and why?

A: I have been very fortunate to have worked for incredible companies and been exposed to great mentors, so there is not much I would change personally. For EDSF I would like to increase our visibility so that students interested in careers in our field know that scholarship funds are available and for companies, in the industry, to know that when they have vacancies there are incredibly bright, talented EDSF scholarship recipients available to fill those positions.

Q: What do you consider to be the greatest challenge and asset for the industry right now?

A: We live in a global economy and in order to remain competitive it demands that we recognize that the environment changes rapidly due to new technology, processes or client demands. That also means that the industry needs the type of new talent that is not tied to old paradigms and that can bring fresh creative ideas and flexible thinking to our business. In an article called “The New Printing Workforce,” Frank Romano concluded that the printing industry had a skills shortage of IT-based employees.

EDSF is helping bridge that shortage. The scholarship recipients that we work with are excited about the industry. One of our recipients was recently interviewed and was asked what he thought of the statement “print is dead”. He started laughing and asked where that idea came from. Print is not dead but it is constantly evolving!

Q: What are the biggest challenges to the way we communicate with one another in the past few yeas? How would you recommend our industry take advantage of that?

A: Without a doubt, the way we communicate has been changed forever by the use of the internet, wireless communication devices and more specifically all the social networking tools. A good example of this in our industry is the web to print capabilities that customers now view as a necessity. Certainly one challenge to be faced is how to compress large textual documents into easily transmitted and recovered communications. Formatting is a field that is wide open for creative minds and a growing segment of our industry.

Q: Looking ahead, what major innovations or technologies do you believe will shape the future of the industry?

A: This is one of the essay questions that we ask on our scholarship applications and the applicants are much more qualified than I am to address the question. Out of the hundreds of essays we receive, most center around social networking and the new cloud technology. However, I do think that our industry, like all others, must look more at creative thinking to lead the way toward innovation. It really is the ability to anticipate what will be desired on the customer side and matching that to new concepts that will shape the future. That is one reason we feel what we do at EDSF is important - we hope and believe that one of our students will be responsible for a breakthrough in the industry.

Q: What one piece of advice would you like to give printers and others in the industry?

A: Get to know EDSF! More than ever before, there is a critical need for individuals and companies to support the future of the document management and graphic communications industry. EDSF’s scholarship program enables students to receive the education necessary to pursue careers in the industry, while providing much needed assistance in offsetting an ever-increasing financial burden.

Please join us as we work together to provide our future business leaders with the skills and knowledge necessary to shape our industry for years to come. Visit the website at www.edsf.org or more information or come visit our booth at AIIM/OnDemand in March.