My fall speaking schedule is unusually heavy. As I prepare presentations for print distributors, commercial print CEOs, and three different events for print buyers, I keep studying a certain body of work I've compiled.

From resumes, research data, panel discussions, conversations, online posts, and hundreds of emails generated by this column, one thing is crystal clear: print buyers do a heck of a lot more than buy print.

We need a new title for them, and we need it now.

But my point for today is not the frustration we all feel about this misleading title; rather, I want to make the point that corporate print buyers have their hands full doing so much more than sourcing print. And it's not about to let up.

From company to company, these pros have dozens of different titles. Typically, they work in areas like Corporate Communications, Creative, Purchasing, Media, Marketing, or Administration.

What does their job usually entail? You may be surprised.

As expected, most manage & coordinate print projects. They set budgets, handle negotiations, manage production processes, conduct press ok's, qualify service providers, and troubleshoot.

So much for the obvious. I've found that the roles of corporate print buyers are more diversified and more managerial than you'd think.

Here are real examples of responsibilities of the modern print buyer. They come from current resumes that we have posted on our site to help buyers find employment, and elsewhere in our research materials. These responsibilities don't apply to every buyer, but they are quite common:

Corporate print buyers…

• Implement effective marketing strategies

• Possess thorough knowledge of printing processes and paper

• Build/lead teams

• Develop budgets and timelines

• Improve costs and efficiencies

• Provide strong customer/client service

• Design multi-media presentations

• Handle art buying

• Handle copy editing

• Proofread

• Produce multiple projects from conception through delivery

• Manage prepress, color retouching, proof/press approvals and fulfillment

• Develop production-related seminars for colleagues

• Develop process workflow documents

• Organize/manage vendor presentations

• Develop/write processes and procedures

• Supervise/train staff, including interviewing candidates

• Conduct performance evaluations of staff

• Manage department-level staff billings

• Enforce QC procedures

• Possess intimate knowledge of USPS procedures and regulations

• Establish departmental goals and procedures

• Mentor junior staff members

• Act as liaison between production and service providers

• Schedule projects

By no means is this list comprehensive. Many buyers also purchase other things, like promotional items, design services, photography, CD-ROMs, and office equipment.

But I believe that the role of corporate print buyers is undergoing transformative change.

Because print is in decline and because newer, electronic media are growing like wildfire, print buyers' roles must change.

Some buyers will lose their jobs (many already have) as companies cut back on their print campaigns.

Others will either assume or be assigned additional responsibilities. I've watched this transformation throughout 2009 and believe it will continue through at least 2011.

What we're experiencing is the evolution of a category of corporate professionals who, on one hand, are strong in their knowledge of print production, and who, on the other hand, have new opportunities thrust at them to stay valuable to their employers and within the marketplace.

What I would really like to see is the buyer's role expanding into other marketing and communications media. Yes, I'm talking electronic media. Print materials are already complementing campaigns produced with new media. Shouldn't the people handling print campaigns be working side by side with those handling new media campaigns?

This is where growth opportunities lie for professional print buyers. The emphasis is on "opportunities." As media technologies evolve, we have a chance to evolve with them. The alternative is to be stuck in the past. No growth can come of that.

Tens of thousands of careers are affected by the decline of print, including print buyers. This explains why our November Conference program includes sessions on new media alongside sessions on printing trends. I guess it's my way of "walking the talk."

You can choose to ignore the obvious - that electronic media are on the rise in business communications, while print declines. Or you can choose to accept it, and work hard at broadening your expertise and becoming more valuable in the marketplace.