A deep convo about strategy

This post features a sequence of four videos about strategy, in which I have a conversation with Mark John Stewart, an entrepreneur of note (Wentworth Strategy, FlyPrint), not-for-profit co-founder (Empowerment Squared) and MCM strategy instructor. We really got into it. Enjoy. These videos were recorded to serve the community of learners who are seeking Accreditation …

New Year’s Resolutions 2021

This year was a strange year. COVID-19 kept us at home and made many of us sick – I had extended family members who caught COVID-19 and survived, thankfully. As many of you know, my life revolves around my work as a professor of communication studies and communications management at McMaster University and my work …

Endings and beginnings

The gathering of students, faculty and alumni who came together for my last Residency Gala Dinner as MCM Director, at Trius Winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake. A lovely night. I was very grateful. Sometimes we immerse ourselves so completely in something, that we don’t see the years roll by, focused as we are on the exciting task …

What makes the McMaster-Syracuse MCM program so special?

Last week, I was happy to host my 17th residency as director of the Master of Communications Management program, offered in partnership McMaster University and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. It was, as they all have been, a beautiful, warm, exciting and fascinating experience. The MCM program and community is …

Back from research leave

This Canada Day marked my return from a year’s research leave. It has been a good year- I moved into a new home, got involved in the federal election, made a bunch of great new friends, and wrote most of a new book on social media in Canada. I also became pescetarian and mindfully started …

Measurement in #PR – Social network analysis

At the heart of public relations practice is the relationship. Whether they are internal or external, relationships are the currency that we deal in. One metric that we don’t pay enough attention to is how networks of affinity build around a brand. A network analysis can help with this. The challenge is that network analysis …

Strategic PR and the value chain, pt 5: building relationships in social media

In yesterday’s post, I discussed how public relations became more strategic, as it evolved into a two-way symmetrical model, focused on building relationships between organizations and their publics. Today, I will  discuss how social media has changed the landscape and evolved PR strategy from a two-way symmetrical model to a two-way dialogical model. Social media has …

A tribute to Terry Flynn, my dear colleague and PR mentor

Today, my colleague Terry Flynn, co-founder (with Maria Russell) of the McMaster-Syracuse Master of Communications Management program (of which I am director), was interviewed for the McMaster Daily News today. The piece listed his recent achievements and focused on his opinions on the unfolding crises in journalism in the Leslie Roberts, Amanda Lang and Jian …